Holmgren and Traore split WCC Freshman of the Week honors

The two big men put up notable performances shooting, rebounding and blocking last week
Holmgren and Traore split WCC Freshman of the Week honors
Holmgren and Traore split WCC Freshman of the Week honors /

Holmgren shot 70% from the field and 50% from deep in the Zags only game against San Francisco last week

Gonzaga center Chet Holmgren has been awarded the West Coast Conference co-Freshman of the Week award in tandem with BYU forward Fousseynii Traore.

This is Holmgren’s sixth time receiving the honors this season and Traore’s third time. It’s the first time this season that the award has been split between two players, and Homgren and Traore are the only two players to receive the award multiple times this season.

Holmgren dropped 22 points on 70% shooting with nine rebounds and four blocks in GU’s lone contest last week against San Francisco. He also went 2-for-4 from three and finished with a +/- of 22.

The No. 1 recruit from the 2021 high school recruiting class has been shooting efficiently all season at a 61.8% clip, and his shooting from range has improved greatly in recent weeks, with his 3-point shooting in his last four games jumping up to 54.2%.

“I attribute my shooting to the work I put in; if I’m not feeling my shot then I get back in the gym and really rep it out and if I need to make changes to figure it out then that’s what I do,” Holmgren said postgame after playing USF. “I’m feeling really confident in my shot right now,”

Traore put up a double-double in both of BYU’s wins last week, his third and fourth double-double performances of the season.

He put up 14 points and 11 rebounds against San Diego on 6-for-8 shooting, and 13 points on perfect field goal shooting with 10 rebounds against Portland. He also had three blocks over the two contests.

Against Gonzaga two weeks ago, Traore put up eight points and reeled in seven rebounds. He didn’t play in the Cougars’ following game against USF before showing out on the court last week.

Three other freshman guards were considered for the honors this week — Pepperdine’s Mike Mitchell Jr., USD’s Wayne McKinney III and Saint Mary’s Augustas Marciulionis. 


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