Game Preview // K-State Hosts Emporia State in Final Exhibition Friday

EXHIBITION #2
KANSAS STATE (0-0) vs. EMPORIA STATE (0-0)
Sunday, October 29, 2017 >> 8:10 p.m. CT >> Bramlage Coliseum (12,528) >> Manhattan, Kan.

TELEVISION
FOX Sports Kansas City // K-StateHD.TV [free] // ESPN3

Brian Smoller (play-by-play)
Schyler Thomas (analyst)

Channel Listing: DirecTV 671-5 [HD] / Dish 452 or 412-40 / AT&T U-Verse 1750 [HD]

RADIO
K-State Sports Network

Wade Gerstner (play-by-play)
Bob Chipman (analyst)

Listen Online: TuneIn.com [free] // www.kstatesports.com/watch [free]
Satellite Radio: None

LIVE STATS
www.kstatesports.com
kstate.statbroadcast.com [media only]

TICKETS
www.kstatesports.com/tickets
(800) 221.CATS [2287]

Single Game       $10 (bench & GA)/$20 (chairback)
Wildcat 4 Pack   $30 (4 GA tickets)
Group (12+)        $5

COACHES
Kansas State: Bruce Weber (Wis.-Milwaukee '78)
Overall: 413-223/20th season
At K-State: 100-68/6th season
vs. Emporia State: 2-0

Emporia State: Shaun Vandiver (Colorado '02)
Overall: 78-93/7th season
At Emporia State: Same
vs. Kansas State: 0-2

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
Kansas State (0-0)
G: #3 Kamau Stokes
G: #5 Barry Brown, Jr.
G: #20 Xavier Sneed
F: #32 Dean Wade
F: #14 Makol Mawien

Emporia State (0-0)
G: #0 Brian Morton
G: #5 Brandon Hall
G: #11 Grant Shell
F: #3 Hassan Thomas
F: #34 Garin Vandiver

SERIES HISTORY
Overall: K-State leads 3-0 [exhibition]
In Manhattan: K-State leads 3-0 [exhibition]
Last Meeting: W, 80-42 [10/30/2015 in Manhattan]
Weber vs. Vandiver: Weber leads 2-0

OPENING TIP

Kansas State (0-0) concludes its brief exhibition season at 8 p.m., on Friday, as the Wildcats play host to Division II foe Emporia State (0-0) at Bramlage Coliseum. The contest will be part of a basketball doubleheader, as the women's team will play host to Emporia State at 5:30 p.m., with the men's game to follow.
K-State is 2-0 so far in exhibition play, following up its 78-62 win over Missouri State in a hurricane-relief fundraiser on Oct. 21 with a 79-56 victory over Fort Hays State on Oct. 29. The Wildcats enjoyed a balanced scoring effort with four players in double figures led by a game-high 18 points from sophomore Xavier Sneed. The team connected on 53.4 percent (31-of-58) from the field, including better than 50 percent in both halves, and held the Tigers to just 36 percent shooting.
Through two exhibition games, the Wildcats are averaging 78.5 points on 50.4 percent shooting, including 39.4 percent from 3-point range, while holding the two opponents to 59.0 points on 34.9 percent shooting. Juniors Barry Brown, Jr., and Kamau Stokes pace five players in double figures at 13.0 points per game, while redshirt freshman Cartier Diarra (12.5 ppg.), sophomore Xavier Sneed (12.0 ppg.) and junior Dean?Wade (10.5 ppg.) are also averaging double digits.
K-State is 65-20 (.765) all-time in exhibition play dating to 1964, including 50-9 (.847) at home. The Wildcats have a 44-9 (.830) record in exhibition play at Bramlage Coliseum, including 22 consecutive wins dating back to 2004.
The Wildcats have three wins over the Hornets during their current 22-game win streak, including 79-75 in 2005, 81-51 in 2012 and 80-42 in 2015.
K-State won its last exhibition with Emporia State, 80-42, on Oct. 30, 2015, as the Wildcats connected on 50.8 percent from the field, including 61.5 percent in the first half, while holding the Hornets to just 25 percent shooting. Wesley Iwundu scored a game-high 17 points to lead three players in double figures. Current juniors Kamau Stokes and Dean Wade each earned starts in that game.
K-State has primarily played the Kansas members of the MIAA (Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association) since switching to Division?II teams in exhibition play in 2004, which includes six meetings with?Washburn and now four each with Emporia State, Fort Hays State and Pittsburg State.
The last home setback in exhibition play came to the EA Sports All-Stars, 79-67, on Nov. 6, 2003. Overall, the last loss in an exhibition came during the team's tour of Italy and Switzerland last summer - an 85-74 setback to the Kosovo National Team on August 16, 2016. The Wildcats went 3-2 on the tour.
K-State is 10-0 under Bruce Weber in exhibition play at home with wins over Washburn (81-61) and Emporia State (81-51) in 2012, Pittsburg State (75-54) in 2013, Washburn (68-56) in 2014, ESU and Fort Hays State (70-52) in 2015 and Pittsburg State (85-72) and Washburn (73-58) last season.

LAST TIME OUT

A balanced scoring effort led by sophomore guard Xavier Sneed's 18 points helped K-State knock off Fort Hays?State, 79-56, on Oct. 29 in Bramlage Coliseum. It was the first previously-scheduled exhibition game after the team defeated Missouri State, 78-62, on Oct. 21 in a special exhibition for hurricane relief.
Sneed was one of four Wildcats in double figures in the win over the Tigers, as he connected on 7-of-13 field goals, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range, for his 18 points to go with game-tying 7 rebounds, 2 steals and one block in 22 minutes of action. Other players in double figures included juniors Dean Wade (15 points) and Barry Brown, Jr. (14) and redshirt freshman Cartier Diarra (11).
K-State connected on 53.4 percent (31-of-58) from the field in the game, including better than 50 percent in both halves, while holding Fort Hays State to 36 percent shooting (18-of-50), including 32 percent (8-of-25) after halftime. The Wildcats held the advantage in points in the paint (38-12), points off turnovers (27-14), second-chance points (15-5) and fast-break points (15-0).
All 13 available Wildcats saw action in the contest with 10 playing double digit minutes. Eleven of the 13 players scored with all 11 registering at least one made field goal. Six newcomers saw action, including a start by sophomore community college transfer Makol Mawien, who posted 6 points (on 3-of-5 field goals) and 2 rebounds in 17 minutes. Diarra started in place of junior Kamau Stokes, who did not play due to having surgery on his wisdom tooth. Wade has now started all 6 career home exhibition games dating back to the 2015-16 season.
Diarra, who scored in double figures for the second straight game after posting a team-high 14 points vs. Missouri State (10/21), was solid in his first start of any sort in his K-State career, posting 11 points on 3-of-4 shooting with a game-high 6 assists (on zero turnovers) and 5 rebounds in 23 minutes. Brown, who totaled 14 points on 5-of-9 field goals, added a game-high 7 rebounds, 5 assists and a game-best 3 steals in 29 minutes.
In addition to Mawien's start, five other newcomers saw action for second straight game, including Mike McGuirl (2 points/2 assists/3 steals), Mawdo Sallah (1 point/3 rebounds), Nigel Shadd (2 points/1 rebound), Levi Stockard III (4 points) and Amaad Wainright (4 points/4 rebounds).

EXHIBITION TO BENEFIT HURRICANE RELIEF

K-State received a jump-start to the 2017-18 season on Oct. 21, as the WIldcats received a special waiver to play Missouri State in an exhibition to benefit the victims of the recent hurricanes. The department was able to raise just over $15,000 from the game to benefit the American Red Cross.
The Wildcats used a balanced scoring effort to knock off the Bears, 78-62, as redshirt freshman Cartier Diarra registered a team-high 14 points in just 18 minutes off the bench, while juniors Kamau Stokes (13) and Barry Brown, Jr. (12)?also posted double figures. Overall, the team connected on 47.4 percent (27-of-57) of their field goals, including 53.8 percent (14-of-26) in the first half, while holding MSU to 33.9 percent shooting.

NOTES ON THE HORNETS

Emporia State returns six lettermen, including three starters (junior Brandon Hall, senior Brian Morton and senior Garin Vandiver), from a team that posted a 13-16 overall record, including a tie for ninth place in the MIAA with a 9-10 mark, in 2016-17. The team also receive a boost with six transfer, including three Division I transfers (junior guard Malik Hluchoweckyj of Bowling Green, junior forward Hassan Thomas of Illinois-Chicago and sophomore guard Grant Shell of Fresno State). Thomas and Shell are projected starters, along with Hall, Morton and Vandiver.
The Hornets averaged 72.3 points per game on 43.5 percent shooting, including 37.5 percent from 3-point range, with 32.5 rebounds, 12.5 assists, 6.1 steals and 2.4 blocks per game, while allowing opponents to average 74.2 points on 49.3 percent shooting, including 38.2 percent from long range.
Junior guard Brandon Hall led the Hornets in scoring (13.7 ppg.), assists (4.0 apg.), steals (1.1 spg.) and minutes (33.2 mpg.) in 2016-17, connecting on 40.2 percent from the field. Senior forward Garin Vandiver, the son of head coach Shaun Vandiver, paced the squad in rebounding at 5.0 boards per game a year ago to go with 8.3 points per game on 45.3 percent shooting in 29 games played with 14 starts. Senior guard Brian Morton, who started in 21 games, averaged 8.0 points on 38.8 percent shooting with 3.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.
Head coach Shaun Vandiver enters his seventh season with a 78-93 (.456) overall record at Emporia State.

LAST MEETING WITH THE HORNETS

K-State won its last exhibition meeting with Emporia State, 80-42, on Oct. 30, 2015, as the Wildcats connected on 50.8 percent (30-of-59) from the field, including 61.5 percent (16-of-26) in the first half, while holding the Hornets to just 25 percent shooting (13-of-52).
The Wildcats dominated the stat sheet, posting a 36-18 advantage in the paint, a 22-9 margin in points off the turnovers and 21-6 edge in fast-break points. Four players scored in double figures led by Wesley Iwundu's 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting, while Justin Edwards (13), Stephen Hurt (11) and Austin Budke (10) also added double digits. In all, 11 players scored in the contest, including 10 with at least one field goal.
In all, six players are returning that played in the 2015 exhibition, including Wildcats Barry Brown, Jr., Pierson McAtee, Mason Schoen, Kamau Stokes and Dean Wade. Both Stokes and Wade earned starts as true freshmen in that exhibition with Wade posting 6 points, 4 rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal in 21 minutes, while Stokes added 5 points, 3 assists, 2 rebounds and 2 steals in 24 minutes.
Only one Hornet - junior Brandon Hall - remains from that exhibition, as he posted 2 points and 2 rebounds in 21 minutes off the bench.

MORE ABOUT K-STATE

The Wildcats return eight lettermen, including three starters (Barry Brown, Kamau Stokes and Dean Wade) from a team that posted a 21-14 overall record (8-10 in Big 12 play) and advanced to the NCAA?Tournament for the third time in five seasons. Brown, Stokes and Wade all started all 35 games as sophomores, while the team also returns key contributors in sophomores Xavier Sneed and Brian Patrick.
K-State is one of the youngest teams in the country with just one senior (walk-on Mason Schoen) to go with four sophomores, two redshirt freshmen and three true freshmen). The team is one of 11 nationally with nine underclassmen and one senior or less, joining Kentucky (12/0), Auburn (12/1), Wofford (10/1), Toledo (10/1), Tennessee (10/1), Holy Cross (9/0), Bowling Green (9/0), Louisiana Tech (9/1), Montana (9/1) and Oklahoma (9/1).
The Wildcats return four of their top-6 scorers from last season (Brown [11.7 ppg.], Stokes [11.7 ppg.], Wade [9.3 ppg.] and Sneed [7.1 ppg.]), along with almost 60 percent of their assist, steal and minute totals. Stokes led the team in minutes (1,165), 3-point field goals made (64) and assists (145), while Brown set the school single-season record with 82 steals, which ranked seventh nationally and second in the Big 12.
The squad will also be boosted by return of redshirt freshmen Cartier Diarra and James Love III, who both missed the 2016-17 season due to injuries. The team welcome seven new players in 2017-18, including a graduate transfer (Mawdo Sallah), two community college players (Makol Mawien and Amaad Wainright) and three true freshmen (Mike McGuirl, Levi Stockard III and Nigel Shadd). Sallah, who has two years to play, played three seasons at Mount St. Mary's, where he helped the Mountaineers to the Northeast Conference titles and the NCAA?Tournament in 2016-17.

UP NEXT: AMERICAN
K-State officially opens the 2017-18 season on Friday, Nov. 10, as the Wildcats play host to American in a women's and men's basketball doubleheader at 8 p.m. The women's team takes on Stephen F. Austin at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are available starting at $10, while fans can take advantage of the Wildcat 4 Pack for just $30. The men's contest will be televised on FOX Sports Kansas City (state of Kansas, Kansas City area), K-StateHD.TV (free) and ESPN3 (outside of state of Kansas).

Game Preview // K-State Hosts Emporia State in Final Exhibition Friday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Barry Brown, Jr.

Austin Budke

Cartier Diarra

Justin Edwards

Stephen Hurt

Wesley Iwundu

James Love III

Makol Mawien

Pierson McAtee

Mike McGuirl

Brian Patrick

Mawdo Sallah

Mason Schoen

Nigel Shadd

Xavier Sneed

Levi Stockard III

Kamau Stokes

Dean Wade

Amaad Wainright

Kansas State University Athletics

Game Preview // K-State Hosts Emporia State in Final Exhibition Friday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Barry Brown, Jr.

Austin Budke

Cartier Diarra

Justin Edwards

Stephen Hurt

Wesley Iwundu

James Love III

Makol Mawien

Pierson McAtee

Mike McGuirl

Brian Patrick

Mawdo Sallah

Mason Schoen

Nigel Shadd

Xavier Sneed

Levi Stockard III

Kamau Stokes

Dean Wade

Amaad Wainright

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