#6/5 Gonzaga (4-1) vs. #24/23 Purdue (4-0)
FRIDAY, NOV. 25 | 8:30 P.M. | MODA CENTER | PORTLAND, OR
TELEVISION: ESPN
LIVE VIDEO | LIVE RADIO | LIVE STATS
 
THE TIP OFF
- Gonzaga faces Purdue in the semifinals of the Phil Knight Legacy inside the Moda Center Friday night at 8:30.
- The Boilermakers have won both of the previous meetings, but the programs have not met since 2000.
- GU returns to the Rose Quarter where it defeated Georgia State and Memphis in last season's NCAA Tournament first and second rounds. The Bulldogs also placed third in their bracket in the PK80 Invitational in 2017. Gonzaga is 5-1 all-time inside the Moda Center, four NCAA Tournament wins and the lone loss in double-overtime.
- The Bulldogs are in the midst of a stretch of games against potentially six currently ranked teams over a seven-game span; No. 12 Michigan State, won 64-63; at No. 4 Texas, lost 74-93; No. 4 Kentucky, won 88-72; No. 24 Purdue; No. 8 Duke; No. 7 Baylor. Texas, Kentucky, Baylor and Duke are currently first, fourth, seventh and ninth in the KenPom rankings, while the Zags are third. GU visits 11th-ranked in KenPom, Alabama, on Dec. 17.
- Gonzaga is coming off a 102-78 victory over Portland State in the Phil Knight Legacy quarterfinals late Thursday night. Six Zags finished in double-digit scoring led Malachi Smith's season-high 23 points. He was 5-of-5 from three-point range, while the Bulldogs made 12-of-24 as a team. The Zags finished with a season-high 24 assists.
 
SCOUTING THE BOILERMAKERS
- After winning its first three games of the season at home, Purdue picked up an 80-68 victory over West Virginia in the Phil Knight Legacy Quarterfinals Friday.
- Zach Edey had 24 points and 12 rebounds, while Mason Gillis added 14 points for the Boilermakers. Purdue outrebounded West Virginia 34-32 and shot 47.1% from 3-point range (8 for 17).
- Edey averages a national-best 13.3 rebounds per game, along with 21.5 points and 2.8 blocks.
- Braden Smith adds 10.3 points per outing. Ethan Morton dishes out a team-best 5.3 assists per game.
- Purdue was picked fifth in the Big Ten Preseason Poll, with one first-place vote.
- Edey was voted a unanimous selection to the preseason All-Big Ten first-team squad. Edey, a preseason All-American as well, was a second-team All-Big Ten honoree and honorable mention All-American (AP) a year ago, while leading the Big Ten and ranking third nationally in field goal percentage at 64.8 percent – the fifth-best single-season percentage in school history.
- Purdue returns two starters (Edey, Mason Gillis) and eight letterwinners from last year's team that finished 29-8 and was ranked inside the Associated Press Top 10 all season long.
 
SERIES INFO
- This is the third all-time meeting between Gonzaga and Purdue. The Boilermakers won both of the previous meetings.
- Purdue won the first all-time meeting, 83-68, in West Lafayette on Nov. 18, 1998. The Boilermakers were ranked No. 15 at the time.
- In the second meeting, No. 25 Purdue held off Gonzaga in the NCAA Tournament West Regional semifinal in Albuquerque, N.M., 75-66, March 23, 2000.
- The Zags are 17-20 against Big Ten competition, including 16-14 under Mark Few. GU has won six of its last seven games against Big Ten foes.
 
UP NEXT
- Depending on the outcome of Friday's game, Gonzaga faces either Duke or Xavier.
- A win on Friday over Purdue advances the Zags to the PK Legacy Championships Sunday at 12:30 p.m.
- A loss to Purdue moves GU to the third-place game at 4:30 p.m. game Sunday.
- The Championship game is in the Moda Center and the third-place game will be in the Memorial Coliseum.
 
NEXT POTENTIAL OPPONENTS AT PK LEGACY
- Third game
Duke - Duke leads the series, 3-1
Xavier - Gonzaga leads the series, 4-1
 
MILESTONE WATCH
- Drew Timme ranks 12th in program history with 1,623 points and 12th with 658 rebounds. He is 23 points from the Top-10, and six rebounds from matching Jim Dixon's 11th-best mark.
- Rasir Bolton is two steals from 100 in his career.
- Rasir Bolton is one assists from 300 in his career.
 
A ZAG WIN WOULD ...
- Improve Gonzaga's record against ranked opponents to 29-12 since March 2016.
- Improve Drew Timme's collegiate record to 95-8 in a Gonzaga uniform. (92.2 win percentage)
 
GIVING THANKS FOR THESE EVENTS
- Gonzaga is 43-11 under Mark Few in events during the week of Thanksgiving, and 32-5 in the last nine Thanksgiving week events including this one.
- Under Mark Few, GU has won seven tournaments during the week of Thanksgiving, and played in 11 of the 15 tournament championship games.
- Last season, the Bulldogs won the Empire Classic in Las Vegas, defeating Central Michigan and No. 2 UCLA. Top-ranked Gonzaga then fell to No. 5 Duke, 84-81, in the Continental Tire Challenge the Friday after Thanksgiving in T-Mobile Arena.
 
LAST TIME AT PK80
- At the PK80 Invitational in 2017, Gonzaga placed third following a 76-71 overtime win over Texas. The Zags led by as many as 21 points with 14:08 before the Longhorns stormed back to force overtime. Rui Hachimura led GU with 20 points and nine rebounds.
- In the semifinals, seventh-ranked Florida outlasted No. 17 Gonzaga, 111-105, in double overtime. The game featured 17 lead changes and 11 ties. All five Bulldog starters finished in double-digit scoring led by Johnathan Williams' career-high 39 points on 16-of-22 shooting. He added 12 points. Jalen Hudson led Florida with 35 points, making eight of the Gators' 17 threes.
- The night before in the quarterfinals, Williams scored 21 points, while Josh Perkins had 20, in an 86-59 rout win over Ohio State. GU finished 58.5 percent from the field, including 12-of-25 from three-point range.
 
ROSEY CONNECTIONS
- Gonzaga has a history of players from Portland and its surrounding area.
- Current Zag Ben Gregg grew up just south of Portland and attended Clackamas High School, while Kaden Perry is from Battle Ground, Wash., 26 miles north of the Rose City.
- Former GU standouts Nigel Williams-Goss, Kyle Wiltjer, Mike Hart, Silas Melson and Matt Santangelo are all from the Portland area.
- Richie Frahm (Battle Ground, Wash.), Derek Raivio (Vancouver, Wash.), Dan Dickau (Vancouver, Wash.) and Zach Gourde (Vancouver, Wash.) are from just on the other side of the Washington border.
- Assistant Coach Brian Michaelson starred at Jesuit High School before playing at Gonzaga.
- Head Coach Mark Few is from Creswell, Ore., 120 miles south of Portland.
- Former Zag Zach Collins was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers in 2017, and Dickau had two stints with the Blazers, before working for them as a player development assistant.
 
LATE NIGHT BUCKETS
- Gonzaga's late night win over Portland State in the Phil Knight Legacy quarterfinals brought several impressive stats.
- Malachi Smith made the most threes without a miss (5-of-5) since Killian Tillie made all five of his shots from outside-the-arc in back-to-back games in the 2017 WCC Tournament quarterfinals and semifinals.
- The Zags made eight of their season-high 12 three-pointers in the first half.
- GU also had 24 assists on its 38 made field goals.