Valparaiso University men’s basketball standout Ben Krikke (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada / Jasper Place) was recognized by the Missouri Valley Conference office on Monday after one of his best weeks yet, earning MVC Player of the Week honors.

Krikke averaged 26.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game over two contests this week, shooting 86.7 percent from the free-throw line (13-of-15) and 61.3 percent from the field (19-of-31). He also dished out nine assists (4.5 per game) and had a block and a pair of steals. 

Krikke started the week with 22 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals at UNI on Wednesday. He continued his dominance in Saturday’s 81-69 win over Evansville, finishing a point shy of a career high with 30 while also pacing the team with nine rebounds. He made 10 free throws – a career high and the most by a Valpo player since Tevonn Walker in January 2018 – and 10 field goals. He became just the third Valpo player in the last decade with 30+ points and 9+ rebounds in a game, joining Javon Freeman-Liberty (twice) and Alec Peters (7x). 

For the season, Krikke is averaging 18.1 points per game. He recently moved up to 16^th in program history in career scoring. Krikke is the only player in The Valley averaging better than 17.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game.