The University of Arizona women’s basketball team is preparing to go on the road and face No. 11 ranked Kansas State University on Thursday, Jan. 16 at 5:30 p.m. in Bramlage Coliseum. Arizona (11-7, 2-3 in Big 12) is seeking to end its two-game losing skid after most recently losing to Iowa State University at home 79-58 on Jan. 11.
Thursday’s matchup will mark the first meeting between the two schools in either program’s history. Notably, all of Arizona’s Big 12 wins have come away from home: the first one against BYU, where the Wildcats won 57-53 on Dec. 21 and the other on Jan. 4 in a 75-53 win over the University of Central Florida.
Kansas State players to watch
K-State is led by head coach Jeff Mittie, who is in his eleventh year at the helm of the program. Mittie was nominated for the 2024 Naismith Women’s Coach of the Year Late Season List and has 644 total career wins, placing him 16th all time amongst current Division I head coaches.
Ayoka Lee, a 6-foot-6 center, leads Kansas State in points, rebounds and blocks, averaging 17.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.1 rejections per game. Lee also leads the conference in field goal percentage, shooting 65 percent. In K-State’s most recent victory, against BYU on Jan. 11 Lee secured 19 points, seven boards, four steals on 57.1 percent shooting in a dominating 92-65 win.
Right behind Lee is Serena Sundell. The senior guard leads her team and conference in assists, averaging 7.6 per game alongside scoring 12.7 points, grabbing 4.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals a game. Notably, Sundell has recorded four double-doubles in her last five games. In the 74-55 win against the University of Houston on Jan. 1, Sundell was one assist shy of a triple-double finishing with 11 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists.
Kansas State has only lost one game on the year, which came on Nov. 25 against No. 13 ranked Duke University 73-62. Since then, Kansas State has won all its games, looking to extend its impressive 12 game winning streak against Arizona. Ranking No. 11 in the AP poll, K-State is tied for first in the Big 12 alongside TCU, which hold a current 5-0 record.
Wildcats to watch
Head coach Adia Barnes is entering her ninth season as the Wildcats’ head coach. Last season, Barnes led Arizona to earn its fourth- straight and 11th overall bid to the NCAA Tournament. Barnes has guided Arizona to be second in the conference in takeaways heading into this game.
Senior Isis Beh has proven her veteran experience helps the team in multiple ways. In the 81-76 overtime loss to Baylor University on Jan. 8 Beh finished with a season-high 18 points, six rebounds and four assists on a very efficient 80 percent shooting. Beh, a 6-foot-3 forward, currently averages 5.6 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.
Breya Cunningham, one of the focal points of the Arizona’s offense, leads the way averaging 12.4 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks a game on the season. On the road, Cunningham shines even brighter, averaging 15.2 points, 6.6 boards and 2.4 blocks on 69.4 percent from the floor.
In Arizona’s most recent road game, the Wildcats secured a 75-53 crushing victory against UCF on Jan. 4 where Cunningham contributed 15 points on 77.8 percent shooting, along with four blocks.
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