MANHATTAN, Kansas - (13/13) K-State begins its 57th season of action with a unique Monday morning tip-off, as the Wildcats host Green Bay in Bramlage Coliseum at 11 a.m.
• Monday’s game is Education Day, as over 1,200 local elementary school students will be in attendance to see the Wildcats.
• Monday’s game can be seen live on ESPN+, as Brian Smoller (play-by-play), Missy Heidrick (analyst) and Hannah Whetstone (sideline) will have the call.
Starting 5
Five names, numbers or storylines about K-State women’s basketball
1. Cats Picked as Big 12 Favorites
• For the first time in Big 12 history, K-State was chosen as the league favorite in the 2024-25 Big 12 Preseason Coaches Poll. The Wildcats received 7 first-place votes and 211 points.
2. K-State 13th in AP & Coaches Polls
• For the fourth time in program history and the first time since 2004-05, K-State is ranked in the Associated Press and USA Today/WBCA Coaches preseason polls. The Wildcats check in at 13th in both, its highest preseason ranking since 2003-04 when the Cats were ranked fifth.
3. Duo Named to Preseason Watch List
• K-State’s Ayoka Lee and Serena Sundell were named to 2024-25 Jersey Mike’s Naismith Women’s Player of the Year Watch List.
4. Mittie Set for 11th season
• K-State head coach Jeff Mittie is prepared for his 11th season in Manhattan. He owns a 190-135 (.585) record and eight postseason appearances with the Wildcats. With 10 wins, Mittie will become the third K-State WBB coach (Deb Patterson, 350; Judy Akers, 206) with 200 or more wins at the helm of the Wildcats.
5. Lee on Cusp of Scoring Record
• Senior center and 2024-25 Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year Ayoka Lee needs 140 points to pass Kendra Wecker (2001-05; 2,333 points) for the K-State career scoring record. Lee owns the career school records for rebounds (1,118) and blocks (310).
Number to Know
2,067
• K-State returns 85 percent (2,067 points) of its points from the 2023-24 season.
• This is the second straight season K-State will return over 2,000 points scored from the previous season (2,120 entering 2023-24).
• Of the 2,067 points returning from last season, K-State returns its eight of its top nine scorers (Ayoka Lee, 533 points; Serena Sundell, 4111 points; Jaelyn Glenn, 239 points; Zyanna Walker, 231 points; Brylee Glenn, 214 points; Gisela Sanchez, 180 points; Eliza Maupin, 116 points; Taryn Sides, 115 points).
• The Wildcats scored 2,437 points in the 2023-24 season, the third straight season K-State has scored 2,000 or more points in a season. K-State has scored 2,000 or more points under Jeff Mittie in seven of his previous 10 seasons.
2024-25 Coach and Player Milestones to Watch
Jeff Mittie
• Needs 10 wins to become third K-State Women’s Basketball head coach with 200 or more wins at K-State
• Needs 17 wins to move into second on the K-State Women’s Basketball wins list (Judy Akers, 206)
Ayoka Lee
• Needs 140 points to set the school career scoring record
• Needs six double-doubles to move into second in Big 12 history for career double-doubles
• Needs 274 rebounds to move into second in Big 12 history for career rebounds
• Needs 56 made free throws to set the school record for career free throws made
• Needs 50 made field goals to set the school record for career field goals made
Serena Sundell
• Needs 238 points to reach 1,500 career points
• Needs 41 assists to move into second in school history for career assists
Jaelyn Glenn
• Needs 145 points to reach 1,000 career points
• Needs 12 made 3-pointers to move into 10th on K-State career 3-point field goals made list
• Needs 84 steals to move into third on K-State career steals list
• Needs 45 rebounds to move into top-30 on K-State career rebounds list
Brylee Glenn
• Needs 223 points to reach 1,000 career points
At a Glance: Green Bay
• Green Bay opens its 2024-25 season with three of its first four games on the road.
• The Phoenix were voted second in the 2024-25 Under Armour Horizon League Preseason Poll.
• Green Bay is guided on the sideline by first-year head coach Kayla Karius. The 2011 graduate of Green Bay owns a career record of 37-29 (.561) in her two previous seasons as a head coach at South Dakota.
• The top returning scorer and rebounder for the Phoenix is senior guard Natalie McNeal. The product of Germantown, Wisconsin, averaged 13.2 points and hauled in 6.8 rebounds. Entering the season, McNeal was a Preseason All-Horizon League First Team selection.
• Green Bay’s top passer from a season ago, Bailey Butler, also returns. The senior from South Wayne, Wisconsin, averaged 5.4 assists and enters this season as a Preseason All-Horizon League Second Team recipient.
K-State Among the Rankings
• Kansas State made its 2024-25 preseason debut at 13th in the Associated Press (AP) top-25 poll.
• This is the fourth time in program history and the first time since the 2004-05 season that K-State appeared in the AP preseason poll. This was the program’s highest preseason ranking since 2003-04 when the Wildcats entered the season ranked fifth.
• Since making its poll debut on Nov. 20, 2023, K-State has been ranked for 20 consecutive weeks. This is the longest consecutive streak for K-State since being ranked for the entirety of the 2004-05 season. In its history, K-State has now been ranked for a total of 193 weeks in the AP poll.
• As an AP ranked team, K-State owns a 247-94 (.724) record.
• During the 2023-24 season, the Wildcats achieved the program’s highest ranking in the Jeff Mittie era (2014-present), as the team was ranked 2nd on Jan. 29, 2024. It was the highest ranking for the program in the AP poll since Nov. 25, 2002 when K-State was ranked 2nd.
• According to Stats Perform, K-State was the first women’s program since the start of the AP poll in 1976 to go from unranked in the preseason to either No. 1 or No. 2 in the same season.
• The Wildcats are ranked 13th in the preseason USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll. This is the fourth time K-State has appeared in the preseason Coaches Poll and the first time since 2004-05. This is K-State’s highest preseason ranking in the poll since 2003-04 when the Wildcats entered the season ranked fifth.
• K-State reached a high of 2nd in the Coaches Poll for two straight weeks in the 2023-24 season, its highest Coaches Poll ranking since being ranked 2nd in the third poll of the 2002-03 season.
• The Wildcats have been ranked in 20 straight USA Today/WBCA Coaches Polls dating back to Nov. 20, 2023.
Mittie in 11th season at K-State
• Jeff Mittie, one of the winningest active coaches in NCAA Division I with over 600 career wins, enters his 11th season at the helm of the K-State program in 2024-25.
• Mittie, the ninth head women’s basketball coach in K-State history, owns an overall career record of 644-370 (.635) in 33 years as a head coach, including a 190-135 (.585) mark in his time at K-State. He has won 19 or more games in seven of 10 seasons with K-State.
• The 2024 Werner Ladder Naismith Women’s Coach of the Year Late Season Watch List honoree achieved a K-State career-best 26 wins in the 2023-24 season and his most wins as a head coach since registering 31 in the 1994-95 season at Missouri Western.
• His 644 career wins at NCAA programs ranks 11th among active NCAA Division I head coaches.
• Mittie registered the 600th win of his coaching career, an 83-43 victory over Central Arkansas on Nov. 7, 2022.
• With his 190 wins at Kansas State, Mittie ranks third for wins at the helm of the K-State program.
• Mittie is the third-longest tenured head coach in K-State women’s basketball history and currently the second-longest tenured head coach of any sport at K-State.
• He has averaged 20.0 wins per season and experienced only two losing seasons in his 32 seasons.
• Mittie has 23 postseason appearances in his career (NCAA or WNIT Tournaments), in which he has a combined record of 24-21 (.533). He ranks second in program history for NCAA Tournament appearances with five, trailing Deb Patterson’s program record nine appearances. Mittie is 4-5 in his five NCAA Tournament appearances with the Wildcats.
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 47-9 (.839) in season openers and have won 22 of the last 24 season openers, including 13 straight.
• Head coach Jeff Mittie is 26-6 (.813) in season-openers, including a 10-0 mark at K-State.
K-State in Home Openers
• Kansas State has won 30 of its last 32 home openers in Bramlage Coliseum. The Wildcats are 47-9 (.839) all-time in home openers and 32-4 (.889) in openers in Bramlage.
• Head coach Jeff Mittie is 30-2 (.938) in home openers in his previous 32 seasons.
Remember the Month of November
• In its 57 seasons of action, K-State has accumulated a record of 160-54 (.748) in the month of November. The Wildcats have won 48 of its last 59 games in the month of November.
• Under head coach Jeff Mittie, K-State is 46-11 (.807) in November games.
• The Wildcats have ended the 11th month with a .500 or better record in 13 straight seasons, including a 6-0 mark in 2016-17. Overall, K-State has registered a .500 or better record in November 44 times in its history.
They Got Their Eye on Them
• K-State women’s basketball placed three players on the Hoop Hall Awards, national positional awards watch lists. Fans can vote for these honors daily at hoophallawards.com.
• Senior guard Serena Sundell was chosen for the Nancy Lieberman Award watch list, given annually to the top point guard in the nation. This was the second time Sundell was named to the list.
• Senior forward Temira Poindexter was selected to the Cheryl Miller Award watch list, given annually to the nation’s top small forward.
• Senior center Ayoka Lee was named to the Lisa Leslie Award watch list, given annually to the top center in the nation. This is the fourth time in her career that Lee was named to the Leslie Award watch list. In 2022, Lee was a finalist for the honor.