Kansas State women’s basketball scored 110 points en route to a 110-24 victory over USC Upstate on Thursday. The 86-point differential is the largest in school history.
Senior Serena Sundell led the way, recording the first triple-double since Shalee Lehning did against Colorado in 2009. Sundell had 26 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds in her effort.
“It feels pretty good and it’s exciting,” All Big-12 guard Sundell said. “I don’t think I’ve had one in my career, but my teammates were probably the most fun part about it, just seeing how excited they were, they all knew about it before me.”
The game was never close from the tip, the Wildcats started off with a 25-0 run to effectively put the game away after one quarter, leading 27-2. The second quarter was a lot of the same, with K-State dominating it and taking a 50-13 lead into the half.
In the second half, K-State held the Spartans to just 11 second-half points while K-State themselves scored 60 more to get them to 110.
Sundell is a mismatch problem for many teams’ guards, standing at 6-foot-2 with quickness across the floor.
“I think Serena is very underrated nationally, but when people see her, they gain a greater appreciation for her,” head coach Jeff Mittie said.
Sundell’s roommate Taryn Sides also made her mark on the game scoring her career-high 23 points including drilling seven 3-pointers. Sides has been on fire lately and her confidence has provided some big performances.
“Every time I shoot, I think it’s going in,” Sides said. “Which is the main thing about being a shooter, is you gotta have the confidence in yourself and believe it’s going in every time. And right now, I do have that.”
K-State played its third game in five days, resting star Ayoka Lee as a result. This allowed forwards Eliza Maupin and Imani Lester to get big minutes and they performed well.
Maupin had 15 points, five rebounds and three steals. Mittie was pleased with her performance but wants to see more of that consistency going forward.
“When she steps on the floor, she’s already one of the top athletes out there every night,” Mittie said.
Lester also had her best defensive performance of the season recording six steals and two blocks in just 21 minutes of game time.
“It’s a little out of the blue, but I’ll say this about Imani, her effort is much better than it was,” Mittie said.
While USC Upstate is an inferior opponent, the defensive activity and effort provided by K-State was encouraging, especially being short-handed and playing three games in five days.
Ahead, the ‘Cats have a tough test as they go to Texas A&M on Sunday The game which will be K-State’s fourth this week will be at 3 p.m. and televised on the SEC Network.
