Ayoka Lee
![]() Lee (right) with Kansas State in 2021 | |
No. 50 – Kansas State Wildcats | |
---|---|
Position | Center |
League | Big 12 Conference |
Personal information | |
Born | (2000-08-12) August 12, 2000 (age 24) |
Nationality | American |
Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
Career information | |
High school | Byron (Byron, Minnesota) |
College | Kansas State (2019–present) |
Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Ayoka Lee (born August 12, 2000) is an American college basketball player for the Kansas State Wildcats of the Big 12 Conference. She holds the NCAA Division I women's single-game scoring record with 61 points.
High school career
Lee played basketball for Byron High School in Byron, Minnesota.[1] In her sophomore season, she averaged 24.6 points, 13.8 rebounds and 4.5 blocks per game and was named to the Class 3A All-State team. As a junior, Lee averaged 24.9 points, 16.4 rebounds and 4.1 blocks per game, repeating as a Class 3A All-State selection.[2] In her senior season, she averaged 26.6 points, 15.7 rebounds and 5.5 blocks per game.[3] She scored a school-record 54 points against Cotter High School during the Section 1AA tournament.[4] Lee tore her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) during the state tournament.[1] She earned Class 2A All-State honors and was a finalist for the Minnesota Miss Basketball award.[5] Lee set career and single-season program records for points, rebounds and field goal percentage.[6] In high school, she also competed in volleyball for three years and track and field for two years at the varsity level.[3] A three-star recruit, she committed to playing college basketball for Kansas State.[7]
College career
Lee redshirted her first season at Kansas State to rehabilitate from her torn ACL and was a part of the practice squad.[5][8] On January 25, 2020, she recorded 23 points, 20 rebounds and five blocks in a 92–74 win against Oklahoma, the first 20-point, 20-rebound game in program history.[9] On February 16, she matched her season-high of 24 points while recording 13 rebounds, four blocks and three steals in an 87–85 win against Oklahoma.[10] As a freshman, Lee averaged 15.7 points, 11.4 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game, earning first-team All-Big 12 and Freshman of the Year recognition.[11] She set the conference record by winning the Big 12 Freshman of the Week award 12 times.[12] On January 31, 2021, Lee posted a sophomore season-high 37 points and 18 rebounds in an 80–70 loss to Oklahoma, scoring the most points by a Kansas State player during a Big 12 game.[13] She averaged 19.1 points, 8.7 rebounds and two blocks per game as a sophomore and was named first-team All-Big 12 for a second time.[14]
In her junior season debut on November 9, 2021, Lee broke the program single-game scoring record with 43 points, nine rebounds, four blocks and three steals in a 103–40 victory over Central Arkansas.[15] On December 11, Lee posted 38 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks in a 79–73 win against South Dakota State.[16] On January 11, 2021, she had 38 points and 11 rebounds in a 73–70 loss to Iowa State.[17] On January 23, Lee set the NCAA Division I women's single-game scoring record with 61 points in a 94–65 win over Oklahoma. During the game, she also had 12 rebounds and three blocks.[18] As a junior, Lee averaged 22 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game. She earned her third consecutive first-team All-Big 12 selection and was named a second-team All-American by the Associated Press and the United States Basketball Writers Association.[19] Lee opted to return to Kansas State instead of entering the 2022 WNBA draft but was sidelined for the season after undergoing knee surgery.[20][21]
Career statistics
GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
TO | Turnovers per game | FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
Bold | Career best | ° | League leader |
College
Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2019–20 | Kansas State | 29 | 29 | 32.0 | 56.8 | 0.0 | 70.4 | 11.4 | 0.4 | 0.8 | 3.1 | 1.6 | 15.7 |
2020–21 | Kansas State | 25 | 25 | 28.0 | 62.1 | 0.0 | 81.2 | 8.7 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 2.0 | 1.4 | 19.1 |
2021–22 | Kansas State | 33 | 33 | 31.1 | 56.3 | 0.0 | 7.71 | 10.3 | 0.7 | 1.2 | 2.9 | 1.5 | 22.0 |
2022–23 | Kansas State | Did not play due to injury | |||||||||||
2023–24 | Kansas State | 27 | 27 | 27.2 | 61.9 | 1.000 | 70.3 | 8.6 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 2.8 | 1.3 | 19.7 |
Career | 114 | 114 | 29.7 | 58.9 | 1.000 | 75.0 | 9.8 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 2.7 | 1.5 | 19.2 | |
Statistics retrieved from Sports-Reference.[22] |
Personal life
Lee's younger brother, Ahjany, plays college basketball for St. Thomas (Minnesota), and her older brother, Ahymad, played at Byron High School.[1] She graduated from Kansas State University with a bachelor's degree in psychology and is pursuing a master's degree in couples and family therapy. Lee was named a second-team Academic All-American by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) as a sophomore. She earned first-team Academic All-American and Big 12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors in her junior year.[23]
References
- ^ a b c Souhan, Jim (January 25, 2022). "Lee was the pride of Byron before breaking NCAA scoring mark". Star Tribune. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
- ^ "K-State WBB Signs Four to NLIs for 2018-19 Season". Kansas State University Athletics. November 8, 2017. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
- ^ a b Edwards, Kiya; Molmud, Jack (January 24, 2022). "Minnesota native crushes NCAA Women's Basketball D1 single-game scoring record". KARE. Associated Press. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
- ^ Watts, Adam (February 27, 2018). "Girls basketball: Cotter has no answer for Byron's Ayoka Lee in Section 1AA quarterfinal loss". Winona Daily News. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
- ^ a b "K-State's Lee to Redshirt for Remainder of 2018-19 Season". Kansas State University Athletics. December 6, 2018. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
- ^ "Ayoka Lee – Women's Basketball". Kansas State University Athletics. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
- ^ Yasharoff, Hannah (January 1, 2017). "3-star center Ayoka Lee commits to Kansas State". The Left Bench. Archived from the original on January 6, 2020. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
- ^ D'Arcangelo, Lyndsey (January 25, 2022). "As her basketball star grows, Ayoka Lee embraces the moment". Just Women's Sports. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
- ^ "Lee Earns Second USBWA National Freshman of the Week Honor". Kansas State University Athletics. January 28, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
- ^ "K-State Sweeps Women's Basketball Weekly Awards". Big 12 Conference. February 17, 2020. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
- ^ Ruff, Pat (March 19, 2020). "Byron grad Lee had a freshman season for the ages at Kansas State". Post-Bulletin. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
- ^ Gates, Riley (March 9, 2020). "Lee earns Big 12 Freshman of the Year honor". GoPowercat. 247Sports. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
- ^ "K-State Comeback Ends in Final Second". Kansas State University Athletics. January 31, 2021. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
- ^ Everson, Tim (October 19, 2021). "K-State's Ayoka Lee stays a step ahead of Big 12 women's basketball coaches". The Manhattan Mercury. Retrieved August 1, 2021.
- ^ Campbell, Marleah (November 10, 2021). "Ayoka Lee sets K-State single-game scoring record". WIBW-TV. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
- ^ Campbell, Marleah (December 11, 2021). "Lee scores 38 in K-State road win over South Dakota State". WIBW-TV. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
- ^ "No. 9 Iowa State women's basketball team rallies to beat 25th-ranked Kansas State". The Des Moines Register. Associated Press. January 12, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
- ^ Putnik, Gary (January 23, 2022). "Ayoka Lee sets NCAA DI women's basketball single-game record with 61 points". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
- ^ "Lee Named USBWA All-American". Kansas State University Athletics. March 17, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
- ^ Voepel, Mechelle (January 25, 2022). "Ayoka Lee says she'll return to Kansas State Wildcats women's basketball team for senior season". ESPN. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
- ^ "Kansas State's Ayoka Lee to have knee surgery, miss women's college basketball season". ESPN. August 25, 2022. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
- ^ "Ayoka Lee College Stats". Sports-Reference. Retrieved April 15, 2024.
- ^ "Lee Named Big 12 WBB Scholar-Athlete of the Year". Kansas State University Athletics. April 12, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
External links
- Kansas State Wildcats bio