Amid a hot start to West Coast Conference play, Graham Ike was one of 10 candidates named to the Karl Malone Award watch list on Thursday. The honor recognizes the best power forward in college basketball.
Across eight games in January, Ike averaged 17.0 points (fifth in the WCC) on 64.3% shooting from the floor (third-best) and grabbed 5.4 rebounds per game. He scored 20 or more points in five games, all wins for the Gonzaga Bulldogs and currently has scored 20 points in three straight heading into a battle against Saint Mary's on Saturday. Ike also led the team at the free-throw line, where he was 27-of-35 (77.1%) in WCC games last month.
On the season, the 6-foot-9 redshirt junior paces Gonzaga at 15.5 points per game on 61.4% shooting from the field.
Ike, who was named to the Karl Malone preseason watch list in the last two seasons dating back to his Wyoming days, is the second player from Gonzaga to earn national recognition this week. On Wednesday, Anton Watson was named one of 10 finalists for the Julius Erving Award, which is given to the nation's top small forward.
Drew Timme was a finalist for last season's Karl Malone Award two years after he won the award in 2021. Indiana's Trayce Jackson-Davis, now a rookie with the Golden State Warriors, was named the country's top power forward over Timme.
The list of 10 candidates for the Karl Malone Award will be narrowed down to five in March and will be presented to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame selection committee, which is composed of media members, head coaches, sports information directors and Hall of Famers.
Here is the complete list of candidates for the 2024 Karl Malone Award:
Enrique Freeman (Akron)
Keshad Johnson (Arizona)
Daron Holmes II (Dayton)
Kyle Filipowski (Duke)
Graham Ike (Gonzaga)
Oso Ighodaro (Marquette)
Norchad Omier (Miami)
Jaedon LeDee (San Diego State)
Alex Karaban (UConn)
Great Osobor (Utah State)
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