The Becky Hammon Player of the Year Award is given to the best mid-major player in the country, and Gonzaga sophomore guard Allie Turner is being considered for the honor after a remarkable freshman season out of the West Coast Conference.
Turner hit a staggering 105 three-pointers last season for the Zags, and no returning player in all of women’s college basketball had more. That was the eighth-most by a freshman in NCAA women’s history.
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She ended up averaging 13.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game last season. Turner finished as one of only three players in the sport to average at least 3.0 three-pointers made per game on 45.0 percent from beyond the arc.
Gonzaga great Yvonne Ejim won the Becky Hammon Award in the 2023-24 season after putting up 19.7 points on a 60.1 field goal percentage, 8.7 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game in her senior season. The Canadian was also named the West Coast Conference’s Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year.
That season ended up being the best in women’s basketball program history, finishing with a 32-4 overall record on their way to reaching the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet Sixteen.
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In other preseason awards on the men’s basketball side, senior forward Graham Ike was named to CBS Sports’ All-American Third Team heading into the 2025-26 season. The big man is returning for his third and final season with the Zags.
During that span, he’s averaged 16.9 points on a shooting split of 60.4 from the field, 38.5 on three-pointers, and 79.5 from the free throw line. Ike was named to the All-West Coast Conference First Team in back-to-back seasons.
Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area… Follow him on Twitter @a_cravalho
