MANHATTAN, Kansas (Kansas State Athletics) – K-State used one of its best defensive performances of the season to register its 14th home win in front of the largest home crowd of the season, 5,868, on Sunday afternoon at Bramlage Coliseum, as the Wildcats downed Oklahoma State, 56-38.
K-State (18-8, 8-6 Big 12) held Oklahoma State to a season-low for points in a game. The 38 points are tied for the fewest points K-State has allowed in a Big 12 game in the Jeff Mittie era, which spans eight seasons beginning in 2014-15. Sunday’s opponent point total matches the fewest in a K-State Big 12 game since the Wildcats held Texas Tech to 38 in Lubbock on Jan. 31, 2015.
“I think our defense was good,” said K-State head coach Jeff Mittie. “I think that we were really active and then I think as we struggled a little bit offensively, we let that affect us a little bit and I didn’t think we were as good defensively in the second half.”
For the afternoon, K-State held the Cowgirls to 20.0 percent shooting (11-of-55) and a 22.7 percent (5-of-22) performance from 3-point range.
The 14 home wins by the Wildcats this season are the most since the 2016-17 season and marks the fifth time in the 34-season history of Bramlage Coliseum in which the Wildcats have won 14 or more home games.
In the first half, K-State (18-8, 8-6 Big 12) locked down the Oklahoma State (8-15, 3-11 Big 12) offensive attack by holding the Cowgirls to an 8.0 percent (2-of-25) shooting effort and forcing 12 turnovers to build a 22-6 lead at the half.
In the second quarter, K-State held Oklahoma State without a made field goal for the entirety of the quarter, 0-of-12 from the field. Since collegiate women’s basketball switched to the quarter system in the 2015-16 season, this marked the first time K-State has held an opponent without a made field goal in an entire quarter.
The two points scored by the Cowgirls in the second quarter tied the K-State school record for fewest points scored by an opponent in a quarter, tying the mark set on January 20, 2016, when K-State held Kansas to two points in the first quarter.
All-America candidate Ayoka Lee registered 13 of her game-high 17 points in the first half. She also pulled in eight of her game-high 13 rebounds in the opening 20 minutes. Lee tallied her 16th double-double of the season, which ranks as the third-highest single-season double-double total at K-State.
With her 17 points on Sunday, Lee has now recorded 612 points this season and joins Nicole Ohlde as the only two players in program history to score 600 or more points in a junior season. Among all players, Lee’s 612 points rank fifth for a single-season.
With her 13 rebounds, Lee increased her career total to 820 rebounds and moved past Marlies Gipson (2005-09; 811) for eighth on the K-State career rebounds list.
To open the third quarter, Emilee Ebert connected on a corner 3-pointer to expand the K-State lead to 25-6. Ebert would score K-State’s first eight points of the third stanza to increase the lead to 30-15 with 4:31 remaining.
Ebert would end the day with her fifth game in double figures this season with 13 points, all in the second half, while also chipping in with three rebounds.
“We talked about taking better in-rhythm shots,” said Ebert about her mind-set in the second half. “That was an emphasis for us and that’s what we came out and did. To see them go through the net obviously felt pretty good.”
Laura Macke then jumped into the fray with six points of her own to bolster the lead to 38-21 with 1:34 left in the third. The Wildcats would end the quarter with a 3-pointer from Brylee Glenn to give K-State a 41-23 lead. Macke ended the afternoon with eight points and five rebounds off the bench.
In the first five minutes of the fourth quarter, K-State used a 13-2 run to build a 54-25 lead with 4:47 remaining. Ebert capped the run with an old-fashioned 3-point play to prevent any chance of a Cowgirl rally.
Sunday’s crowd of 5,868 was the largest of the season inside Bramlage Coliseum and marked the third straight home game with over 5,000 fans.
K-State will complete its two-game home stand on Wednesday night, as the Wildcats host (14/14) Texas at 6:30 p.m.
