TIGER RAG NEWS SERVICES
The college basketball world will get a glimpse of how good new coach Will Wade’s first basketball team of his second term at LSU is early in the 2026-27 season.
The Tigers, coming off back-to-back losing seasons of 14-18 (3-15 Southeastern Conference) and 15-17 (3-15 SEC), will play major NCAA Tournament power Gonzaga on Saturday, Nov. 14 in Spokane, Washington, at 12,500-seat Veterans Memorial Arena. Gonzaga normally plays its home games on campus in Spokane at 6,000-seat McCarthey Athletics Center.
Gonzaga has reached 26 straight NCAA Tournaments under coach Mark Few, who began coaching the Zags in the 1999-2000 season. They have won 30 games or more nine times, including last season when the Bulldogs finished 31-4 after a second round loss in the NCAA Tournament. Gonzaga reached the national championship game both times it reached the Final Four under Few, losing in 2021 and ’17. It reached the Elite Eight three other times in 2015, ’19 and ’23.
Wade, who has struggled to fill out his roster for the upcoming season, will have to contend with 7-foot center Massamba Diop, a transfer from Arizona State who averaged 13.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.1 blocked shots a game last season.
Wade, who previously coached LSU from 2017-22, will also have his Tigers playing in the Palm Springs Classic in Palm Springs, California, from Nov. 21-26 with Arizona State, USC and SMU. Pairings have not been announced.
A game between LSU and Houston at the Toyota Center in Houston is also in the works.
The Cougars of coach Kelvin Sampson are another major NCAA Tournament power as they have gone to eight straight NCAA Tournaments with Final Fours in 2021 and ’25 and have won 30 games or more in the last five seasons. Houston lost the national championship game to Florida in 2025 by a 65-63 score.
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