Everything changed when Ayoka Lee left. Honestly, you can't just lose a 61-point-per-game legend and expect the floor at Bramlage Coliseum to stay level. It doesn't work that way. For years, the identity of k state women’s basketball was basically "get the ball to the 6-foot-6 center and let her work." Now? It’s a track meet, and Jeff Mittie is having to reinvent the wheel on the fly in a Big 12 that suddenly feels like a gauntlet.
People keep asking if the program is in a "down" year. That’s a bit of a stretch. But the vibe is different.
Life After the Legend: The Reality of K State Women’s Basketball
The 2025-26 season has been a whirlwind of "almosts." As of mid-January 2026, the Wildcats are sitting at 9-9. They’re 2-3 in the Big 12. It’s middle-of-the-pack territory, which is a weird place to be for a team that spent so much time in the national spotlight recently.
We’re seeing a massive shift toward guard play.
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Taryn Sides has been the engine. She’s averaging 13.1 points and nearly 4 assists. The kid is tough. She’s from Phillipsburg, so she’s got that "small-town Kansas" grit that fans in Manhattan absolutely live for. But she can’t do it alone.
Then you’ve got Tess Heal. The Australian senior is basically a walking bucket when she’s hot. Just a few days ago, she went off for 31 points against Utah, including a school-record 21 points in the fourth quarter alone. 21 points. In one quarter. Think about that for a second. It was the kind of performance that makes you realize why she was a high-level transfer in the first place.
The New Blood and International Flavor
Mittie hasn’t just stayed local. He’s gone global. You’ve got Nastja Claessens from Belgium and Gina Garcia from Spain. It’s a weird, beautiful mix of styles.
- Nastja Claessens: She’s 6-foot-1, versatile, and averages about 11.3 points.
- Jordan Speiser: A freshman from Missouri who is already contributing nearly 10 points a game.
- Jenessa Cotton: A Duke transfer who brings some serious physicality to the paint.
The problem? Consistency. One night they look like they could beat anybody in the country, and the next, they’re dropping a heartbreaker to West Virginia by two points. It’s frustrating. It’s basketball.
Why the Big 12 is a Nightmare Right Now
Look at the standings. Texas Tech is currently undefeated at 19-0. TCU and Baylor are stacked. Even the newcomers like Utah and Colorado are making life miserable for the old guard. For k state women’s basketball to stay relevant, they have to win the "scrap games."
The win at Houston on January 7th was a glimpse of what they can be. They rallied in the second half, looked composed, and actually finished. But then they followed it up with a loss to Utah where they fell behind by 19. You can't do that in this league. Not anymore.
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What the Stats Actually Say
If you’re a numbers person, the Wildcats are averaging about 70.2 points per game. That’s 130th in the country. Not bad, but not elite. Defensively, they’re giving up 64.7. The margin is thin. Very thin.
They’re shooting about 43% from the floor. Again, it’s fine. But "fine" doesn't get you a top-four seed in the conference tournament. It doesn't get you a home game in the NCAA Tournament.
The rebounding has been a sore spot. Without Lee’s massive presence in the middle, they’re basically getting out-rebounded by an average of 1 or 2 per game. That adds up. Second-chance points are killing them.
The Mid-Season Pivot
We are heading into the toughest stretch of the schedule. On January 17th, they head to Lubbock to face a Texas Tech team that hasn't lost a game yet. Then it’s Houston again, and then the big one—the Sunflower Showdown against Kansas on January 25th in Lawrence.
That game at Allen Fieldhouse is going to be a war. S'Mya Nichols over at KU just broke the school’s all-time free throw record. She’s playing out of her mind. If K-State wants to prove they still own the state, they have to find a way to contain her.
Actionable Insights for the Rest of the Season
If you’re following this team, here’s what you actually need to watch for:
- The Point Guard Battle: Watch Taryn Sides. If she stays out of foul trouble and keeps the turnover count under three, K-State usually wins. When she gets rattled, the whole offense stalls.
- Tess Heal’s Usage: Does Mittie start her or keep her as the "microwave" off the bench? Her 31-point explosion against Utah suggests she might be too good to sit, but her energy off the bench is a weapon.
- The "Cotton" Factor: Jenessa Cotton needs to be the enforcer. She was ejected in the Houston game after a scrap, which shows she’s got fire, but they need her on the court, not in the locker room.
- Three-Point Variance: They’re shooting about 34% from deep. If that jumps to 37% or 38%, they become a Top 25 team overnight. If it drops to 30%, they’re a WNIT team.
Basically, the era of "feeding the post" is over. This is a new version of k state women’s basketball. It’s faster, it’s smaller, and it’s a lot more unpredictable. Whether that leads to a deep March run or a quiet exit depends entirely on how this group of international transfers and Kansas kids gels over the next three weeks.
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Keep an eye on the freshman, Jordan Speiser. She’s got a high ceiling and doesn't seem afraid of the moment. In a season defined by transition, she might be the bridge to the future.
The Wildcats aren't dead. They're just different. And honestly, different might be exactly what this program needs to find its new ceiling.
The next few weeks will tell the whole story. If they can split the road trip to Arizona and handle business against Kansas, they’re right back in the mix. If not, it’s going to be a long climb back to the top of the Big 12.