Kansas State advances past UCF in 2nd round of Big 12 Women’s Championship in Kansas City
The fifth-seeded Kansas State Wildcats women’s basketball team needed an all-around effort with standout center Ayoka Lee nursing an injury and watching from the bench.
They got it.
Kansas State advanced to Friday’s Big 12 Women’s Championship quarterfinals, beating No. 13 seed UCF 80-65 on Thursday at T-Mobile Center.
Led by senior guard Serena Sundell’s 21 points on 9-of-17 shooting, four K-State starters scored in double-figures, with eight contributing at least four points. Lee smiled and cheered the action court-side.
“It was good for us to see a variety of players rise to the occasion and play well,” K-State coach Jeff Mittie said, “particularly in the fourth (quarter).”
Wildcats sophomore Zyanna Walker and senior and KC native Jaelyn Glenn scored 13 and 11 points, respectively. Kennedy Taylor added 10.
With Lee sidelined — it’s hoped she might be able to return for the NCAA Tournament — Sundell knew that beating the Knights in the tourney’s second round would take contributions from all.
“(Lee’s) a great player,” Sundell said, “and she’s done a great job leading us, even from the bench.
“I think right now we’re just having a lot of fun, trying to figure it out without her. We have a different style of basketball when she’s not on the court: We can up the pace and get in the traps like you saw today.”
Not that Sundell and company want to be playing without Lee for long, mind you.
“It’s been a challenge,” Sundell admitted. “But I think in the long run, it’ll be really good for us when she does come back. We’ll have girls who can step up and we can all lead together.”
Kansas State shot 7-of-15 from the floor in the first quarter. By halftime the Wildcats were cruising a bit more, up 41-30. The Knights crept within seven in the second half but K-State always had a response.
“We expected a good March ballgame, and it was tough for us,” Mittie said. “We had to raise up and make some plays.”
The Wildcats finished the midday game 31-for-58 from the field (53.4%) and 5-for-10 from 3-point range. Meanwhile, to the Wildcats’ advantage, UCF was frigid from deep, going 1 of 9.
Kaitlin Peterson paced UCF (12-18) with 21 points and Emely Rodriguez added 17.
“I thought we did a good job on the 3-point line,” Mittie said. “They don’t have a high-volume 3-point shooting team ... and then I thought we found just enough offense from the 3-point line and timely offense. Serena got a big 3 in front of the bench when we needed to answer a run by them.”
That 3-pointer by Sundell helped counter an 8-0 UFC run in the third quarter that cut KSU’s lead to eight.
The Wildcats’ quarterfinal-round matchup will be a familiar one, as K-State plays No. 4 seed West Virginia (23-6, 13-5) at 11 a.m. in Friday’s quarterfinals. The game will be broadcast live on ESPNU.
The Wildcats met Mountaineers in the same round of the 2024 tournament, with K-State winning 65-62. Awaiting the Cats again is Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year JJ Quinerly.
Quinerly was a significant problem for Mittie’s team in last year’s quarterfinals, pouring in 27 points. She’s averaging 20.5 per game this season and went for 27 and 23 in WVU’s two games vs. KSU in 2024-25.
“I am a Big JJ Quinerly fan — most of the year. Not tomorrow,” Mittie said. “We know she’s talented; we know that she’s been playing extremely well. I thought she was one of those four or five players who was up for MVP of the League — she had that kind of year.
“We’ll do everything we can to keep her in front, make things hard on her.”
This story was originally published March 6, 2025 at 2:00 PM with the headline "Kansas State advances past UCF in 2nd round of Big 12 Women’s Championship in Kansas City."
