Kansas State University Athletics
Kansas State University
9-3, 0-1Big12
Iowa State
11-3, 1-0Big12
Wildcats edged at Iowa State, 72-70
Jan 07, 2006 | Men's Basketball
AMES, Iowa - Kansas State roared back from a 13-point second-half deficit but couldn't quite get over the hump in the final minute as Iowa State held on for a 72-70 victory over the Wildcats in the Big 12 Conference opener for both teams Saturday night at Hilton Coliseum.
David Hoskins scored a career-high 25 points and Cartier Martin added 21, including a 3-pointer that pulled Kansas State (9-3, 0-1) within a point of the Cyclones at 70-69 with just 49.5 seconds to play.
But two critical Wildcat turnovers with a chance to take the lead inside the final 17 seconds helped the Cyclones escape.
Will Blaylock scored 24 points to lead Iowa State (11-3, 1-0) and Curtis Stinson added 17, including a pair of free throws with 4.7 seconds to play that proved to be the difference.
Down 72-69 after Stinson's free throws, Hoskins took the ball the length of the court and was fouled with 2.3 seconds to go. After making the first to get the Wildcats within two, the sophomore purposely missed the second. But K-State could not secure the rebound in a scramble for the ball as time expired.
Despite the brilliant comeback bid, turnovers haunted the Wildcats all night long. K-State finished the game with a season-high 23 miscues that overshadowed a brilliant shooting effort that saw the Wildcats connect on a season-best 57 percent of their field goals (27 of 47).
Kansas State also controlled the glass, outrebounding the Cyclones 39-23 behind a game-high effort of nine by Martin.
The Wildcats trailed by four early in the first half then rallied behind back-to-back buckets by Martin and Dramane Diarra and a pair of free throws by Clent Stewart to forge a 20-18 lead with just under seven minutes to go in the period.
But Iowa State had an answer and reeled off 17 of the game's next 21 points before taking a 39-27 edge into the locker room at the break.
K-State whittled the Cyclone's lead to six at 52-46 midway through the second half, but once again Iowa State turned back the Wildcats, using a 12-5 spurt to take its biggest lead of the game at 64-51 with just over six minutes remaining.
The Wildcats, though, refused to fold. A 3-pointer by Martin with 3:10 to go got Kansas State back within five at 68-62. The junior then hit a free throw and Hoskins converted a 3-point play to make it 68-66 with 1:39 remaining on the clock.
Two free throws by Blaylock with 1:19 to play gave the Cyclones some breathing room at 70-66, but Martin struck again from behind the arc to pull the Cats within a point and set up the final frantic finish.
Kansas State returns to action on Wednesday, Jan. 11th, at 7 p.m. when the Wildcats host Nebraska at Bramlage Coliseum.
