What to watch for in Gonzaga's exhibition opener against Northwest University

The Zags open up the season with an exhibition game on Sunday in Spokane

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Adam Miller (23) at the 2025 Kraziness in the Kennel event at McCarthey Athletic Center. | Photo by Mercedes Smith

The 2025-26 season for Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs tips off earlier than usual with an exhibition matchup scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 19 at 2:00 PM PT at the McCarthey Athletic Center against the Northwest University Eagles.

The game will be broadcast live on SWX for fans local to the Spokane area, and will be available on the radio on 96.1 FM as well as on the Varsity Sports App.

Northwest is an NAIA school located in Kirkland, WA, that went 5-23 last year and 4-18 in the Cascade Collegiate Conference.

While the game will not count in the standings for either team, it will represent a great opportunity for coach Few to experiment with lineups and rotations — crucial for a roster that only returns four rotation players from last year.

Tyon Grant-Foster, Gonzaga's prized transfer portal addition from Grand Canyon, is currently ineligible to play in games while he awaits a waiver from the NCAA. While he was granted a practice waiver — which allowed him to compete at Kraziness in the Kennel — it is unlikely he will participate on Sunday, which gives more opportunity for Steele Venters, Jalen Warley, Emmanuel Innocenti, and freshman Davis Fogle in what is Gonzaga's deepest position group.

Gonzaga Bulldogs Tyon Grant-Foster (left) and Adam Miller (right) during 2025 Kraziness in the Kennel. | Photo by Mercedes Smith

The game on Sunday will also be another chance for the Zag faithful to woo a high-level recruit to Spokane. Luca Foster, a 4-star wing and top 40 recruit in the 2026 class, will be on campus for the game and could become the third Zag commit this month, following German guard Jack Kayil and 4-star center Sam Funches.

Below is a look at five things to watch for during Gonzaga's exhibition opener on Sunday:

1. Point guard position battle

Gonzaga landed Colgate transfer Braeden Smith last offseason with the express goal of having him redshirt to learn the ropes from Ryan Nembhard in order to seamlessly take over as the team's point guard in 2025-26.

That remains the plan, but a slight wrinkle has emerged in the form of Spanish superstar guard Mario Saint-Supery — who, despite spending less than half the offseason in Spokane, is already pushing Smith for playing time at the one, according to coach Few.

Gonzaga Bulldogs Braeden Smith (left) and Mario Saint-Supery (right) during 2025 Kraziness in the Kennel. | Photo by Mercedes Smith

"I think Mario is really gonna push Braeden," Few told Rothstein on the Inside College Basketball podcast. "I see both of them handling the point guard duties, if not equally, then sharing it enough where we will get great point guard play this year."

One exhibition game won't give fans, or even the coaches, an exact idea of how this position battle will materialize — but it offers a starting point. Smith and Saint-Supery pushing each other will be good for both players and ideally good for this entire Gonzaga team as well, and Sunday's game will be a good opportunity for both of them to get plenty of on-ball reps before the real games begin.

2. Big man duo

Graham Ike and Braden Huff started three games together at the very end of the 2024-25 season, and the results were excellent. Now, after an entire offseason working together, fans will see just how dominant this duo can be sharing the floor all night long.

Oct 4, 2025; Spokane, WA, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs forwards Graham Ike (15) and Braden Huff (34) meet at center court during Numerica Kraziness in the Kennel at the McCarthey Athletic Center. | James Snook-Imagn Images

Will a routine emerge where one of them is consistently playing down on the block while the other plays the more traditional power forward role, or will the two alternate based on matchups? That won't be determined solely after one exhibition game, but it will be worth watching to see how often those two switch up who is posting up on the block and who is handling the ball away from the rim.

3. Real Steele Venters

After two full seasons on the shelf, former Eastern Washington guard Steele Venters is finally healthy and ready to bring his elite outside shooting into Gonzaga's system. Venters committed to Gonzaga in the spring of 2023, but suffered a torn ACL just two days before the 2023-24 season began.

While recovering from said injury, Venters injured his Achilles and missed all of 2024-25 as well, but his recovery is going quite well — as evidenced by his strong performance at Kraziness in the Kennel two weeks ago, when he scored nine points on 3-4 shooting, including a pair of transition threes.

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Steele Venters. | Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

Venters will be a big factor for Gonzaga this season as a perimeter scorer, especially if Grant-Foster is not granted a waiver. His floor spacing, off-ball movement, and positional size will make him a valuable player for the Zags, particularly coming off the program's worst three-point shooting team under coach Few.

Getting onto the floor, even in an exhibition game, will be an emotional moment for the fans, coaches, and Venters himself. The Centralia native has waited many years to finally suit up for Gonzaga, and this will be one of the best and most heartfelt stories of the day, and really the entire 2025-26 season.

4. Gonzaga's transfer additions

While we don't expect to see Grant-Foster on Sunday, Gonzaga fans will get a chance to see a pair of other veteran transfers perform out on the perimeter. Jalen Warley redshirted last year alongside Smith and projects as a versatile defensive weapon for Gonzaga. Capable of guarding 1-4, Warley's 6'7 frame will make him a problem for opponents all year long. The Zags could have him play some small-ball four in this game to see how it looks, as it could become necessary this season with foul issues a potential concern in the frontcourt.

Oct 4, 2025; Spokane, WA, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Jalen Warley (8) rebounds the ball against forward Emmanuel Innocenti (5) during Numerica Kraziness in the Kennel at the McCarthey Athletic Center. | James Snook-Imagn Images

Adam Miller's role is more defined, as the former Illinois, LSU, and Arizona State guard was brought to Gonzaga mostly to replace Nolan Hickman as a sharpshooting two guard. Miller dropped 13 points at Kraziness two weeks ago and should continue settling into a big role for coach Few's team.

5. Fabulous freshmen (and walk-ons!)

Saint-Supery is not the only freshman joining the Zags this season. Davis Fogle, a 6'7 wing from Anacortes, WA, and Parker Jefferson, a 6'9 big man from Texas, are both expected to appear in their first game on Sunday against the Eagles.

While neither is expected to be a significant part of Gonzaga's rotation this season, exhibition games are a perfect opportunity to get game reps and feedback from the coaching staff as part of their development process.

Gonzaga Bulldogs guards Cade Orness (0) and Joaquim ArauzMoore (10). | Photo by Mercedes Smith

This game will also provide a chance to see Gonzaga's deep bench players — Noah Haaland, Cade Orness, Joaquim ArauzMoore, and newcomer Alonzo Metz — on the floor as well, something that may not happen much, or at all, during the regular season.