K-State Snaps 31-Game Losing Streak to KU

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) - Kansas State broke its 31-game losing streak to Kansas on Saturday, charging back from a 12-point second-half deficit to beat the Jayhawks 59-55.

Akeem Wright, 1-for-5 from the free throw line to that point, sealed Kansas State's win by hitting the second of two free throws with 9 seconds left. And instead of ``Rock Chalk, Jayhawk, KU,'' the only chant that rang out at Allen Fieldhouse after the game was ``K-S-U, Wildcats.''

Clent Stewart had 15 points, Cartier Martin added 14 points and Wright had a career-high 10 rebounds for the Wildcats (10-4, 1-2 Big 12 Conference), who won for the first time in the series since a 68-64 victory - also in Lawrence - on Jan. 17, 1994.

Kansas State, which scored just 18 points in the first half, got hot down the stretch and went up 50-47 on Stewart's jumper with 4:15 left in the game.

Russell Robinson's 3-pointer tied it at 50 with just under 3 minutes to go, but the Jayhawks (10-5, 1-1) were never able to regain the lead.

They got within 58-55 on Brandon Rush's free throw with 50.7 seconds left, and had two chances to tie with a 3-pointer after Kansas State's next two possessions ended in a turnover and a missed 1-and-1.

The Jayhawks elected to attack inside, hoping to draw fouls for a 3-point play - but couldn't make their shots from the field.

Kansas, which had a seven-game winning streak broken, shot just 32 percent (17-for-51) for the game.

The Wildcats appeared to be in trouble when Martin, their leading scorer, picked up his fourth foul and sat down with 13:45 left. Kansas led 40-31 after Rush hit the resulting free throws.

Mario Chalmers, who led Kansas with a career-high 20 points, hit a 3-pointer on the Jayhawks' next possession to make it 43-31. But Kansas struggled to run its offense against the Wildcats' 2-3 zone, a second-half adjustment by Kansas State coach Jim Wooldridge, and the Wildcats slowly pulled back into contention.

By the time Martin re-entered the game with 5:35 left, a 15-4 run had moved the Wildcats within 47-46. The first thing he did was rebound Dramane Diarra's miss and put it back in to give Kansas State a 48-47 lead with just under 5 minutes to go.

Chalmers had six points, two steals and an assist in a 14-0 run that gave Kansas a 22-10 lead with just under 7 minutes left in the first half.

But after Julian Wright's basket with 6:13 left before the break made it 24-13, the Jayhawks didn't score from the field again until a minute into the second half, when Chalmers flipped in a 6-footer from the baseline for a 28-21 lead.

The Jayhawks were up 26-18 at halftime, the second straight time and third this season that they have held a visiting team under 20 points in the first half.

Rush, suspended Thursday by the NCAA but reinstated a day later, had 12 points for the Jayhawks. Robinson had 11 points for Kansas.

In a statement issued Saturday, the school said the NCAA first determined that Rush, a freshman guard, had improperly received benefits from an agent after applying for the 2005 NBA draft. He later withdrew his application and signed with the Jayhawks.

Rush was reinstated after Kansas appealed his suspension. The school said the violation occurred when another player's agent assisted in arranging tryouts for Rush with professional teams. The NCAA found that Rush did not know about the agent's actions.

Next Event

Team Stats

Clent Stewart

Cartier Martin

Dramane Diarra

David Hoskins

Kansas State University Athletics