Gonzaga Bulldogs redshirt sophomore forward Lauren Whittaker is trying to build on her breakthrough college basketball campaign from last season.
Whittaker was listed as one of the 25 preseason nominees for the Becky Hammon Player of the Year Award, which is given to the top mid-major player in the country.
The legendary Gonzaga forward Yvonne Ejim won the award back in 2023-24, someone Whittaker is chasing in many different statistical categories in the program’s history books.
After rehabbing a meniscus tear in her left knee in 2024-25, the 6-3 native of Canterbury, New Zealand, immediately made her presence known throughout college basketball in the States.
The 2025-26 West Coast Conference Player of the Year, who was one of the nation’s top freshmen last season, felt immediately comfortable in coach Lisa Fortier’s system. She broke the single-season school record for the most rebounds at 348.
The walking double-double machine looks to continue her dominance in the newly revamped Pac-12 Conference. In the 84-43 exhibition victory over the NCAA Division II’s Westmont Warriors in the Kennel on Oct. 27, Whittaker finished with a game-high 24 points.
The Zags open up the 2026-27 season at the McCarthey Athletic Center against the Summit League’s North Dakota State Bison on Nov. 2. The matchup can be viewed at 6 p.m. PT on KHQ.
Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area… Follow him on X @a_cravalho