Game Preview // K-State, 20/19 Oklahoma Tangle Wednesday on ESPN2

GAME 17
KANSAS STATE (12-4, 2-2 Big 12) at 20/19 OKLAHOMA (13-3, 2-2 Big 12)
Wednesday, January 16, 2019 >> 6:01 p.m. CT >> Lloyd Noble Center (11,562) >> Norman, Okla.

TELEVISION
ESPN2

Mark Neely (play-by-play)
Chris Spatola (analyst)
Andy Jacobson (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: XM 380 / Internet 971

LIVE STATS
www.SoonerSports.com
ou.statbroadcast.com [media only]

TICKETS
www.SoonerSports.com/tickets
(800) 456.GoOU

Single Game $10/$25/$35

COACHES
Kansas State: Bruce Weber (Wis.-Milwaukee '78)
Overall: 450-239/21^st season
At K-State: 137-84/7^th season
vs Oklahoma: 8-4 (2-4 on the road)

Oklahoma: Lon Kruger (Kansas State '75)
Overall: 632-398/33^rd season
At Oklahoma: 153-94/8^th season
vs. Kansas State: 8-9 (6-2 at home)

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
Kansas State (12-4, 2-2 Big 12)
G: #3 Kamau Stokes
G: #5 Barry Brown, Jr.
G/F: #20 Xavier Sneed
F: #32 Dean Wade
F: #14 Makol Mawien

Oklahoma (13-3, 2-2 Big 12)
G: #2 Aaron Calixte
G: #0 Christian James
F: #21 Kristian Doolittle
F: #35 Brady Manek
C: #4 Jamuni McNeace

SERIES HISTORY
Overall: Oklahoma leads 108-99
Current Streak: Oklahoma, 1
In Norman: Oklahoma leads 63-27
At Lloyd Noble Center: Oklahoma leads 25-10
Last Meeting: L, 77-86, 2/24/18
Weber vs. Kruger: 9-4 (2-4 on the road)

OPENING TIP

Kansas State (12-4, 2-2 Big 12) wraps up its 2-game road trip on Wednesday, as the Wildcats travel to Norman, Oklahoma to take on acclaimed lettermen and former head coach Lon Kruger and his No. 20/19 Oklahoma Sooners (13-3, 2-2 Big 12) at the Lloyd Noble Center. The game will tip at 6:01 p.m., CT on ESPN2 with Mark Neely (play-by-play) and Chris Spatola (analyst) on the call.
K-State, by virtue of senior Barry Brown, Jr.'s second straight game-winner, earned its first road victory in Saturday's 58-57 win over No. 20/21 Iowa State after starting the season with 4 consecutive losses. Overall, the win snapped the Wildcats' 6-game losing streak in true road games, while ending the Cyclones' 8-game home court winning streak, and gave the team consecutive wins at Hilton Coliseum for the first time since 2010 and 2011. The Lloyd Noble Center has been a difficult place to play for K-State with just 10 victories in 35 visits, including just 4 in the Big 12 era, and 3 consecutive losses by an average of 16.3 points per game.
After his back-to-back game-winners and 20-point games, Brown was selected as the Phillips 66 Big 12 Player of the Week for the first time in his career on Monday. The senior averaged 26.0 points on 52.9 percent shooting (18-of-34) to go with 3.0 steals, 2.5 assists and 2.0 rebounds in 37.0 minutes per game in the wins over West Virginia and No. 20/21 Iowa State. He was particularly impressive in the second half of the two victories, scoring 38 of his 52 points (19.0 points average) while posting the game-winning lay-up against the Mountaineers to complete a school-record 21-point comeback and the game-winning lay-up against the Cyclones with 4 seconds.
Led by Kruger, who played (1971-74) and coached (1986-90) the Wildcats, No. 20/19 Oklahoma enters Wednesday's game, as the Big 12's best rebounding team at 42.7 boards per game, including 32.0 on the defensive end, while averaging 74.4 points on 44.4 percent shooting, including 34.2 percent from 3-point range. Guard Christian James is enjoying a stellar senior season, as he leads the Sooners in both scoring (16.8 ppg.) and rebounding (7.7 rpg.) to go with a team-best 36 made 3-point field goals, while 4 others are averaging 8 or points, including sophomore Brady Manek (11.6 ppg.), graduate transfers Miles Reynolds (9.5 ppg.) and Aaron Calixte (8.9 ppg.) and junior Kristian Doolittle (9.2 ppg.).
This will be the 208th meeting between K-State and Oklahoma with the Sooners holding a 108-99 advantage, including a decisive 63-27 edge in games played in Norman. Oklahoma owns a slight 16-14 lead since the start of Big 12 play with wins in 5 of the last 7 meetings at the Lloyd Noble Center. The teams split their series a year ago with the Wildcats winning at home, 87-69, on Jan. 16, 2018 and the Sooners winning at home, 86-77, on Feb. 24, 2018.
After dropping its first 2 Big 12 games, K-State followed up its historic come-from-behind 71-69 win over West Virginia on Wednesday with yet another rally to win 58-57 at No. 20/21 Iowa State on Saturday. Down 55-48 with 5:02 play after the Cyclones rattled off a 14-2 run, the Wildcats slowly chipped away at the deficit, as Brown scored eight of the team's last 10 points, including the game-winner with 4 seconds. The team was buoyed by the return of senior Dean Wade, who had missed the last 6 games due to injury, and returned to grab a game-high 9 rebounds in 22 minutes.

NOTES ON OKLAHOMA

No. 20/19 Oklahoma (13-3, 2-2 Big 12) remained a perfect 7-0 at home this year, as the Sooners came from behind to knock off No. 25 TCU, 76-74, on Saturday at the Lloyd Noble Center. Junior Kristian Doolittle led four players in double figures with a team-high 24 points and 10 rebounds, while senior Christian James added 15 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals. The Sooners have won their two Big 12 home games (Oklahoma State and TCU) and have lost their two road games (Kansas and Texas Tech).
Oklahoma is averaging 74.4 points on 44.4 percent shooting, including 34.2 percent from 3-point range, to go with a Big 12-best 42.7 rebounds, 13.0 assists, 5.8 steals and 4.1 blocks per game, while allowing 66.7 points on 37.7 percent shooting, including 31.4 percent from 3-point range. The team is connecting on 67.3 percent from the free throw line.
James, who is off to a strong senior season, paces the Sooners in scoring (16.8 ppg.), rebounding (7.7 rpg.) and steals (1.1 spg.), while connecting 43.7 percent from the field to go with a team-best 36 made 3-point field goals. Sophomore Brady Manek also averages double figures at 11.6 points per game to go with 7.4 rebounds per outing, while 3 others (Miles Reynolds, Kristian Doolittle and Aaron Calixte) are all averaging better than 8 points per game. Calixte is averaging a team-best 3.3 assists per game.
Oklahoma is led by future Hall of Fame coach Lon Kruger, who has posted a 153-94 (.619) mark while guiding the school to 5 NCAA Tournaments. He has a 632-398 (.614) record in his 33rd season as a head coach, which includes stints at Pan American, K-State, Florida, Illinois and UNLV.

SERIES HISTORY

K-State and Oklahoma will meet for the 208th time in their histories on Wednesday with the Sooners holding a 108-99 advantage, including a 63-27 mark in Norman. The two schools have met at least once every season since 1920 with the 207 meetings the fifth-most against one opponent in school history, while 99 wins are the fourth-most against one foe.
Oklahoma holds a slight 16-14 advantage in the Big 12 era with 6 wins in the last 7 meetings at the Lloyd Noble Center. The Sooners have won 3 straight at home in the series by an average of 16.3 points per game. The Wildcats have not won in Norman since a 66-63 overtime win in 2015.
Last season, Barry Brown, Jr., (24) and Dean Wade (21)?led four players in double figures in an 87-69 upset of the No. 4/6 Oklahoma at home on Jan. 16, 2018, while the Sooners enacted revenge at home, 86-77, on Feb. 24, 2018, as Trae Young paced four players in double figures with 28 points.
Head coach Bruce Weber is 8-4 all-time against Oklahoma, including a 2-4 mark on the road, while Weber is 9-4 against head coach Lon Kruger.
Senior Barry Brown, Jr., has had the most success against Oklahoma in his career, averaging 17.0 points on 48.8 percent shooting in 6 career games (5 starts), while fellow senior Dean Wade has averaged 13.2 points and 6.7 rebounds in 6 career games (5 starts) vs. the Sooners.

KRUGER VS. HIS ALMA MATER

Lon Kruger is one of 10 Wildcats to have their jerseys raised to the rafters, as the Silver Lake, Kansas, native was a 2-time Big Eight Player of the Year (1973, 1974) and 2-time Academic All-American for K-State from 1971-74. Coached by legendary head coach Jack Hartman, Kruger led the Wildcats to 61-22 (.735) record during his career, which included 2 Big Eight titles and pair of NCAA?Tournament appearances.
Kruger later served as assistant coach (1978-82) for Hartman before succeeding him as head coach in 1986 where he became the first head coach in school history to lead the Wildcats to four consecutive NCAA?Tournaments, posting an 81-46 (.638) record.

LAST TIME OUT: K-STATE 58, 20/21 IOWA STATE 57

Senior Barry Brown, Jr.'s driving lay-up with 4 seconds left helped lift Kansas State past No. 20/21 Iowa State, 58-57, on Saturday before a sold-out crowd at Hilton Coliseum. It marked the second consecutive game that Brown has delivered the game winner after his lay-up with 29 seconds gave K-State the lead for good in the historic 21-point come-from-behind victory over West Virginia on Jan. 9.
Nearly mirroring his effort against the Mountaineers, Brown poured in 18 of his game-high 23 points in the second half against the Cyclones after scoring 20 of his game-high 29 points against WVU after halftime. In the last 2 games, he is averaging 19.0 points on 53.8 percent shooting (14-of-26) from the field and 8-of-10 from the line in the second half.
The win gave K-State consecutive wins at Hilton Coliseum for the first time since 2010 and 2011, while ending Iowa State's 8-game home court streak. The Wildcats won for the first time in 4 road games this season and snapped a 6-game skid in true road games dating back to last season.
K-State was buoyed by the return of senior Dean Wade, who had missed the last 6 games due to injury. Wade played 22 minutes in the start, scoring 2 points and grabbing a game-high 9 rebounds. It marked his first game back since injuring his foot against Georgia State (12/15/18).
K-State held the Big 12's top scoring offense (81.3 ppg.) to a season-low 57 points on 42 percent (21-of-50) shooting, including 37.5 percent (9-of-24) from 3-point range. K-State has now held 79 opponents to 60 points or less in the Bruce Weber era, including 10 of 16 opponents this season.
Brown was joined in double figures by fellow senior Kamau Stokes, who scored all 12 of his points in the first half, a half in which the Wildcats scored their most points (36) since the George Mason game on Dec. 29, 2018. Sophomore Cartier Diarra added 8 points off the bench after starting the previous 6 games with Wade out.
With the win, Weber claimed his 450th victory in his 21-year coaching career, while he broke a tie with Jack Hartman (1970-86) for the most career Top 25 victories in school history with his 23rd in his seventh season.

'CATS HAVE BEEN STELLAR ON DEFENSE UNDER WEBER

K-State has put up some impressive defensive numbers under head coach Bruce Weber, leading the Big 12 in scoring defense twice in the last 6 years (60.4 ppg., in 2012-13 and 65.4 ppg., in 2013-14). Last season, the Wildcats held opponents to 67 points on 42.5 percent shooting.
K-State is holding opponents to 59.4 points on 40.2 percent shooting, including 31.1 percent from 3-point range, while forcing 15.1 turnovers per game. The Wildcats rank fifth in scoring defense, 46th in field goal percentage defense and 62nd in 3-point field goal percentage defense. The team ranks second in scoring defense and turnovers forced, third in rebounding defense and fourth in 3-point field goal percentage defense in the Big 12.
K-State has held 10 of 16 opponents to 60 points or less this season with one eclipsing 70. The squad has now held 79 opponents to 60 points or less in Weber's tenure, boasting a 71-8 mark (losses to Kansas in 2012, Northern Colorado and Kentucky in 2013, Texas Southern and Georgia in 2014, Texas and Oklahoma State in 2016, West Virginia in 2017 and Tulsa in 2018).
Prior to allowing Texas to score 67 points on Jan. 2, K-State had held each of its last 5 opponents to 54.6 points on 37.1 percent (99-of-267) shooting, including 25 percent (32-of-128) from 3-point range. It marked just the third time since the inception of the shot clock in 1985-86 that the Wildcats held 5 straight opponents below 60 points and the first time since a 5-game stretch from Dec. 11, 2008 to Jan. 3, 2009.
K-State has a 116-31 (.789) record under Weber when holding a foe to 69 points or less and a 21-53 (.284) when allowing 70 or more points.

POINTS OFF TURNOVERS

Nearly a third of K-State's total points (269/1042) this season have come off turnovers, as the Wildcats are averaging 16.8 points off 15.1 opponent mistakes per game. The team ranks 51st nationally in turnover margin (+3.0), 81st in turnovers forced (15.1) and 107th in steals (7.2).
The Wildcats scored 20 or more points off turnovers in 6 games, including a season-high 25 in the come-from-behind 71-69 victory over West Virginia (1/9/19). They have also put up 20 points or more off opponent turnovers against Kennesaw State (20), Denver (23), Eastern?Kentucky (24), Penn (22) and Marquette (22).
K-State has scored more than 3,000 points (3,369) off turnovers during Weber's tenure, an average of 15.2 points per game. In 2017-18, the Wildcats averaged 17.3 points off turnovers, outscoring opponents, 639-423.
A?year ago, K-State ranked eighth nationally in total steals (294) and 18th in steals per game (7.9), while the school was one of just 5 nationally (Georgia State, Nicholls State, Purdue and Stephen F. Austin) with three players (Barry Brown, Jr., Dean Wade and Xavier Sneed) with 40 or more steals.
Led by all-time steals leader Barry Brown, Jr., who recently broke the record with 211st steal against Vanderbilt (12/22/18), the Wildcats have 3 other players with 100 or more steals, including Kamau Stokes (112), Xavier Sneed (111) and Dean Wade (105). Stokes now ranks 10th in career steals, while Sneed and Wade could also join the career Top 10.

IMPROVED REBOUNDING

One of the big emphasis in the off-season was rebounding, as the Wildcats finished 10th in the Big 12 in every rebounding categories, including overall rebounding (30.7), offensive rebounds (8.2), defensive rebounds (22.5) and rebounding margin (-3.4). The 30.7 rebounding average was the lowest by a K-State team since averaging just 30.0 per game in 1984-85.
K-State is currently averaging 35.8 rebounds per game, which is still only ninth in the Big 12, to go with averages of 9.9 offensive and 25.9 defensive rebounds per game. On the positive side, the Wildcats are allowing foes just 32.0 rebounds per game, which ranks third in the Big 12, and hold a Big 12-best 79.0 defensive rebounding percentage.
K-State has out-rebounded 11 of 16 opponents, including twice in 4 Big 12 games. In comparison, the Wildcats out-rebounded just 10 opponents in 2017-18 in 37 games.
K-State added one of the top rebounders in the community college ranks in junior Austin Trice, as he is averaging 3.4 rebounds per game in just 9.6 minutes game. Trice ranked among the Top 10 in 4 rebounding categories in the community college ranks in 2017-18, including 4th in average (12.1 rpg.).
In addition to Trice, the entire team has collectively elevated their efforts in rebounding this season, including Dean Wade (6.2 to 7.9 rpg.), Xavier Sneed (5.1 to 5.5 rpg.), Makol Mawien (3.4 to 4.5 rpg.), Barry Brown,?Jr., (3.1 to 4.1 rpg.) and Cartier Diarra (2.5 to 3.4 rpg.).

HISTORIC COMEBACK

K-State overcame its largest deficit ever when senior Barry Brown, Jr., laid in the go-ahead bucket with 29 seconds left to cap a 50-point second half by the Wildcats in a 71-69 defeat of West Virginia (1/9/19).
K-State trailed by as many as 21 points a little more than a minute into the second half before a 17-0 run cut the deficit to 42-38 with 13:07 left. A 4-point play by junior Xavier Sneed gave the Wildcats their first lead with 2:30 remaining before the Mountaineers regained the advantage, 69-68, on a Lamont West free throw a minute later. In the final 60 seconds, Brown put the Wildcats ahead 70-69 with a layup with 29 seconds remaining.
West Virginia missed a shot in the paint with 5 seconds and Sneed came down with the rebound and was sent to the line, where he hit one free throw. The Mountaineers were unable to get a final shot up at the buzzer.
Brown led K-State behind a season-high 29 points on 9-of-14 field goals and a 10-of-12 effort from the line to go with a career-tying 6 steals. It was his highest point total since scoring 34 points at Baylor on Jan. 22, 2018. In the process, he became the ninth Wildcat to eclipse 1,500 career points.
Brown was joined in double figures by a career night from sophomore Mike McGuirl, who scored a career-high 18 points on 7-of-12 field goals, including 4-of-6 from 3-point range, while senior Kamau Stokes and Xavier Sneed added 12 and 10 points, respectively. It was McGuirl's second career double-digit scoring game and his first since the 2018 NCAA Tournament.
K-State scored its 50 points after halftime on 62.1 percent (18-of-29) shooting, including 63.6 percent (7-of-11) from 3-point range, compared to just 21 in the first half on 29.2 percent (7-of-24) shooting, including 16.7 percent (2-of-12) from long range. In addition, the Wildcats scored 25 points off 17 Mountaineers turnovers, while only turning the ball over 6 times.
It marked the second time this season that K-State had rallied from a double-digit deficit at home, as the Wildcats came from 16 points down to defeat Southern Miss, 55-51, on?Dec. 19 at home. Senior Kamau?Stokes scored 16 of his season-high 18 points in the second half.
K-State went on a 24-2 run over 8:08 in the second half to take over the game, as the Wildcats held the Golden Eagles scoreless for 5:24 during the span. The run came after scoring a season-low 19 points in the first half, the fewest points in any half since scoring 15 vs. TCU on Feb. 15, 2015.

OFFENSIVE STRUGGLES

K-State is averaging a Big 12-low 65.1 points on 41.9 percent shooting (379-of-904), including 31 percent (98-of-316) from 3-point range, and 63.3 percent (186-of-294) from the free throw line. The Wildcats rank 328th among 351 Division I?teams in scoring offense, 291st in field goal percentage, 305th in 3-point field goal percentage and 331st in free throw percentage.
In the Big 12, K-State ranks ninth in 3-point field goal percentage and 10th in scoring offense, field goal percentage and free throw percentage.
The Wildcats have scored 70 or more points on just 6 occasions, including a season-high 95 points in the win over Eastern Kentucky (11/16/18), while they have only connected on 45 percent from the field in 5 games and 40 percent or better from the 3-point line on 3 occasions.
With a healthy roster in the first 9 games, K-State was averaging 69.6 points on 43.6 percent shooting, including 30.9 percent from 3-point range. However, when the Wildcats lost senior Dean Wade to injury against Georgia State (12/15/18) for a 6-game stretch, the squad averaged just 59.7 points on 40.2 percent shooting, including 31.1 percent from long range.

3-POINT WOES

K-State struggled from the 3-point line this season, connecting on just 31 percent (98-of-316) of its attempts from long range and averaging just 6.1 makes per game. The Wildcats rank 305th in 3-point field goal percentage, 285th in 3-pointers attempted and 314th in 3-pointers per game.
Senior Kamau Stokes, who has knocked down 19 treys in his last 7 games played, leads with 28 made 3-pointers this season, while junior Xavier Sneed is second with 23. Senior Barry Brown, Jr., (17) and sophomore Cartier Diarra (11) are only other Wildcats with double-digit 3-pointers.
This comes on the heels of a record-setting 2017-18 season from 3-point range, in which, the Wildcats set both single-season marks for makes (254) and attempts (745), while five different players posted 30 or more 3-point field goals led by Xavier Sneed's 65 makes.
Stokes (168/7th) and Brown (148/9th) rank among the school's career Top 10 in 3-point field goals made (and attempted), while Sneed (126) and Wade (111) also have 100 makes in their careers from long range.

OFFENSIVE BALANCE KEY TO SUCCESS

Much like 2017-18, balance has been key to K-State's offensive success this season, as four players (Barry Brown, Jr., Dean Wade, Xavier Sneed and Kamau Stokes) are averaging in double figures.
Five different players (Wade, Brown, Sneed, Stokes and Makol Mawien) have led the Wildcats in scoring, while 7 players have at least one double-digit scoring game, including 12 by Brown, 11 by Stokes, 9 by Sneed, 8 by Wade, 6 by Mawien and 3 by sophomore Cartier Diarra.
Since Weber took over in 2012-13, K-State has posted a 58-19 (.750) record when four or more players score in double figures, including a 6-1 mark in 2018-19. The Wildcats are 12-4 when Mawien scores in double digits, while the team is 10-3 (8-2 in 2017-18) when Diarra reaches double-digits.

GAME OF RUNS

K-State's use of runs have been particularly effective this season, as the Wildcats have totaled 36 runs of at least 7 or more points, including 22 runs of 10 or more points. The team posted five such runs in the win over Georgia State (12/15/18), including runs of 8-0, 16-4, 13-2, 12-0 and 9-1, while they produced the biggest run (24-2) in the comeback win over Southern Miss (12/19/18), which was the largest comeback before the West Virginia game. The team had a 17-0 run to close the gap against the Mountaineers.
The Paradise Jam was a tournament of runs for K-State, as the Wildcats put together decisive runs, particularly at the end of the first half, en route to double-digit wins against Eastern Kentucky (11/16/18), Penn (11/18/18) and Missouri (11/19/18) in the title game.
K-State had runs of 12-2 and 20-6 against EKU to take control, while the Wildcats erupted for a 17-2 run right before halftime against Penn then had another 14-4 run to break it back open after the Quakers had closed to within 6 points. Against Missouri, the squad scored 20 of the next 22 points after a 27-all tie then used a 10-4 spurt to push the lead back out to 19 points.
In addition, K-State used a 21-7 to jump out ahead of Vanderbilt (12/22/18) en route to building a 22-point lead in the second half, while the Wildcats had 17-0 and 20-8 runs in the comeback against West Virginia (1/9/19) and ended the Iowa State (1/12/19) game on a 10-2 run.

BROWN HAS 2 GAME WINNERS; NAMED BIG 12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Senior Barry Brown, Jr., earned Phillips 66 Big 12 Player of the Week honors for the first time on Monday after posting the game-winners in K-State's victories over West Virginia and No. 20/21 Iowa State last week.
Brown averaged 26 points on 52.9 percent shooting (18-of-34) and 81.3 percent (13-of-16) from the free throw line to go with 3.0 steals, 2.5 assists, 2.0 rebounds in 37.0 minutes per game in the two wins. He was particularly impressive in the second half in the two victories, scoring 38 of his 52 points (19.0 points average) on 53.8 percent shooting (14-of-26).
Brown helped K-State engineer a school-record 21-point comeback in the victory over the Mountaineers. He scored a season-high 29 points on 9-of-14 field goals and 10-of-12 free throws to go with a career-tying 6 steals, 1 assist, 1 block and 1 rebound in 38 minutes. He scored 20 of his 29 points (on 7-of-10 field goals) in the second half, including the game-winning lay-up with 29 seconds. His 6 steals tied for the second-most in a conference game.
Brown continued his impressive week in helping K-State win back-to-back games at Hilton Coliseum, as he scored a game-high 23 points on 9-of-20 field goals to go with 4 assists and 3 rebounds in 36 minutes. Much like WVU, he did most of his damage in the second half, scoring 18 points of the Wildcats' last 21 points, including the game-winning lay-up with 4 seconds.

MORE ON BROWN

Senior Barry Brown, Jr., registered a significant milestone in the win over Vanderbilt (12/22/18), becoming the school's all-time steals leader with 3 against the Commodores to eclipse Jacob Pullen (210, 2007-11). Brown now has 220 career steals in 121 games played.
Brown places among several career offensive records, including 7th in field goals made (540) and attempted (1,310) and 3-pointers attempted (461), 8th in double-digit scoring games (75) and 9th in scoring (1,526), 3-point field goals made (148) and assists (293). He is closing in on the Top 10 in free throws made (298) and attempted (423) .
Brown also ranks among the leaders in games played, as his streak of 121 consecutive games and 99 straight starts both rank fourth in school history. He is also third in career minutes played (3,822), needing 653 to pass Steve Henson (4,474; 1987-90). He has a chance to eclipse the school record of 135 set by Jacob Pullen (2007-11) and Rodney McGruder (2009-13).

WADE COMES BACK

Senior Dean Wade made his return to the court in Saturday's win over Iowa State (1/12/19), scoring 2 points on 5 field goal attempts and grabbing a game-high 9 rebounds in 22 minutes. He had missed the last 6 games due to a foot injury that occurred in the second half vs. Georgia State (12/15/18).
Although a different injury, Wade has been through the injury process before, as he was injured in the second half of the quarterfinal game with TCU (3/8/18) in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship, which caused him to miss most of the NCAA?Tournament run to the Elite Eight.

STOKES ECLIPSES 1,000 CAREER POINTS

With 20 points against George Mason (12/29/18), senior Kamau Stokes became the 30th player to post 1,000 points and joined fellow seniors Barry Brown, Jr., and Dean Wade in achieving the milestone. The trio became the first class in school history to each top 1,000 career points in a career.
Brown (1,526 points) and Wade (1,311 points) each eclipsed the mark as juniors and currently rank 9th and 12th, respectively, on the all-time scoring list, while Stokes ranks 25th with 1,043 points.
Stokes already ranks in the career Top 10 for both 3-point field goals made (168/7th) and attempted (488/6th), while he ranks fifth with 356 assists and is one of just eight players in school history with 300 or more assists.

DON'T?FORGET?SNEED

With all the attention paid to the three seniors, the accomplishments of junior Xavier Sneed have somehow been overlooked. The St. Louis native enjoyed a career best year in 2017-18, averaging 11.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 31.4 minutes per game while starting all 37 games.
Since missing the opener with Kennesaw State (11/9), Sneed has scored in double figures in 9 of the last 15 games, including a season-high 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting against Eastern Kentucky (11/16/18).
Sneed collected his second career double-double and first of the season at Tulsa (12/8/18), posting a team-best 13 points to go with 10 rebounds.

WELCOME GOODNEWS

K-State got some unexpected "good news" on New Year's Eve when recent signee Goodnews Kpegeol (KAH-pay-GUL) joined the team and filled the 13th and final scholarship for the reminder of the 2018-19 season.
An NCAA?qualifier prior to enrolling at TaylorMade Academy in Pensacola, Florida for the 2018-19, Kpegeol is immediately eligible after enrolling for the spring semester and has been cleared to play by the NCAA. He is expected to redshirt the reminder of the season.
A 6-foot-6, 180-pound guard from St. Paul, Minnesota, Kpegeol spent the first half of the 2018-19 season as a postgraduate at TaylorMade after finishing his four-year prep career at North High School. He led the Polars to the Class 4A State Tournament for the first time in 17 years as a sophomore in 2015-16 before the school to a 22-5 record with a 15-1 mark in conference play as a senior in 2017-18. He averaged a team-best 18.2 points in 19 games played as a senior, which included nine 20-point games.

K-STATE WINS PARADISE JAM; FIRST TITLE SINCE 2011

Included in K-State's 6-0 start to season was a 3-game sweep to win the 19^th annual U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam in St. Thomas, U.S.V.I., Nov. 16-19, as the Wildcats knocked off Eastern Kentucky (95-68), Penn (64-48) and Missouri (82-67).
The tournament championship marked the 14^th in school history and the first since winning the 2011 Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu, Hawai'i. It was also the sixth career tournament title for head coach Bruce Weber and his first with the Wildcats.
Senior Dean Wade was named the tournament's most valuable player after averaging 17.3 points on 61.8 percent (21-of-34) shooting with 6.0 rebounds and 3.7 assists in three games, including a team-high 21 points in the title game against the Tigers, while fellow senior Barry Brown, Jr., was one of five players selected as Paradise Jam Tournament All-Stars.

MORE ABOUT K-STATE

The Wildcats return 10 lettermen, including six players (Barry Brown, Jr., Cartier Diarra, Makol Mawien, Xavier Sneed, Kamau Stokes and Dean Wade) that combined to start all 37 games a season ago, for a team that posted a 25-12 overall record (10-8 in Big 12 play) and advanced to the Elite Eight for the 12th time in school history and the first time since 2010.
It marked just the sixth 25-win campaign in school history, including the second under head coach Bruce Weber, while the school advanced to the NCAA?Tournament for the fourth time in six seasons and 30th time overall.
K-State returns 185 combined starts from 2017-18, which is the most of any Division I team in the country, and ahead of other schools which return all of its starts, including George Mason (165), Iowa (165), Lipscomb (165) and North Florida (165).
K-State returns 93.2 percent (2,452 of 2,630 points) of its offense from 2017-18, which ranks 11th among Division I teams (trailing George Mason, Harvard, Wofford, Washington, Brown, Iowa, Wisconsin, UC Irvine, Syracuse and St.?Francis). The Wildcats also returns more than 90 percent of their field goals made (869/92.7%), 3-point field goals made (232/91.3%), free throws made (482/96%), assists (476/93.3%) and steals (266/90.5%) as well as 80 or better percent of their minutes (6,558/85%), rebounds (905/80%) and blocks (98/89%).
K-State returns seven of its top-8 scorers from last season, including three with double-digit averages [Wade (16.2 ppg.), Brown (15.9 ppg.) and Sneed (11.1 ppg.). Other returners include Kamau Stokes (9.0 ppg.), Cartier Diarra (7.1 ppg.), Makol Mawien (6.8 ppg.) and Mike McGuirl (3.3 ppg.). The Wildcats return their individual leader in scoring (Wade), rebounding (Wade), assists (Brown), steals (Brown) and blocks (Mawien).

'CATS EARN PRESEASON RANKINGS

K-State opened the 2018-19 season in the Top 15 in both major polls, as the Wildcats earned a No. 11 ranking in the preseason USA Today Coaches poll to go with a No. 12 ranking in the preseason Associated Press poll.
It marks the first time that K-State has started with preseason rankings in both polls since the 2010-11 campaign when the school opened at No. 3 in the AP and USA Today Coaches polls.
K-State appeared in the Preseason AP poll for the 17th time in school history, while it was the highest preseason ranking since starting the 2010-11 campaign at No. 3. It was also the 12th time debuting in the AP Top 15 (1951-52, 1952-53, 1953-54, 1956-57, 1957-58, 1958-59, 1961-62, 1964-65, 1965-66, 1975-76 and 2010-11).
The Wildcats have received several preseason rankings, including No. 11 by NBCSports.com, Yahoo! Sports, Street & Smith's, Lindy's and Athlon, No. 12 by ESPN.com, CBSSports.com, USA Today, Stadium, No. 13 by The Athletic, Blue Ribbon Yearbook and No. 14 by SI.com.
K-State was one of four Big 12 teams to place in both Top 25 polls, as Kansas was the unanimous No. 1 team. West Virginia was No. 13 in both polls, while TCU was ranked No. 20 (Coaches) and No. 21 (AP), respectively.

'CATS PICKED SECOND IN BIG 12 PLAY; WADE NAMED PRESEASON POY

K-State was picked to finish second by the league coaches in the annual Big 12 Preseason poll released on Oct. 19, as the Wildcats received 72 points and two first-place votes. Kansas was selected first, while West Virginia, TCU and Texas rounded out the Top 5.
The second-place selection was the second-highest by a K-State team in the history of the poll, following the 2010-11 team which was picked to finish first with 119 points. In fact, the Wildcats have been picked to finish fifth or better on just six other occasions in the poll, including fourth in 2007-08, 2009-10 and 2014-15 and fifth in 2006-07, 2012-13 and 2013-14.
Senior Dean Wade became just the second Wildcat to ever be selected the Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year by the league coaches, while Wade and Barry Brown, Jr., were both named to the Preseason All-Big 12 Team. The duo was joined on the team by Kansas' Dedric Lawson, Iowa State's Lindell Wigginton and West Virginia's Sagaba Konate.
Wade's selection marked the second time that a K-State player has been named the preseason Player of the Year and the first since Jacob Pullen in 2010-11. It also was just the second time that two Wildcats appeared on the Preseason All-Big 12 Team, following Pullen and Curtis Kelly in 2010-11. Wade and Brown are just the sixth and seventh players in school history to earn recognition to the Preseason All-Big 12 (since 1996-97), following Manny Dies in 1998-99, Kelly and Pullen in 2010-11, Rodney McGruder in 2012-13 and Marcus Foster in 2014-15.

NEXT UP: TCU (12-3, 1-2 BIG 12)

K-State begins a 2-game homestand on Saturday, as the Wildcats play host to TCU (12-3, 1-2 Big 12) at 3 p.m., CT on Legends Weekend, as the school will host a reunion of its men's basketball lettermen as well as honor both Tex Winter and Willie Murrell, who passed away earlier this year.

Game Preview // K-State, 20/19 Oklahoma Tangle Wednesday on ESPN2

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Barry Brown, Jr.

Cartier Diarra

Goodnews Kpegeol

Makol Mawien

Mike McGuirl

Xavier Sneed

Kamau Stokes

Austin Trice

Dean Wade

Kansas State University Athletics

Game Preview // K-State, 20/19 Oklahoma Tangle Wednesday on ESPN2

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Barry Brown, Jr.

Cartier Diarra

Goodnews Kpegeol

Makol Mawien

Mike McGuirl

Xavier Sneed

Kamau Stokes

Austin Trice

Dean Wade

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