Kansas State University Athletics
SE: Mawien Looks to Create Consistency for K-State MBB
Dec 28, 2018 | Men's Basketball, Sports Extra
By Corbin McGuire
Last week, before K-State's 69-58 win over Vanderbilt last Saturday, head coach Bruce Weber put on a Santa Claus outfit for a team meeting. One by one, he pulled his players' names out of a sack and gave them a present in the form of a word, one he wanted each Wildcat to embody.
Makol Mawien's word: Consistency.
Specifically, Weber wants Mawien to perform closer to the level he played at against Vanderbilt at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri. The 6-foot-9 junior led K-State with 15 points on 7-of-10 from the field. His first two points came from a thunderous left-handed slam. He knocked down a trey late in the game as well. He also limited Vanderbilt's Simisola Shittu, an NBA Draft prospect, to 10 points on 3-of-9 from the field.
"He can do that," Weber said. "His (key) is consistency. I think that's the big thing. Moving forward with him, and our whole team, we have to become more consistent."
As it pertains to Mawien, plenty was asked about his consistency in the Sprint Center. On paper, it seems to be a place of comfort for the Utah native.
Last season, he was named to the Big 12 Championship All-Tournament Team — the first Wildcat to earn that honor since 2013. In last year's conference tournament, he put up 16 points against TCU and a career-high 29 versus Kansas.
Throw in this season's win against Vanderbilt and Mawien's numbers in the Sprint Center are pretty eye-grabbing. In it, he's averaging 20 points per game on 72 percent shooting from the field (26-of-36), along with 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game.
"Shane Southwell said something about that," Mawien said of his success in the Sprint Center. "I don't know what it is. I'd like to do it other places."
To be fair, Mawien has.
He led his team in field goal percentage last season, at 59.8, which was the sixth-best single-season rate in school history and the best by a Wildcat sophomore ever. This season, he's at 60.4 percent. He's also scored in double figures 14 times as a Wildcat, including four times this season. K-State is 12-2 when he's put up 10 or more points.
"It's just about how you come and play. Your preparation, your consistency, what you do in practice, that's what it's about," Weber said, as K-State hosts George Mason on Saturday at 7 p.m. "The other night against Southern Miss, Mak couldn't catch the ball. (Against Vanderbilt), he did a much better job. He was much more focused."
There's no doubt one factor helped lock Mawien in: Dean Wade's injury. Mawien knew he needed to step up his game to help make up for the absence of the Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year.
Vanderbilt helped reassure Mawien that he could.
"It was a great time for this, being there for my teammates and being able to do a little more on offense," he said. "It's a good feeling knowing even when Dean is out — who's a good scorer for us and is good in all stats, really — that Coach thinks I can step up. That's something I did today."
That's all his teammates want going forward.
"He just needs to give us everything he has been giving us. On offense, just get it inside and he's a good post threat. He can face up and shoot, and he can also, because he's big enough, strong enough, back a guy down and shoot the lefty, righty hook. He's got that good touch," senior guard Barry Brown, Jr., said after the Vanderbilt game. "Tonight should be a regular thing for him. He was just playing hard, was more vocal, on defense especially, blocking shots, being in the gap, being in the right spot. That's Mak.
"I hope he continues to do what he's been doing."
Last week, before K-State's 69-58 win over Vanderbilt last Saturday, head coach Bruce Weber put on a Santa Claus outfit for a team meeting. One by one, he pulled his players' names out of a sack and gave them a present in the form of a word, one he wanted each Wildcat to embody.
Makol Mawien's word: Consistency.
Specifically, Weber wants Mawien to perform closer to the level he played at against Vanderbilt at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri. The 6-foot-9 junior led K-State with 15 points on 7-of-10 from the field. His first two points came from a thunderous left-handed slam. He knocked down a trey late in the game as well. He also limited Vanderbilt's Simisola Shittu, an NBA Draft prospect, to 10 points on 3-of-9 from the field.
"He can do that," Weber said. "His (key) is consistency. I think that's the big thing. Moving forward with him, and our whole team, we have to become more consistent."
As it pertains to Mawien, plenty was asked about his consistency in the Sprint Center. On paper, it seems to be a place of comfort for the Utah native.
Last season, he was named to the Big 12 Championship All-Tournament Team — the first Wildcat to earn that honor since 2013. In last year's conference tournament, he put up 16 points against TCU and a career-high 29 versus Kansas.
Throw in this season's win against Vanderbilt and Mawien's numbers in the Sprint Center are pretty eye-grabbing. In it, he's averaging 20 points per game on 72 percent shooting from the field (26-of-36), along with 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game.
"Shane Southwell said something about that," Mawien said of his success in the Sprint Center. "I don't know what it is. I'd like to do it other places."
To be fair, Mawien has.
He led his team in field goal percentage last season, at 59.8, which was the sixth-best single-season rate in school history and the best by a Wildcat sophomore ever. This season, he's at 60.4 percent. He's also scored in double figures 14 times as a Wildcat, including four times this season. K-State is 12-2 when he's put up 10 or more points.
"It's just about how you come and play. Your preparation, your consistency, what you do in practice, that's what it's about," Weber said, as K-State hosts George Mason on Saturday at 7 p.m. "The other night against Southern Miss, Mak couldn't catch the ball. (Against Vanderbilt), he did a much better job. He was much more focused."
There's no doubt one factor helped lock Mawien in: Dean Wade's injury. Mawien knew he needed to step up his game to help make up for the absence of the Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year.
Vanderbilt helped reassure Mawien that he could.
"It was a great time for this, being there for my teammates and being able to do a little more on offense," he said. "It's a good feeling knowing even when Dean is out — who's a good scorer for us and is good in all stats, really — that Coach thinks I can step up. That's something I did today."
That's all his teammates want going forward.
"He just needs to give us everything he has been giving us. On offense, just get it inside and he's a good post threat. He can face up and shoot, and he can also, because he's big enough, strong enough, back a guy down and shoot the lefty, righty hook. He's got that good touch," senior guard Barry Brown, Jr., said after the Vanderbilt game. "Tonight should be a regular thing for him. He was just playing hard, was more vocal, on defense especially, blocking shots, being in the gap, being in the right spot. That's Mak.
"I hope he continues to do what he's been doing."
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