SE Minnesota stars Lee, Korngable, Ustby all advance in NCAA Basketball Tournament

Pat Ruff, Post-Bulletin, Rochester, Minn.
·4 min read

Mar. 20—A breakdown of what happened in the first round of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament for three southeastern Minnesota standouts and their teams, Kansas State University, University of South Dakota and University of North Carolina. Also, a look at what's next for each, as all were first-round winners.

—Byron grad and All-American center Ayoka Lee led her No. 9-seeded Kansas State team to a first-round win on Saturday, beating No. 8 seed Washington State 50-40.

Lee had 20 points and 15 rebounds, finishing with her school record-setting 20th double-double of the season. Kansas State trailed by as many as nine points in the first half, then scrambled back for the win. Freshman 6-foot guard Brylee Glenn had 14 points for the Wildcats.

Lee was 5-for-11 from the field and 10-for-12 from the free-throw line.

Next: No. 9 seed Kansas State (20-12) plays No. 3-seed North Carolina State (30-3) at 3 p.m. Monday (ESPN) in Raleigh, N.C.

Kansas State's obvious best player is 6-foot-6 Byron native Lee. The All-American center is averaging 22.4 points, 10.2 rebound and 3 blocked shots per game. She also had an NCAA record-setting 61 points this season, against Oklahoma. Freshman guard Serena Sundell (10.4 ppg. 5.4 apg.) was an All-Big 12 honorable-mention choice this year.

North Carolina State is led by seniors Elissa Cunane (6-5 center) and Diamond Johnson (5-8 guard). Cunane averages 13.8 points and 7.7 rebounds, Johnson 10.9 ppg. and 4.2 rpb. The Wolfpack are on an 11-game winning streak and are ranked No. 3 in the country.

Mayo grad Olivia Korngable and her No. 10-seeded University of South Dakota team beat No. 7 seed Ole Miss 75-61 in their NCAA Tournament first-round game Friday. USD built a 36-27 halftime lead and never looked back.

Senior guard Chloe Lamb had 20 points on 7-for-14 shooting (2-4 on 3-pointers) and senior center Hannah Sjerven 20 points on 7-for-7 shooting (1-1 on 3-pointers). Lamb had six rebounds and Sjerven had seven. Korngable had 10 points, 7 assists and 2 steals. South Dakota shot 56% from the field.

Next: No. 10 seed USD (28-5) plays No. 5 seed Baylor (28-6) at 5 p.m. today (ESPN2) in the second round in Waco, Texas.

South Dakota is led by Lamb (16 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3 assists per game), Sjerven (14.8 ppg., 7.8 rpg.) and Korngable (12.8 ppg., 3.7 apg., 2.4 rpg.). All three were named to the All-Summit League team. Lamb was named the league's Player of the Year.

Baylor, which is ranked seventh and won its 12th straight Big 12 Conference regular-season title, is making its 18th consecutive NCAA appearance. USD is making its four straight appearance. Baylor is led by NaLyssa Smith, an All-American 6-foot-4 senior forward who averages 22.4 points and 11.6 rebounds per game. Fellow inside player Queen Egbo averages 10.9 points and has blocked 63 shots.

No. 5 seed North Carolina beat No. 12 seed Stephen F. Austin 79-66 in its NCAA Tournament first-round game on Saturday.

Sophomore first-team All-ACC guard Deja Kelly led all scorers with 28 points. She was 8-for-15 from the field with four 3-pointers and 8-for-8 from the free-throw line. Kennedy Todd-Williams had 15 points and Lourdes grad Alyssa Ustby and Carlie Littlefield each had 13 points.

Ustby, a 6-1 guard/forward, added eight rebounds. She hit 5 of 11 field-goal attempts and all three of her free throws. Turnovers hurt her, though, with five of them.

Next: No. 5 seed North Carolina (24-6) plays No. 4 seed Arizona (21-7) in the second round at 9 p.m. Monday (ESPN2) in Tucson, Ariz.

North Carolina's top player is Kelly, its first-team All-ACC sophomore guard. Kelly averages 16.3 ppg. and 3.6 rpg. and 2.6 apg.. Ustby, who was second-team All-ACC, averages 13.2 points and 8.6 rebounds. The Tar Heels have won five of their last six games.

Arizona (21-7) beat No. 13 seed UNLV 72-67 in its first-round game. Guard Shaina Pellington exploded for 30 points on 10-for-19 shooting from the field. She also had four steals. Arizona is led by All-American honorable-mention choice Cate Reese. The 6-2 senior forward is averaging 14.6 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. Pellington averages 11.6 ppg.