K-State women’s basketball defeats rival KU Jayhawks in first game without Ayoka Lee
No Ayoka Lee, no problem for the Kansas State women’s basketball team.
The Wildcats won a Sunflower Showdown rivalry game against the Kansas Jayhawks 69-58 on Saturday in front of a near sellout crowd of 9,602 at Bramlage Coliseum.
It was a satisfying result for head coach Jeff Mittie, who was forced to come up with a new game plan one day after K-State announced that Lee was going to miss approximately four weeks of action with an ankle injury.
Lee, a senior center, has led the Wildcats with 19.8 points and 8.2 rebounds this season. Playing without her would be a challenge for any team. But it didn’t bother K-State on this day.
K-State raced to an 18-6 lead in the first quarter and maintained a comfortable lead the rest of the way.
Serena Sundell and Zyanna Walker both led the Wildcats with 15 points while Brylee Glenn had 13.
Zakiyah Franklin led KU with 18 points, while Holly Kersgieter chipped in 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Mittie continued his mastery of the Jayhawks and improved his record to 17-4 in this rivalry. Of course, the Wildcats (18-1, 7-0 Big 12) are beating just about everyone right now. They have won 12 consecutive games.
The Wildcats will try to build off this victory when they return to the court on Monday; K-State heads to Baylor for a challenging road contest.
KU, which fell to 9-9 (2-5 Big 12), plays host to Iowa State on Wednesday.
This story was originally published January 20, 2024 at 3:43 PM with the headline "K-State women’s basketball defeats rival KU Jayhawks in first game without Ayoka Lee."