The No. 15 K-State Wildcats started their two-game road trip off on the right foot as they handled the Red Raiders of Texas Tech 60-48 at the United Spirit Arena in Lubbock, Texas. With the win, the Wildcats improved to 16-1 overall and 3-1 in Big 12 Conference play.
Senior guard Shalee Lehning and senior forward Marlies Gipson led the way for K-State as they each recorded a double-double in the contest. Lehning finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Gipson registered 11 points and 10 rebounds. With nine assists, Lehning was one assist shy from registering her fifth career triple-double. Lehning currently holds the record for career triple-doubles in the Big 12 with four. Two of her four triple-doubles were recorded this season in non-conference play.
With the double-double, Lehning now has 18 in her Wildcat career.
Gipson continued her incredible season in the block category as she recorded two in the contest to increase her career total to 234. Gipson became the K-State career block leader during the Dec. 20 match against Indiana State, surpassing Nicole Ohlde (2001-2004).
Junior forward Ashley Sweat led the Wildcats in scoring along with Lehning, scoring 16 points. With the effort, Sweat became the 36th player in school history to record 1,000 points in her career. The Wildcats now have three players on their roster with over 1,000 career points — Lehning, Gipson and Sweat.
K-State led the contest at the half, 22-20, while shooting 38.1 percent and shot 44.4 percent from behind the arc. Leading the Wildcats from behind the arc was junior guard Kari Kincaid. Kincaid was 3-8 on her attempts from 3-point territory.
The Wildcat defense proved again why it is ranked atop the Big 12, holding the Red Raiders to 48 points, one point shy of their average.
Heading into the second half, the Wildcats cruised to their 16th victory of the season, with the defense holding Texas Tech to 33 percnt shooting in the second half.
Following the victory in Lubbock, the Wildcats will conclude their Big 12 road trip by traveling to Lawrence on Saturday to take on KU. In their previous meeting, the Wildcats defeated the Jayhawks in convincing fashion, 72-39.
Tip-off for the game, which will be broadcast on Fox Sports Net, is set for 11 a.m.