No. 8 K-State 20-3 (9-2)
Kansas State’s perfect Big 12 record has fallen to 9-2. In losses to Oklahoma and Texas, the Wildcats’ remarkable season hit its first true road bump. K-State ranks as the No. 8 team in the country, with offensive consistency and interior defense suffering without center Ayoka Lee. Multiple players saw adjustments to their roles, and the Wildcats must continue adapting.
Oklahoma State 11-11 (4-7)
Sitting at a .500 record, the Oklahoma State Cowgirls have yet to find a spark. Losing six of the past seven games, the Cowgirls battled regardless, their largest deficit coming against No. 18 Baylor in a 12-point loss. Oklahoma State’s ability to compete is masked by an inability to win in the second half of games. If solved, the Cowgirls can be a problem for anyone they face.
Matchup to Watch: Hannah Gusters vs. K-State interior defense
Again and again, with K-State’s height concerns for the past two weeks, the matchup to watch remains the same: K-State’s interior defense against the opponents’ best post player. For the Cowgirls, their best play comes from center Hannah Gusters.
Gusters played in only 13 games for Oklahoma State this year but has made an impact since returning. The 6-foot-5 senior scored double-digits in all but two Big 12 games, most recently putting up 22 points in a 81-74 loss to the conference’s first-place team, Oklahoma. While Gusters succeeds in scoring, she isn’t a fully dominant center. She has failed to exceed seven rebounds in a single game this season, something the Wildcats could be grateful for.
The past few games provided challenges for K-State inside. BYU, Oklahoma and Texas all won or kept themselves in the game because of post play. Struggles against Texas led to redshirt freshman forward Imani Lester receiving her first playing time in weeks. In her 20 minutes, the 6-foot-4 forward only scored one point, but snagged four rebounds to slow down Texas’ interior dominance. Alongside her, forwards Eliza Maupin and Gisela Sanchez and guard Gabby Gregory will be called upon to reclaim control of the boards. If they do against Gusters, there should be little to no worries in returning to winning basketball.
Key Players
Wildcats
Forward Eliza Maupin
Guard Jaelyn Glenn
Cowgirls
Center Hannah Gusters
Guard Anna Gret Asi
