With her 14th first-half point, Ayoka Lee passed Nicole Ohlde for second-most points in Kansas State women’s basketball history at 2,243 points. No. 10 K-State went on to beat Little Rock 73-43.
The K-State center finished the game with 16 points and 11 rebounds, her 61st career double-double.
When asked about moving into second place in career points scored, Lee remained nonchalant and said, “Yeah it’s pretty cool.”
The ‘Cats got off to a good first-quarter start with 23 points but slowed down after that, missing many shots and not finishing well around the rim.
K-State shot 41% from the field and just 20% (5/25) from three throughout the game. The team didn’t play with the effort head coach Jeff Mittie would expect out of his top-10 squad.
“I didn’t feel like most of the starting five was very engaged and the urgency wasn’t very good and that can’t happen — that part I wasn’t very pleased with,” Mittie said.
Point guard Zyanna Walker, in her first year as a starter, played one of her best games, pleasing Mittie with her offensive and defensive play. She finished with a career-high 16 points and dished out six assists.
“I came in with the same mindset to attack; people are going to have off nights but we still have to get the job taken care of,” Walker said.
Defensively the ‘Cats held Little Rock’s leading scorer, Faith Lee, to just seven points on 2-15 shooting. Little Rock as a team struggled to get the ball in the basket, shooting 23% from the field.
Mittie, however, was still upset about the amount of fouling, sharing his concern about foul trouble which can’t happen in upcoming games.
“I was not really pleased with what I saw defensively; I hate to be negative but I am also not going to praise mediocrity either,” Mittie said. “My focus is on getting the technique better because we have struggled with foul issues, I thought we would be better with that tonight.”
The K-State bench unit, while not spectacular, did enough to step up for stars that were struggling. Those bench players may not have the stats of the starters but their energy and urgency on both sides stood out to Mittie.
Sophomore guard Taryn Sides came in and saw her first extended game action since injuring her ankle. While she shot 4-13 from the field, her flow in the offense was key.
The Wildcats play two games in three days this week, hosting Milwaukee at 6:30 p.m on Wednesday in Bramlage Coliseum.
While the players may be happy to get back on the court into a game, Mittie would rather iron the kinks out first.
“I would like to practice more,” he said. “But I will be curious to see us respond with better discipline and better urgency.”
The Wildcats are then off to Vegas for their preseason tournament, where they will also play two games in three days, including a matchup with No. 14 Duke on Monday. The tough preseason scheduling will look to be beneficial come Big 12 play later on this season.
