Kansas State Athletics

GAME #1
Omaha (0-0) vs. Kansas State (0-0)
Monday, November 12, 2018  |  5:30 p.m.  |  Bramlage Coliseum  |  Manhattan, Kan.

TELEVISION
K-StateHD.TV
• Brian Smoller (play-by-play)
• Kristin Waller (analyst)

RADIO
K-State Sports Network
• Brian Smoller (play-by-play)
• Kristin Waller (analyst)
Listen Online: www.kstatesports.com/watch [free]

COACHES
Kansas State: Jeff Mittie (Missouri Western '89)
Overall: 533-289/27th season  |  At K-State: 79-54/5th season
vs. Omaha: 4-1

Omaha: Brittany Lange (Iowa State '10)
Overall: 65-80/Sixth season  |  At Omaha: Same

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
Kansas State (0-0)
G: #10 Kayla Goth  |  G: #12 Rachel Ranke  |  G: #43 Christianna Carr  |  F: #11 Peyton Williams |  F: #25 Jasauen Beard
                
Omaha (0-0)
G: #2 Rayanna Carter |  G: #11 Claire Killian  |  G: #42 Sophie Johnston  |  F: #25 Josie Filer  |  C: #5 Elena Pilakouta

SERIES HISTORY
Overall: K-State leads, 4-0
In Manhattan: 2-0
Last Meeting: Nov. 13, 2017; K-State won 81-60


MANHATTAN, Kansas - Kansas State will begin its 51st season on Monday, November 12, against Omaha at 5:30 p.m., in Bramlage Coliseum.

• The Wildcats enter Monday's game with an eight-game winning streak in season-openers and have won 17 of their last 19 season-opening games.
• Monday evening's game can be seen live on K-StateHD.TV and Facebook Live, as Brian Smoller (play-by-play) and Kristin Waller (color analyst) will have the call.  
• The Wildcats closed out their two-game exhibition schedule with a 65-50 win on Monday, November 5.
• K-State used a 13-0 run midway through the first quarter to take a lead they would never relinquish.
• Kansas State used a stifling defensive effort in the second quarter. The Wildcats held Pittsburg State to 1-of-14 shooting from the field to build a 16-point lead at the half.  
• K-State was led by freshman guard Christianna Carr with 27 points and five rebounds. Carr was 10-of-20 from the field including 6-of-12 from beyond the arc.  
• In the two exhibition games, Carr led K-State with 16.0 points and seven connections from beyond the arc.
• Redshirt junior Jasauen Beard reached double figures for the second straight game, as she tallied 11 points, five rebounds and four steals against the Gorillas.
• Beard capped the two-game exhibition slate with 10.5 points, 7.0 rebounds 3.0 steals and 2.5 assists.
• Sophomore guard Rachel Ranke also averaged 10.5 points in the exhibition games, while also pulling in 5.0 rebounds.

Number to Know
3
• Of the 68 players to make their #KStateWBB career debuts from the 2000-01 season to the 2017-18 season, only three scored 20 or more points in their first game.
• The three players to score 20 or more points in their Kansas State career debuts were: Laurie Koehn (27 points, at Georgia Tech, 11/16/2001), Kaylee Page (21 points, at Tulsa, 11/13/2015) and Tasha Dickey (20 points, vs. Dartmouth, 11/12/2011).
• None of the three players were true freshmen at the time of their K-State career debuts. Koehn was a redshirt freshman. Page was a sophomore after transferring from Nebraska and Dickey was a senior who was a graduate transfer from Arizona.

At a Glance: Omaha
• Omaha (0-0) starts its 2018-19 season at home against USC-Upstate on Friday.
• The Mavericks finished the 2017-18 season with a 12-16 overall record and a sixth-place finish in the Summit League. Entering this season, Omaha was chosen for an eighth-place finish in the league's preseason poll.
• Omaha is led on the sidelines by sixth-year head coach Brittany Lange. Lange, a 2010 graduate of Iowa State owns a mark of 65-80 (.448) during her time with the Mavericks.
• On the floor, the Mavericks return six letterwinners including one starter from a season ago.
• Omaha's lone returning starter is sophomore guard Claire Killian. Killian averaged 8.4 points and 2.9 rebounds in her freshman season in 2017-18.

K-State in Season Openers
• The Wildcats have been dominant in season-openers since the team's first season in 1968-69. Kansas State is 41-9 (.820) in season openers and have won 17 of the last 19 season openers, including eight straight.
• Head coach Jeff Mittie is 20-6 (.769) in season-openers, including a 4-0 mark at K-State.

K-State in Home Openers
• Kansas State has won 24 of its last 26 home openers in Bramlage Coliseum. The Wildcats are 41-9 (.820) all-time in home openers and 26-4 (.867) in openers in Bramlage.
• Head coach Jeff Mittie is 24-2 (.923) in home openers in his previous 26 seasons.

2018-19 Roster Youngest Since 1977-78
• K-State will have one of the youngest rosters in the country this season, as 10 of the 14 players on the 2018-19 roster are either true freshmen or sophomores. The roster features four true freshmen (Christianna Carr, Ayoka Lee, Laura Macke and Savannah Simmons) and six sophomores (Peyton Williams).
• The 2018-19 roster is the second youngest roster in program history, trailing the 1977-78 season, which featured a program-high 11 underclassmen (seven freshmen and four sophomores) among the 16 players in the roster.
• Among Big 12 programs this season, K-State is tied with Oklahoma for the most underclassmen on its roster at 10 each.
• The incoming class for the 2018-19 season for K-State was ranked 28th in the nation by Prospects Nation.
• In terms of K-State playing experience, the Wildcats' roster features six players that have yet to play a game in purple and white - the four true freshmen and a pair of transfers in Sarah Bates and Jasauen Beard. Beard will be active this season, while Bates must redshirt after transferring from UC Santa Barbara.

Wildcats with 300+ Wins in Bramlage
• K-State is 323-129 (.715) all-time inside Bramlage Coliseum, which is in its 31st season of existence.
• In his career in games played in his home venue, Mittie is 327-86 (.792).
• Kansas State has protected Bramlage Coliseum with determination against non-conference foes with a record of 187-26 (.878). Head coach Jeff Mittie is 33-5 (.868) in non-conference games in Bramlage Coliseum.
• K-State was 11-8 at home in 2017-18. This was the 29th time the Wildcats reached double figures in home victories in program history. The Wildcats have won 10 or more games in Bramlage in four straight seasons.

Scoring Up For K-State in 2017-18
• Kansas State's offensive numbers continue to improve in Jeff Mittie's five seasons. K-State averaged 68.0 points per game with 2,313 points scored in the 2017-18 season.
• The 2,313 points were the most in the Mittie era and highest since the 2005-06 season.
• This is the first time K-State scored 2,000 or more points in three straight seasons since reaching the mark in eight straight seasons from 2001-02 to 2008-09.

Wildcats Cash in at the Charity Stripe
• Kansas State has continued to earn trips to the free throw line, which is a trend during head coach Jeff Mittie's time at K-State.
• The Wildcats were 438-of-605 (.724) from the foul line in 2017-18, which was 18.9 percent of the team's overall point total. K-State ranked fourth in the Big 12 in free throw percentage.
• This was the eighth season in program history that K-State tallied a 70.0 percent or better free throw percentage (minimum of 500 or more free throws attempted in a season).
• This was the fourth straight season under Mittie that K-State has made 350 or more free throws in a season and the first time to do so in four straight seasons since 1975-76 to 1992-93, a stretch of 17 consecutive seasons.
• The Wildcats made a season-high 21 free throws against UT Arlington. K-State made as many free throws as UT Arlington attempted (21 made/21 attempted).
• K-State turned in its top effort in terms of free throw percentage against Baylor on March 3, as the Wildcats finished 11-of-11 (1.000). The Wildcats were also perfect from the line against Oklahoma State on January 13 (8-of-8).
• The Wildcats had 13 games in the 2017-18 season with more free throws made than their foe attempted.