Kansas State University Athletics
Saturday, January 5
Lubbock, Texas
1 p.m.
Kansas State University
10-4, 0-2
57
at
63
Texas Tech
13-1, 2-0
1
2
F
Kansas State
19
38
57
TTU
34
29
63
K-State’s Second-Half Rally Comes Up Short at 11/11 Texas Tech, 63-57
Jan 05, 2019 | Men's Basketball
K-State’s Second-Half Rally Comes Up Short at 11/11 Texas Tech, 63-57
LUBBOCK, Texas – A battle of two Top 10 defensive teams proved to be every bit as advertised, as Kansas State's second-half rally fell short in a 63-57 loss to No. 11/11 Texas Tech before a packed house at United Supermarkets Arena on Saturday afternoon.
Down by as many as 16 points, K-State (10-4, 0-2 Big 12) closed to with 43-42 on a 3-pointer by senior Barry Brown, Jr., with 6:56 remaining. However, Texas Tech got a 3-pointer from leading scorer Davide Moretti on the next possession that ignited a 7-0 run that gave the Red Raider a cushion the rest of the way.
The Wildcats continued their struggles on the offensive end, missing their first 13 field goals and finishing with 57 points on 33.3 percent (19-of-57) shooting from the field, including 17.4 percent (4-of-23) against one of the nation's toughest defenses. The team has now failed to eclipse 60 points in 3 consecutive games.
Brown was joined in double figures by sophomore Cartier Diarra (11) and junior Makol Mawien (10), who also finished with a career-best 11 rebounds to earn his first career double-double.
Moretti's game-high 19 points led a balanced offensive attack by the Red Raiders, who have now won 26 of their last 27 games at United Supermarkets Arena, including 10 straight victories. In all, five different players scored at least 9 points, including 14 points from graduate transfer Matt Mooney.
Texas Tech connected on 44.7 percent (17-of-38), including 31.6 percent (6-of-19) from 3-point range.
The Red Raiders have now won 6 of the last 8 meetings in the series, including 5 straight victories at home.
The Wildcats were without senior Dean Wade for the fifth consecutive game, while senior Kamau Stokes did not start but came off the bench after missing Wednesday's game with Texas due to injury. Stokes played 21 minutes, posting 7 points on 3-of-8 field goals, including 1-of-5 from long range.
The game was officiated with just 2 referees for most of the second half after an injury to Rick Crawford.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Red Raiders showed themselves as one of the top teams in the country, jumping out to an 8-0 lead and forcing head coach Bruce Weber to call his first timeout at the 16:41 mark. The lead grew to 14-0 before a pair of free throws by senior Barry Brown, Jr., gave the Wildcats their first points with 13:31 to play.
K-State missed its first 13 field goals before Diarra converted on a layup from a long pass from fellow sophomore Levi Stockard III to give the squad their first bucket with 9:12 to play before halftime.
The field goal made seemed to ignite the Wildcats, as they rattled off 7 straight points to cut the deficit to 17-10 and force Red Raider head coach Chris Beard to call his first timeout at the 7:52 mark. However, Texas Tech converted on its next two offensive possessions, including a 3-pointer from sophomore Davide Moretti, to push the lead back to 22-10 at the 6:50 mark.
Diarra, who led the Wildcats with 8 points in the first half, cut the deficit to 26-16 with 3:38 remaining, but the Red Raiders finished the half on an 8-3 run to lead 34-19 at halftime.
Stokes ended K-State's 0-for-9 drought from 3-point range with a trey from left side of the arc just 9 seconds into the second half leading to a 6-0 run that cut the deficit to 34-25 at the 18:31 mark.
After the Red Raiders pushed back lead back to double digits, another 6-0 run, including buckets by Brown, pulled the Wildcats to within 38-33 at the 13:46 mark. However, a block by Tariq Owens on a layup by Brown on the subsequent possession, led to a second 3-pointer by Moretti.
K-State continued to rally, running off 6 straight points to close the gap to 41-39 on Sneed's free throw at 8:51 mark. A 3-pointer from Brown got the Wildcats to within 43-42 less than 2 minutes later, but a third trey from Moretti helped start a decisive 7-0 run that helped carry the Red Raiders the rest of the way.
After scoring just 19 points on 23.1 percent (6-of-26) in the first half, K-State scored 38 points after halftime on 41.9 percent (13-of-31) shooting. Brown scored 11 of his team-high 16 points in the second half, while Mawien added 10 and 8 rebounds en route to his first career double-double.
Moretti scored 10 of his game-high 19 points in the second half.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Makol Mawien – Mawien registered his first career double-double with 10 points and a career-best 11 rebounds, which included a 10-point, 8-rebound effort after halftime.
STAT OF THE GAME
14-0 – Texas Tech raced out to a 14-0 lead in the first half, as the pesky Red Raiders forced the Wildcats to miss their first 13 field goals while forcing 3 turnovers.
IN THEIR WORDS
Bruce Weber, K-State Head Coach
On what changed for K-State in the second half…
"We talked about it last year, not letting them jump on us like they did last year, I think it was 17-2, I don't know what it was tonight but I know it was 8-0, 14-0. So, it was worse than I even thought. You know, they're good. They are number one in so many categories defensively and they make it tough on you. We thought if we moved them a little bit in the second-half, which we did, we moved the basketball and then you have to straight-line drive and you have to play strong. We had a couple opportunities to do that. But you spot them all of those points then, I even thought in the first half that we cut it. We have to play smarter. It's one thing to play hard, it's another thing to play smart. You follow them at half court and you put them to the line for four free throws in the half, and then you don't switch a back screen, little things like that, that's six points at half-time. So instead it's 28-19, now you make the comeback and it's a different game. To our guy's credit, they did a lot of things. I thought Mak (Mawien) played very strong in the second-half. He had 11 rebounds, scored some points, he led us on the play-hard chart. But still, we told them, 'if they're the first one to the floor, they're going to win the game.' There's three plays where they were the first one to the floor and they took our lights out. When you look at it, it came down to two plays. That's the difference. We cut it down to 43-41 and I don't know what happened. I remember (Davide) Moretti hit a couple threes, and then he got the layup a little later than that, but we fought, we had some chances. We have to be a little smarter, execute a little better, have to lay it out on the line and dive on the floor."
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
WHAT'S NEXT
K-State returns home on Wednesday, as the Wildcats play host to West Virginia (8-5, 0-1 Big 12) at 6 p.m., CT at Bramlage Coliseum. The game will air nationally on ESPNU.
Down by as many as 16 points, K-State (10-4, 0-2 Big 12) closed to with 43-42 on a 3-pointer by senior Barry Brown, Jr., with 6:56 remaining. However, Texas Tech got a 3-pointer from leading scorer Davide Moretti on the next possession that ignited a 7-0 run that gave the Red Raider a cushion the rest of the way.
The Wildcats continued their struggles on the offensive end, missing their first 13 field goals and finishing with 57 points on 33.3 percent (19-of-57) shooting from the field, including 17.4 percent (4-of-23) against one of the nation's toughest defenses. The team has now failed to eclipse 60 points in 3 consecutive games.
Brown was joined in double figures by sophomore Cartier Diarra (11) and junior Makol Mawien (10), who also finished with a career-best 11 rebounds to earn his first career double-double.
Moretti's game-high 19 points led a balanced offensive attack by the Red Raiders, who have now won 26 of their last 27 games at United Supermarkets Arena, including 10 straight victories. In all, five different players scored at least 9 points, including 14 points from graduate transfer Matt Mooney.
Texas Tech connected on 44.7 percent (17-of-38), including 31.6 percent (6-of-19) from 3-point range.
The Red Raiders have now won 6 of the last 8 meetings in the series, including 5 straight victories at home.
The Wildcats were without senior Dean Wade for the fifth consecutive game, while senior Kamau Stokes did not start but came off the bench after missing Wednesday's game with Texas due to injury. Stokes played 21 minutes, posting 7 points on 3-of-8 field goals, including 1-of-5 from long range.
The game was officiated with just 2 referees for most of the second half after an injury to Rick Crawford.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Red Raiders showed themselves as one of the top teams in the country, jumping out to an 8-0 lead and forcing head coach Bruce Weber to call his first timeout at the 16:41 mark. The lead grew to 14-0 before a pair of free throws by senior Barry Brown, Jr., gave the Wildcats their first points with 13:31 to play.
K-State missed its first 13 field goals before Diarra converted on a layup from a long pass from fellow sophomore Levi Stockard III to give the squad their first bucket with 9:12 to play before halftime.
The field goal made seemed to ignite the Wildcats, as they rattled off 7 straight points to cut the deficit to 17-10 and force Red Raider head coach Chris Beard to call his first timeout at the 7:52 mark. However, Texas Tech converted on its next two offensive possessions, including a 3-pointer from sophomore Davide Moretti, to push the lead back to 22-10 at the 6:50 mark.
Diarra, who led the Wildcats with 8 points in the first half, cut the deficit to 26-16 with 3:38 remaining, but the Red Raiders finished the half on an 8-3 run to lead 34-19 at halftime.
Stokes ended K-State's 0-for-9 drought from 3-point range with a trey from left side of the arc just 9 seconds into the second half leading to a 6-0 run that cut the deficit to 34-25 at the 18:31 mark.
After the Red Raiders pushed back lead back to double digits, another 6-0 run, including buckets by Brown, pulled the Wildcats to within 38-33 at the 13:46 mark. However, a block by Tariq Owens on a layup by Brown on the subsequent possession, led to a second 3-pointer by Moretti.
K-State continued to rally, running off 6 straight points to close the gap to 41-39 on Sneed's free throw at 8:51 mark. A 3-pointer from Brown got the Wildcats to within 43-42 less than 2 minutes later, but a third trey from Moretti helped start a decisive 7-0 run that helped carry the Red Raiders the rest of the way.
After scoring just 19 points on 23.1 percent (6-of-26) in the first half, K-State scored 38 points after halftime on 41.9 percent (13-of-31) shooting. Brown scored 11 of his team-high 16 points in the second half, while Mawien added 10 and 8 rebounds en route to his first career double-double.
Moretti scored 10 of his game-high 19 points in the second half.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Makol Mawien – Mawien registered his first career double-double with 10 points and a career-best 11 rebounds, which included a 10-point, 8-rebound effort after halftime.
STAT OF THE GAME
14-0 – Texas Tech raced out to a 14-0 lead in the first half, as the pesky Red Raiders forced the Wildcats to miss their first 13 field goals while forcing 3 turnovers.
IN THEIR WORDS
Bruce Weber, K-State Head Coach
On what changed for K-State in the second half…
"We talked about it last year, not letting them jump on us like they did last year, I think it was 17-2, I don't know what it was tonight but I know it was 8-0, 14-0. So, it was worse than I even thought. You know, they're good. They are number one in so many categories defensively and they make it tough on you. We thought if we moved them a little bit in the second-half, which we did, we moved the basketball and then you have to straight-line drive and you have to play strong. We had a couple opportunities to do that. But you spot them all of those points then, I even thought in the first half that we cut it. We have to play smarter. It's one thing to play hard, it's another thing to play smart. You follow them at half court and you put them to the line for four free throws in the half, and then you don't switch a back screen, little things like that, that's six points at half-time. So instead it's 28-19, now you make the comeback and it's a different game. To our guy's credit, they did a lot of things. I thought Mak (Mawien) played very strong in the second-half. He had 11 rebounds, scored some points, he led us on the play-hard chart. But still, we told them, 'if they're the first one to the floor, they're going to win the game.' There's three plays where they were the first one to the floor and they took our lights out. When you look at it, it came down to two plays. That's the difference. We cut it down to 43-41 and I don't know what happened. I remember (Davide) Moretti hit a couple threes, and then he got the layup a little later than that, but we fought, we had some chances. We have to be a little smarter, execute a little better, have to lay it out on the line and dive on the floor."
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
- K-State is now 0-3 on the road this season and has lost 5 straight true road games.
- K-State is now 0-2 in Big 12 play for the first time since the 2015-16 season.
- K-State still leads the all-time series with Texas Tech, 23-16, including 16-15 in the Big 12 era… The Red Raiders have now won 6 of the last 8 meetings, including 5 straight victories at home.
- The Wildcats' starting lineup consisted of sophomore Cartier Diarra, sophomore Mike McGuirl, senior Barry Brown, Jr., junior Xavier Sneed, and junior Makol Mawien… This is the second straight game using this lineup… Brown and Mawien have started all 14 games, while Sneed has started the last 13 games… Diarra has started the last 6 games, including 5 in a row… This was the second career start for McGuirl.
- Brown has now seen action in 119 consecutive games, including 97 straight starts… His 119 consecutive games played ranks fourth in school history, while the 96 consecutive starts also ranks fourth… Sneed has played in 85 career games, which includes 52 starts… Mawien has started all 51 games in his career… Diarra has played in 51 career games, including 28 starts… McGuirl has played in 26 career games.
- K-State played without senior Dean Wade (injury), who has missed the last 5 games… Senior Kamau Stokes, who did not start, but did play after missing the Texas game due to injury.
- K-State scored 38 points after halftime on 41.9 percent shooting after posting just 19 points on 23.1 percent shooting in the first half… The Wildcats have not scored 60 points in 3 consecutive games.
- K-State held a 33-32 edge on the glass, including
- Senior Barry Brown, Jr., led the Wildcats with 16 points on 5-of-17 field goals, including 2-of-6 from 3-point range, to go with 3 steals, 2 rebounds and 1 assist in 40 minutes… He has now scored in double figures in 73 career games, including 10 this season… He has now led the team in scoring in 32 career games, including 4 games this season.
- Junior Makol Mawienregistered his first career double-double with 10 points and a career-best 11 rebounds… He has now scored in double figures in 16 career games, including 6 this season.
- Sophomore Cartier Diarra scored 11 points on 2-of-8 field goals and 7-of-9 free throws… He has now scored in double figures in 12 career games, including 3 this season.
WHAT'S NEXT
K-State returns home on Wednesday, as the Wildcats play host to West Virginia (8-5, 0-1 Big 12) at 6 p.m., CT at Bramlage Coliseum. The game will air nationally on ESPNU.
Team Stats
KS
TTU
FG%
.333
.447
3FG%
.174
.316
FT%
.625
.742
RB
33
32
TO
14
19
STL
6
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
16
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
4
Pts
11
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
10
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
7
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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