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Basketball
Yeah, it was a rough night in Austin for the Kansas State women’s basketball team, ending with a 66-48 loss to the No. 9 Longhorns. Ayoka Lee had 20 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Cats, but it didn’t come easy as shot went just 9-20 from the field. Serena Sundell joined Lee in double-figures, though half her points came from the free throw line, and she committed more turnovers than assists. Nobody in a K-State uniform shot well from the floor, as the Cats went 17-49 from the field (35.7%) and just 1-6 (16.7%) from behind the arc. At least they did shoot well from the free throw line, making 13 of their 17 shots from the charity stripe.
So far, 2022 has not been kind to K-State basketball teams playing in the state of Texas.
The loss drops the Wildcats to 15-5 and 5-3 in conference play, which put them at 5th in the conference standings, though just a game out of first place (the top half of the league is stacked this year).
Next up is a visit from the Horned Frogs to Bramlage on Saturday evening. Jeff Mittie has struggled against his former team at times, and the Cats have dropped six of the last eight to the other purple team. It’s a 6:30pm contest and will be broadcast on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
Baseball
The Preseason All-Big 12 Team is out (so that mean’s the preseason poll shouldn’t be far behind), and the BatCats’ Dylan Phillips earned a nod as an outfielder (though mostly for his hitting prowess). Phillips had previously been named to the 2022 Preseason All-America Third Team by Collegiate Baseball. Phillips was second at K-State in hitting and led in home runs last season — behind Zack Kokoska in hitting and just ahead of him in HR — but did not hear his named called this past summer in the MLB Draft despite Kokoska getting selected. Phillips also had time on the mound, with a 1-1 record in eight appearances and three starts.
K-State begins play in just over three weeks, taking on Arizona in their first game of the 2022 State Farm College Baseball Showdown in Arlington, TX.
Track & Field
After hosting a meet in Manhattan last weekend, the Wildcats track and field team are on the road to Lubbock for the Texas Tech Open and Multis on Friday (January 28) and Saturday (January 29). It’s going to be a smaller group, so don’t expect the team to do well on the team leaderboard, but the Cats should still make some noise with individual placers. Oh, and you can watch it, as the meet will be streamed on ESPN+ both days.