MANHATTAN – K-State used 66 points in the paint and a 40-point night from All-America candidate Ayoka Lee to roll to a 101-54 win over Pittsburg State on Friday night at Bramlage Coliseum.
“I'll just say I thought we played really well tonight,” said K-State head coach Jeff Mittie. “I thought both ends of the floor were pretty good. Like our energy. Like our aggressiveness early. I thought we passed the ball more effectively tonight. I thought (Ayoka) Lee got it and had great position all night long, but we had really timely passes to her. Really that's been an area that we spent a lot of time on, and I think our team just continues to get better and better.”
K-State used its length to register a 66-16 advantage in points in the paint. The Wildcats shot 54.2 percent for the night (39-of-72) with a majority of the attempts coming from close range.
“I don't think it's going to be a big mystery that that's going to be the game plan the entire year regardless of who we play,” said Mittie of the points in the paint.
The beneficiary of the post points was Lee. The 2022 Lisa Leslie Award Watch List candidate registered 40 points on 17-of-20 shooting, while hauling in 13 rebounds in just 21 minutes of action.
In the second half, Lee was a perfect 9-of-9 from the field and 4-of-4 from the foul line to record 22 points in 10 minutes of court time.
Joining Lee in double figures were sophomore Taylor Lauterbach with 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting and six rebounds, while senior Cymone Goodrich added 10 points, six assists, four steals and three rebounds. Every active player that saw the floor scored four or more points on Friday night.
“I think Taylor continues to get better,” stated Mittie about the effort of the center from Appleton, Wisconsin. “We talked about how hard she works. I think where she's getting better is she's just more confident, more decisive. I thought an example of that in the first half, Jaelyn (Glenn) gets a three off of the kick out I think from Taylor and Taylor in the past would have caught that and waited and then thrown it out. Well, she just caught it and went right out to her. And we've been working on reading that play. That's an example of her making the right play and being decisive. And then yeah, she continues I think to just get better and better.”
K-State jumped out to a 15-4 lead with 5:09 remaining in the first quarter. Lee scored six of her 12 first quarter points during a 13-1 run. The Wildcats would end the first quarter with a 26-16 lead, as K-State shot 60 percent from the field to build its advantage.
Lee would score six of K-State’s first 11 points of the second quarter, as the Wildcats increased their lead to 37-20 with 4:06 remaining in the opening half. Lee ended the first half with a game-high 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting and six rebounds.
The Wildcats would hold Pittsburg State to just two made field goals in the second quarter (2-of-12; .167). The Gorillas cut into K-State’s 17-point advantage with a 6-of-7 effort from the foul line in the final three minutes of the second quarter. K-State’s Serena Sundell would score the final four points of the second quarter, including a driving layup before the half expired, to stake the Wildcats to a 44-28 lead at the half.
K-State opened the third quarter with a 19-0 run to increase its lead to 63-28 with 5:51 to play. Lee scored 12 of the 19 points during the run, as K-State started the quarter a perfect 8-of-8 from the field.
Overall in the third quarter, the Wildcats would outscore the Gorillas, 28-6, which was aided by a defensive effort that held Pitt State to 3-of-16 shooting (.188) in the frame.
In the fourth quarter, K-State reached the century mark by scoring 29 points in the last 10 minutes, aided by a 50.0 percent effort from the floor (9-of-18). Senior Laura Macke sent K-State over 100 points with a pair of free throws with 1:36 remaining.
K-State will begin its 54th season of action on Tuesday, November 9, as the Wildcats host Central Arkansas at 6:30 p.m. Tickets for Tuesday’s game are available by calling (800) 221-CATS, online at kstatesports.com/tickets or by visiting the K-State Athletics Ticket Office in Bramlage Coliseum.
Tuesday’s game will be broadcast on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and will be available on the K-State Sports Network and for free at kstatesports.com and on the K-State Sports app.
– kstatesports.com –