Showdown in Portland: Oregon and Gonzaga Set for Epic Season Clash—Who Will Dominate?

Oregon finished the 2024 college basketball season with a 25-10 overall record, going 12-8 in Big Ten conference play. Their season came to an end with an 87-83 loss to the Arizona Wildcats in the NCAA Tournament.

When a fresh game slices into a college basketball schedule, you know there’s more than just a date to circle—it’s a whole vibe shift. That’s exactly what Oregon Men’s basketball just delivered by penciling in a showdown against the Gonzaga Bulldogs at Portland’s Moda Center come December 21, 2025. This isn’t just any mid-season tilt; it’s a heavyweight collision brewing between two programs that, while not tangled often in the past, are heading into this with plenty on the line. With Coach Dana Altman’s squad boasting returning standouts like Jackson Shelstad, Nate Bittle, and Kwame Evans Jr., plus some savvy transfer additions and an international recruit stepping onto the scene, the Ducks are gearing up to rewrite their narrative after a respectable 25-10 run last season. Gonzaga, of course, isn’t just showing up; fresh off a WCC crown and a tight NCAA Tournament exit, they’re looking to reinforce their own dominance. History’s brief but telling—remember that nail-biter overtime loss for Oregon back in ’19 at the Battle 4 Atlantis? Yeah, the stakes are already palpable. This game might just be the electrifying opener everyone didn’t know they were waiting for. LEARN MORE

Oregon Men’s basketball has added a new game to their 2025-2026 schedule.

Gonzaga is coming off of a 26-9 overall record and went 14-4 during West Coast Conference play in 2024. The Zags won the WCC title outright and saw their season end with an 81-76 loss to the Houston Cougars in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Oregon and Gonzaga have only met twice in the history of each program. They last played in 2019, in the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas, a matchup the Zags won 72-73 in overtime.

The Ducks also went abroad to land a commitment from former Turkish League center Ege Demir among others.

Dana Altman‘s squad will return a few stars this season in point guard Jackson Shelstad, center Nate Bittle, and forward Kwame Evans Jr. Oregon also went into the transfer portal to add players like former Texas forward Devin Pryor and former Ohio State forward Sean Stewart among other players.

The Ducks will now face the Gonzaga Bulldogs in Portland on December 21 at the Moda Center, according to a report from John Rothstein of CBS Sports. Rothstein goes on to report that an official announcement of the game being scheduled is expected in the near future.