With Graham Ike hurt, Gonzaga turns to redshirt freshman

The Gonzaga Bulldogs face a tough road test on Saturday against the Seattle Redhawks, a team that took the Zags to overtime two weeks ago in Spokane.

Gonzaga won that game thanks to massive efforts from the frontcourt duo of Graham Ike and Braden Huff; however, both bigs will be out Saturday after it was reported that Ike will sit due to ankle soreness, joining Huff, who is out 4-8 weeks with a left knee injury.

Ike is considered day-to-day for now, but was seen wearing a walking boot on his right ankle during pregame warmups.

Ike and Huff combined for 53 of Gonzaga's 80 points against the Redhawks back on Jan. 2, with Tyon Grant-Foster chipping in 19 - eight, which came in the overtime period. Only Braeden Smith (7 points) and Adam Miller (2) joined those three in the scoring column, a fact that will need to be rectified for Gonzaga to get a win and stay undefeated in league play.

While Jalen Warley and Ismaila Diagne are expected to play the majority of the minutes up front, coach Mark Few is willing to turn to 6'9 true freshman Parker Jefferson, who is dressed and available to play, according to a team spokesperson.

Jefferson is taking a planned redshirt year, but considering the severity of the situation up front for Gonzaga, the staff is willing to toss him into the mix to counter a Seattle frontcourt that outrebounded the Zags last time, 41-40, and ranks 21st in the country in block rate according to KenPom.

Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Parker Jefferson (32). | Photo by Myk Crawford

Jefferson is a 6'9 center from Waxahachie, TX, who committed to Gonzaga in May as the second member of the 2025 recruiting class alongside Davis Fogle. Jefferson had previously committed to Minnesota, but decommitted after head coach Ben Johnson was fired. Jefferson, who grew up watching Drew Timme in Texas, came on an official visit to Spokane and committed shortly after.

"Ever since recruiting started up in eighth grade, everybody was telling me, 'Why don't you go to Gonzaga?' I feel like it's the perfect spot for you," Jefferson told Gonzaga Bulldogs On SI over the summer. "I started thinking like 'maybe I am a Gonzaga guy.' I think I just really fit the mold here."

Jefferson played very sparingly during the Blue-White scrimmage at Kraziness in the Kennel and scored four points with eight rebounds in 10 total minutes across the team's two exhibition games against Northwest and Western Oregon University.

Diagne, Warley, and Grant-Foster are expected to split the majority of minutes at the four and the five on Saturday against Seattle, but foul trouble could result in Jefferson stepping onto the floor - and it could cost him his redshirt campaign.

Typically, players are allowed to play a handful of games and still qualify for a redshirt, but it usually happens when said player plays at the beginning of the season - not when they debut more than halfway into the campaign.

However, if Ike's ankle is something that could continue to flare up this year, it would be worth it for Few and the staff to bite the bullet and make Jefferson available to beef up the frontcourt in the thick of conference play.

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