Strategic competence in problem solving refers to the ability to represent problems and formulate suitable mathematical models and choose efficient methods for solving. Adaptive reasoning in solving problem refers to the capacity to think logically about the relationships among concepts and problem situations and to justify and ultimately prove the correctness of a mathematical procedure or assertion. These two things play an important role and determine the success of students in solving mathematical problems. Mathematical anxiety often influences mathematical performance, of course it also influences the strategy and reasoning used in problem solving. This study aimed to investigate the strategic competence and adaptive reasoning of students with high mathematical anxiety and students with low mathematical anxiety. This research was a qualitative research. The subject were two prospective math teachers, with the same mathematical skill, one student with high math anxiety and one student with low math anxiety, selected from 28 students. The instruments used were mathematics ability test, mathematics anxiety questionnaires and problem-solving test. Data were collected through tests, questionnaires and task-based interviews. The results of this study showed that the subject with low math anxiety represented a problem by creating a model that was appropriate to the context in the problem by analogizing the problem in the student environment, being able to select appropriate and effective strategies and evaluating answers by checking the logic of the answers in the context of the problem. The subject gave a logical reason for the process she does. Meanwhile, the subject with high math anxiety understood the problem but had difficulty in determining the mathematical model for the problem. The strategy used was less effective because the subjects tried several models and were chosen from reasonable answers. Subjects also lack logical reasons why the process was correct and could not connect the results obtained with the problem being solved.