SE: Goth, Williams Up Aggression in K-State WBB’s Two-Game Win Streak
Jan 23, 2019 | Women's Basketball, Sports Extra
By Corbin McGuire
After a loss to Kansas, K-State women's basketball head coach Jeff Mittie had a frank discussion with Kayla Goth and Peyton Williams. It served mostly as a reminder for the two that their team needed them to take control more on the floor, especially on offense.
"Essentially, (he said) Kayla and I needed to be more aggressive and take more shots," Williams said. "We needed to take more attempts as a duo because some of the shots we were passing up to look for other people, they just weren't smart plays."
The meeting had an immediate effect.
Goth and Williams combined for 38 points and 26 shot attempts to propel their team to an 87-69 win over No. 11 Texas, the most points K-State has ever scored against the Longhorns. Goth also dished out 12 assists, while Williams picked up a team-leading eight rebounds.
"We need them to keep performing the way that they are," sophomore Rachel Ranke said.
To follow, the pair combined to put up 28 points in a road win (66-62) against Texas Tech. Williams accounted for 18 of those. Goth picked her game up in other areas, as she collected nine assists, five rebounds and three steals.
"I think they responded well," said Mittie, who added that he expects to have the same conversation with the two routinely. "That's going to be something where I have to have that talk every week — 'Here's where you need to be aggressive' — because we're just a better team when they are. They calm us down, both of them."
Case in Mittie's point: K-State let a nine-point halftime lead turn into an eight-point deficit early in the fourth quarter at Texas Tech. Goth took just two shots during that stretch. In response, she attacked and scored on back-to-back possession in the fourth. Her aggressiveness helped open the offense up and sparked a 14-0 run to flip the game back in her team's favor.
"Goth hit a really good stretch there," Mittie said. "Goth getting going really got our entire group going."
Against Texas, Williams dropped in a trio of 3-pointers en route to 11 first-quarter points, tying the school record for points in a first quarter and giving her team an early lift. She also scored 15 points in the first half at Texas Tech, helping her team build its halftime lead.
"It used to be I was more of a second-half player," Williams said, as K-State (12-6, 3-3) hosts Oklahoma State on Wednesday at 7 p.m. "It's looked kind of the opposite the past two games. That's just me trying to be more aggressive in those areas and starting right off the bat, like he talked to us about."
Williams said she and Goth never had a formal discussion between just the two of them to rehash the one with Mittie. On the court, however, they will remind each other of its theme occasionally.
"We've had conversations in games, where we were, like, 'OK, let's go. Let's do this.' We'll have moments in the game where we'll be, like, 'We know what we need to do,'" Williams said. "We can just talk to each other about that, just setting goals in the moment."
One of their goals has been to get their teammates back on track and in the right mindset when things are not going well on the floor, and they seem to be achieving this lately. Mittie complimented their ability to set the mood during in-game timeouts.
"I think our leadership has been really good in the timeouts. When you talk about Goth and Peyton, they're saying really good things in the huddle," he said. "They've got a good message in the huddle before the coaches get in there. That, coming from players, is way better than coming from me and way better than coming from the coaches. I feel like those messages are not only being given well but being received well by our team."
After a loss to Kansas, K-State women's basketball head coach Jeff Mittie had a frank discussion with Kayla Goth and Peyton Williams. It served mostly as a reminder for the two that their team needed them to take control more on the floor, especially on offense.
"Essentially, (he said) Kayla and I needed to be more aggressive and take more shots," Williams said. "We needed to take more attempts as a duo because some of the shots we were passing up to look for other people, they just weren't smart plays."
The meeting had an immediate effect.
Goth and Williams combined for 38 points and 26 shot attempts to propel their team to an 87-69 win over No. 11 Texas, the most points K-State has ever scored against the Longhorns. Goth also dished out 12 assists, while Williams picked up a team-leading eight rebounds.
"We need them to keep performing the way that they are," sophomore Rachel Ranke said.
To follow, the pair combined to put up 28 points in a road win (66-62) against Texas Tech. Williams accounted for 18 of those. Goth picked her game up in other areas, as she collected nine assists, five rebounds and three steals.
"I think they responded well," said Mittie, who added that he expects to have the same conversation with the two routinely. "That's going to be something where I have to have that talk every week — 'Here's where you need to be aggressive' — because we're just a better team when they are. They calm us down, both of them."
Case in Mittie's point: K-State let a nine-point halftime lead turn into an eight-point deficit early in the fourth quarter at Texas Tech. Goth took just two shots during that stretch. In response, she attacked and scored on back-to-back possession in the fourth. Her aggressiveness helped open the offense up and sparked a 14-0 run to flip the game back in her team's favor.
"Goth hit a really good stretch there," Mittie said. "Goth getting going really got our entire group going."
Against Texas, Williams dropped in a trio of 3-pointers en route to 11 first-quarter points, tying the school record for points in a first quarter and giving her team an early lift. She also scored 15 points in the first half at Texas Tech, helping her team build its halftime lead.
"It used to be I was more of a second-half player," Williams said, as K-State (12-6, 3-3) hosts Oklahoma State on Wednesday at 7 p.m. "It's looked kind of the opposite the past two games. That's just me trying to be more aggressive in those areas and starting right off the bat, like he talked to us about."
Williams said she and Goth never had a formal discussion between just the two of them to rehash the one with Mittie. On the court, however, they will remind each other of its theme occasionally.
"We've had conversations in games, where we were, like, 'OK, let's go. Let's do this.' We'll have moments in the game where we'll be, like, 'We know what we need to do,'" Williams said. "We can just talk to each other about that, just setting goals in the moment."
One of their goals has been to get their teammates back on track and in the right mindset when things are not going well on the floor, and they seem to be achieving this lately. Mittie complimented their ability to set the mood during in-game timeouts.
"I think our leadership has been really good in the timeouts. When you talk about Goth and Peyton, they're saying really good things in the huddle," he said. "They've got a good message in the huddle before the coaches get in there. That, coming from players, is way better than coming from me and way better than coming from the coaches. I feel like those messages are not only being given well but being received well by our team."
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