Gonzaga's Graham Ike Earns Preseason Third Team All-American Honors
One week into the college basketball season, Gonzaga’s Graham Ike continues to receive significant preseason All-American recognition. After helping Gonzaga start the season 2-0 with victories over Texas Southern and Oklahoma, Ike was named a third team All-American by Sporting News on Monday morning.
Previously, Ike had also been named a CBS Sports Preseason Third Team All-American and listed as a candidate for the preseason Naismith Award watch list. Additionally, he was selected for the preseason All-West Coast Conference (WCC) First Team and was placed on the Karl Malone Power Forward watch list.
Strong Performance to Start the Season
The senior forward from Aurora, Colorado, has made a strong impression early this season, scoring a total of 32 points and grabbing 22 rebounds across the first two games. He recorded a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds against Texas Southern, then improved with 19 points and 11 rebounds in a convincing 83-68 win over Oklahoma.
Across both games, Ike made 14 of 28 field goal attempts and contributed eight assists.
Sporting News All-American Teams
Alongside Ike, Sporting News named several other players to their third team All-American:
- St. John’s center Zuby Ejiofor
- Purdue forward Trey Kaufman-Renn
- Auburn guard Tahaad Pettiford
- UConn forward Alex Karaban
The publication’s first team featured:
- Purdue guard Braden Smith
- Texas Tech forward JT Toppin
- Kentucky forward Otega Oweh
- Kansas guard Darryn Peterson
- BYU forward AJ Dybantsa
"One week into the college basketball season, Gonzaga’s Graham Ike is still garnering preseason All-American recognition."
Author’s summary: Graham Ike’s strong start to the season has earned him multiple preseason All-American honors, reflecting his impact as a key player for Gonzaga.