We are still about 5 weeks away from the tip-off of the college basketball season, which means that we have plenty of time to prepare for the action ahead. We will do so via a series of season previews featuring the best players/coaches in the country. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel continues our coverage with Kansas State SR C Ayoka Lee, who talked about setting the D-1 scoring record in 2021 and her expectations for this season.
At 6’6” you are the 2nd-tallest female player in Kansas State history: how much of an advantage is your size on the court? Obviously, height is something that is desired in many sports and by a lot of athletes as they grow up…but I know a lot of tall individuals who do not have an athletic bone in their body! I do think my height gives me an advantage but only because I have been able to develop the skills to go with my height (for example, footwork, knowing where to keep the ball, and how to strategically post up). At this level when you are going against other centers your size and players who are extremely athletic, I do not believe height will get you that far without your skills being refined. I think minimizing it to just height disregards all of the developmental work every center must do to be successful.
In 2020 you averaged 15.7 PPG/11.4 RPG/3.1 BPG and were named conference ROY: how were you able to come in and dominate right from the start? A large part of the success I had my freshman year came from my redshirt year and having a full year to recover from my ACL and integrate myself into college basketball. Being able to focus solely on getting stronger while developing/fine-tuning my skills set me up for great success that first year.
On January 23, 2021, you set a D-1 record with 61 PTS/23-30 FG/15-17 FT/12 REB vs. Oklahoma: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”, and do you think that anyone will ever break your record? Going into that Oklahoma game I remember being very locked into our scouting for that game and our game plan to beat Oklahoma. More than anything that is where my focus was, and out of that preparation/mindset I was able to be really successful on the offensive side as well. There were a lot of variables that had to go right for me to break the record and it is such an amazing honor that it did. To take all of the credit or attribute it to me just being “in the zone” would not be fair to my teammates and how well they played that game. To be given the ball that many times to get enough attempts to break the record in my mind is a show of their selflessness and trust in me. I believe that it is possible for someone to break it: selfishly it would be nice to hold onto it for a while…but when the time comes I will share in celebrating whoever breaks it.
You were named All-American in both 2021/2022: what did it mean to you to receive such outstanding honors? I believe it is an amazing blessing for my name to be mentioned among some of the best players in women’s basketball. It was really amazing to see my hard work be recognized with that high of an honor.
You are also a 2-time Academic All-American with a degree in psychology and are pursuing a master’s in couples and family therapy: how do you balance your work on the court with your work in the classroom? Managing both grad school and basketball is a challenge. For me it takes a lot of planning ahead, communicating with my coaches/professors, and asking for help when I need it. It can be easy to get overwhelmed with all of it when demands are high on both sides, and while it has been really humbling it has also helped me grow in a lot of areas.
You are 1 of 3 seniors/grad students on the roster: how much pressure is there on you to be a leader this year? Due to being in the same program for so long I have been able to see what it takes from the upperclassmen to be successful and fill their roles well. The teammates I have had in the past have set the standard for what it looks like to be a leader. In my mind it is more about responsibility than pressure because I know what it takes to be successful at this level and I want to be able to pass that knowledge on to our underclassmen.
Your schedule includes games against Iowa/Wisconsin/Missouri and perhaps North Carolina: which of these games do you feel will present your biggest test? Each of these games will pose their own challenges and I know my teammates and I are excited to take on each one. Two of these teams (Iowa/Wisconsin) we played last year so it is always fun to have them on the schedule for another year, and the other two teams will be fun to play in some fun places (Missouri on the Kansas-Missouri border and North Carolina in Florida).
You had a birthday last month: what did you do for the big day? Summer was really busy for me so this year I wanted to do something more laid back. I was lucky enough to get out of town and spend the weekend with some good friends.
What are your goals for this season, and what are your expectations for this season? I have really high expectations for myself and my teammates this season. We have a lot of great pieces and the opportunity to have a great postseason. As far as goals, getting back to the NCAA tournament is a big one for me.