PROVO, Utah – NCAA.com has named BYU sophomore forward Eric Mika its Player of the Week and to its All-Week Team. Mika was also named the Lute Olson Award National Player of the Week.
A Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award finalist, Mika led BYU to wins at Portland (97-78) and No. 1 Gonzaga (79-71). The Alpine, Utah, native averaged 24.0 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.5 steals while shooting 63.0 percent from the field and 73.7 percent from the free-throw line.
Against Portland, Mika helped the Cougars to a 51-34 lead at the half with 13 points. He finished the night with 19 points, eight boards, four assists, one block and two steals.
Two nights later against the No. 1 team in the nation, Mika helped BYU overcome an early 18-2 deficit to trail 41-35 at the half with 12 points and six boards in the opening period. He was dominant in the second half, hitting 5 of 6 from the field and 7 of 8 from the free-throw line for 17 points to go with five boards, two blocks and a steal.
In the final five minutes, Mika secured an offensive rebound that led to a BYU 3 that tied the score at 67-all, recorded a block to keep the score tied and hit a long jump shot with 1:05 remaining to give the Cougars the lead for good at 73-71. With 11 seconds to go, he came up with a steal and hit two free throws to help seal the win for BYU, the first in program history against a No. 1 ranked team.
Mika finished the Gonzaga game with 29 points, 11 boards, one assist, two blocks and one steal.