K-State Hosts Cal on Sunday in WBIT Second Round

Sunday, March 22

Manhattan, Kan.

6 p.m.

Kansas State University

California

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Mar 20, 2026 | Women's Basketball

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Game 37 | 2026 WBIT Second Round
California Golden Bears (20-14, 9-9 ACC) at K-State Wildcats (19-17, 8-10 Big 12)
Sunday, March 22, 2026 | 6 p.m. | Bramlage Coliseum (11,010) | Manhattan, Kan.

TICKETS
Visit kstatesports.com/tickets or call (800) 221-CATS

TELEVISION
ESPN+
Play-by-Play: Brian Smoller
Analyst: Shaelyn Floyd
Sideline: Hannah Whetstone

RADIO
K-State Sports Network
Online: kstatesports.com
Play-by-Play: Matt Walters
Analyst: Kristin Waller

LIVE STATS
www.kstatesports.com

SERIES HISTORY vs. California
0-0

• K-State and California will meet for the first time.
• Head coach Jeff Mittie is 2-1 in his career against Cal.
• The Wildcats are 12-16 against the ACC, including a 2-1 mark this season.

MANHATTAN, Kansas - K-State (19-17), a 2-seed, will host California (20-14), in the second round of the 2026 WBIT on Sunday at 6 p.m., in Bramlage Coliseum.

• With a win, the Wildcats would secure the 29th 20-win season in program history, including the sixth in the Jeff Mittie era.
• The game will stream on ESPN+, as Brian Smoller (play-by-play), Shaelyn Floyd (analyst) and Hannah Whetstone (sideline) will have the call.

Starting 5
Five names, numbers or storylines about K-State women's basketball
1. Double Figures x 4
• K-State features four players averaging double figures in scoring this season: Taryn Sides (12.4 ppg), Nastja Claessens (12.1), Tess Heal (10.7) and Jordan Speiser (10.1). If the group ends the season averaging 10+ points, it would mark the first time since 2007-08 and sixth time overall that four or more players averaged double figures in a season (min. 70% of team games played).
2. Wildcats Pile up the Points
• K-State has tallied 2,511 points this season, which ranks sixth in program history for a single season. This is the second straight season and the sixth season overall in which K-State has scored 2,500 or more points in a season.
3. Cats with Sticky Paws
• K-State's 351 steals this season are fifth in program history for a single season. The 351 steals are the second-most under Mittie.
4. Moving the Ball
• K-State has handed out 534 assists (14.8 apg) in 2025-26. This is the fifth consecutive season with 500 or more assists. This is the second time in program history in which K-State has dished out 500 or more assists in five straight seasons (2001-02 to 2005-06).
5. Garcia With the Dish
• Gina Garcia leads all Big 12 freshmen and is second in the nation for assists by a freshmen with 179 assists. She is second in program history for assists in a freshman season and needs 11 assists to pass Shalee Lehning (2005-06; 189) for the freshman school record.

Number to Know
275

• K-State's 275 three-point field goals made this season ranks third for a single season in program history. This is the third season in program history with 275 or more 3-point field goals made.
• Over the last two seasons, K-State has made 582 three-pointers.
• This is the fourth consecutive season and the 15th season in program history with 200 or more made 3-pointers.
• The group of Taryn Sides (80), Jordan Speiser (71), Nastja Claessens (41), Tess Heal (24), Izela Arenas (22) and Aniya Foy (22) marks the sixth season in program history including the fourth straight with five or more Wildcats making 20 or more 3-point field goals in a season. This is the first season in program history with six players making 20 or more 3-point field goals in the same season.

Last Time Out
at K-State 69, Georgia Tech 65 (March 19, 2026; Manhattan, Kan.)
• K-State made its WBIT debut by holding off a second half charge from Georgia Tech.
• K-State was led by the junior tandem of Nastja Claessens and Taryn Sides. Claessens registered 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting, five rebounds and four steals, while Sides added 14 points, five assists, three rebounds and two steals.

Marching Toward the Finish Line
• During the third month of the year but the final month of the basketball season, K-State owns a 148-111 (.571) record in March.
• K-State head coach Jeff Mittie is 31-27 (.534) in the month of March during his time in Manhattan.

Wildcats' 400+ Wins in Bramlage
• K-State is 421-165 (.718) all-time inside Bramlage Coliseum, which is in its 38th season of existence.
• In his career in games played in his home venue, head coach Jeff Mittie is 425-122 (.777) including a 151-57 (.726) record at K-State.
• Kansas State has protected Bramlage Coliseum with determination against non-conference foes with a record of 242-33 (.880). Mittie is 88-12 (.880) in non-conference games in Bramlage.
• In the 2024-25 season, K-State was 17-1 (.944) in home games, which included a 17-game home winning streak, tied for the fifth-longest home win streak in program history and tied for the second-longest in Bramlage. This was the longest in-season home win streak since 2002-03 (19). The .944 winning percentage last season was the best since going 19-1 (.950) in 2002-03.
• This was the 34th time in program history that the Wildcats reached double figures in home victories. It was the 26th season K-State has won 10 or more games in Bramlage.
• The 33 home wins by the Wildcats over the last two seasons are the most wins in Bramlage over a two-season span in program history.

20-Pt Quarters For the Wildcats
• Since the inception of the quarter system in the 2015-16 season, K-State owns an overall record of 177-76 (.700) when scoring 20 or more points in any quarter in a game.
• The Cats are 17-11 this season when scoring 20 or more points in any quarter in a game.
• This season, K-State has registered 50 quarters with 20 or more points scored in quarters including a high of 32 points in the fourth quarter against Utah on Jan. 10. The 32 points were the most in a fourth quarter for K-State since scoring a fourth quarter school record 34 points against Central Arkansas on Nov. 9, 2021.
• Since the 2015-16 season, K-State has registered 430 quarters with 20 or more points with a program record of 68 in the 2024-25 season.

K-State Attacking the Paint
• K-State has continued to attack the lane in the 2025-26 season.
• This season, K-State has registered 1,120 points in the paint (31.1 ppg) which is 44.6 percent of its overall point total. The Wildcats have scored 30 or more points in the paint 20 times and have held the edge in the lane 19 times.
• This is the fifth consecutive season K-State has scored 1,000 or more points in the paint. K-State has scored 1,000 or more points in the paint in six of Mittie's 12 seasons.
• The Wildcats opened the season with 48 points in the paint against Omaha and matched the total against UCF on Feb. 18. The 48 points in the paint were the most since scoring 54 against New Mexico State on Dec. 18, 2024.
• In the 2024-25 season, the Wildcats registered 30 or more points in the lane in 28 games including a season-high 56 points in the paint against Milwaukee on Nov. 20 and DePaul on Nov. 27. The 56 points were the most since scoring 58 against McNeese State on Dec. 6, 2023.
• K-State averaged 37.6 points per game (1,352 points) in the paint with 47.6 percent of its point total from inside the lane and outscored its foes in the lane in 26 games. The 1,352 points in the paint were the most scored in the lane under head coach Jeff Mittie.

Advanced Claessens
• Junior forward Nastja Claessens has been effective from the field and from beyond the arc in her first season in the Little Apple.
• Since 1999-00, Claessens is the second junior in program history to record a field goal percentage of 50.0 percent or better, a 3-point percentage of 35.0 percent or better and score 375 or more points. She joins Serena Sundell (2023-24) in achieving this feat.
• Claessens needs one point to reach 400 in her first season with the Wildcats.

Taryn It Up from Long Distance
• Taryn Sides has been a threat from long distance in her career.
• Sides owns a career 3-point field goal percentage of .400 (190-475), which is fifth in school history (min. 2 attempts/game). She was the 11th player in program history with 175 or more made 3-point field goals and is ninth in program history for career 3-point field goals made.
• She has made two or more 3-pointers in a game 54 times, including 14 games with four or more.
• This season, Sides is shooting 39.4 percent from long distance (80-of-203) and has 23 games with two or more connections, including five games with four or more.
• She ranks 49th in the nation for 3-point field goal percentage. Her 80 connections ranks 51st in the nation. She is the sixth player in program history to make 80 or more 3-pointers in their junior season.
• During the 2025 Cancun Challenge, Sides went off from long range as she was 15-of-25 (.600) in the three games. Against Columbia, Sides shot a career-best 8-of-12 from long range including 5-of-6 in the second half.
• Starting with her buzzer-beating 3-pointer to end the third quarter against Columbia, Sides made eight consecutive 3-pointers by shooting 3-of-3 in the fourth quarter, 2-of-2 against North Carolina and started by making her first two attempts against South Dakota State.
• With her eight made 3-pointers against Columbia, Sides tied for the fourth most in a game in program history and was the eighth different player in school history to make eight or more three-pointers in a game. Her eight 3-point connections were the most since Temira Poindexter made eight at Kentucky in the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
• She was the second K-State player since 1999-00 to shoot 66.7 percent or better from long distance on 12 or more attempts, joining Laurie Koehn who shot 76.9 percent (10-of-13) against Iowa on Jan. 5, 2003.

How to follow the Cats: For complete information on K-State Women's Basketball, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram.