Vonleh sets Buffs record for steals in a NCAA Tournament contest
MANHATTAN, KAN. >> Typically, Aaronette Vonleh will pick up a stat sheet after a game and look for points and rebounds.
“I never really look in the steals column when I look at my name, so to see seven there is kind of crazy,” Vonleh said Sunday after she helped the Colorado women’s basketball to a 63-50 win against Kansas State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Vonleh came in averaging 14.2 points and 5.1 rebounds per game, but she had just 26 steals on the season (0.8 per game). Her career high in that category was four against Oregon on Jan. 28.
Going up against Kansas State star Ayoka Lee, however, Vonleh was a defensive beast. She finished with nine points, eight rebounds and a career-high seven steals. All of her steals came during the first half when the Wildcats tried to feed the ball inside to Lee.
“I was just trying to be really intentional about getting in the best position to be able to slip around her,” Vonleh said.
The Lee-vs.-vonleh battle figured to be a key to the game, and it was arguably a draw.
Lee, who earned Associated Press All-american honorable mention, came in averaging 20.1 points and 8.5 rebounds. Against CU, she finished with 11 rebounds and six blocks, but only 10 points — her second-lowest total of the season.
Lee attempted just nine shots, well below the 13.4 attempts she averages. That’s mainly because Vonleh didn’t let her get the ball much, reaching in to poke the ball away almost every time the Wildcats tried to pass it into her.
“We couldn’t spread them out and get enough ball movement and we couldn’t go to a lot of things that we go to with Lee and have success,” K-state head coach Jeff Mitte said. “Our post entries weren’t good enough. Their centers were really active, sliding around, attacking the ball in the air.
“I think Vonleh is one of the stronger players in the country, but she combines athleticism that you don’t always see. She challenges post entry well. Today, if you threw a pass a little bit to the inside, Vonleh was good enough to go get it. Yeah, it was impressive to watch. She’s strong. She’s tough. It was a physical game. But they really made some really good plays.”
Lee defended well, also. The 6-foot-3 Vonleh, who was first-team All-pac-12, struggled to hit shots against the 6-foot-6 Lee, going 4-for-14 from the floor (two of those made shots came with Lee on the bench). Vonleh came in with a field goal percentage of .557. Sunday was her 20th game with at least 10 shots and her percentage (.286) was a season-low in those games.
While she struggled to hit shots, Vonleh significantly impacted the game with her defense. She set a CU record for steals in a half, with seven. And, she finished with the most steals ever by a Buff in an NCAA Tournament game, topping the six by Bridget Turner against UNLV on March 18, 1989.
“She is one of the best post defenders in the country,” CU guard Maddie Nolan said. “She’s one of the best players in the country, period, and I think we saw that tonight and she just had a huge game for us.”