Ebert Has Basketball in Her Blood
May 23, 2022 | Women's Basketball, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
Emilee Ebert, the pride of Frankfort, Kansas, sits down on a white wooden chair in the restaurant at Smokey Hill Country Club in Hays and begins to talk. The Kansas State senior is representing the K-State women's basketball team on the Catbacker Tour. At each stop, at each city, she pieces together her unique role for the Wildcats and shares her intriguing path to Manhattan with K-State fans.
At every stop, she also thanks K-State fans for their support.
"K-State fans are extremely passionate," she says. "I'm super grateful for all their support and for them supporting us student-athletes. It's crazy. It's super fun just to be around them. We thrive off their passion."
The 6-foot Ebert is one of 15 K-State student-athletes on the Catbacker Tour. Each player has a unique path to K-State. Each player has a story.
Ebert's story begins in Frankfort, a town of about 800 people. Her story begins in the gym at Frankfort High School. She is young. Her father, Brian, is head coach of the Frankfort High Wildcats. She learns a great deal about the game of basketball watching her father coach. He is a very fine coach. He is a very fine man. He leads Frankfort to many wins and along the way pours into his daughter. She grows up with a basketball in her hands. She dribbles basketballs while watching her father coach his teams during practice. She becomes the ultimate gym rat.
This is how it all begins.
Ebert evolves into a very fine volleyball player and track athlete. She is one of the best in the state. She also sets Frankfort's all-time scoring record with 1,648 career points. She is a four-time Kansas Basketball Coaches Association honoree and is a McDonald's All-American nominee. It all goes back to the basketball and those days in the gym and how magical it all felt. It all goes back to her dad.
Today, sitting in that wooden chair in Hays, she talks about her father. It makes her smile.
"I would not have wanted it any other way," she says. "I wouldn't change a thing. It was a very, very special time for my dad and me. I can't even imagine it happening any other way. If I could've played under my dad forever, I probably would. I would've loved it so much."
However, despite Ebert's other-worldly success, she is lightly recruited by Division I schools. She receives between nine and 11 scholarship offers. Her finalists are Missouri State and Nebraska-Omaha. Then she receives a phone call that changes the game. K-State has an opening on its 2019-20 roster. She arrives in Manhattan the following week. She plays in 24 games as a true freshman.
"I ended up exactly where I was supposed to," she says, "and I'll forever be grateful for that."
And now — bam — she is a senior leader at K-State alongside senior All-American Ayoka Lee.
It's interesting how it happens, how one second you're reporting to your first-ever college practice as a wide-eyed freshman full of hopes and dreams, and the next second you're on the cusp of bidding farewell to that singular aspect of your life that has seemingly been a part of you forever and ever; how your belly fills with butterflies that first time you check into your first college game, and how your belly fills with butterflies of the great unknown and how it all will end; how seeing mom and dad in the stands at age 10 brings such joy, and how seeing them on college Senior Night might cause the tear ducts to fill like the Black Vermillion River.
"I'm excited to be a senior," she says. "I'm ready to get the season started and see where we can go."
Ebert, described as the "glue" to the squad, plays four different positions at one time or another during her junior season. It's impressive, really. No matter where she is on the court, no matter which position she is asked to play, she always seems to be around the ball.
She plays in a career-high 31 games with 24 starts as a junior. She sets career highs in points (180), rebounds (104), field goals made (58) and field goals attempted (164), and 3-pointers made (18). She scores in double figures in six games and records at least five rebounds in seven contests. She has 16 points in 18 minutes against Central Arkansas. She has eight assists at South Dakota State. She has 15 points and five rebounds against Texas.
She ranks 15th in the Big 12 with 2.4 assists per game.
She currently ranks seventh in K-State history with a career assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.38.
"Whatever I have to do for our team to have success," she says, "I'm willing to do."
Ebert's efforts help the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament. And to understand how meaningful Ebert's appearance in the NCAA Tournament is to her, Jennifer Ebert shares two photos of her daughter at age 11. In one photo, she is smiling really big while toting a basketball rack, in another she is mopping the basketball court at a NCAA Tournament game. Yes, she worked a NCAA Tournament at age 11. It's funny how thing run full circle.
"The NCAA Tournament was literally a childhood dream come true," she says.
After the Wildcats end their season with a loss to top-seeded NC State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, the Wildcats come together and outline a goal for this coming season.
They want to work to make Manhattan a host site for the first two rounds of the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
"That's our goal," Ebert says. "We want to be able to host and get all our fans there and get the home-court advantage. Bramlage would be pretty packed. The atmosphere would be insane."
This summer, Ebert is working on honing her skills as a 3-point shooter. She shoots hundreds of 3-pointers a day. K-State newcomers report back to campus on June 6. Veterans report back on June 13.
"As a team our chemistry has to be great," she says. "Going into workouts this summer, that's going to be my main focus, to make sure our chemistry is good. That's going to lead to success for us, just making sure the team meshes well."
Ebert seems perfect for this role. A three-time member of the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll, Ebert is majoring in human development family sciences with a minor in leadership. She plans to earn a master's degree following graduation.
Sitting inside the Smokey Hill Country Club in Hays, she talks little bit about her path. She talks about her versatility. She talks about Ayoka Lee scoring a Division I record 61 points against No. 14 Oklahoma this past season. She talks about the team returning for this upcoming season, and she talks about the newcomers joining the team this summer, and how the Wildcats could be good, very good, if everything comes together.
Then, in another breath, she unveils a life goal, which has been so many years in the making, which traces back to the Frankfort High School gym, which traces back to watching her dad. She can do virtually anything out of college. She knows that. But there's one thing that this story all trails back to, which is the girl and the basketball, the passion, the dreams, and the story yet to come.
"I loved playing for my dad," she says. "I got to see how amazing he is as a coach."
She pauses.
"Now I want to coach. I want to get to do that, too."
Emilee Ebert, the pride of Frankfort, Kansas, sits down on a white wooden chair in the restaurant at Smokey Hill Country Club in Hays and begins to talk. The Kansas State senior is representing the K-State women's basketball team on the Catbacker Tour. At each stop, at each city, she pieces together her unique role for the Wildcats and shares her intriguing path to Manhattan with K-State fans.
At every stop, she also thanks K-State fans for their support.
"K-State fans are extremely passionate," she says. "I'm super grateful for all their support and for them supporting us student-athletes. It's crazy. It's super fun just to be around them. We thrive off their passion."
The 6-foot Ebert is one of 15 K-State student-athletes on the Catbacker Tour. Each player has a unique path to K-State. Each player has a story.
Ebert's story begins in Frankfort, a town of about 800 people. Her story begins in the gym at Frankfort High School. She is young. Her father, Brian, is head coach of the Frankfort High Wildcats. She learns a great deal about the game of basketball watching her father coach. He is a very fine coach. He is a very fine man. He leads Frankfort to many wins and along the way pours into his daughter. She grows up with a basketball in her hands. She dribbles basketballs while watching her father coach his teams during practice. She becomes the ultimate gym rat.
This is how it all begins.
Ebert evolves into a very fine volleyball player and track athlete. She is one of the best in the state. She also sets Frankfort's all-time scoring record with 1,648 career points. She is a four-time Kansas Basketball Coaches Association honoree and is a McDonald's All-American nominee. It all goes back to the basketball and those days in the gym and how magical it all felt. It all goes back to her dad.
Today, sitting in that wooden chair in Hays, she talks about her father. It makes her smile.
"I would not have wanted it any other way," she says. "I wouldn't change a thing. It was a very, very special time for my dad and me. I can't even imagine it happening any other way. If I could've played under my dad forever, I probably would. I would've loved it so much."
However, despite Ebert's other-worldly success, she is lightly recruited by Division I schools. She receives between nine and 11 scholarship offers. Her finalists are Missouri State and Nebraska-Omaha. Then she receives a phone call that changes the game. K-State has an opening on its 2019-20 roster. She arrives in Manhattan the following week. She plays in 24 games as a true freshman.
"I ended up exactly where I was supposed to," she says, "and I'll forever be grateful for that."
And now — bam — she is a senior leader at K-State alongside senior All-American Ayoka Lee.
It's interesting how it happens, how one second you're reporting to your first-ever college practice as a wide-eyed freshman full of hopes and dreams, and the next second you're on the cusp of bidding farewell to that singular aspect of your life that has seemingly been a part of you forever and ever; how your belly fills with butterflies that first time you check into your first college game, and how your belly fills with butterflies of the great unknown and how it all will end; how seeing mom and dad in the stands at age 10 brings such joy, and how seeing them on college Senior Night might cause the tear ducts to fill like the Black Vermillion River.
"I'm excited to be a senior," she says. "I'm ready to get the season started and see where we can go."
Ebert, described as the "glue" to the squad, plays four different positions at one time or another during her junior season. It's impressive, really. No matter where she is on the court, no matter which position she is asked to play, she always seems to be around the ball.
She plays in a career-high 31 games with 24 starts as a junior. She sets career highs in points (180), rebounds (104), field goals made (58) and field goals attempted (164), and 3-pointers made (18). She scores in double figures in six games and records at least five rebounds in seven contests. She has 16 points in 18 minutes against Central Arkansas. She has eight assists at South Dakota State. She has 15 points and five rebounds against Texas.
She ranks 15th in the Big 12 with 2.4 assists per game.
She currently ranks seventh in K-State history with a career assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.38.
"Whatever I have to do for our team to have success," she says, "I'm willing to do."
Ebert's efforts help the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament. And to understand how meaningful Ebert's appearance in the NCAA Tournament is to her, Jennifer Ebert shares two photos of her daughter at age 11. In one photo, she is smiling really big while toting a basketball rack, in another she is mopping the basketball court at a NCAA Tournament game. Yes, she worked a NCAA Tournament at age 11. It's funny how thing run full circle.
"The NCAA Tournament was literally a childhood dream come true," she says.
After the Wildcats end their season with a loss to top-seeded NC State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, the Wildcats come together and outline a goal for this coming season.
They want to work to make Manhattan a host site for the first two rounds of the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
"That's our goal," Ebert says. "We want to be able to host and get all our fans there and get the home-court advantage. Bramlage would be pretty packed. The atmosphere would be insane."
This summer, Ebert is working on honing her skills as a 3-point shooter. She shoots hundreds of 3-pointers a day. K-State newcomers report back to campus on June 6. Veterans report back on June 13.
"As a team our chemistry has to be great," she says. "Going into workouts this summer, that's going to be my main focus, to make sure our chemistry is good. That's going to lead to success for us, just making sure the team meshes well."
Ebert seems perfect for this role. A three-time member of the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll, Ebert is majoring in human development family sciences with a minor in leadership. She plans to earn a master's degree following graduation.
Sitting inside the Smokey Hill Country Club in Hays, she talks little bit about her path. She talks about her versatility. She talks about Ayoka Lee scoring a Division I record 61 points against No. 14 Oklahoma this past season. She talks about the team returning for this upcoming season, and she talks about the newcomers joining the team this summer, and how the Wildcats could be good, very good, if everything comes together.
Then, in another breath, she unveils a life goal, which has been so many years in the making, which traces back to the Frankfort High School gym, which traces back to watching her dad. She can do virtually anything out of college. She knows that. But there's one thing that this story all trails back to, which is the girl and the basketball, the passion, the dreams, and the story yet to come.
"I loved playing for my dad," she says. "I got to see how amazing he is as a coach."
She pauses.
"Now I want to coach. I want to get to do that, too."
Players Mentioned
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