SE: Wildcats Step into Bigger Roles, Eager for Sunflower Showdown in Lawrence Saturday
Jan 12, 2018 | Men's Basketball, Women's Basketball
By Corbin McGuire
It started on the plane ride back from Texas Tech.
K-State had lost its second Big 12 game in a row and its starting point guard in Kamau Stokes to injury in a road trip to Lubbock, Texas, last Saturday. Barry Brown, a third-year starter, has seen how adversity can snowball, so he text K-State's coaching staff.
"He said we have to practice (Sunday)," recalled K-State head coach Bruce Weber, who informed Brown that, because of NCAA time-management rules, the coaches could not schedule an official practice. "But he felt we needed to be together. I said, 'We (coaches) can't, but if you want to do something, do it.' At 11:30 Sunday morning he got them all together, did a little bit of a workout, talked to them and even watched some film with them and stretched. That was a big step."
"I think it was very important. I feel like we kind of needed to reset a little bit," added Brown. "I know losing back-to-back games in the Big 12 is tough. I've been there. I've lost more than back-to-back games, so I wanted to get our guys together and let them know that we're still a good team."
Brown followed his show of leadership with a performance of a lifetime in K-State's 86-82 win over Oklahoma State on Wednesday. The junior poured in a career-high 38 points against the Cowboys, the most by a Wildcat since Jacob Pullen scored 38 in the NCAA Tournament against Wisconsin in 2011.
"My mindset was for everyone to pick it up a little bit," Brown said, "to turn it up a notch, bring what (Kamau) brought but just a little bit more."
Brown was not the only Wildcat to up his game. Xavier Sneed pulled in his first career double-double with 11 points and a career-high 12 rebounds.
"It's very sad to see Kamau go down, of course, but it's next man up," Sneed said. "Everybody has to keep playing. Everybody has to keep doing things better and bring that little extra thing to push ourselves over the top."
Then there was redshirt freshman point guard Cartier Diarra, who added a career-high 17 points, four assists and a steal in his first start. Like Brown's outing, Diarra's step forward started on the way back from Texas Tech, Weber said.
After K-State's plane landed in Manhattan and the team was bussed back to the Ice Family Basketball Center on Saturday night, Diarra did not want to leave. Weber said Diarra, well aware his role on the team had drastically changed with the injury to Stokes, camped out at the team's practice facility until around 1:30 to 2 a.m., watching film and shooting.
"He said, 'Coach, I helped us get back in the game (at Texas Tech) but I made mistakes down the stretch. I can't do that,'" Weber recalled. "He wants to be successful. If you have that desire to be successful, good things will happen."
K-State's road ahead in the rugged Big 12 only gets more difficult. The Wildcats will face three ranked opponents in a row, starting with a trip to No. 12 Kansas on Saturday at 11 a.m., which will be nationally broadcast on ESPN.
Diarra, who watched as K-State nearly knocked off its rival in Allen Fieldhouse last season, said he feels prepared for the intense environment.
"Just play another good, solid game. Limit turnovers. I don't want any turnovers and, of course, just make the right plays, get it to the right people and see the mismatches," he said of his focus. "We know how it is. We were there last year. I was watching but I saw the fire and the group we played with last year played really good and hard. Hopefully we come with the same energy and we come out with the win."
Brown, looking to beat the Jayhawks for the second time in his career, said last year's ending in Lawrence left a "sour taste" in everyone's mouth, one he hopes to wash out on Saturday.
"I feel like we should have come away with the victory but, ultimately, we didn't, so moving forward we're going to practice hard for these next couple of days and we're going to get ready with the scouting report from Coach (Chris) Lowery," Brown said. "We'll be ready for them."
It started on the plane ride back from Texas Tech.
K-State had lost its second Big 12 game in a row and its starting point guard in Kamau Stokes to injury in a road trip to Lubbock, Texas, last Saturday. Barry Brown, a third-year starter, has seen how adversity can snowball, so he text K-State's coaching staff.
"He said we have to practice (Sunday)," recalled K-State head coach Bruce Weber, who informed Brown that, because of NCAA time-management rules, the coaches could not schedule an official practice. "But he felt we needed to be together. I said, 'We (coaches) can't, but if you want to do something, do it.' At 11:30 Sunday morning he got them all together, did a little bit of a workout, talked to them and even watched some film with them and stretched. That was a big step."
"I think it was very important. I feel like we kind of needed to reset a little bit," added Brown. "I know losing back-to-back games in the Big 12 is tough. I've been there. I've lost more than back-to-back games, so I wanted to get our guys together and let them know that we're still a good team."
Brown followed his show of leadership with a performance of a lifetime in K-State's 86-82 win over Oklahoma State on Wednesday. The junior poured in a career-high 38 points against the Cowboys, the most by a Wildcat since Jacob Pullen scored 38 in the NCAA Tournament against Wisconsin in 2011.
"My mindset was for everyone to pick it up a little bit," Brown said, "to turn it up a notch, bring what (Kamau) brought but just a little bit more."
Brown was not the only Wildcat to up his game. Xavier Sneed pulled in his first career double-double with 11 points and a career-high 12 rebounds.
"It's very sad to see Kamau go down, of course, but it's next man up," Sneed said. "Everybody has to keep playing. Everybody has to keep doing things better and bring that little extra thing to push ourselves over the top."
Then there was redshirt freshman point guard Cartier Diarra, who added a career-high 17 points, four assists and a steal in his first start. Like Brown's outing, Diarra's step forward started on the way back from Texas Tech, Weber said.
After K-State's plane landed in Manhattan and the team was bussed back to the Ice Family Basketball Center on Saturday night, Diarra did not want to leave. Weber said Diarra, well aware his role on the team had drastically changed with the injury to Stokes, camped out at the team's practice facility until around 1:30 to 2 a.m., watching film and shooting.
"He said, 'Coach, I helped us get back in the game (at Texas Tech) but I made mistakes down the stretch. I can't do that,'" Weber recalled. "He wants to be successful. If you have that desire to be successful, good things will happen."
K-State's road ahead in the rugged Big 12 only gets more difficult. The Wildcats will face three ranked opponents in a row, starting with a trip to No. 12 Kansas on Saturday at 11 a.m., which will be nationally broadcast on ESPN.
Diarra, who watched as K-State nearly knocked off its rival in Allen Fieldhouse last season, said he feels prepared for the intense environment.
"Just play another good, solid game. Limit turnovers. I don't want any turnovers and, of course, just make the right plays, get it to the right people and see the mismatches," he said of his focus. "We know how it is. We were there last year. I was watching but I saw the fire and the group we played with last year played really good and hard. Hopefully we come with the same energy and we come out with the win."
Brown, looking to beat the Jayhawks for the second time in his career, said last year's ending in Lawrence left a "sour taste" in everyone's mouth, one he hopes to wash out on Saturday.
"I feel like we should have come away with the victory but, ultimately, we didn't, so moving forward we're going to practice hard for these next couple of days and we're going to get ready with the scouting report from Coach (Chris) Lowery," Brown said. "We'll be ready for them."
Players Mentioned
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