Simon Fraser University women's basketball forward Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe was named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference player of the week on Wednesday.
Raincock-Ekunwe led the Clan to a 1-1 record in the Cal State Monterey Bay Classic, scoring 31 points and grabbing 34 rebounds, including 22 in a five-point loss to Colorado State - Pueblo. Her 22 rebounds against Pueblo was just one shy of the GNAC single-game record. She also had four blocks and three steals.
SFU lost by five points to Pueblo which posted a 16-11 record last season, but then beat Monterey Bay which advanced to the NCAA Division II West Regional semifinals last March.
"Nayo's rebounding was superb last Friday night against CSU-Pueblo," said SFU head coach Bruce Langford in a school press release. "She's consistently getting better and she is picking up her intensity level every game. She's working hard on her skill set this season and that's already showing in her play."
Through four games this season, Raincock-Ekunwe is leading the GNAC rebounding race with an average of 16.3 boards per game, an average of almost six better than her closest competitor in the conference.
She also leads the conference in blocked shots and is tied for sixth in scoring with 15.3 points per game.
The Clan will begin their GNAC schedule tomorrow (Thursday) evening when they host the Seattle Pacific University Falcons in the West Gym at SFU in Burnaby at 7:00 p.m.
Tickets for the game are just $2 for SFU students, youth and seniors, while adult tickets are $10.
Clan men's basketball forward Javari Williams was also named a conference player of the week.
Williams scored 83 points and also had 21 rebounds, nine assists, four blocks and four steals to lead the Clan to two wins in three contests last week.
Williams had a pair of 32-point performances, including one against unbeaten Humboldt State which extended its home court winning streak to 18 games with a 102-87 victory over the Clan last Saturday before Williams led SFU to victory over Southern Oregon the following day.
Williams made 29 of 52 shots (55.8%) including five-of-14 three-pointers.
"Javari has been solid all season for us and he was again last weekend," said SFU assistant coach Chris Cline in a Clan release. "Every time he steps on the floor he does a better job of playing within himself, and he did a good job last weekend getting other people involved in the play. He's a heck of an athlete. The only one who can beat Javari is Javari."
Through six games this season, Williams leads the GNAC with an average of 26.2 points per game. He also ranks fifth in rebounding and blocked shots.
The Clan will begin conference play tomorrow when they head to Seattle to face the Seattle Pacific Falcons. Game time is 7 p.m.
