K-State, Washington State Meet in Saturday Morning NCAA Tournament Tip

2022 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship - First Round
GAME #32
Kansas State (19-12, 9-9 Big 12) vs. Washington State (19-10, 11-6 Pac 12)
Saturday, March 19, 2022 | 10:30 a.m. (CDT) | Reynolds Coliseum | Raleigh, North Carolina

TELEVISION
ESPN2 & ESPN+
Play-by-Play: Sam Ravech
Analyst: Kelly Gramlich

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

SiriusXM
Ch. 373 & 380

SiriusXM app
Ch. 373 & 970

LIVE STATS
www.kstatesports.com & ncaa.com

COACHES
Kansas State: Jeff Mittie (Missouri Western '89)
Overall: 598-344/30th season | At K-State: 144-109/8th season

Washington State: Kamie Ethridge (Texas '87)
Overall: 134-105/8th season | At Washington State: 51-63/4th season

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP (based on previous game)
Kansas State (19-12, 9-9 Big 12)
G: #3 Jaelyn Glenn | G: #4 Serena Sundell | G: #5 Brylee Glenn | G: #24 Emilee Ebert | C: #50 Ayoka Lee

Washington State (19-10, 11-6 Pac 12)
G: #1 Tara Wallack | G: #4 Krystal Leger-Walker | G: #5 Charlisse Leger-Walker | G: #21 Johanna Teder | C: #55 Bella Murekatete

SERIES HISTORY
Overall: K-State leads, 4-0
In Neutral Site games: First meeting
Last Meeting: Nov. 20, 2009; K-State won 70-63 (Manhattan)
Head Coach Jeff Mittie vs. Washington State: First meeting
• The Wildcats are 48-49 against current members of the Pac 12 Conference, including a 68-56 win over Oregon on Dec. 18, 2021.
• This is the second time in the last three NCAA Tournaments in which K-State will face a Pac 12 school. The Wildcats faced Stanford in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament.

MANHATTAN, Kansas – K-State, a nine-seed in the Bridgeport Region, will compete in the 2022 NCAA Tournament first round against eight-seed Washington State on Saturday at 10:30 a.m., in Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, North Carolina.

• Saturday's game will air on ESPN2, as Sam Ravech (play-by-play) and Kelly Gramlich (analyst) will have the call.
• K-State's 10-win improvement from the 2020-21 season is the largest win improvement in the Jeff Mittie era and tied for the second-largest win increase from one season to the next in program history. It is the largest since the school record of 14 was set in the 2001-02 season.
• The Wildcats have been led this season by All-Big 12 First Team honoree Ayoka Lee and All-Big 12 Honorable Mention recipient Serena Sundell.
• Lee, a 2022 All-America and National Player of the Year candidate, is the first player in program history and the only player in the nation this season to register the combination of 675 or more points, 300 or more rebounds and 90 or more blocked shots.
• Sundell, a unanimous 2022 Big 12 All-Freshman Team selection, is second on the team in scoring (10.6 ppg). She is second in the Big 12 in total assists (171) and assists per game (5.5). A five-time Big 12 Freshman of the Week honoree, Sundell is the only freshman in the nation with 170 or more assists and 40 or more 3-point field goals made.

Starting 5
Five names, numbers or storylines about K-State women's basketball
1. Wildcats in the NCAA Tournament
• K-State is making the 17th NCAA Tournament appearance and the fourth under head coach Jeff Mittie. The Wildcats own a record of 13-16 in its previous 16 appearances and have advanced at least one round 11 times.
2. K-State 2021-22 Resume
• K-State's 10-win improvement this season has resulted in an NCAA NET ranking of 37. The Wildcats have five wins against teams ranked between 1 and 50 in the NCAA NET while also playing a school-record 10 games against AP top-15 foes.
3. High Efficiency Dishes
• The Wildcats have 529 assists (17.1 apg) and an assisted shot rate of 69.9 percent this season. According to HerHoopStats.com, K-State ranks second in the nation in assisted shot rate and are the highest ranked Power 5 member in the category.
4. Lee Approaching Double-Double School Record
• With one double-double, Ayoka Lee will break her own school record for double-doubles in a season. She currently owns 19 double-doubles and would become the sixth player in Big 12 history with 20 or more double-doubles in a season.
5. Great Return at the Free Throw Line
• K-State is shooting 75.5 percent (389-515) from the foul line this season. This would be a school record for free throw percentage in a single-season.

Number to Know
165

• K-State has blocked a single-season school record 165 shots this season.
• This is the fifth season under head coach Jeff Mittie in which K-State has blocked 150 or more shots. Prior to Mittie's arrival in 2014-15, K-State had blocked 150 or more shots in a season four times since blocks became an official stat in 1982-83.
• K-State features four players with 10 or more blocks this season, including Ayoka Lee with 93.

At a Glance: Washington State
• Washington State (19-10, 11-6 Pac 12) enters the NCAA Tournament with wins in five of their last seven games. This will be the third NCAA Tournament appearance for the Cougars and the second straight after making the 2020-21 NCAA Tournament.
• The Cougars are led on the sidelines by fourth-year head coach Kamie Ethridge. In her time in Pullman, Ethridge has guided the program to consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time in program history and is 51-63 (.447). Ethridge owns a career mark of 134-105 (.561) with a previous four season stop at Northern Colorado.
• Before taking the head coaching job at Northern Colorado in 2014-15, Ethridge served as the K-State associate head coach for 18 seasons under former head coach Deb Patterson. Patterson, the all-time career wins leader at K-State, serves on Ethridge's staff as the Director of Player Personnel and Program Analytics. Also on the Washington State staff is 2021 K-State Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Laurie Koehn as the Associate Head Coach.
• On the floor, Washington State is led by the trio of Charlisse Leger-Walker, Bella Murekatete and Johanna Teder.
• Leger-Walker, a sophomore guard, paces the squad with 16.0 points and 5.2 rebounds.
• Murekatete, a junior center, is second on the team in scoring with 10.6 points and leads the team on the glass with 7.2 rebounds and in blocks with 1.7.
• Teder, a junior guard is averaging 10.6 points and is the top 3-point shooter with 56 connections from beyond the arc.

Last Time Out
(7/9) Texas 72, K-State 65, (7/9) (March 11, 2022; Kansas City, Mo.)
• K-State closed to within four points five times in the third quarter, but Texas used a 10-0 run at the end of the third to create a buffer that the Wildcats couldn't overcome.
• The Wildcats were 20-of-22 from the free throw line, which is the fifth time this season making 20 or more in a game. This tied for the third-most free throws made in a K-State Big 12 Championship game and the most since making 21 against Baylor on March 10, 2019.
• 2022 All-America candidate Ayoka Lee led the Wildcats with 16 points and seven rebounds. Emilee Ebert added 15 points and five rebounds, while freshman Serena Sundell chipped in with 11 points and five assists.

Lee Collects Hardware
• K-State junior center Ayoka Lee has added a number of honors to her personal trophy case leading into the NCAA Tournament.
• Lee has been named a Second Team All-American by the Associated Press and the United State Basketball Writers Association. She is the first Wildcat to be named to both of these teams since Kendra Wecker in the 2005 season.
• Lee also was named a First Team Academic All-American by CoSIDA. She joins Laurie Koehn as the only women's basketball student-athletes at K-State to earn the first team honor and the only two to earn multiple Academic All-America honors in their careers.

Wildcats' Defense Forges Identity
• K-State has continued to be a force on the defensive end during head coach Jeff Mittie's eight seasons on the bench.
• In the 2021-22 season, the Wildcats are limiting opponents to 60.4 points per game and a field goal percentage of .377.
• K-State's scoring defense this season is the second-lowest in the Mittie era since his first season when the Wildcats held foes to 58.2 points per game. The opponent field goal percentage is the third-lowest during Mittie's time in Manhattan.
• K-State is second in the Big 12 in scoring defense. The Wildcats are third in the Big 12 in field goal percentage defense.
• During the last 19 seasons, K-State is 121-3 (.976) when holding an opponent to 49 points or less including a 40-0 mark in the Mittie era.
• K-State held its first four opponents of the 2021-22 season under 49 points in each game. This was the first time in the Mittie era and the first time since the 1972-73 season.
• Against UT Martin on Nov. 12, the Wildcats defense suppressed the Skyhawks with just 30 points allowed. The 30 points allowed were the fewest in the Mittie era and the lowest opponent total against K-State since Nov. 12, 2011, against Dartmouth when K-State surrendered just 20 points.
• The Wildcats have held 12 opponents to a field goal percentage of 35.0 percent or less including a season-low of 18.3 percent against Northwestern State on Nov. 27.

Sharing is Caring
• K-State has been unselfish this season, dishing out 529 assists (17.1 apg). The Wildcats are 14th in the nation for total assists and 15th in the nation and third in the Big 12 in assists per game. The Wildcats are 13th in the nation and are second in the Big 12 in assist-turnover ratio at 1.25.
• K-State's 529 assists this season are the most for the program in the Jeff Mittie era and the most since the 2005-06 season (553).
• Of its 757 made field goals, K-State has recorded an assist on 69.9 percent of those field goals. According to HerHoopStats.com, K-State ranks second in the nation and first among Power 5 conference members for assisted shot rate.
• Since assists became an officially tracked stat in 1981-82, K-State has registered an assisted shot rate of 60.0 percent or higher at the end of a season 21 times in its history.
• Of the 529 assists doled out, K-State has nine of its 10 active players with 20 or more assists this season including three, Serena Sundell, Emilee Ebert and Jaelyn Glenn, with 60 or more.
• K-State has eight games with 20 or more assists this season (7-1). Over the last 15 years, the Wildcats are 78-7 (.918) when handing out 20 or more assists.
• K-State opened the 2021-22 season with 26 assists against Central Arkansas. Of the 10 players that saw the floor against the Sugar Bears, eight recorded an assist.
• Against Iowa State, K-State handed out 27 assists on 31 made field goals which was a season-high for assisted shot rate of 87.1 percent.
• Against Oklahoma on Jan. 23, K-State dished out a season-high 28 assists on 33 made field goals. K-State's 28 assists were the most since Dec. 3, 2019, against UIW when the Wildcats handed out 30.

Three is not a Crowd, It's a Benefit
• Since 2011-12, when three or more players reach double figures in scoring in the same game, K-State is 140-69 (.670) including an 12-2 mark this season.
• The Wildcats have had a season-high four players in double figures three times.

Sundell Sizzling
• Freshman guard Serena Sundell has added a scoring punch to the K-State lineup.
• This season, Sundell is second on the team in scoring (329 points; 10.6 ppg) and leads the team in 3-point field goals made (49). She has 18 games with 10 or more points including four efforts with 20 or more points.
• Sundell's 329 points this season ranks tied for 11th in program history for points in a freshman season.
• At Oklahoma on Feb. 26, Sundell registered 24 points on 9-of-16 shooting including 5-of-9 from beyond the arc. She also dished out seven assists with no turnovers and two steals.
• At West Virginia on Jan. 8, Sundell notched 21 points, nine assists, five rebounds and two steals. This was her first career game with 20 or more points, five or more assists and five or more rebounds.
• At South Dakota State on Dec. 11, Sundell tallied her first career double-double with 16 points, 10 assists, five rebounds and five steals. She is the first K-State freshman guard to tally a double-double with at least 15 points, 10 assists and five rebounds since Dec. 30, 2014. She was the first K-State freshman since at least the 2000-01 season season to notch 10 or more points, eight or more assists, five or more rebounds and five or more steals in the same game. Sundell and Jaelyn Glenn (vs. Oklahoma, Jan. 23) are the only K-State freshmen to card 10 or more rebounds, five or more assists and five or more steals in a game since at least the 2000-01 season.
• Against Abilene Christian on Nov. 23, Sundell tallied a career-high 25 points and tied her career-high with a 5-of-7 effort from 3-point range while also adding five rebounds, three steals and two assists.
• In her first career road game, Sundell led K-State with 21 points on 6-of-14 shooting, including a career-best 5-of-11 from beyond the arc while also handing out six assists at NC State on Nov. 19.
• She was the first K-State player to tally 20 or more points, five or more made 3-point field goals and five or more assists since Kindred Wesemann against Oklahoma on Feb. 9, 2016.

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 1,629 points in 85 career games (19.2 ppg). Her career scoring average of 19.2 ranks first in school history, ninth in Big 12 history and sixth among active NCAA Division I players. Her career points total ranks ninth on the K-State career scoring list.
• She was the 44th player in school history with 1,000 or more career points and was the fastest player in program history to reach 1,500 career points, needing 77 games to reach the milestone. She was the first player in school history to reach the 1,000-career point mark and the 1,500-career point mark in the same season.
• Lee has scored in every game of her career (85 games) and has reached double figures in 77 games including a streak of 28 straight games dating back to the final five games of the 2020-21 season until Feb. 9, 2022.
• This season, Lee is averaging a career-best 22.4 points per game which ranks seventh in the nation and second in the Big 12. Lee is fourth in the nation in total points scored (695). Lee is the only player in the nation averaging 20.0+ points, 10.0+ rebounds and 3.0+ blocks.
• This is the second occurrence in program history in which a player tallied 675 or more points and 300 or more rebounds in a season, as Lee has joined Tammie Romstad and her performance from the 1979-80.
• Her 22.4 points per game this season 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.
• With her 695 points scored this season, Lee has established a new career single-season high and ranks second in school history for points in a single-season.
• Lee is the second player in program history to score 600 or more points in their junior season and owns the school record for points in a junior season. She is the second center in school history to score 600 or more points in a junior season.
• Lee is the fifth player in school history with three or more consecutive seasons with 400 or more points in a season.
• With her efforts of 61 points against Oklahoma on Jan. 23 and 43 points against Central Arkansas on Nov. 9, Lee is one of three players in the nation this season with two games of 40 or more points scored in a game.
• Lee's 301 points in non-conference play this season are the sixth-most points scored in non-conference play by a K-State player since at least 2000-01.
• According to HerHoopStats.com, Lee is third in the nation in PER (41.9) and Win Shares (11.4). 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.

K-State, Washington State Meet in Saturday Morning NCAA Tournament Tip

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Players Mentioned

Emilee Ebert

Brylee Glenn

Jaelyn Glenn

Ayoka Lee

Serena Sundell

Kansas State University Athletics