RALEIGH, N.C. — Fans of the No. 8 seed Washington State women’s basketball team will get a chance to have breakfast with the Cougars as the team tips off against No. 9 seed Kansas State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday.
This is the second year in a row WSU has made the tournament. The Cougs are looking for their first NCAA Tournament win in program history.
Game time and how to watch
For those of you wondering what channel the Washington State-Kansas State women’s basketball game is on, here are the details:
The WSU vs Kansas State NCAA Tournament game will be aired on ESPN2. Tipoff is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. PDT on Saturday, March 19. The game will be played in Raleigh, NC.
The game will also be streamed live on Watch ESPN and ESPN Plus.
Cougars vs Wildcats
As soon as games were announced it was clear that the Washington State women’s basketball team will face a tough road in the NCAA Tournament.
Let’s begin with that start time. The Cougs were handed an early morning tipoff after traveling all the way across the country. That’s brutal.
There was some concern about Washington State making the tournament on Selection Sunday, but the selection committee erased any questions about the Cougs being a bubble team by handing them a number 8 seed.
WSU finished the regular season 19-10 and won a program-record 11 conference games this season. The Cougar women enter the tournament after a loss to Utah in the Pac-12 Tournament.
The Cougs will be looking for their first NCAA Tournament win in program history. WSU is 0-2 all-time in the NCAA tourney, losing first-round games in 1979 and 2021.
Kansas State finished the regular season 19-12. The Wildcats lost to Texas in the Big 12 Championship game 72-65.
K-State is 13-16 in its previous 16 NCAA Tournament bids. It last appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 2019.
What to know about Kansas State
Kansas State is led by Ayoka Lee and freshmen Serena Sundell and Brylee Glenn.
Lee is a First Team All-American by The Athletic and Sports Illustrated and is a finalist for the 2022 Lisa Leslie Award. She is also a member of the 2022 Wooden Award national ballot and a candidate for the 2022 Naismith Women's Defensive Player of the Year and the 2021-22 Wade Trophy, according to information provided by Kansas State.
Lee ranks seventh in the nation in scoring with 22.4 points per game. She is the only player in the nation to average 20 or more points, 10 or more rebounds and 3 or more blocks, according to Kansas State.
Sundell averages 10.6 points per game and 5.5 assists, while Glenn adds 8 points per game.
What to know about WSU
The Cougars are led by Charlisse Leger-Walker, Krystal Leger-Walker, and Bella Murekatete.
Junior center Murekatete won the Co-Most Improved Player of the Year award in the Pac-12. Murekatete posted career-high averages of 10.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.7 blocks, and 1.5 steals per game. She is fourth in the conference in blocks and seventh in rebounds. She also scored in double figures in 16 of her 28 games this season.
Murekatete is the first known Rwandan-born player in women’s college basketball.
WSU guard Charlisse Leger-Walker was named All-Pac 12 for the second time. The sophomore is averaging 16.3 points per game, along with 5.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists.
Her sister, Krystal Leger-Walker, was named an honorable mention for All-Pac-12 honors. Krystal is averaging 8 points per game, along with 4.4 rebounds and 4.7 assists. She also earned an honorable mention for the All-Defensive Team. Krystal is averaging 1.6 steals per game.
Cougs coach Kamie Ethridge was named Pac-12 Coach of the Year by the media.