Gonzaga’s Yvonne Ejim earns season’s first WCC Player of the Week award

Gonzaga forward Yvonne Ejim made the most of her first two games as a regular starter, capturing the season’s first Player of the Week honors from the West Coast Conference.

Ejim, a junior from Calgary, Alberta, averaged 19 points and shot 57.1% from the field to help the Zags to lopsided wins over Long Beach State and Southern Utah.

In the opener against Long Beach, the 6-foot-1 Ejim matched her career high with 22 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, seven of them on the offensive end.

Two days later against SUU, she scored 16 points, hit 7 of 15 shots and had four steals.

Asked whether she can expect those kinds of numbers from Ejim every week, Gonzaga coach Lisa Fortier deflected.

“You can’t put that kind of pressure on somebody, but think she’s lucky,” Fortier said. “She has great teammates, and that allows her to do what she does.”