Kansas State University Athletics
Friday, March 11
Kansas City, Missouri
7:30 p.m.
Kansas State University
19-12,9-9Big 12
65
vs
72
Texas
24-6,13-5Big 12
1
2
3
4
F
Kansas St.
8
19
16
22
65
Texas
11
21
25
15
72
Second Half Rally Comes Up Shy for K-State in Big 12 Quarters
Mar 11, 2022 | Women's Basketball
KANSAS CITY, Missouri – Trailing by five points at the half, K-State rallied to within four points late in the third quarter, but a 10-0 run by (7/9) Texas provided enough distance for the Longhorns to down the Wildcats, 72-65, in the 2022 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship quarterfinals on Friday night at Municipal Auditorium.
"I thought it was a heck of a game," said K-State head coach Jeff Mittie. "I thought we made a really good push back at them after they pushed away from us at the end of the third. That end of the third was critical. We gave up back-to-back three's and had the turnover to get the ball inbounds and that happened quick. That happened in about a minute and 20 seconds, and that was the turning point where we just couldn't push back enough.
"I though we made some good plays down the stretch and thought our group kept fighting and gave us a chance."
Trailing 32-27 at the half after an 8-0 to end the second quarter, K-State (19-12) closed to within four points five times in the third quarter. Texas (24-6) threatened to pull away midway through the third quarter after a pair of Lauren Ebo free throws increased the lead to seven, 43-36, with 4:35 remaining.
Junior guard Emilee Ebert helped the Wildcats remain close, as she finished an old-fashioned three-point play with 4:18 to play in the third to bring the score to 43-39. Ebert ended the night with 15 points, her third game this season with 15 or more points. Adding to her point total was a career-high 8-of-10 effort from the free throw line.
After the Ebert three-point play, a pair of Wildcat backdoor layups from Cymone Goodrich and Jaelyn Glenn kept K-State within four, 47-43, with 2:54 remaining.
Following the Jaelyn Glenn layup, Texas would end the third quarter on a 10-0 run, highlighted by a pair of Aliyah Matharu three-pointers and a Rori Harmon buzzer-beating jumper to hold a 57-43 lead. Matharu came off the bench to register 15 points on 5-of-6 from 3-point range.
In the fourth quarter, K-State trailed by as many as 16, 61-45, with 7:51 left. The Wildcats were able to work the deficit to five, 70-65, with 15 seconds left on a Jaelyn Glenn three-pointer, but ran out of time to finish the comeback.
K-State shot 51.2 percent (21-of-41) from the field and shot 90.9 percent (20-of-22) from the free throw line. The Wildcats dished out 14 assists and improved its season total to 529. The total of 529 is a new high in the Jeff Mittie era (since 2014-15).
The Wildcats blocked two shots and increased its season total to 165, setting the school record for blocks in a single season.
Leading K-State was 2022 Lisa Leslie Award finalist Ayoka Lee with 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting and seven rebounds. With her seven rebounds, Lee surpassed Brittany Chambers (2009-13; 862) for seventh on the K-State career rebound list with a total of 864.
Joining Lee and Ebert in double figures was freshman guard Serena Sundell. The guard from Maryville, Missouri, tallied 11 points and increased his season point total to 329 and ranks 11th in school history for points in a freshman season.
Trailing 32-19 with 2:28 remaining in the first half, the Wildcats ended the half on an 8-0 run and trail by five at the half, 32-27. Lee started the rally with a layup with 2:18 left. Following a long rebound, Goodrich raced up the floor herself and finished the transition layup.
Brylee Glenn finished a layup to beat the shot clock with 27 seconds remaining. During Glenn's drive, Laura Macke set a screen on Texas's Audrey Warren. Warren charged hard into Macke with both players crashing to the floor. Warren was called for a foul on the play and Macke knocked down both free throws to close the deficit to five at the break.
K-State shot 50.0 percent (9-of-18) from the field in the opening half, including 81.8 percent (9-of-11) from the foul line. The Wildcats were forced into 10 turnovers, which resulted in 11 Texas points. K-State held Texas to 37.0 percent (10-of-27) shooting from the floor in the first half but were boosted by a 5-of-11 effort from beyond the arc.
Kansas State will find out its postseason destination and opponent on Sunday, as the 2022 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship bracket will be announced on ESPN at 7 p.m.
"I thought it was a heck of a game," said K-State head coach Jeff Mittie. "I thought we made a really good push back at them after they pushed away from us at the end of the third. That end of the third was critical. We gave up back-to-back three's and had the turnover to get the ball inbounds and that happened quick. That happened in about a minute and 20 seconds, and that was the turning point where we just couldn't push back enough.
"I though we made some good plays down the stretch and thought our group kept fighting and gave us a chance."
Trailing 32-27 at the half after an 8-0 to end the second quarter, K-State (19-12) closed to within four points five times in the third quarter. Texas (24-6) threatened to pull away midway through the third quarter after a pair of Lauren Ebo free throws increased the lead to seven, 43-36, with 4:35 remaining.
Junior guard Emilee Ebert helped the Wildcats remain close, as she finished an old-fashioned three-point play with 4:18 to play in the third to bring the score to 43-39. Ebert ended the night with 15 points, her third game this season with 15 or more points. Adding to her point total was a career-high 8-of-10 effort from the free throw line.
After the Ebert three-point play, a pair of Wildcat backdoor layups from Cymone Goodrich and Jaelyn Glenn kept K-State within four, 47-43, with 2:54 remaining.
Following the Jaelyn Glenn layup, Texas would end the third quarter on a 10-0 run, highlighted by a pair of Aliyah Matharu three-pointers and a Rori Harmon buzzer-beating jumper to hold a 57-43 lead. Matharu came off the bench to register 15 points on 5-of-6 from 3-point range.
In the fourth quarter, K-State trailed by as many as 16, 61-45, with 7:51 left. The Wildcats were able to work the deficit to five, 70-65, with 15 seconds left on a Jaelyn Glenn three-pointer, but ran out of time to finish the comeback.
K-State shot 51.2 percent (21-of-41) from the field and shot 90.9 percent (20-of-22) from the free throw line. The Wildcats dished out 14 assists and improved its season total to 529. The total of 529 is a new high in the Jeff Mittie era (since 2014-15).
The Wildcats blocked two shots and increased its season total to 165, setting the school record for blocks in a single season.
Leading K-State was 2022 Lisa Leslie Award finalist Ayoka Lee with 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting and seven rebounds. With her seven rebounds, Lee surpassed Brittany Chambers (2009-13; 862) for seventh on the K-State career rebound list with a total of 864.
Joining Lee and Ebert in double figures was freshman guard Serena Sundell. The guard from Maryville, Missouri, tallied 11 points and increased his season point total to 329 and ranks 11th in school history for points in a freshman season.
Trailing 32-19 with 2:28 remaining in the first half, the Wildcats ended the half on an 8-0 run and trail by five at the half, 32-27. Lee started the rally with a layup with 2:18 left. Following a long rebound, Goodrich raced up the floor herself and finished the transition layup.
Brylee Glenn finished a layup to beat the shot clock with 27 seconds remaining. During Glenn's drive, Laura Macke set a screen on Texas's Audrey Warren. Warren charged hard into Macke with both players crashing to the floor. Warren was called for a foul on the play and Macke knocked down both free throws to close the deficit to five at the break.
K-State shot 50.0 percent (9-of-18) from the field in the opening half, including 81.8 percent (9-of-11) from the foul line. The Wildcats were forced into 10 turnovers, which resulted in 11 Texas points. K-State held Texas to 37.0 percent (10-of-27) shooting from the floor in the first half but were boosted by a 5-of-11 effort from beyond the arc.
Kansas State will find out its postseason destination and opponent on Sunday, as the 2022 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship bracket will be announced on ESPN at 7 p.m.
Team Stats
KState
UT
FG%
.512
.392
3FG%
.300
.500
FT%
.909
.893
RB
25
28
TO
16
11
STL
6
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
15
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
8
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
8
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballG
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