Gonzaga’s New Year’s Eve plans now have an opponent.
The Zags are set to host Cornell on Dec. 31, according to a Friday report from Bracketeer.com’s Rocco Miller. A tipoff time and television information will be announced later.
That game is expected to be Gonzaga’s final nonconference tune-up before the calendar flips and Pac-12 play begins in January. It won’t be the absolute last nonleague game on the schedule - Gonzaga still travels to Detroit on Feb. 20 to face Duke - but for now it stands as the lone game between a Dec. 19 meeting with Michigan State in Palm Springs and the end of the year.
Cornell gives Mark Few’s team its fourth known home nonconference game. The Bulldogs are already scheduled to host New Mexico State on Nov.
7, Montana State on Nov. 17 and NAIA Eastern Oregon on Dec. 2.
LSU is also coming to Spokane for a Nov. 14 game at Numerica Veterans Arena.
The matchup will be the first between Gonzaga and Cornell and only the second time the Zags have faced an Ivy League opponent. Yale has been to Spokane twice, first at Numerica Veterans Arena in 1992 and again at McCarthey Athletic Center in 2023.
Cornell finished fourth in the Ivy League last season with a 15-13 overall record and an 8-6 mark in conference play. Third-year coach Jon Jaques, a former Cornell captain from 2006-10, has to replace all three of his double-digit scorers from a year ago, including guards Cooper Noard, who averaged 18.2 points per game, and Jake Fiegen, who averaged 17.1. The top returning piece is starting point guard Jacob Beccles, who posted 7.7 points, 3.1 assists and 2.5 rebounds per game.
In Other News...
Gonzaga Faces A Late Backcourt Decision With Veteran Guard
Gonzagas womens basketball roster has already taken shape for the coming season, with 10 players back from last year and a mix of new transfers and a freshman joining the group. But one veteran piece remains in limbo, as Ines Bettencourt has entered the transfer portal after being granted a fifth year of eligibility through a temporary restraining order tied to a California lawsuit.
For Gonzaga, the move leaves a late backcourt decision hanging over the program and keeps one of its experienced guards in play for either a return or a fresh start elsewhere. Bettencourt can still choose to come back to Spokane for the 2026-27 season, but for now her next stop remains unresolved as the Bulldogs wait to see how the roster settles around her situation. [Read more 🡒]
Gonzagas Point Guard Plans Just Got Complicated Again
Javon Bennetts path to Gonzaga got a lot less straightforward again this week, and for a player trying to map out his next college season, the timing matters. The Dayton transfer and Gonzaga point guard commit had been moving through the usual offseason questions, but his case now sits inside a much bigger NCAA eligibility fight that continues to bounce between courts.
Recent legal wins for the NCAA have complicated the picture, with stays granted in the federal Wisne lawsuit and in the Borovicanin case out of Ohio. Those rulings affect Bennett and other athletes seeking a fifth season, even as some players in similar situations, including Gonzaga commit Chauncey Wiggins, still remain eligible under separate state injunctions. For Gonzaga, it is another reminder that roster planning can change quickly while the legal process keeps sorting itself out. [Read more 🡒]
Gonzagas Backcourt Plans Just Took Another Hit Before The Season
The latest court ruling has added another layer of uncertainty to Gonzagas backcourt plans before the season even gets going. In the Wisne vs. NCAA federal lawsuit, the Tenth Circuit granted the NCAAs stay request, which means student-athletes from the 2022 class are now ineligible while the case works through the appeals process. For Gonzaga, the immediate impact falls on Dayton transfer point guard Javon Bennett, whose status for the upcoming season is now in question.
Bennett is not the only name to monitor, either. Xaivian Lee, Donovan Dent and Chauncey Wiggins remain eligible for now because of separate state rulings, but that does not mean their situations are settled. NCAA stay requests in those cases could still change the picture, leaving Gonzaga with a roster issue that could shift again before the Bulldogs ever get to opening night. [Read more 🡒]