K-State women's basketball embraces work ethic and leadership entering new season
KANSAS CITY, Mo (KSNT) - It will be a new look K-State squad in the 2025-26 season, but don't count out the Wildcats.
K-State is coming off a 28-8 (13-5 Big 12) year, which wrapped in the Sweet 16 with a loss to No. 1 seed USC. The Wildcats started the year 19-2 and won two games at the NCAA Tournament against Fairfield and Kentucky.
The Wildcats enter the 2025-26 season without familiar faces Serena Sundell and Ayoka Lee.
Lee led the team with 15.4 points and 6.5 rebounds a night. Sundell had just over 14 points a game. K-State will also be without Temira Poindexter who was the team's third leading scorer.
It will be a new-look Wildcats squad this season, and a young one at that.
K-State was picked seventh in the Big 12 Coaches Poll and received votes in the Preseason AP Poll.
Nine of the players on the team are underclassmen with one senior on the roster in Stanford transfer guard Tess Heal.
Head coach Jeff Mittie knows there will be growing pains but said this is a hardworking group.
"My patience is being tested only in the sense of effort and communication, the rest will take care of itself, but those are non-negotiables," Mittie said. "Those are non-negotiables, and your efforts got to be consistent, and your communications got to be consistent."
K-State has prepped his team with a good non-conference slate, playing teams like preseason No. 12 Ole Miss and No. 11 UNC, amongst others.
Mittie said his squad will always challenge themselves to get ready for a tough Big 12 schedule.
"What I wanted for this specific team is to get some answers early and challenge ourselves," Mittie said. "I want to get that information to my team as quickly as possible, how we can operate in big games and on the road early on."
Returning junior guard Taryn Sides received high praise from Mittie—comparing her to John Stockton the way she can get her teammates involved.
She said she's stepped up over the offseason into more of a leadership role.
"I'm more of a lead by example type player and (Jeff) Mittie wants me to be more vocal," Sides said. "I'm trying to work on that and be that person for the team."
Amongst the nine newcomers is transfer sophomore guard Izela Arenas who arrived to K-State from Louisville after one season. She averaged 4.2 points in just over 11 minutes a game.
"I want to bring defense and leadership to this squad," Arenas said. "I've been working on being a leader and being a good example for my teammates. It has been challenging because I've never done it before, but it's been a heck of a summer and I'm excited for the season."
Mittie noted that Arenas sets the bar for her dedication to the gym, being the first to the gym every morning and getting shots up at 5 a.m. in the summer.
Another new face to the program is Belgium native Nastja Claessens. She won FIBA's Eurobasket tournament in the summer with her home country, and averaged 5.2 points. Although she was drafted in the WNBA Draft, Claessens decided to go to Manhattan.
"K-State feels like family and I love it here," Claessens said. "I want to bring my IQ and experience to this team from over the summer."
This team will be defined by its work ethic and accountability as the Wildcats are ready for the season.
The 'Cats will open the season on Nov. 3 at home against Omaha.
"I'll bet that on their [players] day off, that they'll still be in the gym," Mittie said. "It excites me they want to be there because some of our most successful teams didn't want to be in the gym like others."
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