MANHATTAN, Kansas – For the fourth time in her career and second time this season, K-State center Ayoka Lee has earned Ann Meyers Drysdale National Player of the Week honors by the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA). Lee was one of five selected for the weekly honor.
In addition to this honor, Lee previously earned USBWA/Ann Meyers Drysdale National Player of the Week honors on Jan. 4, 2022, Jan. 25, 2022 and Nov. 21, 2023.
Lee continued her strong play in leading the Wildcats to their longest winning streak since the 2008-09 season, including its second win over an Associated Press top-10 foe. During the week, Lee achieved a pair of career milestones.
For the week, Lee averaged 20.0 points on a .667 field goal percentage, 8.0 rebounds, 4.5 blocks, 1.5 steals and 1.0 assists in 31.5 minutes per game. She led the Big 12 in blocks per game, second in field goal percentage, fifth in scoring and ninth in rebounding.
Against Oklahoma on Jan. 10, Lee tallied 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting including 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the fourth quarter to seal K-State’s win. The product of Byron, Minnesota, added six rebounds, five blocks, two steals and an assist.
This was Lee’s 19th career game with five or more blocked shots and her third this season.
Against 10th-ranked Texas, Lee notched 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting and a 5-of-5 effort from the free throw line, 10 rebounds, four blocks, a steal and an assist. With her 21 points, Lee became the fourth player in program history to score 2,000 or more career points. She is the only player in school history and the third in Big 12 history with 2,000 or more points, 1,000 or more rebounds and 275 or more blocked shots.
With her four blocked shots against the Longhorns, Lee established a new school record for career blocked shots with 284 and surpassing the previous record of 282 held by Breanna Lewis (2013-17). Lee’s total of 284 ranks ninth in Big 12 history.
She registered the 55th double-double of her career to move into fifth in Big 12 history for career double-doubles.
This season, Lee is averaging 19.78 points on a career-high .677 field goal percentage, 8.2 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game in 24.9 minutes per game. She ranks third in the nation in field goals made (149), second in the nation in field goal percentage, sixth in the nation for total blocks (49) and seventh in the country for total points scored (356).
K-State makes a quick road trip to Texas on Wednesday, as the Wildcats face TCU at 6:30 p.m.
Wednesday’s game can be seen on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and can be heard on the K-State Sports Network including the flagship stations Sunny 102.5 FM and 1350 KMAN, online at kstatesports.com, or on the K-State Sports app. The game can also be heard on SiriusXM channels 200 or 211 or on the SiriusXM app.