Skip to main content

Gonzaga forward Graham Ike earns WCC Player of the Week honors

Ike scored exactly 20 points in each of Gonzaga's wins last week
Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Graham Ike.
Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Graham Ike. | Photo by Myk Crawford

Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Graham Ike was named the West Coast Conference men's basketball Player of the Week on Monday after leading the Zags to a pair of wins over No. 23 Creighton and Arizona State.

Ike scored 20 points in both of Gonzaga's wins last week, and was one rebound away from posting his fourth straight double-double in the game against Arizona State - which would have made him the first player in the Mark Few era to begin a season with four straight double-doubles.

Ike also eclipsed the 2,000 point mark for his career in the game against Creighton, doing so on his third consecutive made three pointer in the first four minutes of the game. Ike now has 2,031 career points heading into Monday night's game against Southern Utah, which puts him second among active scorers at the Division I level behind Indiana forward Tucker DeVries.

Ike was chosen as the WCC's Player of the Week over multiple strong candidates in what was an outstanding week overall for the conference, which went a combined 18-3 in 21 total games. Saint Mary's guard Mikey Lewis, Seattle U guard Brayden Maldonado, and LMU wing Jan Vide all had strong individual performances, but Ike carried the Zags to a blowout win over a ranked team in Creighton and a gritty, true road win over Arizona State to take home his first weekly honors of the season.

Josiah Lake II from Oregon State won the first WCC Player of the Week award after hitting a game-winner against North Dakota State.

Meanwhile, Saint Mary's freshman guard Liam Campbell was the conference's Freshman of the Week after posting his first career 20 point game against Ohio, and hitting a trio of three pointers off the bench for the Gaels in their win over North Texas. He was chosen over six other nominees, including Gonzaga guard Mario Saint-Supery. Australian guard Joel Foxwell was the first Freshman of the Week winner after a strong start to his collegiate career at Portland.

It might be challenging for Gonzaga to earn weekly awards this week with just one game on the docket, on Monday night against the Thunderbirds of Southern Utah. Tip is slated for 6:00 PM PT and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.

Gonzaga will then spend the rest of the week preparing for the Player's Era Festival, where they will take on Alabama and Maryland on Monday and Tuesday, Nov. 24 and 25, with both games tipping off at 6:30 PM PT. A third game will take place either Wednesday or Thursday, with opponent and tip time to be determined after Gonzaga's game against Maryland.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Published
Andy Patton
ANDY PATTON

Andy Patton is a diehard Gonzaga fan and alumnus who has covered the Bulldogs extensively since 2021. He hosts the Locked On Zags podcast and co-hosts the Locked On College Basketball podcast, bringing years of experience covering Gonzaga, the West Coast and college basketball nationally. Andy also covers the Arizona Wildcats for Arizona Wildcats On SI, where his longtime familiarity with former Gonzaga assistant and current Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd provides a natural connection between two of college basketball’s premier programs. Andy has worked in sports media since 2017, with experience covering nearly every major sport. He covered the Seattle Seahawks for USA TODAY from 2017–21, where he also spent time covering the USC Trojans and Oregon Ducks, and previously served as lead writer for College Sports Wire. He has also covered the NBA, NHL and MLB for various TEGNA outlets, including KREM in Spokane, 12News in Phoenix and KING 5 in Seattle. A 2013 Gonzaga graduate, Andy now lives in Spokane, Washington, with his wife, daughter and dog.

Share on XFollow AndyPattonCBB