Game Preview // K-State Travels to 11/11 Texas Tech Saturday

GAME 14
KANSAS STATE (10-3, 0-1 Big 12) at 11/11 TEXAS TECH (12-1, 1-0 Big 12)
Saturday, January 5, 2019 >> 1:01 p.m. CT >> United Supermarkets Arena (15,098) >> Lubbock, Texas

TELEVISION
ESPNU/ESPN3 (link)

Jay Alter (play-by-play)
Reid Gettys (analyst)
Eric Swaringen (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 127 / XM 200 / Internet 954

LIVE STATS
www.texastech.com
texastech.statbroadcast.com [media only]

TICKETS
www.texastech.com
(806) 742.TECH

Single Game: $20 (bench & GA)/$40 (chairback)

COACHES
Kansas State: Bruce Weber (Wis.-Milwaukee '78)
Overall: 448-238/21^st season
At K-State: 135-83/7^th season
vs Texas Tech: 8-5 (2-4 on the road)

Texas Tech: Chris Beard (Texas '95)
Overall: 228-75/10^th season
At Texas Tech: 57-25/3^rd season
vs. Kansas State: 3-1 (2-0 at home)

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
Kansas State (10-3)
G: #00 Mike McGuirl
G: #2 Cartier Diarra
G: #5 Barry Brown, Jr.
G/F: #20 Xavier Sneed
F: #14 Makol Mawien

Texas Tech (12-1)
G: #13 Matt Mooney
G: #23 Jarrett Culver
G: #25 Davide Moretti
F: #11 Tariq Owens
C: #32 Norense Odiase

SERIES HISTORY
Overall: K-State leads 23-15
Current Streak: Texas Tech, 2
In Lubbock: Texas Tech leads 11-7
At United Supermarkets Arena: Texas Tech leads 9-4
Last Meeting: L, 47-66, 2/10/18
Weber vs. Beard: 1-3 (0-2 on the road)

OPENING TIP

Kansas State (10-3, 0-1 Big 12) hits the road for the first time in Big 12 play on Saturday, as the Wildcats travel to Lubbock, Texas to take on No. 11/11 Texas Tech (12-1, 1-0 Big 12) at United Supermarkets Arena. The game will tip at 1 p.m., CT on ESPNU with Jay Alter (play-by-play) and Reid Gettys (analyst) on the call.
K-State ended a 5-game homestand in Wednesday's 67-47 loss to Texas, as the Wildcats will play 3 of their next 4 games on the road beginning with the contest at Texas Tech, which has won 9 in a row at home and 25 of its last 26 games at United Supermarkets Arena. K-State is 0-2 in true road games this season having dropped back-to-back games at Marquette and Tulsa in early December. The Wildcats have lost 4 straight to the Red Raiders on the road with the last win coming in 2014.
Texas Tech has been one of the most dominate teams in the Big 12, winning games by an average of 21.5 points per game while holding opponents to just 52.8 points on 33.4 percent shooting, including 24.7 percent from 3-point range. The Red Raiders have lost just once, giving top-ranked Duke all it could handle before losing 69-58 on Dec. 20, while posting quality non-conference wins over USC (78-63), Nebraska (70-52) and Memphis (78-67) before Wednesday's 62-59 win at West Virginia.
This will be the 39th meeting between K-State and Texas Tech on the hardwood with the Wildcats holding a 23-15 advantage, including a narrow 16-14 edge since the start of Big 12 play. The Red Raiders have won 5 of the last 7 games in the series since ending a 10-game losing streak in 2015. Last season, they swept both regular season meetings for the first time in the round-robin era in 2012.
K-State, which saw its 2-game winning streak end in Big 12 openers in the loss to Texas, has not started a league season 0-2 since opening the 2016 campaign with 3 straight defeats en route to a 5-13 record. The 5 league wins were the fewest in 13 seasons for the Wildcats. The team played the Longhorns without 2 starters, as senior Dean Wade missed his fourth straight game due to a foot injury, while fellow senior Kamau Stokes missed his first game due to nagging foot injury which was initially hurt in last season's matchup in Lubbock and caused him to miss 7 games.
With K-State leading 35-34 at the under 12-minute timeout, Texas got back-to-back 3-pointers from Jase Febres to blow open a tight game and help the Longhorns snap a 4-game losing streak and earn their first win in Manhattan since 2016. In all, Texas knocked down 14 3-pointers, including 9 in the second half, as the squad outscored K-State, 32-13, in the last 11 minutes. The 14 treys tied for the third-most by a Wildcat opponent and the most since Nebraska also canned 14 treys on Feb. 17, 2010. K-State managed to score just 47 points on 32.7 percent shooting, which tied for the fourth-fewest at Bramlage Coliseum and the fewest since Texas Tech also held the Wildcat to 47 in 2018.
Despite the outburst by Texas on Wednesday, K-State remains among the best nationally in several defensive categories, including eighth in scoring defense (58.5 ppg.), 33rd in 3-point field goal percentage (29.6) and 45th in field goal percentage defense (39.4). The Wildcats have allowed just one opponent to break 70 points this season (83 by Marquette), while holding 9 of 13 opponents to 60 points or less.

NOTES ON TEXAS TECH

No. 11/11 Texas Tech (12-1, 1-0 Big 12) enters Saturday's contest on the heels of its first-ever victory at West Virginia in the Big 12 opener, as the Red Raiders turned the tables on the usually turnover-inducing Mountaineers, scoring 27 points off 22 miscues despite shooting just 38.2 percent from the field, including 16.7 percent from 3-point range. Big 12 Player of the Year candidate Jarrett Culver led three players in double figures with 18 points.
Texas Tech returns 6 lettermen, including 2 starters, from a squad that won 27 games and advanced to the Elite Eight in 2017-18.
Texas Tech is averaging 74.3 points on 48.4 percent shooting, including 34.8 percent from 3-point range, to go with 36.5 rebounds, 15.2 assists, 7.8 steals and 4.8 blocks per game, while allowing 52.8 points on 33.4 percent shooting, including 24.7 percent from 3-point range. The team is connecting on 68.8 percent from the free throw line.
Culver leads a balanced Texas Tech squad that has 6 players averaging 7 or more points per game. Culver is averaging 19.5 points on 57.2 percent shooting, including 45.2 percent from 3-point range, to go with team-bests in 5.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 29.1 minutes per game. He ranks second in the Big 12 in scoring, fifth in field goal percentage and fourth in assists. Graduate transfer Matt Mooney also averages double figures at 10.7 points per game on 44.4 percent shooting, while averaging 3.4 assists and a team-best 2.1 steals per game. Sophomore Davide Moretti (8.7 ppg.) and transfer Tariq Owens (8.1 ppg.) each average better than 8 points per contest.
Texas Tech is led by third-year head coach Chris Beard, who has a 57-25 record in his tenure. He has a 228-75 record in just his 10th season as a head coach, which includes an impressive one-year stint at Little Rock (2009-15), leading the Trojans to a win over Purdue in the NCAA?Tournament.

SERIES HISTORY

K-State and Texas Tech will meet for the 39th time in their histories on Saturday with the Wildcats owning a 23-15 advantage, including a 16-14 edge since the start of the Big 12. The series is 23-17 with a pair of forfeits by Texas Tech in 1997. Overall, the series dates to 1955.
Texas Tech owns an 11-7 advantage in games played in Lubbock, including a 9-4 mark at United Supermarkets Arena. K-State has dropped 4 straight in Lubbock by average of almost 11 points, including a 74-58 loss in the teams' last meeting on Jan. 6, 2018, in which, Barry Brown, Jr., led with 22 points. The Wildcats' last win in Lubbock came in a 60-56 victory on Feb. 25, 2014.
Head coach Bruce Weber is 8-5 all-time against Texas Tech, including a 2-4 mark on the road, while Weber is 1-3 against head coach Chris Beard.
Senior Dean Wade has had the most success against Texas Tech in his career, averaging 12.2 points on 49 percent shooting in 6 career games, while senior Barry Brown, Jr., has averaged 10.7 points on 32.8 percent shooting with 2.7 rebounds, 2.2 steals and 1.3 assists in 6 games.

ON THE ROAD IN THE BIG 12

K-State is 168-270 (.384) on the road in Big 12 play, including 18-34 (.346) under head coach Bruce Weber. Since going 4-21 (.160) on the road from 2013-16, the Wildcats have rebounded for a respectable 8-10 (.444) over the past two seasons, including 4-5 a season ago.
K-State is 4-8 in its first Big 12 road game since 2006-07, including wins in 2008 (Oklahoma), 2013 (West Virginia), 2014 (TCU) and 2018 (Iowa State).

LAST TIME OUT: TEXAS 67, K-STATE 47

Texas knocked down 14 3-pointers, including 9 in the second half, as the Longhorns snapped a 4-game losing streak to Kansas State with a 67-47 win in the Big 12 opener for both teams at Bramlage Coliseum. The 20-point win was the largest against the Wildcats since 2000.
The 14 3-point field goals tied for the third-most by a Wildcat opponent and the most since Nebraska also canned 14 treys on Feb. 17, 2010. It also tied the mark for the most by an opponent in Bramlage Coliseum history, as. Missouri also had 14 3-point makes on Feb. 19, 2000.
With K-State leading 35-34 at the under 12-minute timeout, Texas got back-to-back 3-pointers from guard Jase Febres, who finished with 23 points off the bench, to ignite a run that saw the Longhorns score 33 of the game's last 45 points. Texas connected on 51.9 percent (14-of-27) from 3-point range, including an astounding 81.8 percent (9-of-11) after halftime.
K-State was held to just 47 points on 32.7 percent (17-of-52) shooting, including 33.3 percent (6-of-18) from 3-point range, and 50 percent (7-of-14) from the free throw line. The 47 points tied for fourth-fewest in Bramlage Coliseum history and the fewest since being held to 47 by Texas Tech in 2018.
Junior Makol Mawien was the lone Wildcat in double figures with 13 points on 5-of-13 shooting, while junior Xavier Sneed and senior Barry Brown, Jr., added 9 and 8 points, respectively. Brown posted 5 rebounds and 5 assists. It marked the first time since the 2017 NCAA Tournament loss to Cincinnati that only one Wildcat scored in double digits.
K-State played without two starters, as senior Dean Wade missed his fourth consecutive game and senior Kamau Stokes was held out due to a nagging foot injury. Starting in Stokes' absence, sophomore Mike McGuirl registered his first career start, posting 5 points and a career-high 3 steals in a career-best 30 minutes of action. Freshman Shaun Neal-Williams also performed well with a season-high 6 points in a season-best 20 minutes.
The loss not only snapped the Wildcats' 2-game winning streak in Big 12 opener, it also gave the squad their first loss at home (7-1) and ended the 9-game winning streak at Bramlage Coliseum.

OFFENSIVE STRUGGLES

K-State is averaging a Big 12-low 65.8 points on 42.7 percent shooting (315-of-738), including 31.5 percent (78-of-248) from 3-point range, and 62.4 percent (148-of-237) from the free throw line. The Wildcats rank 325th among 351 Division I?teams in scoring offense, 263rd in field goal percentage, 284th in 3-point field goal percentage and 334th in free throw percentage.
In the Big 12, K-State ranks ninth in field goal percentage and 3-point field goal percentage and 10th in scoring offense and free throw percentage.
The Wildcats have scored 70 or more points on just 5 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 4 games and 40 percent or better from the 3-point line on 3 occasions.
With a fully 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, since losing senior and leading scorer Dean Wade to injury against Georgia State (12/15/18), the squad is averaging just 57.5 points on 40.3 percent shooting, including 32.9 percent from long range. In this four-game span, the Wildcats have not eclipsed the 70-point barrier and have shot 45 percent from the field and 40 percent from 3-point range just once.

3-POINT WOES

K-State struggled from the 3-point line this season, connecting on just 31.5 percent (78-of-248) of its attempts from long range and averaging just 6.0 makes per game. The Wildcats rank 284th in 3-point field goal percentage, 303rd in 3-pointers attempted and 315th in 3-pointers per game.
Senior Kamau Stokes, who had knocked down 13 treys in the previous 4 games before not playing against Texas (1/2/19), leads all Wildcats with 22 made 3-pointers this season, while junior Xavier Sneed is second with 21. Senior Barry Brown, Jr., has 12 treys on the season.
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 (162/7th) and Brown (143/10th) rank among the school's career Top 10 in 3-point field goals made (and attempted), while Wade also has 100 makes (111) in his career 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 six players have at least one double-digit scoring game, including nine by Brown and Stokes, eight by Sneed and Wade, five by Mawien and two by sophomore Cartier Diarra.
Since Weber took over in 2012-13, K-State has posted a 57-19 (.750) record when four or more players score in double figures, including a 5-1 mark in 2018-19. The Wildcats are 12-3 when Mawien scores in double digits, while the team is 10-2 (8-2 in 2017-18) when Diarra reaches double-digits.

IMPRESSIVE COMEBACK

Senior Kamau Stokes scored 16 of his season-high 18 points in the second half, as K-State overcame a 16-point deficit to top Southern Miss, 55-51, at Bramlage Coliseum on Dec. 19.
The 16-point deficit overcome for victory tied for the third-largest in school history, including the largest since coming from 16 points down to defeat New Mexico on Nov. 23, 2005. It was the largest second-half deficit overcome for victory since trailing 57-41 at La Salle on Jan. 5, 1994.
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.
Stokes went 6-of-8 from the field, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range, and was joined in double digits by fellow senior Barry Brown, Jr., who scored 15 points. Junior Xavier Sneed pulled down a career-high 14 boards to lead all players and give the Wildcats a 38-32 edge on the glass.
As a team, K-State shot 45.5 percent (20-of-44) from the field, which included a great disparity from the first to second halves. The Wildcats hit on a season-low 30.8 percent (8-of-26) in the first half then made a season-best 66.7 percent (12-of-18) in the second half. Southern Miss was held to 51 points on 31.7 percent shooting, including 21.2 from 3-point range.

NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS

K-State has a 105-6 (.946) record at home venues (includes home games played at Bramlage Coliseum, INTRUST?Bank Arena in Wichita and the Sprint Center in Kansas City) in non-conference play dating back to the 2006-07 season, including a 96-5 (.950) mark at Bramlage Coliseum.
The Wildcats have won 92 of their last 96 non-conference home games, including a 29-game winning streak at Bramlage Coliseum. The last home non-conference loss came against Georgia, 50-46, on Dec. 31, 2014.
K-State has posted a 140-35 (.800) record in non-conference play since the 2006-07 season, which includes a 10-2 (.818) mark in 2018-19. The team has registered double-digit non-conference wins in 12 of the last 13 years, averaging 10.8 non-conference wins in that span, and went a program-best 13-1 in non-conference play during the 2009-10 season.
Since going 7-6 in non-conference in 2014-15, which included back-to-back losses to Texas Southern and Georgia, the Wildcats has won double-digit non-conference games each of the past three seasons and is 40-8 (.833) in non-conference play since 2015-16. It is during this span that the school has won 29 consecutive non-conference games at Bramlage Coliseum.

'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 58.5 points on 39.4 percent shooting, including 29.6 percent from 3-point range, while forcing opponents into 15.0 turnovers per game. The Wildcats rank 8th in scoring defense, 33rd in 3-point field goal defense and 45th in field goal percentage defense. The team ranks second in scoring defense and rebounding defense (31.7), third in 3-point field goal percentage defense and turnovers forced.
K-State has held 9 of 13 opponents to 60 points or less this season with one eclipsing 70. The squad has now held 78 opponents to 60 points or less in Weber's tenure, boasting a 70-8 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 Wednesday, K-State has held each of its last 5 opponents to just 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 114-30 (.792) record under Weber when holding a foe to 69 points or less and a 21-53 (.288) when allowing 70 or more points.

POINTS OFF TURNOVERS

Nearly a third of K-State's total points (222/809) this season have come off turnovers, as the Wildcats are averaging 17.1 points off 15.0 opponent mistakes per game. The team ranks 79th nationally in turnover margin (+2.5), 95th in turnovers forced (15.0) and 104th in steals (7.4).
The Wildcats scored 20 or more points off opponent turnovers in 5 of 13 games, including a season-high 24 in the win over Eastern Kentucky (11/16/18). They have also put up 20 points or more off opponent turnovers against Kennesaw State (20), Denver (23), Penn (22) and Marquette (22).
K-State has scored more than 3,000 points (3,322) 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 (109), Xavier Sneed (108) and Dean Wade (105). Stokes will join the career Top 10 with his next steal, while Sneed and Wade could also crack the list.

GAME OF RUNS

K-State's use of runs have been particularly effective this season, as the Wildcats have totaled 29 runs of at least 7 or more points, including 18 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 (down 16 points) since 2005.
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 broke open a tight game against George Mason (12/29/18) with a 20-2 run to head into halftime up 36-16. Neither team led in the contests. The Texas game was the first all season that K-State did not have at least one run of 7 or more points.

WADE OUT FOR UNDETERMINED PERIOD OF TIME DUE?TO?INJURY

Senior Dean Wade went down with a foot injury in the second half of the win over Georgia State (12/15/18) and will be out for an undetermined period of time. The timetable depends on the rehab process. So far, Wade has missed 4 games (Southern Miss, Vanderbilt,?George Mason and Texas).
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 the semifinal game with No. 9 Kansas (3/9/18) and most of the NCAA?Tournament run to the Elite Eight.

NEW STEALS LEADER BROWN CLOSING IN ON SEVERAL OTHER CAREER MARKS

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 211 career steals in 118 games played.
Brown places among several career offensive records, including seventh in field goals attempted (1,259), eighth in 3-point field goals attempted (441), ninth in scoring (1,450) and 10th in field goals (517), 3-point field goals (143), assists (286) and double-digit scoring games (72). He is closing in on the Top 10 in free throws made (281) and attempted (401).
Brown also ranks among the leaders in games played, as his streak of 118 consecutive games and 96 straight starts both ranks fourth in school history. He is also fourth in career minutes played (3,708), needing 767 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).

STOKES ECLIPSES 1,000 CAREER POINTS

With his 20-point effort against George Mason (12/29/18), senior Kamau Stokes become the 30th player in school history to post 1,000 in a career and join fellow seniors Barry Brown, Jr., and Dean Wade in achieving the milestone. The trio became the first senior class in school history to each top 1,000 career points in a career.
Brown (1,458 points) and Wade (1,309 points) each eclipsed the mark as juniors and currently rank 9th and 12th, respectively, on the all-time scoring list, while Stokes ranks 28th with 1,012 points.
Stokes already ranks in the career Top 10 for both 3-point field goals made (162/7th) and attempted (467/6th), while he ranks fifth with 344 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. He was named to the NCAA South Regional All-Tournament team after averaging 19 points and 7.5 rebounds in games against Kentucky and Loyola Chicago.
Since missing the opener with Kennesaw State (11/9), Sneed has scored in double figures in 8 of the last 12 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. He has tallied at least 9 rebounds in 4 of the last 6 games.

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: WEST VIRGINIA (8-5)

K-State returns home on Wednesday, as the Wildcats welcome former head coach Bob Huggins and his West Virginia Mountaineers (8-5, 0-1 Big 12) to Bramlage Coliseum for a 6 p.m., tip on ESPNU. The Mountaineers dropped its Big 12 opener at home to Texas Tech, 62-59, on Wednesday night and are on the road this Saturday to play Texas (9-4, 1-0 Big 12) at 8 p.m., CT before heading to Manhattan.

Game Preview // K-State Travels to 11/11 Texas Tech Saturday

Players Mentioned

Barry Brown, Jr.

Cartier Diarra

Goodnews Kpegeol

Makol Mawien

Mike McGuirl

Xavier Sneed

Kamau Stokes

Dean Wade

Shaun Williams

Kansas State University Athletics

Game Preview // K-State Travels to 11/11 Texas Tech Saturday

Players Mentioned

Barry Brown, Jr.

Cartier Diarra

Goodnews Kpegeol

Makol Mawien

Mike McGuirl

Xavier Sneed

Kamau Stokes

Dean Wade

Shaun Williams

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