Kansas State University Athletics

Tuesday, December 5
Manhattan, Kan.
7 p.m.

Kansas State University

vs

USC Upstate

Game Preview // K-State Hosts USC Upstate Tuesday

Dec 04, 2017 | Men's Basketball

Game Preview // K-State Hosts USC Upstate Tuesday

GAME #9
KANSAS STATE (7-1) vs USC UPSTATE (3-7)
Tuesday, December 5, 2017 >> 7:10 p.m. CT >> Bramlage Coliseum (12,528) >> Manhattan, Kan.
 
TELEVISION
FOX Sports Kansas City // K-StateHD.TV [free] // ESPN3
  • Ben Boyle (play-by-play)
  • Stan Weber (analyst)
Channel Listing: DirecTV 671-5 [HD] / Dish 441 or 412-39 / AT&T U-Verse 750 [SD] or 1750 [HD]
 
RADIO
K-State Sports Network 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: 420-224/20th season
At K-State: 107-69/6th season
vs. USC Upstate: 1-0
 
USC Upstate: Kyle Perry (Georgia Tech '01)
Overall: 3-7/1st season
At USC Upstate: Same
vs. Kansas State: 0-0
 
PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
Kansas State (7-1)
G: #3 Kamau Stokes
G: #5 Barry Brown, Jr.
G: #20 Xavier Sneed
F: #32 Dean Wade
F: #14 Makol Mawien
               
USC Upstate (3-7)
G: #1 Mike Cunningham
G: #3 Jure Span
G: #11 Deion Holmes
F: #0 Malik Moore
F: #4 Ramel Thompkins
 
SERIES HISTORY
Overall: K-State leads 1-0
In Manhattan: K-State leads 1-0
Last Meeting: W, 72-53, 12/2/2012
Weber vs. Perry: First meeting
 
OPENING TIP
  • Kansas State (7-1) returns to Bramlage Coliseum on?Tuesday night, as the Wildcats play host to Atlantic Sun foe USC?Upstate (3-7) at 7 p.m. CT. The contest will be the first of three straight for K-State at home venues, as the team will host Tulsa (4-4) at Wichita's INTRUST?Bank Arena at 7 p.m., CT?on Saturday before hosting SE?Missouri State (4-4) back at Bramlage Coliseum on Saturday, Dec. 16.
  • This will be just the second meeting between K-State and USC Upstate on the hardwood, as the Wildcats won the first and only meeting with the Spartans, 72-53, on Dec. 2, 2012 at Bramlage Coliseum. Led by first-year head coach Kyle Perry, who took over for longtime coach Eddie Payne in mid-October, USC Upstate is connecting on more than 11 3-point field goals per game while averaging 75 points. The team has five players averaging in double figures led by junior Malik Moore (14.3 ppg.).  Overall, K-State is 7-0 all-time against teams from the Atlantic Sun.
  • The Wildcats have won 21 consecutive games against non-conference opponents in home venues (20 at Bramlage Coliseum). Overall, the school has a 94-5 (.949) record at home venues in non-conference play since 2006-07, including 87-5 (.946) at Bramlage Coliseum, and has won 81 of their last 84 non-conference home games. This season, the team is 5-0 at home (American, UMKC, UC Irvine, Northern Arizona and Oral Roberts) with an average margin of victory of 22.4 points per game.
  • K-State collected its first road win of the season at Vanderbilt on Sunday afternoon, as the Wildcats connected on a season-best 91.7 percent (22-of-24) from the free throw line, including knocking down 11 of its last 12 attempts, to hold off a second-half charge by the Commodores, 84-79. The team's 91.7 percent shooting from the line was the third-highest by a Wildcat team with 20 or more free throw attempts and the most since hitting on 92 percent (23-of-25) against Oklahoma State in the Big Eight Tournament at Kemper Arena on March 8, 1991.
  • In addition to their stellar free throw shooting, the Wildcats were impressive on the offensive end against the Commodores, connecting on a season-best 58 percent (29-of-50) from the field, including 61.5 percent (16-of-26) in the first half and a season-best 54.2 percent (13-of-24) in the second half. The team totaled 80 or more points for the fourth time this season, while the 84 points were the most in a road game since putting up 96 against Oklahoma State on Jan. 18, 2017. The Wildcats had a pair of 20-point scorers (Xavier Sneed and Kamau Stokes) for the second time this season, as Sneed collected a career-high with 21 points on 8-of-11 field goals, while Stokes collected 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting and a team-high 6 assists.
  • Stokes (15.1 ppg.) is one of four Wildcats averaging in double figures this season,  as the junior has really taken off in the last six games, averaging 17.3 points on 51.6 percent shooting (33-of-64), including 48.6 percent (17-of-35) from 3-point range, and 87.5 percent (21-of-24) from the free throw line. In that span, Stokes has posted six consecutive double-digit scoring games, including a pair of 20-point outings against Arizona State (23) and Vanderbilt (20), and is averaging 2.8 3-point field goal makes per game.
 
NOTES ON USC UPSTATE
  • USC?Upstate enters Tuesday's contest with a 3-7 overall record after dropping its third straight road game on Saturday at Gardner-Webb, 87-66. The Spartans opened the season with two wins (Allen and Paine College) in their first five games, which included road games at Minnesota (77-92) and Georgia (65-74). The team has since lost four of their last five games, including road tilts at Campbell (74-93), UNC Asheville (70-82) and Gardner-Webb.
  • The Spartans are averaging 75.0 points per game on 42.9 percent shooting, including 35.9 percent from 3-point range, with 31.5 rebounds, 14.2 assists, 7.2 steals and 2.0 blocks per game, while allowing opponents to average 79.6 points on 48 percent shooting, including 41.2 percent from long range. The team is connecting on 11.2 3-point makes per game, which ranks 15th nationally. They also rank second in the nation in 3-point field goals attempted (312) and third in total 3-point field goals made (112), while they are also 42nd in total assists (142).
  • Junior forward Malik Moore is one of five players averaging in double figures for the Spartans with a team-best 14.3 points per game on 47 percent shooting to go with 5.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 30.2 minutes per game. Fellow junior Deion Holmes averages 12.5 points on 45.6 percent shooting, while senior forward Ramel Thompkins posts averages of 11.9 points and 6.1 rebounds per game to go with a team-best 27 3-pointers. Juniors Mike Cunningham (11.9 ppg.) and Jure Span (10.7 ppg.) also average in double figures and have each connected on 21 and 23 3-point field goals, respectively. All five double-digit scorers for the Spartans have double-digit 3-point field goals made, including 20 or more by Thompkins, Cunningham and Span. 
  • USC?Upstate is led by first-year head coach Kyle Perry, who took over the reins of the program for longtime head coach Eddie Payne on Oct. 20, 2017.  Perry, who in his ninth season overall, has helped the Spartans to their first-ever wins over the ACC and SEC with victories at Virginia Tech, South Carolina, Georgia Tech and Mississippi State and has been apart of all four trips to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT), reaching the second round in 2012-13 and 2014-15. Payne, who won 484 games in 32 seasons, guided Upstate from Division II?to Division I in his 15 seasons.
 
SERIES HISTORY
  • This will be just the second meeting between Kansas State and USC?Upstate on the hardwood with the Wildcats winning the first and only meeting, 72-53, at home on Dec. 2, 2012. Senior Rodney?McGruder paced four players in double figures in that previous meeting with a game-high 22 points on 8-of-16 field goals, while Thomas Gipson (11), Omari Lawrence (10) and Adrian Diaz (10) also added double digits.
  • Head coach Bruce Weber is 1-0 all-time against USC?Upstate, winning the first and only meeting, 72-53, on Dec. 2, 2012.
  • K-State is 7-0 all-time against the Atlantic Sun, defeating Lipscomb in 2002 (88-64) and 2003 (92-57), Kennesaw State in 2006 (82-54), North Florida in 2010 (100-76), 2011 (79-68 in overtime) and 2012 (74-55) and USC?Upstate in 2012.
 
NON-CONFERENCE HISTORY
  • K-State has a 94-5 (.949) record at home venues (includes both home games played at Bramlage Coliseum and the Sprint Center) in non-conference game dating back to the 2006-07 season, including an 87-5 (.946) mark at Bramlage Coliseum. The Wildcats have won 81 of their last 84 non-conference home games, including their current 21-game winning streak in home non-conference games.
  • K-State went 8-0 in non-conference games played at home venues in 2016-17  (7-0 at Bramlage Coliseum and 1-0 at the Sprint Center) with an average margin of victory of 19.1 points per game. The last home non-conference loss came in a 50-46 loss to Georgia on Dec. 31, 2014.
  • Overall, the Wildcats went 11-2 in non-conference play in 2016-17, which included a pair of road victories at Saint Louis (84-53) and Colorado State (89-70). The two setbacks came to No. 23 Maryland (69-68) on Nov. 26, 2016 at the Barclays Center Classic in Brooklyn, N.Y., and at Tennessee (70-58) in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge on Jan. 28, 2017. The team has won double-digit non-conference games each of the past two seasons (23 total/23-5 record) since posting a 7-6 record in 2014-15.
 
HISTORY AT BRAMLAGE COLISEUM
  • K-State has posted a 357-113 (.758) all-time record at Bramlage Coliseum since its opening during the 1988-89 season. The 357 victories are the second-most at a home venue for the Wildcats, trailing the 378 wins at Ahearn Field House (1950-88).
  • K-State has collected a 156-33 (.825) record at home over the past 12 seasons, including a 66-28 (.702) mark in Big 12 play. The 156 wins rank fourth among Big 12 schools in that span, while the 66 league victories at home are only surpassed by Kansas and Texas. In all, the school has earned double-digit victories in 24 of its 29 seasons in the arena, including a current streak of 16 consecutive seasons.
  • The Wildcats have a 217-56 (.795) record at home, including a 129-10 (.928) mark in non-conference action, since the 2001-02 season for an average of just over 13 home wins (13.3) per season. Last season, the team went 11-5 at home, including 7-0 in non-conference play.
  • Head coach Bruce Weber has a 72-17 (.809) record at Bramlage Coliseum since taking over at K-State in 2012-13 with non-conference home losses to Northern Colorado (2013), Texas Southern (2014) and Georgia (2014). The 17 losses (14 of which have come in Big 12 play) have come by a grand total of 99 points or just 5.8 points per game. Among the 71 victories are 12 over ranked teams, including top-ranked Oklahoma in 2016.
 
LAST TIME OUT: K-STATE 84, VANDERBILT 79
  • K-State earned its first true road win of season on Sunday afternoon, as the Wildcats posted season-highs for both field goal percentage (58.0) and free throw percentage (91.7) in holding off a second-half charge from Vanderbilt, 84-79. It was just the second win at Memorial?Gym in five tries and the first win since a 69-55 victory on Dec. 5, 1977. It also snapped a 2-game skid to the Commodores and the first overall in the series since 1988. 
  • Sophomore Xavier Sneed paced three Wildcats in double figures with a career-best 21 points on 8-of-11 field goals in 36 minutes, while junior Kamau Stokes collected his sixth career 20-point game with 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting and a perfect 6-of-6 effort from the free throw line.  
 
HISTORY OF STRONG STARTS
  • K-State is looking to continue a history of strong starts to a season on Tuesday, as the Wildcats have jumped out to a 7-1 record or better start for the third consecutive season. A win against USC?Upstate would give the school an 8-1 start for the second straight season, which hasn't happened since the 2010-11 and 2011-12 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 after 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 2004-05 when K-State won each of its first eight games en route to a 10-1 start to the season. The best-ever start to a season came in 1918-19 when the squad opened the year 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.
  • K-State's best start after 10 games has been a 9-1 mark, which has been done on five occasions, including 2004-05, 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2016-17. Last season, the team opened the year winning 12 of their first 13 games. 
  • 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 solid on the defensive end to start the season, allowing 62.6 points through the first eight games while holding its opposition to 37.6 percent shooting (155-of-412), including 31.0 percent (54-of-174) from long range.  The team ranks second in the Big 12 in turnover margin (+5.3), fourth in scoring defense, field goal percentage defense and steals and sixth in 3-point field goal percentage defense. 
  • The Wildcats rank among the Top 50 in six defensive categories, including 16th in turnover margin, 25th in field goal percentage defense, 34th in scoring defense and steals per game, 41st in total steals and 42nd in scoring margin.
  • Only five times in the modern era (since 1953-54) has a K-State team allowed 60 points or less five times to the first eight opponents, as the 2017-18 squad joins the 1981-82, 1984-85, 2005-06 and 2012-13 teams to accomplish the feat. If you remove the ASU and Vanderbilt games, the Wildcats are allowing just 55 points on 33.7 percent shooting, including 26.7 percent from 3-point range.
  • The Wildcats have held five of their first eight opponents to 45, 51, 49, 58 and 59 points, respectively, as they have now held 63 opponents to 60 points or less under head coach Bruce Weber's direction with the squad boasting a 56-7 (.885) mark in those contests (losses to Kansas in 2012, Northern Colorado and Kentucky in 2013, Texas Southern and Georgia in 2014, Texas and Oklahoma State in 2016 and West Virginia in 2017).
  • The 45 points by American (11/10/17) were the fewest points allowed in an opener since holding South Dakota to 45 points in a 50-point win on Nov. 29, 1986, while the 38 points was the largest margin of victory since also winning by the same margin against Loyola Chicago on Nov. 13, 2009. UMKC, which scored 100 points twice in four games so far, was held to just 51 points on 26 percent shooting (13-of-50), including 28.6 percent (8-of-28) from 3-point range. It was the fewest points scored by the up-tempo Kangaroos since scoring 43 at Oklahoma State on Dec. 29, 2015. 
  • 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 64.6 points per game (11,372 points) on 42.5 percent shooting (3926-9244), including 31.7 percent (1005-3169) from 3-point range.
  • Under Weber's direction, K-State has a 91-25 (.785) record when holding an opponent to 69 points or less since 2012-13 and a 16-44 (.259) mark when allowing an opponent to score 70 or more points.
 
OFFENSE OFF TO A GOOD START
  • K-State is averaging 78 points on 49.2 percent shooting, including 37.8 percent from 3-point range, to go with a solid 73.9 percent clip from the free throw line through 8 games. The Wildcats have scored 80 or more points four times and have eclipsed the 75-point barrier four times in the last 5 games.
  • K-State scored a season-high 90 points against 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 the Wildcats scored 95 in 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 96 at Oklahoma State on Jan. 18, 2017 and the most in a non-conference game since also scoring 84 at Saint Louis on Dec. 3, 2016.
  • K-State ranks fifth in the Big 12 in field goal percentage, third in 3-point field goal percentage and sixth in free throw percentage, while the team is second in both turnover margin (+5.5) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.5). Nationally, the Wildcats are among the Top 50 in four offensive categories, including in the Top 20 in both turnovers per game (10.8) and 17th in assist-to-turnover ratio.
  • The Wildcats have connected on better than 50 percent from the field in 4 games, including a season-best 58 percent (29-of-50) in the win at Vanderbilt on Sunday. Twice, the team has hit on 50 percent or better in both halves (Arizona State and Vanderbilt).
 
SUCCESS BEYOND THE ARC
  • K-State has been successful to start the season from 3-point range, averaging 8.1 treys per game on 37.8 percent shooting (65-of-172). Junior Kamau Stokes is one of five players to connect on at least seven 3-pointers this season, as he leads all players with 20 treys on 46.5 percent shooting (20-of-43) this season. Stokes hit on a career-high 7 3-point field goals against Arizona State (11/23), which tied for the fourth-most in school history. Sophomore Xavier Sneed is second in 3-pointers with 12 on a 34.3 percent clip, while junior Barry Brown, Jr. (9), junior Dean Wade (7) and redshirt freshman Cartier Diarra (7) all have more than 7 3-point makes this season.
  • K-State has hit on six or more 3-pointers in 6 of 8 games this season, including double-digits against American (12, 11/10) and Arizona State (11/23). 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 in a home game against Nebraska on Jan. 8, 2000. It was also the most-ever made away from home. Overall, the Wildcats hit on 46.9 percent from beyond the arc against ASU with 32 attempts the third-most ever in a game and the most since attempting a school-record 37 at Texas on Feb. 12, 2005.
  • Four Wildcats (Brown, Diarra, Stokes and Wade) had have at least one game making 3 or more 3-pointers this season.
 
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 (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 team's five starters (Stokes, Brown, Dean Wade and Xavier Sneed) are all currently averaging in double figures. Stokes (15.1 ppg.), Brown (14.8 ppg.) and Wade (12.0 ppg.) are all averaging 12 points per game, as K-State joins Kansas as the only Big 12 schools to have at least three players averaging 12 points per game, while the Wildcats are one of just four Big 12 teams (along with Kansas, Texas and TCU) to have four starters averaging in double figures so far this season.
  • At least three of the five starters have tallied double figures in 6 of 8 games this season, including four in the opener against American (11/10) and Northern Arizona (11/20). In all, five players registered double figures as 10 posted at least one made field goal in the season-opening win. Wade led all scorers with 17 points on 6-of-7 field goals, while redshirt freshman Cartier Diarra (13 points), sophomore Makol Mawien (12), Brown (10) and Stokes (10) each tallied double digits. Sneed nearly recorded double figures, finishing with 8 points.
  • 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. Three players registered double figures against UC?Irvine (11/17) led by Stokes' game-high 14 points, joining Sneed (12) and Diarra (10).
  • Just like the opener, four of the five starters tallied double figures in the win over Northern Arizona (11/20) with Brown recording his fifth career 20-point game 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).
  • K-State 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 combined to score 59 of the 84 points on 58.8 percent shooting (20-of-24). Sneed posted a career-high 21 points, while Stokes earned his sixth career 20-point game.
  • In all, the Wildcats have seen seven players total 27 double-digit scoring games this season with 12 different players registering at least one made field goal. Stokes has posted double-figure points in 7 of 8 games, while Brown has done it six times and Sneed and Wade five times each.
  • 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.
  • A year ago, K-State ranked 21st nationally in total steals (271) and 31st in steals per game (7.7), while was 41st in turnovers forced (14.94) and 49th in turnover margin (+2.0). The 271 steals were the fourth-most in school history and the most since the 2009-10 season. The 7.74 steals average ranked fifth in school history and was the highest average since the 1994-95 season (8.44).
  • Brown set the single-season record with 82 steals in 2016-17, while his 2.34 per game placed third for a single-season. He ranked second in the Big 12 in overall steals, while his 45 in league play led all players. He ranked seventh nationally in total steals and 11th in average.
 
SOLID DEBUTS FOR NEWCOMERS
  • Redshirt freshman Cartier Diarra and transfers Makol Mawien and Mawdo Sallah have each been impressive to start the season.
  • Diarra and Mawien each posted double figures in their debuts against American (11/10), as Diarra scored 13 points off the bench on 4-of-5 field goals, including all four 3-pointers to go with 4 assists, while Mawien nearly totaled a double-double with 12 points on 5-of-7 field goals and game-highs with 9 rebounds and 2 blocks.
  • It was Sallah's turn against UMKC (11/14), as he came off the bench to miss a double-double by one rebound with 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting with a game-high 9 rebounds.
  • Diarra turned in his second double-digit scoring games with 10 points against UC?Irvine (11/17).
 
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 Wednesday.
  • 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: TULSA (4-4)
  • K-State travels south to Wichita on Saturday to play host to American Conference foe Tulsa (4-4) at INTRUST Bank Arena at 7 p.m.  
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