Kansas State University Athletics
SE: Cats Take Another Step Forward in WSU Win
Dec 06, 2021 | Men's Basketball, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
While Kansas State head coach Bruce Weber talks about growing maturity among his squad, the Wildcats continue to take steps. On Sunday, they might've taken their biggest one yet. Playing in front of a crowd of 14,488 at INTRUST Bank Arena, the composed Wildcats made the necessary plays late to pull ahead for a 65-59 victory over Wichita State in the first meeting between the in-state rivals since 2003.
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With the score tied at 54-54 with 2 minutes, 2 seconds remaining, Markquis Nowell sank a deep 3-pointer, then coolly made all four of his foul shots down the stretch, as the Wildcats, 5-2, led by as many as 8 points in the final minute to bring a big win home to Manhattan three nights before facing Marquette in the Big EAST/Big 12 Battle on Wednesday.
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"I know our shooting percentage wasn't great, but we can score the ball if we move the ball and trust each other," Weber said. "We have a lot of guys who can make plays and just have to realize they can make plays for other people. It's part of the growth. Hopefully, we'll continue to get better."
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Since losing back-to-back games against No. 13 Arkansas and No. 14 Illinois, both by the score of 72-64, in the Hall of Fame Classic at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri, K-State has now won three straight while holding each opponent to under 60 points.
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Although Weber teams always pride themselves on solid defense, the true test arrived the day before facing Wichita State when point guard Nijel Pack, the team's leading scorer (15.8 points per game), suffered a concussion. That put the ball into the hands of Nowell, a shifty 5-foot-8, 160-pound Division I transfer from Arkansas Little-Rock, who has been in Manhattan since June. Although Nowell averaged 11.7 points, only behind Pack, he had never started in a game for a high-level college team.
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"I called him in before the game in the locker room with the coaches and I told him, 'I need you to lead, direct things and get us into something. When it gets loud, we can't go haywire,'" Weber said.
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Nowell, who earlier this season called himself an "entertainer," earned Best Lead In A Hostile Environment against the Shockers, 6-2, as he scored a team-leading 16 points to go along with a team-high 8 rebounds, 4 assists to just 1 turnover, and 1 steal in 35 minutes. Overcoming a tough shooting night in which he went 4 of 15 from the floor, including 2 of 7 from beyond the arc, Nowell still answered the call, particularly when he needed to be clutch down the stretch.
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"He wants to make plays, it's how he's grown up, but he's started making the right passes and the right plays," Weber said. "His assist-to-turnover margin from the beginning of the year to now is incredible. He can be such a pest on defense and get steals."
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K-State trailed by as many as 12 points in the first 10 minutes of the game, but players impressively took turns finding 6-foot-10, 255-pound forward Kaosi Ezeagu inside for dunks. Ezeagu had 14 points on 5 of 6 shooting and added 6 rebounds for the Wildcats, who shot just 33.9% from the floor but outrebounded Wichita State 43-29 and forced the Shockers into 14 turnovers. Wichita State shot 35.2% from the floor, but K-State suffered just 7 turnovers and had 7 steals.
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Selton Miguel added 12 points and 6 rebounds, and Mike McGuirl had 10 points.
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"We got in the paint and made the right reads and the right plays," Weber said. "We had that bad stretch in the second half where the ball got sticky again and it's got to move. You don't have to make a play every time you have it. We have enough weapons that if we keep it moving, we'll make the right plays and shots.
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"In the first half, they made their shots, and we didn't. We were wide open. Those might've been some of the best looks we'd had all game, but we just didn't make them. To our guys' credit, they stuck with it, and found a way to grind out a win."
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Although Morris Edeze had a game-high 19 points on 7 of 8 shooting and added 7 rebounds for Wichita State, the Wildcats clamped down on star guard Tyson Etienne, who endured a frustrating contest. Etienne made just 4 of 20 shots, including 1 of 11 from 3 during 34 minutes of action.
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"We have really good defenders," Weber said. "We talked about staying in front of him and not giving him easy ones. When he made one it was a tough one. We contested the shots and stayed in front and our big guys did a good job on ball screens making them think about it.
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"We've made some strides defensively. Even in our Arkansas and Illinois games we weren't that bad. Since then, we've taken some pretty good steps."
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K-State won 79-66 the last time the teams played on December 14, 2003, in Wichita in a series that dates to 1932. They are scheduled to play the next three years, one each on their respective campus and in Kansas City. Â
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"It was a good environment," Weber said. "Obviously, you're much happier if you win, but I said that I (renewed the matchup) because I thought it was good for college basketball, good for our state, and if they keep this team together and come to Bramlage Coliseum next year it'll be a tough game."
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The big question facing the Wildcats heading into the week? The status of Pack.
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Asked if he expected Pack to return for Marquette on Wednesday, Weber replied, "I hope so. Everything's got to go right. On protocols, there's a number of things, and he was just at the minimum. We'll know more (Monday). We kept him at the hotel in the dark and kept him away from things. He was going to watch the game the best he could. It'll be dark on the bus. You get back and hope he can get a good night's sleep, and we'll hope and pray that we can get him back."
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On Sunday, shorthanded K-State showed that it could still reap positive results on the road without Pack. Although it might require another dose of growth and maturity if they're without their floor leader again, the Wildcats, behind their continued tenacious defense and cast of double-digit scorers, certainly showed they're capable to grind out a game.
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And that's another step.
While Kansas State head coach Bruce Weber talks about growing maturity among his squad, the Wildcats continue to take steps. On Sunday, they might've taken their biggest one yet. Playing in front of a crowd of 14,488 at INTRUST Bank Arena, the composed Wildcats made the necessary plays late to pull ahead for a 65-59 victory over Wichita State in the first meeting between the in-state rivals since 2003.
Â
With the score tied at 54-54 with 2 minutes, 2 seconds remaining, Markquis Nowell sank a deep 3-pointer, then coolly made all four of his foul shots down the stretch, as the Wildcats, 5-2, led by as many as 8 points in the final minute to bring a big win home to Manhattan three nights before facing Marquette in the Big EAST/Big 12 Battle on Wednesday.
Â
"I know our shooting percentage wasn't great, but we can score the ball if we move the ball and trust each other," Weber said. "We have a lot of guys who can make plays and just have to realize they can make plays for other people. It's part of the growth. Hopefully, we'll continue to get better."
Â
Since losing back-to-back games against No. 13 Arkansas and No. 14 Illinois, both by the score of 72-64, in the Hall of Fame Classic at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri, K-State has now won three straight while holding each opponent to under 60 points.
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Although Weber teams always pride themselves on solid defense, the true test arrived the day before facing Wichita State when point guard Nijel Pack, the team's leading scorer (15.8 points per game), suffered a concussion. That put the ball into the hands of Nowell, a shifty 5-foot-8, 160-pound Division I transfer from Arkansas Little-Rock, who has been in Manhattan since June. Although Nowell averaged 11.7 points, only behind Pack, he had never started in a game for a high-level college team.
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"I called him in before the game in the locker room with the coaches and I told him, 'I need you to lead, direct things and get us into something. When it gets loud, we can't go haywire,'" Weber said.
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Nowell, who earlier this season called himself an "entertainer," earned Best Lead In A Hostile Environment against the Shockers, 6-2, as he scored a team-leading 16 points to go along with a team-high 8 rebounds, 4 assists to just 1 turnover, and 1 steal in 35 minutes. Overcoming a tough shooting night in which he went 4 of 15 from the floor, including 2 of 7 from beyond the arc, Nowell still answered the call, particularly when he needed to be clutch down the stretch.
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OHHHH YEEAHHH! Markquis from deep. #KStateMBB x EMAW pic.twitter.com/V66ztj91Gt
— K-State Men's Basketball (@KStateMBB) December 6, 2021
"He wants to make plays, it's how he's grown up, but he's started making the right passes and the right plays," Weber said. "His assist-to-turnover margin from the beginning of the year to now is incredible. He can be such a pest on defense and get steals."
Â
K-State trailed by as many as 12 points in the first 10 minutes of the game, but players impressively took turns finding 6-foot-10, 255-pound forward Kaosi Ezeagu inside for dunks. Ezeagu had 14 points on 5 of 6 shooting and added 6 rebounds for the Wildcats, who shot just 33.9% from the floor but outrebounded Wichita State 43-29 and forced the Shockers into 14 turnovers. Wichita State shot 35.2% from the floor, but K-State suffered just 7 turnovers and had 7 steals.
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.@Kaosi_E has 9 Pts in 9 mins (4-5 FG) as the 'Cats continue their 19-6 scoring run #KStateMBB 27 - Wichita State 26 | 1H - 3:47 pic.twitter.com/dUKqrQTJsb
— K-State Men's Basketball (@KStateMBB) December 5, 2021
Selton Miguel added 12 points and 6 rebounds, and Mike McGuirl had 10 points.
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"We got in the paint and made the right reads and the right plays," Weber said. "We had that bad stretch in the second half where the ball got sticky again and it's got to move. You don't have to make a play every time you have it. We have enough weapons that if we keep it moving, we'll make the right plays and shots.
Â
"In the first half, they made their shots, and we didn't. We were wide open. Those might've been some of the best looks we'd had all game, but we just didn't make them. To our guys' credit, they stuck with it, and found a way to grind out a win."
Â
Although Morris Edeze had a game-high 19 points on 7 of 8 shooting and added 7 rebounds for Wichita State, the Wildcats clamped down on star guard Tyson Etienne, who endured a frustrating contest. Etienne made just 4 of 20 shots, including 1 of 11 from 3 during 34 minutes of action.
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"We have really good defenders," Weber said. "We talked about staying in front of him and not giving him easy ones. When he made one it was a tough one. We contested the shots and stayed in front and our big guys did a good job on ball screens making them think about it.
Â
"We've made some strides defensively. Even in our Arkansas and Illinois games we weren't that bad. Since then, we've taken some pretty good steps."
We all just yelled three letters 😉 K-S-U! #KStateMBB x EMAW pic.twitter.com/ZFv6SiDlkg
— K-State Men's Basketball (@KStateMBB) December 6, 2021
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K-State won 79-66 the last time the teams played on December 14, 2003, in Wichita in a series that dates to 1932. They are scheduled to play the next three years, one each on their respective campus and in Kansas City. Â
Â
"It was a good environment," Weber said. "Obviously, you're much happier if you win, but I said that I (renewed the matchup) because I thought it was good for college basketball, good for our state, and if they keep this team together and come to Bramlage Coliseum next year it'll be a tough game."
Â
The big question facing the Wildcats heading into the week? The status of Pack.
Â
Asked if he expected Pack to return for Marquette on Wednesday, Weber replied, "I hope so. Everything's got to go right. On protocols, there's a number of things, and he was just at the minimum. We'll know more (Monday). We kept him at the hotel in the dark and kept him away from things. He was going to watch the game the best he could. It'll be dark on the bus. You get back and hope he can get a good night's sleep, and we'll hope and pray that we can get him back."
Â
On Sunday, shorthanded K-State showed that it could still reap positive results on the road without Pack. Although it might require another dose of growth and maturity if they're without their floor leader again, the Wildcats, behind their continued tenacious defense and cast of double-digit scorers, certainly showed they're capable to grind out a game.
Â
And that's another step.
Status: Road Dawgs#KStateMBB pic.twitter.com/7ZyeaTjF7J
— K-State Men's Basketball (@KStateMBB) December 6, 2021
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