Game Preview // K-State to Face Nebraska Sunday for First Time Since 2011

Sunday, December 19

Lincoln, NE

5 p.m.

Kansas State University

Nebraska

Game Preview // K-State to Face Nebraska Sunday for First Time Since 2011

Dec 17, 2021 | Men's Basketball

K-State Notes (.pdf)Nebraska Notes (.pdf)Listen Audio: Bruce Weber Preview Press Conference Watch (BTN)Live Stats

The Wildcats and Cornhuskers will meet for the 220th time on Sunday

Complete Release Available Here

GAME 10
KANSAS STATE (6-3) at NEBRASKA (5-6)
Sunday, December 19, 2021 >> 5:01 p.m. CT >> Pinnacle Bank Arena (15,000) >> Lincoln, Neb.

TELEVISION
Big Ten Network [BTN] / FOX Sports App

Larry Punteney (play-by-play)
Nick Bahe (analyst)
Pat O'Connor (producer)

RADIO
K-State Sports Network
Flagships: // KMAN 1350 & WIBW 580
Satellite Radio: XM 388
Online: Varsity Network [free] / SXM 978 / www.kstatesports.com/watch [free]

Wyatt Thompson (play-by-play)
Stan Weber (analyst)

LIVE STATS
www.kstatesports.com
huskers.statbroadcast.com

TICKETS
www.huskers.com/tickets
(800) 8-BIGRED
Single Game: $10-$25

COACHES
Kansas State: Bruce Weber [Wisconsin-Milwaukee '78]
Record at K-State: 176-133/10th Year
Career Record: 489-288/24th Year
vs. Nebraska: 1-1 [0-0 at K-State]

Nebraska: Fred Hoiberg [Iowa State '95]
Record at Nebraska: 19-51/3rd Year
Career Record: 134-107/8th Year
vs. K-State: 7-6 [0-0 at Nebraska]

SERIES HISTORY
Overall: K-State leads 126-93
Current Streak: K-State, 5
In Lincoln: Nebraska leads 55-38
Last Meeting: W, 61-57 [2/23/2011 in Lincoln, Neb.]
Weber vs. Hoiberg: 3-4 [3-0 home / 0-3 away / 0-1 neutral]

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
Kansas State (6-3)
G: #1 Markquis Nowell
G: #3 Selton Miguel
G: #13 Mark Smith
F: #25 Ismael [Ish] Massoud
F: #20 Kaosi Ezeagu

Nebraska (5-6)
G: #1 Alonzo Verge, Jr.
G: #5 Bryce McGowens
G: #30 Keisei Tominaga
F: #11 Lat Mayen
F: #13 Derrick Walker

K-STATE RENEWS RIVALRY WITH NEBRASKA SUNDAY

Kansas State (6-3) will renew one of its oldest rivalries on Sunday afternoon, as the Wildcats travel north to take on former conference foe Nebraska (5-6, 0-2 Big Ten) at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Neb. It will mark the first meeting between the schools since 2011. The game will nationally on the Big Ten Network at 5 p.m., CT.
Sunday's contest will be the first in a 3-game series inked between the schools on March 31, 2020. The teams were supposed to open the series at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City in December 2020 but the contest was postponed due to COVID-19. The schools will play in Kansas City on Dec. 17, 2022, followed by a matchup in Manhattan on Dec. 17, 2023.
This will be the first matchup since a 61-57 K-State win in Lincoln, Neb., on Feb. 23, 2011. The 219 meetings represent the fourth-longest series in school history, following those with Kansas (295), Missouri (237) and Iowa State (233).

OPENING TIP

K-State plays just 3 more non-conference games to finish off the 2021 portion of the schedule before opening Big 12 play at Oklahoma (8-2) on New Year's Day. The Wildcats have not played since an 82-64 win over Green Bay on Dec. 12 due to semester exams. Following Sunday's game at Nebraska, the squad hosts McNeese State (3-8) on Tuesday, Dec. 21 and Morgan State (4-6) on Wednesday, Dec. 29.
The Wildcats' 3 losses to No. 13/12 Arkansas (64-72), No. 14/15 Illinois (64-72) and Marquette (63-64) have come by a combined 17 points.
K-State have not played since an 82-64 win over Green Bay last Sunday (Dec. 12), in which, the Wildcats had perhaps their best all-around offensive effort of the season. The team connected on 54.9 percent (28-of-51) from the field, including a season-high 11 3-pointers on 21 attempts, and were nearly perfect (15-of-17) from the free throw line. It marked the first time since January 2018 that the Wildcats have shot better than 50 percent from the field, 50 percent from 3-point range and 80 percent from the free throw line in a game.
The strong offensive performance came at the hands of the 3 newest Wildcats (Ish Massoud, Markquis Nowell and Mark Smith), who combined for 53 of the team's 82 points on 56.7 percent (17-of-30) shooting, including 71.4 percent (10-of-14) from 3-point range. The 3 Division I transfers had to take charge with senior Mike McGuirl out with the flu and leading scorer Nijel Pack playing just 14 minutes as he returned from missing 2 games due to a concussion.
The transfer trios have already played a major role in K-State's season so far with Massoud and Smith starting all 9 games and Nowell being the top reserve before having to start the last 3 games with Pack's injury. Nowell is the leader in assists (4.6 apg.) and steals (2.0 spg.), while Smith is top rebounder (7.8 rpg.) and Massoud paces the team in minutes (28.4). The threesome combined to score 97 of the team's 145 points against Marquette (12/8/21) and Green Bay (12/12/21) on 48.6 percent (34-of-70) shooting, including 45.2 percent (14-of-31) from long range. They also collected 39 of the 67 rebounds, 28 of 35 assists and 8 of 15 steals.
Although the Wildcats erupted for 82 points against Green Bay (12/12/21), K-State has hung its hat on defense, where the team ranks among the top-35 in 4 defensive categories, including 31st in scoring defense (59.7 ppg.), 35th in field goal percentage defense (38.4), second in 3-point field goal percentage defense (24.5) and 32nd in defensive rebounds (29.0). The Wildcats have held 4 of 9 opponents under 60 points, including back-to-back opponents (North Dakota

and UAlbany) to under 50 points for the first time since December 2015.

Nebraska enters Sunday's game with a 5-6 record after losing 99-68 to No. 18/21 Auburn on Dec. 11 in Atlanta. The Cornhuskers have lost 4 in a row since a 4-game winning streak from Nov. 19-27. The team is averaging 75.4 points per game on 42.7 percent shooting and have 2 double-digit scorers in freshman Bryce McGowens (16.2 ppg.) and senior Alonzo Verge, Jr. (16.0 ppg.).
K-State leads the all-time series, 126-93, with Nebraska, but the Cornhuskers hold a 55-38 advantage in games played in Lincoln, Neb. The Wildcats have won the last 5 meetings, including a season sweep of the Huskers in their last season of the Big 12 in 2010-11 and consecutive wins in Lincoln in 2010 and 2011.

NOTES ON NEBRASKA

Nebraska enters Sunday's game with a 5-6 overall record after dropping a 99-68 decision to No. 18/21 Auburn in the Holiday Hoopsgiving Tournament in Atlanta on Dec. 11. The Cornhuskers rebounded from its opening night loss to Western Illinois to win 5 of their next 6 games, including victories over Sam Houston State (74-65), Idaho State (78-60), Southern (82-59), Tennessee State (79-73) and South Dakota (83-70). The current 4-game slide started with a 4-overtime loss at N.C. State (100-104) before setbacks at Indiana (55-68) and at home to Michigan (67-102) before the loss to Auburn.
The Huskers are averaging 75.4 points per game on 42.7 percent shooting, including 25.9 percent from 3-point range, with 36.7 rebounds, 13.5 assists, 7.5 steals and 3.4 blocks per game, while allowing opponents to average 77.5 points on 41.8 percent shooting, including 35.4 percent from long range. The team is hitting on 74.1 percent from the free throw line.
Six players are averaging better than 7 points per game, including a pair averaging in double figures led by freshman guard Bryce McGowens (16.2 ppg.). McGowens is also the team leader in rebounds (6.4 rpg.), while hitting on 40.4 percent from the field and 84.1 percent from the free throw line. Senior Alonzo Verge, Jr., is averaging 16 points on 45 percent shooting to go with a team-best 5.5 assists and 5.7 rebounds per game. Junior Derrick Walker, Jr., is averaging 9.1 points and 6.4 rebounds, while sophomore Keisei Tominaga and freshman C.J. Wilcher averaging 7.7 and 7.5 points per game.
Nebraska returns 7 lettermen, including 3 starters, from a team that went 7-20 in 2020-21, including 3-16 in Big Ten play. They have 10 newcomers.
Head coach Fred Hoiberg is in his third season at Nebraska, while he is in his 8th season as a head coach at the college level. A name familiar to K-State from his time at Iowa State as both a player (1991-95) and head coach (2010-15), he led the Cyclones to 115 wins, 4 straight NCAA Tournament appearances (2012-15) and 2 Big 12 Championships (2014, 2015) before leaving to become the head coach of the NBA's Chicago Bulls (2015-18).

SERIES HISTORY

K-State and Nebraska will meet for 220th time on Sunday, including the 94th time in Lincoln, Neb. and first time at Pinnacle Bank Arena. The 219 games span 5 conferences (Missouri Valley, Big Six/Seven/Eight/12) and represents the fourth-longest series in school history, following those with Kansas (295), Missouri (237) and Iowa State (233). The series was started more than 100 years with a 50-14 victory by the Cornhuskers in Manhattan on Feb. 19, 1906.
K-State leads the series, 126-93, but Nebraska holds a 55-38 advantage in games played at home. The Wildcats have won the last 5 meetings, including a sweep of the season series in the Huskers' last season in the Big 12 in 2010-11, which included a 69-53 win in Manhattan on Feb. 2, 2011, and a 61-57 win in Lincoln in the last matchup of the teams in Lincoln on Feb. 23, 2011.
This will be the first non-conference game between the schools since the 2001 Big 12 Championship. The teams played 7 between the first meeting in 1906 and before Nebraska joined the Missouri Valley Conference in 1915. They also played 15 times in the Big Eight Holiday Tournament (1944-77) and 7 times in the Big Eight/12 Championship (1979-2001).
All-American Jacob Pullen helped K-State win the last meeting between the schools on Feb. 23, 2011, as he scored 20 of his game-high 27 points in the second half to hold off Nebraska, 61-57, on Feb. 23, 2011. Current assistant coach Shane Southwell (2 points, 3 rebounds) and graduate assistant Curtis Kelly (5 points, 1 rebounds) both started in that last meeting in 2011.
Head coach Bruce Weber is 1-1 all-time against Nebraska, splitting the home-and-home season series in his last season at Illinois in 2011-12, while he is 3-4 all-time against Fred Hoiberg. Hoiberg is 7-6 all-time against K-State.
K-State is 167-153 all-time vs. current Big Ten opponents, including a 51-85 mark in games played on the road. The last win against a Big Ten opponent on the road came against Rutgers, 55-41, on Nov. 15, 2006.

NON-CONFERENCE HISTORY

K-State has a 120-14 (.898) record at home venues (includes home games played at Bramlage Coliseum, INTRUST Bank Arena in Wichita and the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City) in non-conference play dating back to the 2006-07 season, including a 111-12 (.906) mark at Bramlage Coliseum.
Despite seeing their 33-game winning streak end at Bramlage Coliseum with a loss to Marquette on Dec. 7, 2019, the Wildcats have still won 107 of their last 119 non-conference home games.
K-State has posted a 157-50 (.757) record in non-conference play since the 2006-07 season. Prior to the 2020-21 season, the Wildcats had posted double-digit non-conference wins in 12 of the previous 13 seasons.
Head coach Bruce Weber is 88-34 (.719) in non-conference play since he arrived at K-State, including a 68-12 (.848) mark at home.

LAST TIME OUT:
K-STATE 82, GREEN BAY 64

Junior Markquis Nowell led three Wildcats in double figures with a season-high 22 points, as Kansas State played perhaps its best all-around offensive game of the season in an 82-64 win over Green Bay on Sunday afternoon before 5,437 fans at Bramlage Coliseum.
K-State connected on 54.9 percent (28-of-51) from the field, including knocking down a season-high 11 3-point field goals on 21 attempts, and were a near perfect 15 of 17 from the free throw line. It marked the first time since an 87-69 win over No. 4 Oklahoma on Jan. 16, 2018, that the Wildcats have shot better than 50 percent from the field, 50 percent from 3-point range and 80 percent from the free throw line in a game.
With senior Mike McGuirl out with the flu and sophomore Nijel Pack playing just 14 minutes as he returns from missing two games due to a concussion, K-State relied on its three Division I transfers to lead the way, as Nowell, sophomore Ish Massoud and fifth-year senior Mark Smith combined for 53 of the 82 points while connecting on 56.7 percent (17-of-30) from the field. The trio also accounted for 17 of the 26 rebounds and 12 of its 17 assists.
Nowell, who was starting for the third straight game in place of Pack, continued his impressive play against Green Bay after nearly posting the school's first triple-double against Marquette. He collected his first 20-point game as a Wildcat, scoring on his game-high 22 points on 7-of-13 field goals, including 4-of-7 from 3-point range, while adding a game-high 8 assists, 3 rebound and a steal in 34 minutes. He was 2 assists shy of becoming the first player in school history with consecutive points/assists double-doubles.
Massoud was equally as sharp offensively, posting back-to-back double-digit scoring games with a season-high 17 points on 5-of-5 shooting, including 4-of-4 from beyond the arc, and a 3-of-3 effort from the free throw line. He is the 18th player in school history to go perfect from the field on 5 or more field goals and the second this season (Mike McGuirl vs. North Dakota on Nov. 28).
Smith tallied his third double-double (all coming in the last 5 games) with 14 points on 5-of-12 field goals to go with a career-tying 10 rebounds in 27 minutes, while adding 3 assists on zero turnovers and a pair of steals.
Three other Wildcats (Selton Miguel, Davion Bradford and Pack) each added 6 points.

LEADING WITH DEFENSE

K-State has developed a strong reputation as defensive team under head coach Bruce Weber, ranking among the top-60 nationally in opponent points per game 6 times in the 9 seasons.
The Wildcats ranked fourth nationally in scoring defense (59.6 ppg.) during its Big 12 Championship season in 2018-19, while they placed 36th (60.4 ppg.) in 2012-13 and 46th (67.0 ppg.) in 2017-18.
K-State has held 215 opponents (out of 309 total) under 70 points during Bruce Weber's tenure, including a program-best 31 in 2012-13. The Wildcats have also held 107 opponents under 60 points in that span, while 29 have scored less than 50 points in his tenure.
In addition to its scoring defense, K-State has ranked among the top-40 in opponent 3-point field goal percentage 3 times (2013-14, 2015-16 and 2018-19) and among the top-50 in steals on 5 occasions (every season from 2015-16 to 2019-20) in the Bruce Weber era. Twice (2016-17 and 2019-20) the school has ranked the top-45 in opponent turnovers.
The Wildcats have held opponents to under 40 percent shooting in 105 games in the Bruce Weber era, including under 35 percent in 50 games.
K-State struggled mightily across the board during the 2020-21 season, but no more than on defensive end, allowing 80 or more points 7 times in the first 21 games, including allowing 100 or more points in both regular-season games with eventual national champion Baylor. However, the Wildcats were able to win 4 of their last 7 games due to their improved defense, as they held 5 of those 7 opponents under 60 points. During the last 7 games of the season, the team held their opponents to 59.3 points on 40.6 percent shooting (146-360), including 26.1 percent (36-of-138) from 3-point range.
K-State has started the season off where they left off at the end of the 2020-21 season, as the defense is allowing 59.7 points on 38.4 percent shooting, including 24.5 percent from 3-point range. The Wildcats rank among the top-35 in 4 defensive categories, including second in 3-point field goal percentage defense, 31st in scoring defense and 35th in field goal percentage defense.
The Wildcats responded to allowed 72 points in back-to-back games vs. No. 13/12 Arkansas (11/22/21) and No. 14/15 Illinois (11/23/21) with stellar efforts vs. North Dakota (11/28/21) and UAlbany (12/2/21), allowing the fewest combined points (85) in consecutive games since holding Lamar (55) and Alabama-Huntsville (26) to 81 combined points on Nov. 12 and 13, 2012.
K-State has been able to score points off its opponent turnovers (17.3 ppg.) while forcing an average of 13.9 turnovers per game. The Wildcats has scored 20 or more points off turnovers twice, including 25 vs. North Dakota (11/28/21).

IMPROVED OFFENSE, BUT WORK CONTINUES FROM 3

The Wildcats are averaging 71.0 points on 44.6 percent shooting, including 34.5 percent from 3-point range, while connecting on 73 percent from the free throw line through the first 9 games. The team is averaging 30.4 points in the paint, 22.0 points off the bench, 17.3 points off turnovers, 9.6 fast-break points and 8.6 points on second-chance opportunities.
K-State's offense shines when the Wildcats share the ball, as the team is averaging 74.7 points and 16.2 assists in their 6 wins compared to just 63.7 points and 11.3 assists in their 3 losses. The squad also scored 182 combined points (30.3 ppg.) in the paint in their 6 victories, including 46 vs. North Dakota, which were the most since scoring 50 against Eastern Kentucky in Nov. 16, 2018.
The Wildcats' 3-point shooting is looking to find some consistency, as they made just 22.6 percent (21-of-93) in games with No. 13/12 Arkansas, No. 14/15 Illinois, Wichita State and Marquette while hitting on nearly 45 percent (48-of-107) in games vs. Florida A&M, Omaha, North Dakota, UAlbany and Green Bay.
The Wildcats were really clicking offensively in the 79-64 win over Omaha (11/17/21), as the team connected on 52.8 percent (28-of-53) from the field, including 47.4 percent (9-of-19) from the 3-point line, and hit on 87.5 percent (14-of-16) from the free throw line. The squad hit 50 percent or better from the field in each half for the first time since the Milwaukee game (12/21/20).
K-State played even better offensively against North Dakota (11/28/21), hitting on 60.3 percent (35-of-58) from the field, including 69 percent (20-of-29) in the second half, to post their first 80-point game since January 2020. It marked the first time that the Wildcats had shot better than 60 percent since hitting on 62.5 percent (35-of-56) against Alabama State on Dec. 11, 2019.

IMPROVED EXPERIENCE/DEPTH

It has been well chronicled how young the Wildcats were during the 2020-21 season, as only 11 Division I schools were less experienced than K-State with only Auburn and Duke less experienced among the Power 6. The Wildcats were one of 10 teams to start at least 3 true freshmen in one game with Davion Bradford, Selton Miguel and Nijel Pack starting in 17 of the 29 games.
K-State is hoping that the return of 9 of 14 lettermen, including senior Mike McGuirl and sophomores Bradford, Miguel and Pack, as well as the influx of 7 newcomers, including 3 transfers in Ish Massoud (Wake Forest), Markquis Nowell (Little Rock) and Mark Smith (Missouri) will lead to improved play.
The Wildcats have used at least 8 players in each of the first 9 games with all 8 those players totaling double-digit field goals made and 7 averaging nearly 6 points per game, including a pair of double-digit scorers (Pack and Nowell).
K-State is averaging nearly 22 points per game from its bench this season, including 28-point efforts against No. 13/12 Arkansas and No. 14/15 Illinois. The team has scored 20 or more bench points in 7 of 9 games.
Before starting the last 3 games, Nowell had provided a spark off the bench, averaging 13.2 points on 42.4 percent shooting and 94.4 percent from the free throw line. He has scored in double figures 7 times, as he led in points (16),
rebounds (8) and assists (4) in his first start at Wichita State.

IMPROVED FREE THROW SHOOTING

Again, it's a small sample size with just 9 games, but so far, K-State has taken care of its opportunities from the free throw line, connecting on 73 percent (108-of-148) from the charity stripe, which ranks third in the Big 12.
That percentage was even better in its 3-game stretch vs. Omaha, No. 13/12 Arkansas and No. 14/15 Illinois, as the Wildcats hit on 81.3 percent (39-of-48) during that stretch, including 78.1 percent (25-of-32) in the games against the Razorbacks and Fighting Illini.
Six players (Nijel Pack, Markquis Nowell, Ish Massoud, Selton Miguel, Mike McGuirl and Davion Bradford) are hitting on better than 70 percent from the line, as Massoud (9-of-9) has been perfect so far.
The Wildcats shot just 66.4 percent from the free throw line in 2020-21, while they haven't connected on better than 70 percent from the line since hitting on 73.4 percent as a team in 2017-18.

TURNOVER LOW

K-State turned the ball over just 4 times in the loss to No. 14/15 Illinois, which tied 5 others for the third-fewest in a game in school history and fewest since also registered 4 turnovers in a win over Gonzaga on Dec. 21, 2013. It tied the 2013 Gonzaga contest for the fewest turnovers in the Bruce Weber era.
The Wildcats have also had single digits turnovers twice in the last 3 games, including 7 vs. Wichita State (12/1/21) and 8 vs. Green Bay (12/12/21).

NIJEL TO THE RESCUE

Although he missed 2 games due to a concussion, sophomore Nijel Pack is still off to an impressive start to the 2021-22 season, as he has led or have been tied for the team lead in scoring in 4 of the first 6 games, including an 18-point performance in the opener vs. Florida A&M, 15 points vs. Omaha, 14 points vs. No. 12/13 Arkansas and 17 points vs. UAlbany.
Pack is averaging a team-best 14.4 points on 50.7 percent (36-of-71) shooting, including 47.5 percent (19-of-40) from 3-point range, to go with 2.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 25.9 minutes per game. He is the leader in scoring and 3-pointers (19), while he is second in double-digit scoring games (6).
Pack ranks among the Big 12's top-10 in 4 categories, including second in 3-point field goal percentage, third in 3-point field goals per game (2.71) and eighth in both scoring and field goal percentage.

MOVING TOWARDS 500

Head coach Bruce Weber is working towards a coaching milestone, as he is 11 wins away from earning 500 in his career. He enters Sunday's game with a 489-288 (.629) record in 24 years as a head coach at Southern Illinois (1998-2003), Illinois (2003-12) and K-State (2012-21).
If Weber were to achieve the milestone in 2021-22, he would be among elite company as only 26 current Division I coaches have reached 500 wins in their career with Herb Sendek (Santa Clara) just ahead of him with 496 victories.

HOPING FOR BETTER INJURY LUCK

K-State is hoping for better luck on the injury front in 2021-22 after injuries were a major factor in the 2020-21 season, as 9 players combined to miss 75 games, which caused head coach Bruce Weber to start 3 true freshmen (Davion Bradford, Selton Miguel and Nijel Pack) a combined 71 times, which ranked second nationally to Kentucky.
Only one other Division I team (Long Beach State) had more players miss time due to injuries in 2020-21.
Although that luck has been tested early with big man Seryee Lewis going down with a season-ending knee injury in the preseason, along with injuries slowing down the progress made by junior Carlton Linguard, Jr., and freshman Maximus Edwards. Pack missed games against Wichita State and Marquette due to a concussion, while Miguel has been slowed by a knee injury.

McGUIRL UTILIZES EXTRA SEASON

K-State received some good news on March 23 when senior Mike McGuirl announced that he was utilizing his extra season and returning to the Wildcats for the 2021-22 season. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NCAA announced in October that they had agreed to grant players an additional year of eligibility.
An All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection, McGuirl is coming off solid senior season in 2020-21, in which, he either led or was tied for the team lead in 12 categories, including points, field goals, 3-pointers, assists and steals. He was second in scoring (11.8 ppg.) to freshman teammate Nijel Pack.
McGuirl's 20 double-digit scoring games doubled his entire career total (10) that he had entering the 2020-21 season. He opened the season with his first career 20-point game vs. Drake on November 25 with 22 points then equaled it against Fort Hays State on December 8, while he had a team-high 19 points in the upset of No. 7/8 Oklahoma on February 23. Of his 705 career points, 542 have come in the last two seasons in 58 games played with 49 starts (9.3 ppg.).
The only player to start all 29 games, McGuirl showed his versatility by leading the Wildcats in scoring a team-best 11 times, while he also paced the team in rebounding 4 times, in assists 14 times and in steals on 10 occasions. He led the team in scoring (16), rebounding (9) and assists (5) in the win over TCU on February 20, a win which started the team's late surge to end the season (4 wins in the last 6 games).

THE 'CATS INK 3 HIGH-PROFILE TRANSFERS

K-State got an infusion of experience with the addition of 3 high-profile Division I transfers in fifth-year Mark Smith (Missouri), junior Markquis Nowell and sophomore Ismael (Ish) Massoud (Wake Forest).
Like McGuirl, Smith earned a second senior season due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and will bring 100 games of experience to the court after playing at Illinois (2017-18) and Missouri (2018-21). Nowell, who was a Lou Henson All-American at Little Rock, averaged double figures in each of his three seasons as a Trojan. Massoud played in all 53 games of his Wake Forest career, averaging 8.3 points per game as a sophomore in 2020-21.
The transfers presumably fill the Wildcats' greatest need from the 2020-21 season, which was a lack of production from the 3-point line. The team ranked 319th (out of 340 teams) in 3-point field goal percentage (29.6), while they were 126th in total 3-point field goals made (191) and 243rd in 3-point field goals per game (6.6). The trio have combined for more than 400 triples (418) in their respective careers on 36.1 percent shooting.
The trio made their impact in the first 9 games with Massoud and Smith each starting every game, while Nowell has registered starts in the last 3 games due to the injury to Nijel Pack. They have combined for 281 points on 41.4 percent (98-of-237) shooting with 146 rebounds and 63 assists. Nowell has scored in double figures in 7 of 9 games, including a season-high 19 vs. No. 14/15 Illinois, while Massoud added a season-high 17 points vs. Green Bay. Smith has 3 double-doubles and is the team's leading rebounder (7.8 rpg.).

A QUICK LOOK AT K-STATE

K-State returns 9 lettermen, including 4 players (Davion Bradford, Mike McGuirl, Selton Miguel and Nijel Pack) who registered starts during its COVID-19 challenging 2020-21 campaign, which resulted in the Wildcats' second consecutive non-winning season at 9-20 overall and 4-14 in Big 12 play. In addition to these 4 players, the team will get back the services of several key

lettermen, including juniors Kaosi Ezeagu and Carlton Linguard, Jr., sophomores Luke Kasubke and Seryee Lewis and walk-on Drew Honas.

The biggest headliner from the returners might be McGuirl, who opted to return for an extra season in 2021-22 after his senior season was hampered by the COVID-19 pandemic. He earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention honors in 2020-21 after leading the Wildcats in 12 categories, including points (342), double-digit scoring games (20), field goals (112), 3-point field goals (60), assists (103), steals (30) and minutes (34.3).
The freshmen trio of Bradford, Miguel and Pack had to grow up fast in their first season, starting together in 17 games with 12 of those coming in Big 12 play. The 71 combined starts by the three true freshmen in 2020-21 ranked second nationally only to Kentucky (72). The three combined to average 25.4 points, 10.4 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 2.0 steals in 2020-21, as Pack (12.7 ppg.) became the first true freshman to lead the Wildcats in scoring since 2013-14. Bradford (7.7 ppg.) and Miguel (7.2 ppg.) were fourth and fifth in scoring.
Ezeagu started early on for K-State before an injury forced him to miss 10 games. He returned in mid-January as mostly a reserve, averaging 5.2 points on 67.7 percent (21-of-31) in his last 10 games. Linguard and Lewis each showed flashes in their first seasons, playing in 17 and 18 games, respectively, while Kasubke recovered from a preseason injury that forced him to miss the first 13 games to be a key contributor in the final 16 games.

UP NEXT: McNEESE STATE (3-8)