K-State Wildcats basketball star Ayoka Lee breaks three records with 61-point game
.jpg "Kansas State’s Ayoka Lee (50) comes down the court against North Carolina State during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Friday, Nov. 19, 2021, in Raleigh, N.C. (AP Photo/Karl B. DeBlaker)")
Ayoka Lee shot her way into the record books Sunday.
Lee, a 6-foot-6 junior center for the Kansas State women’s basketball team, broke three scoring records while lighting up the stat sheet with 61 points during a 94-65 victory over No. 14 Oklahoma on a magical afternoon inside Bramlage Coliseum.
Her 61 points came on just 30 shots, all within the three-point arc. She made 23 of them against ineffective OU defenders. But she also drained 15 free throws to go along with 12 rebounds and three blocked shots. That was nearly enough for her to outscore the Sooners all by herself.
That was about the only thing she fell short of on this day. Single-game scoring records fell like dominoes with seemingly every shot she made in the second half. Her 61 points were the most scored by a women’s basketball player in a Division I game.
Lee’s incredible game gave her the K-State scoring record, the Big 12 scoring record and the NCAA scoring record.
“What’s another word for incredible?” Oklahoma coach Jennie Baranczyk said. “Outstanding, amazing, spectacular, All American? Yes, all of those things. She was great.”
The previous NCAA record holder was Cindy Brown of Long Beach State, who scored 60 points in 1987. Lee also broke Brittney Griner’s Big 12 record of 50 points set in a 2013 victory over K-State.
Lee already held the K-State scoring record with her 43-point game earlier this season, which broke Brittany Chambers’ record of 42 set in the 2013 WNIT.
“Coming into this game, I wasn’t like, and I don’t think anyone is like, ‘Oh yeah, we’re just going to set a record today,’” Lee said afterward. “But I think it just goes back to our preparation. This wasn’t an easy scout. You knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but we just executed so well and it started with our defense.”
K-State coach Jeff Mittie wasn’t surprised.
“I think it says a lot about the type of player that she is,” Mittie said, “when she is trying to take charge in a 20-point game late in the game, and still doing the right things defensively and talking and not taking plays off. This is a complete player. We focus sometimes on the offensive end, but she was tasked with defending guards today at the three-point line. Ayoka is the same person good, bad, everyday.”
If anyone doubted Lee’s national player of year candidacy before this weekend, they probably don’t anymore.
Lee is no stranger to monster games. She entered the weekend averaging 23.6 points and 10.8 rebounds. She scored 43 points in the season-opener against Central Arkansas and recently had 38 points in a game against Iowa State.
Those were all eye-popping scoring performances. But they were nothing compared to what Lee accomplished on Sunday.
This story was originally published January 23, 2022 at 4:05 PM with the headline "K-State Wildcats basketball star Ayoka Lee breaks three records with 61-point game."