Dave Boling: Gonzaga had no answer for Michigan's first punch. Good news is there's still time to get off the mat.

Nov. 27—LAS VEGAS — They call this tournament the Players Era Festival.

Unfortunately for Gonzaga, the Wednesday championship game turned into a festival of players' errors.

In the kind of meltdown the Gonzaga men have not felt for decades, Michigan dominated from the game's first 15 seconds and pulverized the Zags, 101-61.

Unexpected? Consider: One main analytical site had GU rated No. 1 in the country. The betting line had GU favored by 2 1/2 points.

The ESPN matchup predictor gave the Zags a 68.9% chance to win, more than double the Michigan percentage of 31.1.

These Zags are prideful guys with major skills, and nobody feels it worse than the players themselves. But this was a regrettable performance from almost all concerned.

The Zags had nothing. Michigan absolutely owned them. Forty minutes, 94 feet. Every position on the floor.

Coach Mark Few might have come up with a suitable description without demeaning any personal effort or intent: His Zags were "absolutely throttled," he said.

The Zags did not come away empty, of course, getting a million in NIL opportunities for participating and another bonus for playing in the title game, reportedly another half a mil.

They also came away with a very firmly implanted reminder that they have a long way to go until they get to March.

Almost all the high-quality traits the No. 12-ranked Zags showed on the way to a 7-0 record came unraveled against the No. 7-ranked Michigan Wolverines.

As Few assessed: "Every aspect of the game was lacking."

Coming in, this was billed as a battle between two of the best frontlines in the nation. False hype, it turns out, or at least only half right.

GU's all-American candidate in the post, Graham Ike, has been consistently excellent thus far. Wednesday, he was absolutely throttled, going 0-9 from the floor, scoring one point and getting zero rebounds.

Forwards Braden Huff and Tyon Grant-Foster were effective at times, each scoring 14 points, but each had two shots blocked.

At times, the game provided flashbacks to matchups that have vexed them for years. Big, muscular Big 10 teams have been problematic.

Wednesday, the role of former Purdue goliath Zach Edey was played by 7-3 Wolverine post Aday Mara. Edey led the Boilermakers to three wins over GU — once in 2022 and twice last season.

Mara, Yaxel Lendeborg and Morez Johnson came up with seven blocks, 44 points and 20 rebounds.

Where were the Zags who had powered to seven straight impressive wins?

The frontcourt that scored 60 points in the Monday win over No. 8 Alabama was held to 29 by Michigan.

The team that netted 14 3-pointers in the blowout of Maryland on Tuesday made just three of 22 3-point attempts in the title game.

The team that passed out 30 assists against Maryland only scored a total of 25 field goals against Michigan.

Stunning as it was, this disaster does not invalidate the Zags' first seven wins of the season. They were real.

They clobbered Alabama with great play under the hoop, and then boat-raced Maryland with exceptional perimeter shooting.

I would doubt they ever finish a game this season making 33.8% of field goals, 13.6 3-pointers, and 53.3% from the free-throw line.

That was dreadful, while Michigan was spectacular. It was a horrific night, shooting, defending, everything.

In the face of Michigan's physical dominance, the Zags failed to respond appropriately.

As Few pointed out afterward, they got punched in the face and did not answer with punches of their own.

That is a great description. They were knocked out of their game from the start and never recovered.

Those early blocks, especially, had everybody on their heels. As "the flood-gates opened," as Few said, the Zags looked shocked.

They are experienced and talented, but have not learned how to bounce back off the canvas.

Maybe that lesson is not worth millions of dollars, but it could be one they will need later in the season.