Game Preview // K-State Opens Big 12 Play at Iowa State Friday

GAME #13
KANSAS STATE (10-2) at IOWA STATE (9-2)
Friday, December 29, 2017 >> 8:05 p.m. CT >> Hilton Coliseum (14,384) >> Ames, Iowa

TELEVISION
ESPNU // ESPN3

Chuckie Kempf (play-by-play)
Lance Blanks (analyst)
Steve Kurtenbach (producer)

RADIO
K-State Sports Network

Wyatt Thompson (play-by-play)
Stan Weber (analyst)

Listen Online: TuneIn.com [free] // www.kstatesports.com/watch [free]
Satellite Radio: Sirius 135 // XM 383 // Internet 965 [ISU broadcast]

LIVE STATS
www.cyclones.com
cyclonesstats.com [media only]

TICKETS
www.cyclones.com
(888) 478.2925

Single Game $25 (various locations)

COACHES
Kansas State: Bruce Weber (Wis.-Milwaukee '78)
Overall: 423-225/20^th season
At K-State: 110-70/6^th season
vs. Iowa State: 3-8 (0-5 on road)

Iowa State: Steve Prohm (Alabama '97)
Career Record: 160-54/7^th Year
Record at ISU: 56-25/3^rd Year
vs. Kansas State: 4-0 (2-0 at home)

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
Kansas State (10-2)
G: #3 Kamau Stokes
G: #5 Barry Brown, Jr.
G: #20 Xavier Sneed
F: #32 Dean Wade
F: #14 Makol Mawien

Iowa State (9-2)
G: #1 Nick Weiler-Babb
G: #4 Donovan Jackson
G: #5 Lindell Wigginton
F: #33 Solomon Young
F: #55 Jeff Beverly

SERIES HISTORY
Overall: K-State leads 137-87
In Ames: Tied 50-50
In Manhattan: K-State leads 80-27
Big 12 era: Iowa State leads 24-20
Active Streak: Iowa State, 4
Weber vs. Prohm: Prohm leads 4-0

OPENING TIP

Kansas State (10-2) opens Big 12 Conference play on Friday night, as the Wildcats travel to Ames, Iowa to take on a surging Iowa State team (9-2) at Hilton?Coliseum. The Cyclones have won nine consecutive games since opening the season with back-to-back losses for the first time since 1975-76. The longtime conference foes will meet for the 99th consecutive season, as the two schools have met every year since 1918, and for the 225th time in their respective histories. It will mark just the 14th time the schools have met in a conference opener, including the first time since 2006.
Friday's game will be the earliest conference opener in school history, surpassing the distinction for the fifth consecutive season, and the earliest meeting with Iowa State since the 1978 Big Eight Holiday Tournament. The teams met 15 times in the Holiday Tournament held in Kansas City between 1948 and 1978 with the Cyclones posting an 8-7 mark. The Wildcats will play a?Big 12 game in December for the second straight season and the earliest since a Dec. 30, 2016 matchup with Texas.
K-State is 51-53 all-time in conference openers, including a 16-33 mark on the road, dating back to 1917, which spans five leagues (Missouri Valley, Big Six, Big Seven, Big Eight and now the Big 12). The school is 8-13 in league openers in the Big 12 era with three wins (all at home) in five such openers under head coach Bruce Weber. The team has lost four straight Big 12 openers on the road (2010, 2011, 2012 and 2015) and has just two wins in 12 all-time Big 12 road openers (Texas A&M/2001 and Oklahoma/2008) with the last such win coming 10 years ago at Oklahoma.
Although K-State has historically dominated the series, owning a 137-87 edge since the first meeting in 1909, Iowa State has proved to be the better team of late, winning seven of the last 10 matchups, including a current four-game overall winning streak and a six-game win streak at Hilton Coliseum. The Wildcats' last win against the Cyclones came in a last-second 70-69 victory at home on Feb. 28, 2015, while the last win in Ames also came in last-second fashion, 86-85, on Feb. 5, 2011.
K-State enters Big 12 play with double-digit non-conference wins (10) for the 11th time in the past 12 seasons, including the fifth time in six seasons under head coach Bruce Weber. Among the Wildcats' 10 victories are three away from the friendly confines of Bramlage Coliseum, which includes a neutral site win over George Washington (67-59) and true road wins at Vanderbilt (84-79) and Washington State (68-65). The two true road wins tie Oklahoma for the most in the Big 12.
The starting five of juniors Barry Brown, Jr. (14.4 ppg.), Kamau Stokes (14.2 ppg.) and Dean?Wade (13.2 ppg.) and sophomores Xavier Sneed (11.6 ppg.) and Makol Mawien (7.0 ppg.) are responsible for nearly 80 percent of the team' scoring (724 of 921 points) and are collectively averaging 60.3 points on 49.7 percent shooting, including 35.1 percent from 3-point range. Starters own 37 of the team's 40 double-digit scoring games.
K-State has been solid in taking care of the basketball this season, ranking among the national leaders in assist turnover ratio (1.59/8th), turnovers per game (10.4/10th), fewest turnovers (125/11th) and turnover margin (4.8/19th). Since turning over the ball a season-high 17 in the opener against American (11/10), the Wildcats have averaged just 9.8 turnovers in the last 11 games, including seven games of 10 turnovers or less.

NOTES ON IOWA STATE

Iowa State enters Friday's contest with a 9-2 record after running its winning streak to nine games with a 55-49 win over Maryland-Eastern Shore in its last outing on Dec. 20. The Cyclones opened the year with consecutive losses to Missouri (59-74) on the road and to Milwaukee (56-74) at home, but have rebounded to post a tie for the sixth-longest winning streak in school history. The nine-game winning streak has included wins against Appalachian State (104-98), Tulsa (80-78) and Boise State (75-64) to claim the Puerto Rico Tip-Off at Myrtle Beach, along with victories over Iowa (84-78) and Northern Iowa (76-65).
The Cyclones are averaging over 75 points per game on 44.8 percent shooting, including 36.4 percent from 3-point range, with 38.2 rebounds, 13.6 assists, 5.5 steals and 3.7 blocks per game, while allowing opponents to average 69.4 points on 41.9 percent shooting, including 34.2 percent from long range. They are averaging 8.3 3-point field goals per game, which ranks fifth nationally, have three players with 14 or more 3-point field goals. The team is shooting 73.3 percent from the line.
Senior Donovan Jackson (16.2 ppg.) and freshman Lindell Wigginton (15.5 ppg.) pack quite the 1-2 punch for the Cyclones, as the duo each rank among the Big 12's Top 10 in scoring and combine for 58 3-pointers. Fellow guard Nick Weiler-Babb averages 12.5 points on 48.9 percent shooting to go with team-best averages of 7.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game. Freshman Cameron Lard (10.0 ppg.) also averages double figures, while bigs Solomon Young (6.0 ppg.) and Jeff Beverly (5.6 ppg.) average better than 5.5 points per game.
Iowa State is led by third-year head coach Steve Prohm, who has a 56-25 record in his tenure. Overall, he has a 160-54 mark in his seventh season as a head coach, which includes a stint at Murray State (2011-15). He has advanced to the NCAA?Tournament three times, including twice at ISU.

SERIES HISTORY

This will be 225th meeting between Kansas State and Iowa State on the hardwood with the Wildcats holding a 137-87 advantage in a series that dates all the way to 1909. The 137 wins are the most against one opponent in school history, while the 224 meetings are the third-most, trailing only Kansas (286) and Missouri (236).
The Cyclones hold a 24-20 lead since the inception of the Big 12 in 1997, including wins in seven of the last 10 meetings. ISU's current four-game winning streak is the longest since also winning four in a row from 2000-01, while the current six-game winning streak at Hilton Coliseum is the longest since winning seven straight at home from 2000-06.
The Wildcats' last overall win against the Cyclones came at home on Feb. 28, 2015, as Wesley Iwundu stole the inbounds pass and dunked in the waning seconds for a 70-69 victory, while the last win at Hilton Coliseum came on last-second layup by Jacob Pullen, 86-85, on Feb. 5, 2011.
Head coach Bruce Weber is 3-8 all-time against Iowa State, including a 0-5 mark at Hilton Coliseum.

LAST MEETING: IOWA STATE 87, K-STATE 79 [FEB. 15, 2007 IN MANHATTAN)

K-State attempted to overcome a double-digit deficit for the second consecutive meeting with Iowa State, but it fell short in the second half by a score of 87-79 in the teams' last meeting on Feb. 15, 2017. The Wildcats, which nearly overcame a 20-point deficit in a 70-65 defeat at Hilton Coliseum on Jan. 24, were down by as many as 19 points in the first half before closing to within 70-64 with 4:09 to play on a layup by Barry Brown.
Brown, who scored a game-high 21 points, had an opportunity to cut it to one possession with 3:40 remaining but his 3-pointer was off the mark and the veteran Cyclones responded to put the game back out of reach with a 3-pointer from senior Matt Thomas from the corner with 3:14 to play. The Wildcats could get no closer than six points the rest of the way in dropping their fourth straight game to the Cyclones.
Iowa State, which connected on 60.7 percent (17-of-28) in jumping out to its big first-half lead, finished at 51.8 percent (29-of-56) from the field, including 46.7 percent (7-of-15) from 3-point range. The Cyclones were also excellent from the free throw line, knocking down 84.6 percent (22-of-26) of its attempts. K-State finished at 45.5 percent (30-of-66) from the field, including scoring a season-high 53 points in the second half on 58.1 percent (18-of-31) shooting. The Wildcats tallied 42 points in the paint, while they took advantage of 13 Cyclones turnovers to score 17 points.
Brown was among four players to score in double figures, as Wesley Iwundu earned his eighth career double-double with 16 points and a career-best 13 rebounds, while Dean Wade and Kamau Stokes added 15 and 13 points, respectively. Solomon Young led the Cyclones with 18 points.

HISTORY IN CONFERENCE OPENERS

K-State has a 51-53 all-time record in conference openers, which includes a 16-33 mark on the road, that dates back to 1917 and spans five different conferences (Missouri Valley, Big Six, Big Seven, Big Eight and now the Big 12).
K-State is 8-13 in conference openers in the Big 12 era, including a 2-10 mark in openers played on the road. The Wildcats have lost four consecutive Big 12 openers on the road (2010, 2011, 2012 and 2015), while their two all-time wins in Big 12 road openers (in 12 attempts) came in a 53-48 victory at Texas A&M on Jan. 6, 2001 and an 84-82 victory at Oklahoma on Jan. 12, 2008.
This will be the 14th meeting between?K-State and Iowa State in a conference opener (1918, 1929, 1938, 1939, 1944, 1956, 1959, 1969, 1972, 1982, 1986, 1990 and 2006) with the Wildcats owning a 7-6 edge, including a 3-4 mark in Ames. The last such meeting came on Jan. 7, 2006, as Iowa State held on in the last minute for a 72-70 victory as K-State could not quite complete the comeback from a 12-point halftime deficit. The Wildcats' last win in a conference opener against the Cyclones was 1990, while the last win in a season opener in Ames came in 1969.

LAST TIME OUT: K-STATE 68, WASHINGTON STATE 65

K-State wrapped up the 2017 non-conference season with a come-from-behind 68-65 win over Washington State on Dec. 20 at Spokane Arena in Spokane,?Wash. Up by as many as 17 in the first half, then down by eight with 7:19 to play, the Wildcats ended the game on a 10-2 run, including six straight by junior Barry Brown, Jr., who collected a team-high 23 points for his team-leading third 20-point game of the season.
Brown was joined in double figures by sophomore Makol Mawien, who posted his best game as a Wildcat with a season-high 15 points on 6-of-10 field goals to go with a team-high 9 rebounds. Juniors Kamau Stokes and Dean Wade each added 9 points, while Stokes dished out 7 assists.

HISTORY OF STRONG STARTS

K-State is looking to continue a history of strong starts to a season on Friday, as the Wildcats have jumped out to a 10-2 record. The 10-2 mark ties for the second-best start under head coach Bruce Weber and ties the 2004-05, 2012-13 and 2015-16 squads for the fourth-best start in the last 15 seasons.
K-State's best start after 13 games has been a 12-1 mark, which has been done twice, including the 2009-10 and 2016-17 seasons.
The Wildcats have started 2-0 (2014-15), 4-0 (2015-16), 5-0 (2016-17) and 4-0 (2017-18) in each of the last four seasons since dropping their opener to Northern Colorado in 2013. The 5-0 start last season was the best since the 2012-13 season. The squad has started 5-0 five times in the last 15 seasons, including 2004-05 (8-0), 2008-09 (5-0), 2011-12 (5-0), 2012-13 (5-0) and 2016-17 (5-0).
The best start in the last 15 seasons came in 2016-17 when K-State won each of its first five games en route to a 12-1 start (which included a 7-game winning streak). The best-ever start to a season came in 1918-19 when the squad opened 17-0 before losing their last two games to finish 17-2 and win the Missouri Valley Conference title under head coach Zora Clevenger for the second time in three seasons.
Other impressive starts to a season include 7-0 in 1915-16, 10-0 in 1947-48, 9-0 in 1957-58, 7-0 in 1961-62, 8-0 in 1979-80 and 9-0 in 1997-98.

DEFENSIVE PROWESS

K-State has been solid on the defensive end to start the season, allowing 62.2 points while holding its opposition to 38.5 percent shooting (242-of-629), including 33.1 percent (92-of-278) from 3-point range. The team ranks among the Top 30 in both scoring defense (18th) and field goal percentage defense (26th), while they are third in the Big 12 in scoring defense, field goal percentage defense, turnover margin (+4.8) and steals (8.0) and sixth in 3-point field goal percentage defense.
In all, the Wildcats rank among the Top 50 in six defensive categories, including 18th in scoring defense, 19th in turnover margin and 26th in field goal percentage defense. The team is 47th in steals per game with 8.0 average.
Only four times in the modern era (since 1953-54) has a K-State team allowed 60 points or less six times to the first 12 opponents, as the 2017-18 squad joins the 1981-82, 1984-85 and 2005-06 teams to accomplish the feat. If you remove the Arizona State (11/26), Vanderbilt (12/3) and SE?Missouri (12/16) games, the Wildcats are allowing just 56.1 points on 35.4 percent shooting, including 29.5 percent from 3-point range, in their other nine games.
The Wildcats have held six of the 12 opponents to 45, 51, 49, 58, 59 and 49 points, respectively, as they have now held 64 opponents to 60 points or less under head coach Bruce Weber's direction with the squad boasting a 57-7 (.891) record in those contests. The squad has held 17 opponents to 50 points or less under Weber (16-1 record), which includes a Weber era-best 26 points allowed to Alabama-Huntsville on Nov. 13, 2012.
K-State has held all but one opponent (Vanderbilt) to below its scoring average and has held its opponents to an average of 12.2 points below its season scoring average. The Wildcats held UMKC (11/14)?to 32.5 points under its scoring average, while UC?Irvine (11/17) and USC?Upstate (12/5) were held to 27 and 26 points, respectively, below its average. Only five opponents (Arizona State, George Washington, Vanderbilt, Tulsa and SE?Missouri State) have shot better than 40 percent from the field with the Colonials and Golden Hurricane barely eclipsing the mark at 40.7 and 40.4 percent.
K-State has put up some impressive defensive numbers under Weber, leading the Big 12 in scoring defense twice in the past five seasons (60.4 ppg., in 2012-13 and 65.4 ppg., in 2013-14). Since his arrival in 2012-13, the Wildcats are allowing opponents just 64.2 points per game (11,547 points) on 42.4 percent shooting (3988-9405), including 31.8 percent (1032-3249) from 3-point range.
Under Weber's direction, K-State has a 93-26 (.782) record when holding an opponent to 69 points or less since 2012-13 and a 17-44 (.279) mark when allowing an opponent to score 70 or more points.

OFFENSE OFF TO A GOOD START

K-State is averaging 76.8 points on 48.3 percent shooting, including 34.8 percent from 3-point range, to go with a solid 73.8 percent clip from the free throw line through 12 games. The Wildcats have scored 80 or more points six times and have eclipsed the 75-point barrier six times in the last nine games. The 921 points are the most points through 12 games since scoring 993 (82.8 ppg.) in the first 12 games of the 2009-10 season.
The Wildcats scored a season-high 90 points vs. Arizona State (11/26) on 57.6 percent shooting, which tied for the fourth-most points ever scored in a loss and the most since a 112-95 loss at No. 4 Oklahoma on Feb. 13, 1988. The 84 points at Vanderbilt (12/3) were the most in a road game since scoring 96 at Oklahoma State on Jan. 18, 2017 and the most in a non-conference road game since also scoring 84 at Saint Louis on Dec. 3, 2016.
K-State has connected on better than 50 percent from the field in six games, including a season-best 62.5 percent (35-of-56) in the win over SE?Missouri State (12/16). The team has hit on 50 percent or better in both halves in four games (Arizona State, Vanderbilt, USC?Upstate and SE?Missouri State).
The Wildcats posted season-highs for field goals made (35), assists (25), points in the paint (44) as well as dunks (7) vs. SE?Missouri State. It was the most assists in a game since dishing out 25 at Baylor on Feb. 15, 2014, while it was the most points in the paint since posting 46 in a win over Iowa State on Feb. 28, 2015. The 35 made field goals was one shy of the record in the Bruce Weber era of 36 vs. Oklahoma State on Jan. 18, 2017.

TAKING CARE OF THE BALL

K-State has solid taking care of the basketball this season, averaging a Big 12-low 10.4 turnovers per game. In contrast, the Wildcats have also forced their opponents into 15.3 turnovers per game, which ranks fifth in the league just behind West Virginia (20.9), Texas Tech (18.5), Oklahoma State (17.0) and Texas (15.8). The squad ranks 19th nationally and third in the Big 12 in turnover margin (+4.8), while they are 11th nationally in fewest turnovers.
K-State has posted 12 turnovers or less in 10 of 12 games, including single-digit turnovers on four occasions (UC Irvine, George Washington, Oral Roberts, Vanderbilt). The team is averaging just 8.7 turnovers over the last seven games (61). Since turning over the ball a season-high 17 in the opener against American (11/10), the Wildcats have averaged just 9.8 turnovers in the last 11 games, including seven games of 10 turnovers or less.
K-State is averaging 16.6 assists per game on 27.6 made field goals per game, which ranks seventh in the Big 12. However, when comparing it to the low turnover average, the team ranks eighth nationally and second in the league in assist turnover ratio at 1.59. They have dished out 20 or more assists four times, including a season-best 25 against SE?Missouri State (12/16) and 22 against American (11/10) and Northern Arizona (11/20).

SUCCESS BEYOND THE ARC

K-State has been successful to start the season from 3-point range, averaging 8.0 treys per game on 34.8 percent shooting (96-of-276). Junior Kamau Stokes is one of six players to connect on at least eight 3-pointers this season, as he leads all players with 29 treys on 42.6 percent shooting (29-of-68) this season. Stokes hit a career-high 7 3-point field goals against Arizona State (11/23), which tied for the fourth-most in school history.
Stokes has hit on at least two treys in eight games. Sophomore Xavier Sneed is second in 3-pointers with 19 on a 34.5 percent clip, while junior Barry Brown, Jr. (14), freshman Cartier Diarra (8) and juniors Dean Wade (8) and Amaad Wainright all have more than eight 3-point makes.
K-State has hit on six or more 3-pointers in eight of 12 games this season, including double-digits against American (12), Arizona State (15), USC Upstate (12) and SE?Missouri?State (11). The 15 makes against the Sun Devils tied for the second-most in school history and were the most since also converting on 15 3-pointers against Nebraska on Jan. 8, 2000. Overall, the Wildcats hit on 46.9 percent from beyond the arc against ASU with the 32 attempts the third-most ever in a game and the most since attempting a school-record 37 at Texas on Feb. 12, 2005.

OFFENSIVE BALANCE CONTINUES

One of the hallmarks of the 2016-17 NCAA?Tournament team was its offensive balance, as four of five starters averaged in double figures led by Wesley Iwundu (13.0 ppg.), Kamau Stokes (11.7 ppg.), Barry Brown, Jr. (11.7 ppg.) and D.J. Johnson (11.3 ppg.). The last time K-State saw four players average in double digits was 2009-10, while you would have to go all the way back to 1980-81 to find four Wildcat starters in double figures.
That balance has continued to start the 2017-18 season, as four of the five starters (Stokes, Brown, Dean Wade and Xavier Sneed) are all currently averaging in double figures. Brown (14.4 ppg.), Stokes (14.2 ppg.), Wade (13.2 ppg.) and Sneed (11.6 ppg.) are all averaging at least 11 points per game, as K-State is one of four Big 12 teams (along with Baylor, Kansas, Texas and TCU) to have four starters averaging in double figures this season.
The trio of Brown, Stokes and Wade have all scored in double figures in 14 career games, including six of 12 this season. The Wildcats boast a 10-4 record in those games, including 5-1 this season. The three are averaging 41.8 points per game on 47.7 percent shooting, including 36 percent from 3.
At least three of the five starters have tallied double figures in nine of 12 games this season, including four in the opener against American (11/10), Northern Arizona (11/20), Tulsa (12/9) and SE Missouri?State (12/16). In all, five players registered double figures led by Wade's 17. Redshirt freshman Cartier Diarra (13), sophomore Makol Mawien (12), Brown (10) and Stokes (10) each tallied double digits.
K-State saw four players scored in double figures in the win over UMKC (11/14), as Brown scored a game-high 14 points followed by Sneed's first double-digit outing of the year with 13 points to go with 11-point efforts from Wade and junior Mawdo Sallah. Just like the opener, four of the five starters tallied double figures in the win over Northern Arizona (11/20) with Brown recording first 20-point game of the season on 9-of-13 field goals, while Stokes (16 points), Wade (15) and Sneed (12) also registered double-digit points.
K-State had multiple 20-point scorers for the first time this season against Arizona State (11/23), as Brown and Stokes combined for 50 of the team's 90 points... Brown had a career-high 27 points, while Stokes was one short of his career-high with 23 points on 7-of-10 shooting (all 3-pointers). The Wildcats again had multiple 20-point scorers in the win at Vanderbilt (12/3) to go with an 18-point effort by Brown, as the trio of Sneed (21), Stokes (20) and Brown (18)?combined to score 59 of the 84 points on 58.8 percent shooting (20-of-24).
Although only two players (Brown and Mawien) posted double figures at Washington State (12/20), three others (Stokes, Wade and Wainright) each had at least 7 points, as Brown posted his team-leading third 20-point game of the season with 23 points.
In all, the Wildcats have seen seven players total 40 double-digit scoring games this season with 12 different players registering at least one made field goal. Stokes has posted double-figure points in 10 of 12 games, while Brown and Wade have done it nine and eight times, respectively.
At least four Wildcats scored in double figures in 19 of 35 games in 2016-17, including at least three in 28 games. In all, nine players had at least one double-digit scoring game with six having at least 12 double-digit scoring games led by Iwundu's 26. The other four starters had at least 17 double-figure scoring games. In all, starters were responsible for 78 percent of the team's 2,523 points and 848 made field goals.

NIGHT TO REMEMBER

K-State enjoyed quite the memorable night on defensive end against Northern?Arizona (11/20), as the Wildcats tied the school record with 19 steals while forcing 31 total turnovers and enjoying a 38-15 edge in points off turnovers in the convincing 80-58 win.
The 19 steals tied the original school mark set against Tulane on Jan. 10, 1976 at Ahearn Field House. The 31 turnovers tied for the fifth-most by an opponent and were the most since also forcing 31 against Kentucky (at Orleans Arena) on Nov. 28, 2008. The 38 points off of turnovers were the fourth-most since the stat began being recorded in 2000-01 and the most since totaling 39 against Washington State on Dec. 5, 2009.
In all, five different Wildcats had at least two steals, including a career-best 6 by junior Barry?Brown, Jr., and 5 by junior Dean?Wade. The 6 steals by Brown tied nine other players for the eighth-most steals in a game. He now has 133 in his career, which ties him for third-place with Askia Jones (1989-94) on the all-time list. Junior Kamau Stokes also had 3 steals, while sophomore Xavier Sneed and freshman Cartier Diarra had two each.

SOLID DEBUTS FOR NEWCOMERS

Freshman Cartier Diarra and transfers Makol Mawien, Mawdo Sallah and Amaad Wainright have each been solid to start the season.
Mawien, who has started all 12 games this season, has scored in double figures three times, including in back-to-back games against SE Missouri State (12/16) and Washington State (12/20). He nearly posted double-doubles in the opener against American (11/10) and again against WSU with a season-high 9 rebounds. He is shooting a team-best 74 percent (37-of-50) from the field, including going 6-of-10 vs. WSU?with a season-best 15 points.
Wainright has been a boost from the bench, averaging 5 points and 3.7 rebounds in the last 6 outings. He posted a near double-double with 7 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists against SE?Missouri State (12/16), while he scored 7 points against USC?Upstate (12/5) and Washington State (12/20).
Diarra and Sallah have also been productive from the bench, as Diarra posted double figures in two of his first three games with a game-high 13 points in the opener vs. American (11/10), while Sallah narrowly missed a double-double with 11 points and 9 rebounds vs. UMKC?(11/14).

ONE OF THE YOUNGEST TEAMS

K-State is one of 15 schools nationally (Auburn, American, Bowling Green, UC Irvine, The Citadel, Holy Cross, Kentucky, Louisiana Tech, Marquette, Montana, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Toledo and Wofford) to have one or fewer seniors on its roster in 2017-18, while the Wildcats' nine freshmen (true and redshirt) and sophomores ranks nine nationally and are only surpassed by the 12 at Auburn and Kentucky, 11 by UC Irvine, 10 each by American, The Citadel, Tennessee, Toledo and Wofford.

K-STATE WELCOMES SHAUN WILLIAMS

Head coach Bruce Weber announced the signing of Shaun Williams (St. Louis, Mo./Hazelwood Central) on the first day of the National Signing Period on Nov. 8.
A 6-foot-3, 170-pound guard, Williams led Hazelwood Central in 12 categories en route to helping the Hawks to a 17-11 record and a trip to the Class 5, District 3 Championship Game. He averaged a team-best 18.6 points on 47.4 percent shooting (155-of-237), including 35.2 percent (38-of-108) from 3-point range, to go with 3.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He connected on a team-best 83.8 percent (98-of-117) from the free throw line. He was a First Team Class 5 All-State selection by the Missouri Basketball?Coaches Association as a junior.

UP NEXT: WEST VIRGINIA (11-1)

K-State returns home to Bramlage Coliseum on New Year's Day, as the Wildcats open the home portion of their Big 12 schedule by welcoming No. 7/7 West Virginia (11-1) at 4 p.m.

Game Preview // K-State Opens Big 12 Play at Iowa State Friday

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Players Mentioned

Barry Brown, Jr.

Cartier Diarra

Wesley Iwundu

D.J. Johnson

Makol Mawien

Mawdo Sallah

Xavier Sneed

Kamau Stokes

Dean Wade

Amaad Wainright

Kansas State University Athletics

Game Preview // K-State Opens Big 12 Play at Iowa State Friday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Barry Brown, Jr.

Cartier Diarra

Wesley Iwundu

D.J. Johnson

Makol Mawien

Mawdo Sallah

Xavier Sneed

Kamau Stokes

Dean Wade

Amaad Wainright

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