On Sept. 7, the Kansas State women’s basketball program signed Anastasia Tsybaeva to play for the 2017-2018 season.
Tsybaeva is a 6-foot-7-inch center from Burbank, California who will have two years of eligibility left. She is one of two current junior transfers from community colleges in California. The other transfer is Kali Jones, a 6 foot 2 forward from Murrieta, California.
During her last season on her high school team in 2015, Tsybaeva was part of the All-Pacific League Second Team, averaging 10.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.7 blocks during her senior year.
In her freshman year at East Los Angeles College, she played 30 games, starting in 15 and averaging 6 points in 6.9 minutes a game while shooting 47.8 percent field goals and 54.8 percent from the free throw line. In her 2016-2017 sophomore season, Tsybaeva started 24 of 28 games where she contributed 6 rebounds a game, while improving her playing time to 11.7 minutes a game and shot 43 percent from the field and 73 percent of free throws attempted.
The K-State women’s basketball program has gradually improved their overall record in the last three years with head coach Jeff Mittie. Mittie joined the K-State family as the newest women’s basketball head coach in 2014, replacing Deb Patterson.
Mittie spent 14 years at Texas Christian University, a conference rival for the Wildcats, leading the Horned Frogs to nine NCAA tournaments and 13 winning seasons. Mittie’s record with the TCU program was 303-175. Coming into the 2017-2018 season at K-State, Mittie has led the wildcats to a 61-38 record (.616).
This year’s roster includes five freshmen, two sophomores, three juniors and three seniors. Senior Karyla Middlebrook, a 5’7 guard from Blue Springs, Missouri, scored a career high 201 points in her junior season under coach Mittie, leading the team in free throw percentage at 71.9 percent. She also had a career highs in baskets made from the field at 38.6 percent and assists with 106 for the season.
At 6 feet 7 inches, Tsybaeva is the tallest player in the program’s history and just the third signee from the state of California.
