Kansas State University

Kansas State opens women’s basketball season with dominant victory over Green Bay

A general view of the game ball during the second half between the Kansas State Wildcats and the Wichita State Shockers at T-Mobile Center.
A general view of the game ball during the second half between the Kansas State Wildcats and the Wichita State Shockers at T-Mobile Center. USA TODAY Sports

The Kansas State women’s basketball team celebrated the beginning of what figures to be a promising season by playing in front of hundreds of elementary school students on Monday morning.

Yellow school buses lined the parking lot outside Bramlage Coliseum as kids from across the Flint Hills took a field trip to watch Ayoka Lee, Serena Sundell and their teammates begin their 2024-25 campaign inside the Octagon of Doom.

The Wildcats gave their young fans plenty to cheer (and scream) about as they routed the Green Bay Phoenix 92-45 in a game that was every bit as lopsided as the final score indicated.

“It was a good first game,” K-State coach Jeff Mittie said. “Not much to be disappointed about. I thought our team played really well and they played together. I think the kids game brought some energy to that building. I hope we can do this every year.”

K-State led 28-7 at the end of the first quarter and never let up on opening day.

Mittie only needed to play Lee for nine minutes before he decided to give the team’s star center the rest of the day off. Mittie said Lee “was available” to play in the second half but noted that she suffered a minor ankle injury in the first half, so he decided to take a cautious approach. She finished with seven points and four rebounds.

Sundell had 12 points and two rebounds in 27 minutes of action.

This was a game for other K-State players to shine as the Wildcats showed off their depth.

Jaelyn Glenn led the way by flirting with a triple-double, as she finished with 17 points, nine rebounds and six assists. She also grabbed three steals.

Temira Poindexter had 15 points and five rebounds.

Kennedy Taylor also had an impressive outing. The Missouri State transfer became the third K-State basketball player to record a double-double in her debut, joining former greats Kendra Wecker and Peyton Williams in that accomplishment.

“That is one of the reasons why we recruited Kennedy,” Mittie said, “for moments like this.”

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Kellis Robinett
The Wichita Eagle
Kellis Robinett covers Kansas State athletics for The Wichita Eagle and The Kansas City Star. A winner of more than a dozen national writing awards, he lives in Manhattan with his wife and four children.
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