Gonzaga Women’s Time in NCAA Tournament Ends Early at Hands of Ole Miss
The West Coast Conference Tournament champions fall to the SEC’s Ole Miss in the first round of the Big Dance, 81-66.
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - MARCH 20: Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Jaiden Haile (23) is fouled by Ole Miss Rebels guard Tianna Thompson (35) during the fourth quarter of the Ole Miss Rebels versus Gonzaga Bulldogs NCAA Women's Championship first round game on March 20, 2026. (Photo by Nick Wosika/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images At the Minnesota Golden Gophers’ Williams Arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota (also known as ‘The Barn,’ established in 1928), the No. 12-seeded Gonzaga Bulldogs (24-10, 14-4 WCC) fell to the much tougher No.
5-seeded Ole Miss Rebels (24-11, 8-8 SEC) in the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 64 out in the Sacramento region. Gonzaga may have outrebounded Ole Miss 45-39, but the Zags did allow 16 offensive rebounds and lost the battle in the paint 40-28. Coach Lisa Fortier stated postgame that the physicality of the Rebels was too much to handle in this matchup.
The battle-tested group from Oxford, Mississippi, looked much more up for the challenge thanks to their experience in SEC play. “There were a couple of plays where Lauren (Whittaker) was being bear-mauled… and that was different than what she’s used to. ” Lisa Fortier on Ole Miss Star redshirt freshman forward Lauren Whittaker struggled to find her footing offensively, only adding four points on 4-for-21 shooting.
The New Zealand native did snag 13 rebounds, five of which were offensive. The glaring issue with this Pacific Northwest team all season long has been the inability to take care of the ball, as was evident on Friday, March 20. Gonzaga’s 21 turnovers, leading to 23 Ole Miss points off turnovers, was the dagger to their 2025-26 campaign.