Terps Fall To No.9 Gonzaga At Players Era Championship

The Maryland Terrapins fell to the Gonzaga Bulldogs on Tuesday evening, unable to keep pace with the high-powered offense at the Players Era Championship.

Nov 25, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA;Maryland Terrapins guard Myles Rice (2) shoots between Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Jalen Warley (8) and forward Graham Ike (15) in the second half in a 2025 Players Era Festival group play game at MGM Grand Garden Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Leading by 15 at the half, Gonzaga further expanded its lead and never looked back in the second half, defeating the Maryland Terrapin men's basketball team, 100-61, at the Players Era Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Both Maryland (5-2) and Gonzaga (7-0) were on the heels of a back-to-back less than 24 hours before their matchup in the Players' Era Tournament. The Terps had gutted out a tough win over UNLV, and the Bulldogs were playing a talented Alabama team, which they pulled away from in the second half.

Opening up the contest, Gonzaga didn't waste any time jumping out on offense, hitting 7-of-11 shots, four of them being 3-point jumpers. The fast start would allow them to carry a lead not only through the first half but also the rest of the way.

The Terps offense struggled in the first half, shooting 9-of-23 from the field and turning the ball over nine times.

The Bulldogs blew the game open in the second half, making their first eight shots from the field, including two 3-pointers by Emmanuel Innocenti. It would carry them to the end of the game, even at one point leading by as many as 42 points.

Pharrel Payne was once again Maryland's leading scorer with 14 points, adding seven rebounds and two steals.

Guards Darius Adams (13 points) and Andre Mills (11 points) rounded out the Terps' double-digit scorers. Adams has now scored in double figures in five straight games.

Gonzaga's Braden Huff was on a heater all night, leading all players with 20 points on a near-perfect 9-of-10 shooting. Steele Venters added 14 points, knocking down four 3-pointers. Graham Ike scored 13 points, with six rebounds, four assists, and two steals.

Innocenti finished with 15 off the bench making five 3-pointers.

Maryland will now face No. 8 Alabama in the final round of the tournament on Wednesday.

Key Team Stats

• Gonzaga shot 37-of-64 from the field (57.8%)

• The Bulldogs made 14-of-33 total three-pointers (42.4%).

• The Terps shot 16 of 23 at the charity strike.

• Gonzaga outrebounded Maryland 39-29.

• Maryland had nine assists, and Gonzaga finished with 30.

• The Bulldogs had 51 bench points.

• Gonzaga scored 32 points off turnovers and 44 points in the paint.

Postgame, Head Coach Buzz Williams was asked how much of what went wrong for the Terps was on the team versus on Gonzaga, given that Gonzaga is that elite a team. He responded, stating;

"Yeah, I would say probably both. They are incredibly good. I think relative to the infancy of where we're at, as difficult as this is, playing in a tournament like this affords us an opportunity to diagnose even more at a faster rate."

Williams continued by summing up how playing a Gonzaga team of this caliber, which will compete for a National Championship this early in the season, allows them to grow and respond.