Latest news with #Gonzaga
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Khalif Battle has Mixed Results in NBA Summer League Start
Khalif Battle has Mixed Results in NBA Summer League Start originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Former Gonzaga guard Khalif Battle had an up-and-down performance in his debut start for the Phoenix Suns during NBA Summer League action, illustrating both promising moments and areas requiring growth as the Suns lost decisively to the Atlanta Hawks. Battle, who gained recognition at Gonzaga for his scoring ability and assertive style, finished with 7 points. Most of his scoring came from the free-throw line, where he converted 5 of 6 attempts. Despite struggling to find his shooting touch from the field, Battle showed resilience and aggression, consistently drawing contact and earning trips to the foul line. Nonetheless, his overall effectiveness was somewhat diminished by a -7 plus/minus rating, indicating the team faced challenges during his time on the court. Advertisement The Hawks took control early in the matchup, preventing the Suns from establishing any momentum. Battle's inconsistent play mirrored the team's broader issues, but the Phoenix coaching staff clearly expressed interest by allocating him extended minutes to evaluate his potential thoroughly. These increased minutes suggest the Suns see value in Battle's ongoing development and are seriously considering how he might fit within their future plans. The Summer League remains a crucial evaluation period, providing players like Battle the opportunity to impress not only their current organizations but also scouts from other NBA teams. Despite modest statistical contributions, Battle's ability to draw fouls and capitalize at the free-throw line remains noteworthy and valuable at the professional level. The Suns' decision to grant Battle a starting role underscores their intent to provide him ample opportunities during this critical assessment stage. With more games ahead in the Summer League, Battle has additional chances to cement his position with the Suns or showcase his talents to other interested NBA franchises. Although his NBA future is still uncertain, Battle's offensive aggressiveness and determination will undoubtedly keep league evaluators attentive as the Summer League continues. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 14, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tyon Grant-Foster, Gonzaga "Still Just Kind of Waiting Around" for NCAA Waiver
Tyon Grant-Foster, Gonzaga "Still Just Kind of Waiting Around" for NCAA Waiver originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team has had a few weeks together to get familiar with each other, build camaraderie, and go to work constructing an offense and defense capable of getting this program back to the Sweet 16 and beyond in the 2025-26 season. Advertisement Unfortunately Gonzaga's prized offseason addition, high-scoring Grand Canyon transfer Tyon Grant-Foster, has yet to join them in Spokane while he waits for approval from the NCAA regarding his eligibility. Grant-Foster spoke with Theo Lawson of the Spokesman-Review in Las Vegas during NBA Summer League, where the 6'7 wing is currently stationed alongside former Kansas teammate and current Denver Nuggets forward Christian Braun. "We're still waiting on it right now," Grant-Foster said. "Just a waiting process. That's all." Coach Mark Few echoed Grant-Foster's statement while taking in a Summer League bout between the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics and former Zag forwards Anton Watson and Ben Gregg. Advertisement 'We're still just waiting on the waiver,' Few said. 'It's still through the NCAA process, so we're still just kind of waiting around for it.' Grant-Foster began playing college basketball back in 2018-19 at Indian Hills Community College, spending two years at the junior college before transferring to Kansas in 2020-21 where he played 22 games. After that the 6'7 wing spent two seasons at DePaul but only played in one game after collapsing at halftime in the season opener, and again a few months later which cost him the 2022-23 season. From there Grant-Foster made a triumphant return at Grand Canyon, averaging 20.1 points and earning WAC Player of the Year in 2023-24 and following that up with an up-and-down season in 2024-25. All told, the Kansas City native has played 83 Division 1 games, and with his time at Kansas lining up with the COVID season - and a recent rule change allowing student-athletes who started at a junior college an extra year of eligibility - it's hard to imagine the NCAA won't grant him one more year. Advertisement While the waiting is no doubt unfortunate for both Gonzaga and Grant-Foster - who is missing out on practices and team bonding activities - the high scoring wing is keeping an upbeat attitude while working relentlessly on improving his game so he will be ready to go if and when his waiver is approved. Grant-Foster is one of five newcomers on Mark Few's roster, joined by Arizona State transfer Adam Miller and a trio of incoming freshmen: Spanish guard Mario Saint-Supery, 6'7 four-star wing Davis Fogle, and three-star big man Parker Jefferson. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 14, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Players Era 2025: Schedule announced for NIL-driven Players Era Men's Championship
Las Vegas will once again be the place to be during Feast Week this college basketball season. Coined "November Mania," the Players Era Men's Championship announced its schedule for the newly expanded 18-team men's basketball NIL multi-team event in November in Las Vegas on July 14, and to no surprise, it's quite loaded. Advertisement Then called the Players Era Festival, the NIL-driven event by storm last season and has quickly become a must-play event with NCAA Tournament caliber teams, so much so that teams paid their way out of already scheduled multi-team events to participate in it last season. Headlining the first two days of competition in Las Vegas is Gonzaga vs. Alabama on Wednesday, Nov. 25. Preceding the Bulldogs and Crimson Tide on Nov. 25 is St. John's vs. Iowa State, two teams that are notoriously known for their defense under Rick Pitino and T.J. Otzelberger. REQURIED READING: College basketball too-early Top 25 rankings after transfer portal, NBA draft Advertisement Day 2 of the 2025 Players Era Men's Championship field is headlined by an Elite Eight rematch of Houston vs. Tennessee and then Iowa State vs. Creighton, two teams that were already scheduled to meet in October for an exhibition. The 2025 Players Era Men's Championship field includes 14 teams that made the NCAA Tournament last season, and nine teams — Auburn, Houston, St. John's, Alabama, Iowa State, Maryland, Oregon and Michigan — that were seeded at least a five seed or higher in the field of 68. Eleven teams that appear in the USA TODAY Sports too-early top 25 poll will also compete in Las Vegas. The four-day multi-team event will take place in Las Vegas at MGM Grand Garden Arena and Michelob Ultra Arena from Monday, Nov. 24 through Thursday, Nov. 27 with the championship game taking place on Wednesday, Nov. 26. There will also be a four-team Players Era Women's Championship featuring South Carolina, UCLA, Texas and Duke that will take place Wednesday, Nov. 26 and Thursday, Nov. 27 in Las Vegas. Advertisement Here's what to know from the July 14 announcement of the 2025 Players Era Men's Championship: Players Era Championship bracket 2025 The returning teams to the Players Era Festival include Alabama, Houston, Rutgers, Notre Dame, Oregon, San Diego State and Creighton. The only team that isn't returning to the Players Era Championship from last year's field, which Oregon won, is Texas A&M. The Aggies were replaced in the field by Maryland, which hired away Buzz Williams from Texas A&M this offseason. Here's a full breakdown of who is competing in the 2025 Players Era Men's Championship: Alabama Auburn Baylor Creighton Gonzaga Houston Iowa State Kansas Maryland Michigan Notre Dame Oregon Rutgers San Diego State St. John's Syracuse UNLV Tennessee Players Era Festival 2025 schedule Here's a look at schedule for the 2025 Players Era Men's Championship, which will take place MGM Grand Garden Arena and Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas: Advertisement Monday, Nov. 24 Rutgers vs. Tennessee | 1 p.m. ET Creighton vs. Baylor | 2 p.m. ET Kansas vs. Notre Dame | 3:30 p.m. ET St. John's vs. Iowa State | 4:30 p.m. ET Houston vs. Syracuse | 6 p.m. ET Auburn vs. Oregon | 8 p.m. ET Gonzaga vs. Alabama | 9:30 p.m. ET Michigan vs. San Diego State | 10:30 p.m. ET UNLV vs. Maryland | Midnight ET Tuesday, Nov. 25 Rutgers vs. Notre Dame | 1 p.m. ET Iowa State vs. Creighton | 2 p.m. ET Kansas vs. Syracuse | 3:30 p.m. ET St. John's vs. Baylor | 4:30 p.m. ET Houston vs. Tennessee | 6 p.m. ET Michigan vs. Auburn | 8:30 p.m. ET Gonzaga vs. Maryland | 9:30 p.m. ET Oregon vs. San Diego State | 11 p.m. ET UNLV vs. Alabama | Midnight ET Wednesday, Nov. 26 Third Place Game: 7 p.m. ET Championship Game: 9:30 p.m. ET Note: For those that didn't make the championship or third place game on Wednesday, November 26, they will play in consolation games across Wednesday, November 26 and Thursday, November 27 in Las Vegas What is the Players Era Championshop? The Players Era Championship is a one-of-a-kind multi-team event that takes place during "Feast Week" of the college basketball season in November, during Thanksgiving week. Debuted during the 2024-25 season with an eight-team field, The Players Era Championship is a NIL-driven multi-team event with some of the best college basketball teams in the country. Advertisement Each team will receive $1 million for participating in the event, while players and teams will have the opportunity to earn more NIL while in Las Vegas. The champion of the Players Era Championship will win an additional $1 million in NIL earnings as well. Noted by CBS Sports' Matt Norlander, the total pot for the 2025 Players Era Championship will be north of $20 million in NIL-related earnings — quite the expensive multi-team event and regular season showcase event. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Players Era Men's Championship full field, schedule announced
Indianapolis Star
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
Butler basketball freshman was 'putting on a show' before he got to campus, shows glimpse of what's next
INDIANAPOLIS — The play brought Efeosa Oliogu-Elabor's Canada Basketball teammates to their feet, hands on their heads in amazement at the FIBA Under-19 World Cup against Germany. Forward Onyx Nnani missed a 3-pointer from the left baseline and a crowd of players formed under the basket in anticipation of the rebound. From the far-right wing, Oliogu-Elabor flies into the paint, elevates over a German defender and palms the ball with his right hand, double clutches the ball and slams home the putback dunk with force over two defenders. The 6-foot-6 Oliogu-Elabor shined, scoring a team-high 21 points on 8-for-10 shooting, including 1 for 2 on 3s and adding 4 for 4 from the free throw line. He averaged 12.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game for the seven-game tournament. "I didn't really expect myself to do that, but the adrenaline and all of that played into that," Oliogu-Elabor said of the highlight-reel dunk. "People have seen me dunk all the time, but in the moment, no one really expected it. I was the most calm person about it, but everyone was screaming and yelling." High-level athleticism has always been a part of Oliogu-Elabor's game. He has a physical frame and shouldn't need much time to adjust to the speed and physicality of the Big East. In Oliogu-Elabor, Gonzaga transfer Michael Ajayi and freshman Jackson Keith, the Bulldogs have a trio of physical perimeter players who can play multiple positions. Oliogu-Elabor shot well from the free throw line going 28 for 33 (84.8%), but he struggled from deep, shooting just 13.3% from 3 on 15 attempts. He will be surrounded by capable shooters, allowing him to play to his strengths, attacking in transition and getting into the paint. Insider: 3 things that stood out during Butler basketball's summer practice "I wanted to show my playmaking ability, to show that I'm not just a downhill player who likes to get to the rim," Oliogu-Elabor said. "Being able to facilitate and show my shooting ability as well." Most explosive athletes aren't plus playmakers, but Oliogu-Elabor's passing is an underrated skill. He had at least one assist in all seven games and multiple assists in five of seven. Canada went 2-1 in the group phase and defeated Mali in the round of 16 before falling to USA basketball 108-102 in the quarterfinals. Canada placed fifth, and the U.S. won gold with a 109-76 win over Germany. Team USA won its seven games by an average margin of 34.5 points. Playing the U.S. to a two-possession game shows how far Canadian basketball has come. With fellow countrymen like Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander winning MVP and Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard going toe-to-toe with him in the NBA Finals, Oliogu-Elabor said Canadian basketball is up and coming.
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Khalif Battle Will Play for Phoenix Suns' Summer League Team
The physical and emotional guard that Gonzaga has grown to love over the short course of one season has reportedly signed with the Phoenix Suns to play in the NBA 2K26 Summer League in Las Vegas, according to Jacob Myers of League Him. Battle also worked out with the Los Angeles Clippers and Boston Celtics leading up to the draft. Advertisement Throughout his well-traveled career with the Butler Bulldogs/Temple Owls/Arkansas Razorbacks before making his way to Spokane, Khalif Battle has shown off his ability to score in all aspects of the game in quick spurts. In his final collegiate campaign with Gonzaga this past season, he averaged 13.6 points on a shooting split of 44.0 field goal percentage, 34.7 three-point percentage, 93.2 free throw percentage to go along with 3.7 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game. This is the fourth reported Zag to make his way to Sin City this summer for the prestigious showcase, along with Dallas Mavericks' Ryan Nembhard, Brooklyn Nets' Drew Timme, and Boston Celtics' Ben Gregg. Expect New York Knicks' Anton Watson to join as well. The event starts on July 10th at the Thomas & Mack Center and Pavilion, with the championship game being on June 20th. Advertisement Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area... Follow him on Twitter @a_cravalho More from
