Gonzaga to face Duke in February nonconference matchup

History vs. Duke

This will be the sixth meeting between the Zags and Blue Devils, and first since 2021 when No. 5 Duke beat No. 1 Gonzaga, 84-81, on Nov. 26 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Prior to that was the epic Maui Invitational championship game in 2018 when the No. 3 Zags edged the No. 1 Blue Devils, 89-87.

Duke won the first three meetings between these two programs, including the lone March matchup back in the 2015 Elite Eight, a 66-52 victory that propeled the Blue Devils to the national championship.

Duke also picked up non-conference wins at Madison Square Garden in both 2007 and 2010.

Duke Preview

Duke has gone to the Elite Eight in each of the past two seasons, and was well on their way to a second straight Final Four last year before a historic comeback by UConn - punctuated by a game-winning three from Braylon Mullins - stunned the Blue Devils.

Next year's team won't have superstar forward Cameron Boozer, but coach Jon Scheyer is returning a ton of key pieces, including guards Cayden Boozer, Caleb Foster, and Dame Sarr, as well as center Patrick Ngongba. The Blue Devils also bring in 5-star guard Deron Rippey and elite transfer John Blackwell from Wisconsin, which will once again make them among the best teams in the sport.

Gonzaga's Non-Con

Duke joins what is already a loaded non-conference schedule for coach Few and the Zags. Gonzaga is set to face Purdue on Nov. 2, 2026 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas to open up the season, and will also take on Hall of Fame coach Tom Izzo and Michigan State on Dec. 19, 2026 at Acrisure Arena in California.

The Zags are also set to face Kentucky at Rupp Arena in Lexington in what will be the fifth game of a six-year series, and will travel to Omaha to take on Creighton on the road in the return of a two-year series started this past year.

Gonzaga will also face UCLA as the two teams agreed to continue their longstanding rivalry, although a date and location for that game has yet to be determined. Similarly, Gonzaga and Oregon may play in Seattle this year after playing in Portland in 2025, although that has yet to be confirmed as of this writing.

As if Duke, Kentucky, Purdue, Michigan State, UCLA, Creighton, and potentially Oregon wasn't enough, the Zags are also slated to participate in the Player's Era Festival again during Feast Week, which could feature matchups against high level programs like St. John's, Michigan, Tennessee, Houston, Kansas, Texas Tech, and Iowa State, among others.

Gonzaga's move to the new look Pac-12 means they will play just 16 conference games, giving them another 16 matchups in the non-conference - and it's clear the staff won't be filling in those gaps with a bunch of cupcakes.