CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) office has announced the McDonald's CCC Players of the Week, presented by Urban Edge Network, for the competitions held between February 2nd and 8th, where the Corban University Men's Basketball team swept the podium after being named the CCC Team of the Week where a pair of upperclassmen led the Warriors to massive home upsets over No. 22-ranked Oregon Tech and Southern Oregon University. Redshirt senior center Tj Zimmermann was named the Offensive Player of the Week, while junior guard Joe Gould was named the Defensive Player of the Week following a pair of dominant performances against the Hustlin' Owls and Raiders that helped clinch a spot in the upcoming CCC Tournament at the end of the month.
To read the full list of CCC Players of the Week released today by the conference office, click HERE.
Zimmermann has been the Warriors' top offensive threat all year long, but his dominance was on full display this weekend against a pair of teams that were tied for first in the CCC standings entering the weekend in Tech and Southern Oregon. On Friday night, Zimmermann scored a team-high 20 points with eight field goals made in 31 minutes played, shooting 8-for-13 from the floor. The following evening, he scored the game-high mark of 25 points via another 11 field goals, finishing the impressive offensive weekend 19-of-32 overall for an incredibly consistent 59.3% field goal percentage.
"Tj has been a dominant force for our team on the inside all season long and was especially effective against both OIT and SOU over this past weekend!" exclaimed Warriors' head coach Wayne Mendezona when asked to comment on his big man's performances that led to this week's offensive award. "It's been such a joy to see how unselfish Tj is as a great passer out of the post and how hard he works, even if calls aren't going his way to help our team establish the inside presence that we need to compete at this level. Tj was our top offensive weapon that helped propel us to victory against two worthy and top conference opponents."
While guarding OIT and SOU's top offensive guards, Gould helped hold the Hustlin' Owls and Raiders to just 70 and 71 points, respectively, totaling eight steals and three blocked shots all while averaging 6.5 rebounds and 14 points per game. Additionally, Gould dealt out 13 assists as the team's starting point guard, helping lead the Navy and Gold to 90 and 79 points against two of the most consistent defenses in the CCC.
"Joe has been a relentless defender for us all year," began Mendezona when asked to discuss his starting point guard's first weekly award of the season. "He exhibited his tremendous defensive skills, effort, and tenacity again on defense against both OIT and SOU's top offensive threats. I'm so proud of Joe and how dedicated he is to selflessly defend our opponent's best player on nearly every possession, regardless of how things are going on the offensive end. Without Joe's defensive efforts and presence, we would not have the success that we had over this past weekend."
Zimmermann and Gould will lead the Warriors into their senior weekend contests this upcoming Friday and Saturday, where they will look to continue their upset streak when the defending national champion Yotes from The College of Idaho pay Tim Hills Court a visit at 7:30pm on the 13th.
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