25th-Ranked K-State Visits Texas Tech on Saturday

Saturday, January 15

Lubbock, Texas

2 p.m.

Kansas State University

Texas Tech

Jan 13, 2022 | Women's Basketball

Big 12 Now on ESPN+Listen Live Live Stats Game Notes (pdf)

GAME #17
(25/RV) Kansas State (13-3, 3-1 Big 12) at Texas Tech (8-7, 1-3 Big 12)
Saturday, January 15, 2022 | 2 p.m. | United Supermarkets Arena | Lubbock, Texas

TELEVISION
Big 12 Now on ESPN+
Play-by-Play: Ron Thulin
Analyst: Brandi Poole

RADIO
K-State Sports Network
Online: kstatesports.com
Play-by-Play: Brian Smoller
Analyst: Randy Peterson

LIVE STATS
www.kstatesports.com

COACHES
Kansas State: Jeff Mittie (Missouri Western '89)
Overall: 592-335/30th season | At K-State: 138-100/8th season

Texas Tech: Krista Gerlich (Texas Tech '93)
Overall: 307-169/16th season | At Texas Tech: 18-22/2nd season

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP (based on previous game)
(25/RV) Kansas State (13-3, 3-1 Big 12)
G: #3 Jaelyn Glenn | G: #4 Serena Sundell | G: #5 Brylee Glenn | G: #14 Rebekah Dallinger | C: #50 Ayoka Lee

Texas Tech (8-7, 1-3 Big 12)
C: #1 Ella Tofaeono | G: #4 Lexy Hightower | G: #12 Vivian Gray | F: #24 Taylah Thomas | G: #32 Tatum Veitenheimer

SERIES HISTORY
Overall: K-State leads, 27-14
In Lubbock: 12-7
Last Meeting: March 11, 2021; K-State won 75-65 (Kansas City)
Head Coach Jeff Mittie vs. Texas Tech: 17-5

MANHATTAN, Kansas – K-State (13-3, 3-1 Big 12) has registered its best start to a season through 16 games since the 2008-09 season and will look to extend its road win streak to five as the Wildcats visit Texas Tech on Saturday at 2 p.m.

• Saturday's game will air on Big 12 Now on ESPN+, as Ron Thulin (play-by-play), and Brandi Poole (analyst) will have the call.
• K-State's four-win improvement from the 2020-21 season is tied for the second largest win improvement in the Jeff Mittie era.
• The Wildcats have been led this season by junior Ayoka Lee and freshman Serena Sundell. Lee, a 2022 All-America candidate, leads the nation for total points scored (387) and is fourth in the nation in scoring average (24.2 ppg). She also leads the nation in field goals made (161) and double-doubles (11) and is second in blocked shots (58) and fourth for blocks per game (3.6). She leads the Big 12 in field goal percentage (.590).
• Sundell, a candidate for Big 12 Freshman of the Year, is second on the team in scoring (10.3 ppg). She is second in the Big 12 in total assists (94) and assists per game (5.9).

Starting 5
Five names, numbers or storylines about K-State women's basketball
1. K-State Off to Best Start Since 2008-09
• Kansas State is off to its best start through 16 games since the 2008-09 season. This is the ninth time since the 2000-01 season in which K-State has opened a season with a 13-3 or better record after the first 15 games.
2. Lee in Rare Air
• Junior center Ayoka Lee, a Wooden Award Midseason Top-25 candidate, is the only player in the nation averaging 20 or more points, 10 or more rebounds and 3 or more blocks this season.
3. The D is the Key
• K-State has held its opponents to 55.7 points per game and a .344 field goal percentage. The Wildcats lead the Big 12 in both categories and rank 15th in the nation in field goal percentage defense and 32nd in scoring defense.
4. Freshmen Trio Holding Their Own
• K-State has been bolstered this season by its freshmen trio of Brylee Glenn, Jaelyn Glenn and Serena Sundell. The three players have combined to score 400 points this season (25.0 ppg) and are responsible for 34.7 percent of K-State's scoring which trails the juniors on the roster (476; 41.3 percent).
5. Cats on a Road Streak
• With its 71-61 win at West Virginia on Jan. 8, K-State secured its fourth straight road win. This is K-State's longest road winning streak since the end of the 2018-19 regular season.

Number to Know
0.57

• K-State center Ayoka Lee is averaging 0.57 double-doubles per game in her career, which is the highest rate in school history. Among active NCAA Division I Power 5 Conference players, Lee ranks first in career double-doubles per game.
• Lee's career double-double total stands at 40, which ranks second in school history for career double-doubles. She is the fastest player in program history to 40 career double-doubles.

At a Glance: Texas Tech
• Texas Tech (8-7, 1-3 Big 12) enters Saturday's game on a two-game skid after downing 9th-ranked Texas last week.
• Texas Tech is guided on the sideline by second-year head coach Krista Gerlich. The 1993 graduate of Texas Tech owns a career record of 307-169 (.645) including an 18-22 (.450) mark in Lubbock.
• The Lady Raiders are led by seniors Vivian Gray and Taylah Thomas.
• Gray departed Oklahoma State in late July of 2020 and joined the Lady Raiders in mid-August of 2020. After another All-Big 12 honor in 2021, Gray is pacing Texas Tech this season with 17.1 points. At West Virginia on Wednesday, she registered 16 points, seven rebounds, three steals and three assists.
• Thomas, a grad transfer from Arkansas, leads the Lady Raiders in rebounding with 9.3 per game and is averaging 9.9 points per game on a .474 field goal percentage.

Last Time Out
(9/9) Iowa State 73, at (25/rv) K-State 70 (Jan. 11, 2022; Manhattan, Kan.)
• K-State held an 11-point lead with 6:30 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Cyclones finished the game 7-of-8 from the field and 5-of-5 from 3 to finish the comeback.
• This was K-State's first loss since Dec. 3 at South Carolina. All three of K-State's losses this season have been to Associated Press top-10 opponents.
• K-State was led by Ayoka Lee, who broke the school record for points in a conference game with 38 while adding 11 rebounds, three blocks, two assists and two steals.

Wildcats 10 at Home, 5 on the Road
• When K-State has strung together successful home and road campaigns in the same season, it results in postseason appearances.
• The Wildcats have made 17 straight postseason appearances (13 NCAA Tournaments, 4 WNITs) when K-State has won 10 or more home games and five or more road games in the same season.
• This season, Kansas State owns a 9-1 home record and a 4-2 road mark.

Wildcats on the Road
• K-State has a 285-305 (.483) record in road games during the program's 54-year history.
• Since the 2000-01 season, K-State owns an 125-125 (.500) mark in road contests. K-State is 19-19 (.500) in the last four seasons in road games.
• In his career in games played on the road, head coach Jeff Mittie is 160-184 (.467) including a 35-47 (.434) mark during his time at K-State.
• This season, the Wildcats are 4-2 on the road with an active four-game winning streak. This is the longest road winning streak for K-State since the end of the 2018-19 regular season. The four wins are the most since the 2019-20 season.

Fast Starts Aiding the Cats
• This season, K-State has dashed out to quick starts in the first quarter of games.
• The Wildcats are outscoring opponents 295-172 (+123) in the opening quarter this season. The Wildcats are averaging 18.4 points per game in first quarters.
• Kansas State has held a double-figure lead after the first 10 minutes seven times including a 27-point margin at Omaha on Dec. 8 and a 26-point advantage against Abilene Christian on Nov. 23.
• K-State has scored 20 or more points in the first quarter four times including a high of 36 points at Omaha. The four games this season with 20 or more points in a first quarter ties the total number from the 2020-21 season.
• The Wildcats have also held opponents to single digits in the first quarter seven times including a low of three points against Central Arkansas on Nov. 9.

K-State Holds Foes to Single-Digits
• Entering the seventh season of the quarter system in women's college basketball, K-State's defense has limited its opponents point production for 10 minute durations.
• Kansas State is 66-22 (.750) when holding an opponent to single digits in any quarter in a game.
• This season, K-State has held opponents to 17 single-digit quarters including a five-quarter stretch spanning the final three quarters of the Nov. 12 game against UT Martin and the first two quarters of the Nov. 14 game against Western Kentucky.
• Against UT Martin, K-State held the Skyhawks to three straight single-digit scoring quarters including a school record low for a third quarter of four points.
• The Wildcats held Central Arkansas to three points in the first quarter on November 9 to begin the season.

Nobody Scores It Like Ayoka Lee
• Ayoka Lee is quickly climbing the K-State career scoring list and has been on a scoring tear in the 2021-22 season.
• In her career, Lee has scored 1,321 points in 70 career games (18.9 ppg). Her career scoring average of 18.9 ranks first in school history and seventh among active NCAA Division I players. She was the 44th player in school history with 1,000 or more career points and ranks tied for 14th on the K-State career scoring list.
• This season, Lee is averaging 24.2 points per game which ranks fourth in the nation. Lee leads the nation in total points scored (387). Lee is the only player in the nation averaging 20.0+ points, 10.0+ rebounds and 3.5+ blocks.
• With 13 points, Lee will become the fifth player in school history with three or more consecutive seasons with 400 or more points in a season.
• Her 24.2 points per game is the highest per game average in school history and is the third time a K-State player has averaged 20 or more points in a season and first since Brittany Chambers in the 2012-13 season.
• Lee's 285 points in non-conference play this season are the seventh-most points scored in non-conference play by a K-State player since at least 2000-01.
• According to HerHoopStats.com, Lee leads the nation in PER (49.9) and is second in Win Shares (7.3). PER measures a player's value based on their box score stats. Win Shares are and advanced statistic that approximates the total number of wins a player produces for their team through their play on the offensive and defensive ends of the court.
• During the 2020-21 season, Lee averaged a career-best 19.1 points per game while scoring a career-high 478 points. She ranked seventh in the Big 12 and 41st in the nation in scoring.
• According to HerHoopStats.com, Lee led the Big 12 and ranked third in the nation in PER (39.9).

Sundell Sets the Table
• Freshman guard Serena Sundell has established herself at the point for K-State with her distribution skills.
• The product of Maryville, Missouri, has handed out 94 assists (5.9 apg) and owns a 2.04 assist to turnover ratio. She has 10 games with five or more assists this season including a career-high 11. Sundell is responsible for 30.6 percent of K-State's assists this season.
• Sundell, a three-time Big 12 Freshman of the Week recipient, is second in the Big 12 and fourth in the nation for total assists. She also is second in the Big 12 and 15th in the nation for assists per game.
• Among the nation's freshmen, Sundell is second in total assists and assists per game.
• Her 94 assists through 16 games are the highest total by a K-State freshman through their first 16 games.
• Against Iowa State on Jan. 11, Sundell tallied a career-high 11 assists. This was the 15th time a K-State player handed out 11 assists in a game and was the most assists by a Wildcat since Kayla Goth tied the school record with 13 against West Virginia on March 9, 2019.
• At South Dakota State on Dec. 11, Sundell dished 10 assists with just one turnover.
• Sundell handed out nine assists with one turnover against Central Arkansas in the season-opener on Nov. 9. Her nine assists set the school record for assists in a K-State debut.