Mark Few’s Rebuilt Pac-12 Era Begins With Vintage Gonzaga Firepower

Under the bright Las Vegas lights inside T-Mobile Arena on opening night, sophomore wing Davis Fogle rose cleanly from the perimeter over an outstretched hand and buried another dagger to keep battle-tested Purdue at arm’s length. Fogle’s poised 22-point outburst steered Gonzaga past the Boilermakers 78-72, delivering an immediate high-major statement before the Bulldogs returned home to Spokane four nights later and detonated New Mexico State 109-68 at the McCarthey Athletic Center.

Now ranked No. 14 nationally at 2-0 as the program transitions into the rebuilt Pac-12 for the 2026-27 season, Mark Few’s squad looks every bit as lethal offensively as Spokane’s finest teams of the past decade. Priced at +3300 by oddsmakers to cut down the nets in April 2027, Gonzaga pairs veteran low-post craft with explosive perimeter length, relentless rim pressure, and a razor-sharp 2.4 assist-to-turnover ratio across its opening two tests.

Sophomore Leap From Davis Fogle and Isiah Harwell Transforms the Wing

For years, critics wondered whether Gonzaga possessed enough jumbo perimeter athleticism to trade buckets with elite athletes deep in the NCAA Tournament. Sophomores Davis Fogle (6-foot-7, 200 pounds) and Isiah Harwell (6-foot-6, 216 pounds) have silenced that question inside the season’s opening week. Fogle followed his 22-point clinic against Purdue with another 22-point gem against New Mexico State, seamlessly blending transition finishes with effortless catch-and-shoot range.

Harwell matched Fogle point-for-point with 22 of his own in Saturday’s 41-point home rout, giving Few two interchangeable wings who can switch across perimeter screens and punish mismatches off the bounce. Backed by freshman guards Juwan Ekanga (6-foot-6) and Carter Nilson (6-foot-5) plus freshman forward Luca Foster, Gonzaga’s wing rotation boasts rare positional height that suffocates passing windows, closes out cleanly on shooters, and fuels instant fast-break runouts.

Xaivian Lee’s Playmaking Unlocks Braden Huff and Deep Frontcourt Skill

Orchestrating all of that scoring punch is a veteran backcourt trio led by 6-foot-4 senior guard Xaivian Lee, 6-foot-3 senior Nathan De Sousa, and 5-foot-10 senior guard Javon Bennett. De Sousa steadied the offense with four assists in the tight neutral-site win over Purdue, while Lee dished out 10 assists in Saturday’s blowout of New Mexico State. Together, they have guided Gonzaga to 19.0 assists against merely 8.0 turnovers per game, refusing to let opposing ball pressure speed up their half-court reads.

Inside the paint, 6-foot-10, 250-pound senior forward Braden Huff remains one of college basketball’s most polished interior technicians, hauling in seven rebounds against Purdue before pouring in 20 points against New Mexico State. Few surrounds Huff with enviable frontcourt variety: 6-foot-10 junior forward Izan Almansa, stretch 6-foot-11 senior Chauncey Wiggins, 7-foot-1 sophomore center Massamba Diop (seven boards Saturday), 7-foot freshman Sam Funches, and 6-foot-9 sophomore Parker Jefferson, giving Spokane foul insurance and versatile high-low passing options.

Surgical Shooting Splits and Relentless Rim Pressure Drive 93.5 PPG

Gonzaga’s early statistical profile reads like an offensive efficiency clinic. Averaging 93.5 points per game across two outings while holding Purdue and New Mexico State to 70.0 points per contest, the Bulldogs are connecting on 53.0 percent of their field goals (61-of-115), 56.0 percent of their two-point attempts (42-of-75), and 9.5 made three-pointers on just 20.0 attempts per night (47.5 percent). That shot selection produces a remarkable 0.61 shooting efficiency—which weights triples to measure true field-goal value.

Crucially, Few’s offense refuses to settle for contested jumpers when defenders run shooters off the line. Gonzaga is generating an eye-popping 31.5 free-throw attempts per game and knocking down 23.0 per contest (73.0 percent), propelling its scoring efficiency—total points divided by field-goal attempts—to an elite 1.626. Cleaning up the defensive glass (currently 32.0 total rebounds per game with 10.5 offensive boards) and trimming 19.0 fouls per game are the lone early nitpicks.

High-Major Nonconference Tests Prepare Spokane for a New League Landscape

Stepping out of the West Coast Conference into the reimagined Pac-12 alters Gonzaga’s winter rhythm, placing even greater weight on November and December resume builders alongside new conference foes such as San Diego State, Boise State, Utah State, and Colorado State. This Saturday, November 14, the Bulldogs host SEC challenger LSU inside Spokane Numerica Veterans Arena, giving Huff, Diop, and Almansa an immediate physical rebounding test in front of a packed local crowd before welcoming Montana State back to campus.

Later this month, Gonzaga returns to T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on November 24 to battle Big 12 foe Kansas State, followed by a marquee December 5 neutral-floor showdown against No. 9 UCLA at the Honda Center in Anaheim. Already owning a neutral-court triumph over Purdue, picking up victories over LSU, Kansas State, and top-ten UCLA would cement Gonzaga’s case for a protected seed in the 2027 NCAA Tournament.

2027 National Championship Outlook and Futures Value Verdict

Few’s track record of reaching the second weekend of March Madness is practically unmatched in modern college hoops, yet this 2026-27 roster carries an upside swing factor that recent Spokane squads occasionally lacked: elite two-way wing creation from Fogle and Harwell. When opposing defenses load up to deny Huff’s left-shoulder hooks in the post, Lee and Bennett now have dynamic 6-foot-6 and 6-foot-7 shot-makers waiting on the weak side to attack closeouts or bury rhythm threes.

If Massamba Diop and Almansa provide steady vertical rim protection without foul trouble—helping trim Gonzaga’s 19.0 personal fouls per outing while lifting defensive rebounding volume—this lineup possesses no glaring schematic weakness. Anchored by veteran guards who rarely turn the ball over and an offense already humming at 93.5 points per game, No. 14 Gonzaga has clear runway to contend for a 2027 Final Four berth.