Ndiaye Big West Conference Player of the Week

UC Irvine junior Mamadou Ndiaye has been named Big West Conference Player of the Week in men’s basketball.

The 7-foot-6 center had 17 points, 14 rebounds and four blocked shots in the Anteaters’ 73-63 win at Utah State on Saturday. The 14 boards tied his career high.

It marked the third straight double-double for Ndiaye. He was seven for eight from the field and registered a free throw and dunk in the span of 23 seconds to extend UCI’s lead to 67-60 with 1:04 remaining.

This is the first Big West weekly honor for Ndiaye, whose 158 career blocked shots rank seventh in conference history. His 27 rejections this season ranked No. 9 in the nation through Sunday’s games.

He leads the Big West in field-goal percentage this season at .657.

Ndiaye is on the preseason watch lists for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Lou Henson Mid-Major Player of the Year awards. He also is a nominee for the Allstate NABC Good Works Team for the second straight year.

The Anteaters play host to Chapman Friday at 7 p.m.

— From staff reports