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Women's Basketball - Coach Deb Patterson
Over the past decade, Patterson has captured the imagination of women's basketball fans across the nation by catapulting the Wildcat program into the national spotlight as an annual top-seeded postseason tournament contender, a consistent top-25 nationally ranked program in both major polls and one of the top-25 national leaders in NCAA Division I women's basketball attendance.
Under Patterson's direction during the 2008-09 season, K-State tallied a 25-8 record and the 11th NCAA Tournament appearance in school history and the eighth straight postseason trip. The final mark of 25-8 included the best unbeaten start in school history, as the Wildcats opened the season 14-0. The Wildcats' also rose to the highest rankings since the 2003-04 season in both the Associated Press (No. 14, Jan. 26) and ESPN/USA Today Coaches' polls (No. 12, Jan. 26).
Kansas State earned a No. 5 seed in the Raleigh Regional and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the sixth consecutive NCAA appearance by defeating No. 12 Drexel.
During the 2008-09 season, Patterson surpassed the 250-win plateau with a 58-43 win over Indiana State on Dec. 20, 2008.
Patterson continued to mentor solid student-athletes, as she advised AP All-America honorable mention selection, Lowe's Senior All-American first team choice and CoSIDA/ESPN the Magazine Academic All-America third team honoree, Shalee Lehning. Eight of Patterson's charges earned Academic All-Big 12 first team honors for the second straight season. This total led the Big 12 and set a school record for the second straight season.
The 2007-08 season was a testament to the determination and hard work Patterson instills in her team, as the Wildcats captured the second Big 12 regular season title in school history and the first outright crown in the program's history with a 13-3 league mark. With the title, the Wildcats became the first BCS school in the nation and the first Big 12 basketball program, male or female, to go from worst to first in the span of one season.
K-State earned its 10th NCAA Tournament appearance as the No. 5 seed in the New Orleans Regional. The Wildcats advanced to the second round of the tournament by defeating No. 12 Chattanooga. During the contest, K-State set an NCAA Tournament record by connecting on all 21 of its free throw attempts.
For her efforts during the 2007-08 season, Patterson was recognized by her fellow coaches and the media alike with numerous postseason awards including: the Russell Athletic/WBCA Region V Coach of the Year, Big 12 Coach of the Year, Kansas City Star Big 12 Coach of the Year, Dallas Morning News Big 12 Coach of the Year and the Waco Tribune Big 12 Coach of the Year. She was also a finalist for the WBCA National Coach of the Year honor and finished third in the voting for the Associated Press National Coach of the Year Award.
Patterson's Trophy Case
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Deb
Patterson, the all-time winningest coach in school history, enters her
14th season and will look to continue to mold Kansas State women's
basketball into one of the most successful programs in the nation.| Heartland Catbackers Club - Hays, Kansas. |