Cold Shooting Costs Kansas State Women’s Basketball in School Day Loss to San Diego State

Kansas State Women’s Basketball Drops School Day Game to San Diego State

Kansas State Women’s Basketball | Amy Kontras-Imagn Images

Kansas State’s December magic finally hit a wall on Wednesday afternoon. The team rolled through 15 straight wins in the month over the past few seasons. However, the Wildcats watched that streak disappear in front of an energetic School Day crowd at Bramlage Coliseum. What should have been a lively showcase turned into a frustrating 64-53 loss to San Diego State. They closed out the home portion of K-State’s 2025–26 non-conference schedule and dropped the Wildcats to 6-6 overall.

A Strong Start by Kansas State Overshadowed by a Sharp Decline

The afternoon wasn’t without bright moments, and Taryn Sides made sure of that. The junior guard delivered one of her strongest all-around performances of the year with 16 points, seven rebounds, and five assists.

Final pic.twitter.com/QtFsTRbaGV

— K-State Women's Basketball (@KStateWBB) December 10, 2025

It was the 26th double-figure scoring game of her career and tied her for 24th in school history with 236 career assists. Her three connections from behind the arc also marked her ninth game of the season and 40th of her career with at least two made threes.

But while Sides did everything she could to keep the Wildcats within striking distance, the Aztecs’ backcourt was unstoppable. Nat Martinez erupted for 22 points, and Naomi Panganiban powered in 20. She combined for a punch. However, K-State simply couldn’t match once the shots stopped falling.

The Scoring Drought That Changed Everything

The Wildcats opened the first quarter shooting an encouraging 50.0 percent, one of 18 quarters this season they’ve hit that mark. But once the second quarter started, the court felt like it shifted underneath them.

The Wildcats managed only eight points in the second quarter while shooting just 21.4 per cent, including a late stretch. That's where San Diego State seized momentum with a decisive 14-3 run heading into halftime with a 29-26 lead.

Things only got worse in the third. K-State shot 15.4 percent and went over six long minutes without a single field goal. By the time the quarter ended, San Diego State had stretched the lead to 48-34. Though the Wildcats fought back in the fourth and trimmed what had been an 18-point deficit to just nine at 54-45. The Aztecs immediately answered with a 6-2 surge that shut the door.

The final stat line told the entire story of the afternoon. K-State shot 33.3 per cent from the floor. They also went 6-of-18 from deep and struggled significantly at the free-throw line at 11-of-19. The 20 turnovers only added to the challenge, gifting the Aztecs too many extra possessions.

Even with the loss, Kansas State still leads the all-time series against San Diego State 2-2 and holds an 18-10 record against current Mountain West schools. K-State also maintains an impressive historical December record. They are now sitting at 252-104 and continue to shine under Jeff Mittie’s leadership. Mittie holds a 678-384 career record, including a 224-149 mark at K-State and a 12-6 record against San Diego State.

The Wildcats rolled out their familiar starting five of Gina Garcia, Brandie Harrod, Taryn Sides, Jenessa Cotton, and Nastja Claessens for the fifth time this season. Harrod anchored the team with nine rebounds, her fourth such outing of the year. Meanwhile, Heal added six boards for her 34th career game with at least five.

Kansas State now heads on the road to close non-conference play, visiting Creighton on Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

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