Kansas State forward Ayoka Lee will be sidelined indefinitely after an X-ray and MRI exam revealed the All-American fractured a bone in her foot in the second quarter of the No. 10 Wildcats’ win over Arizona State.

The school called it “probable” that Lee will return before the end of the season, but more will be known in the coming weeks.

“It’s not good,” Kansas State coach Jeff Mittie said after the 81-69 win Sunday over Arizona State. “It’s not going to be a week or two.”

Lee only played 13 minutes in the game, leaving for good with 4:21 left in the first half.

The Wildcats, who do not play again until visiting Colorado on Saturday, entered the week 19-1 and 7-0 in the Big 12, and they are riding a 14-game win streak, the fourth-longest in Division I women’s basketball. The Wildcats’ only loss came against No. 13 Duke in the Ball Dawgs Classic in late November.

Lee is a big reason for their success. The 6-foot-6 forward from Byron, Minnesota, is averaging 16 points on 65.4% shooting, even though she’s played limited minutes because of a number of blowouts. She also is averaging 6.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks.

Lee set the women’s Division I scoring record when she had 61 points against Oklahoma in January 2022. She is already Kansas State’s career scoring leader with 2,482 points, and she holds school records for rebounds, blocks and field goals.

Lee also has had a history of injuries, though. She redshirted as a freshman while recovering from a knee injury, and she missed the entire 2022-23 season because of surgery on the other knee. She also sat out several conference games a year ago after she hurt her ankle, and Mittie has limited her minutes at times this season in an effort to keep her healthy.

The Wildcats will lean more heavily on Missouri State transfer Kennedy Taylor, Imani Lester and Eliza Maupin while Lee is out.

“I think it’s just the next-man-up mentality, and I think Eliza came in and played really well for us,” Kansas State guard Taryn Sides said after the win over the Sun Devils. “We don’t really know a whole lot about Yokie. Hopefully she’s OK.”

Out of all the former Oregon Ducks to play in the NFL this year, there’s a case to be made for quarterback Bo Nix having one of the biggest break out seasons. For the first time in over nine years, Nix helped lead the Denver Broncos to their first playoff appearance with a 31-7 Wild Card game loss against the Buffalo Bills.

Nix’s numbers for his inaugural season in the league are warranting many to campaign for the young quarterback to win “Rookie of the Year” accolades, with Nix joining fellow former Duck and Tampa Bay running back Bucky Irving as a finalist for the Pepsi Zero Rookie of the Year voting.

Amongst those campaigning for Nix to get his flowers, are those comparing his numbers to that of the regular season statistics for one of the best quarterbacks active in the league: Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes.

When look at Nix’s and Mahomes’ numbers from both of their 2024 seasons, the similarities are glaring and in some ways favor Nix over Mahomes. In the passing game, Nix punched in a 66.3% completion percentage, whereas Mahomes clocked in with 67.5%. Nix came in third in the NFL for touchdowns with 29 total while Mahomes boasted 26. Both Nix and Mahomes almost mirrored each other for their pass ratings, with Mahomes at 93.5 and Nix at 93.3.

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Nix also threw 12 interceptions compared to Mahomes’ 11 interceptions this season. As for sacks, Nix was taken down 24 times with Mahomes being sacked 36 times.

For the rushing side of the game, Nix’s numbers compared to Mahomes showed the strength of the former Ducks’ ability to extend a play with his legs. Nix rushed for 430 yards off 92 carries in 2024, picking up four touchdowns. Mahomes got 307 yards off 58 carries with two touchdowns. Nix racked up two rushing fumbles compared to Mahomes’ single rushing fumble of the season.

This comparison between Nix and Mahomes shows serious promise for the Denver rookie quarterback, who earned NFL’s Rookie of the Month in October and also made the second most touchdown passes by a rookie in NFL history.

From a two loss start to the regular season marked with several rookie mistakes, to shining as the clear future for the folks at Mile High, Nix had the clear support of his teammates the entire way. Nix was the first rookie to be named captain of the Broncos since 1967, and was the first rookie starter for the Broncos since the 1980’s with John Elway. Denver right tackle Mike McGlinchey, who has a long-storied history in the NFL, spoke about Nix’s intangibles that helped the former Duck step up to be a clear leader this season.

“I think once we got around him in the building for a week or two—a couple weeks in April—you’re like, ‘Oh man, this kid is made of the right stuff. Obviously, when you’re in shorts in April and May and doing OTA practices, you really can’t tell what kind of a football player he is really until we get into August, and when we put the pads on and all that kind of stuff,” McGlinchey said.

It’s clear with these direct comparisons to one of the best quarterbacks still playing today, that Nix has a bright future with the Broncos going forward.

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