Kansas State University women’s basketball team achieved a significant comeback victory against Texas Tech in the second round of the 2026 Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Tournament. The game, held at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, saw K-State overcome a 14-point deficit with less than eight minutes remaining to win 58-51.
The Wildcats’ rally was marked by a 21-0 run, holding Texas Tech scoreless during that stretch. This marks the third-largest comeback in Big 12 Tournament history and is the largest since Oklahoma State’s recovery from a 15-point gap in March 2021. It is also notable as K-State became the first 12-seed to defeat a fifth seed since Missouri upset Oklahoma in 2008.
K-State (17-16) had four players scoring in double digits. Junior forward Nastja Claessens led with 14 points, eight rebounds, four steals, and two blocks. Junior guard Taryn Sides contributed 13 points along with six rebounds and two steals. Freshman guard Aniya Foy added 12 points off the bench, while senior guard Tess Heal scored ten points—eight of which came during the decisive fourth quarter.
Texas Tech (25-7) was led by Snudda Collins, who scored fourteen points off the bench.
Describing how events unfolded: after Texas Tech built their lead to fourteen points with just under eight minutes left, K-State called a timeout and began their run with a layup from Heal on their next possession. Foy followed up with an old-fashioned three-point play before Sides’ steal set up another basket for Claessens. The Wildcats continued chipping away at the margin through free throws and defensive stops.
Claessens tied the game at fifty-one after making two free throws following an offensive rebound with just over three minutes remaining. A subsequent free throw gave K-State its first lead of the contest at 52-51. With less than a minute left, Heal converted another layup to extend the lead to three points. “Heal and Sides would combine to go 4-of-4 from the foul line in the last 35 seconds to seal the comeback win.”
Defensively, K-State limited Texas Tech to only four fourth-quarter points on twelve percent shooting—the lowest allowed by K-State this season in any fourth quarter.
K-State now leads its all-time series against Texas Tech thirty-three wins to seventeen and has won twenty out of their last twenty-five meetings. Head coach Jeff Mittie holds a record of twenty-three wins and eight losses against Texas Tech during his career.
Coach Mittie’s overall career record stands at six hundred eighty-nine wins and three hundred ninety-four losses (.636), including two hundred thirty-five wins for Kansas State (.596). Under his leadership, K-State has gone twenty-six wins and twenty-eight losses in Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship games.
With this victory, several individual milestones were reached:
– Taryn Sides became only the ninth player in program history with more than four hundred points, one hundred rebounds, and one hundred assists.
– Claessens matched her career high with four steals.
– Tess Heal moved her collegiate point total to one thousand seven hundred ninety-six.
– Aniya Foy reached double figures for just her second time this season.
K-State will advance to face fourth-seeded Oklahoma State on Friday in Kansas City for a spot in the tournament semifinals. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ as well as streamed online via kstatesports.com and local radio affiliates Sunny 102.5 and 1350 KMAN.
For further information about Kansas State women’s basketball or updates throughout postseason play, fans can visit www.kstatesports.com or follow official team social media channels.
