Game Preview // K-State Hits the Road to Play TCU Saturday

GAME 24
KANSAS STATE (5-18, 1-13 Big 12) at TCU (11-8, 4-6 Big 12)
Saturday, February 20, 2021 >> 4:01 p.m. CT >> Schollmaier Arena (8,500) >> Fort Worth, Texas

TELEVISION
Big 12 Now / WatchESPN

Ted Emrich (play-by-play)
Lance Blanks (analyst)
Mike Principato (producer)

RADIO
K-State Sports Network
Flagships: // KMAN 1350 & WIBW 580
XM 385 // Internet 975
Online: TuneIn.com [free] / www.kstatesports.com/watch [free]

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

LIVE STATS
www.GoFrogs.com
tcu.statbroadcast.com [media only]

TICKETS/SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
Schollmaier Arena will be open to approximately 1,600 fans. Anyone entering the arena must wear face coverings over their mouths and noses and continue wearing them inside the arena at all times.

COACHES
Kansas State: Bruce Weber (Wis.-Milwaukee '78)
Overall: 479-283/23^rd season
At K-State: 166-128/9^th season
vs. TCU: 14-7 (5-3 on the road)

TCU: Jamie Dixon (TCU '87)
Overall: 423-188/18^th season
Record at TCU: 95-65/5^th season
vs. TCU: 6-7 (2-2 at home)

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
Kansas State (5-18)
G: #21 Nijel Pack
G: #00 Mike McGuirl
G: #2 Selton Miguel
F: #11 Antonio Gordon
F: #21 Davion Bradford

TCU (11-8)
G: #1 Mike Miles
G: #22 R.J. Nembhard
G: #4 P.J. Fuller
F: #5 Chuck O'Bannon
C: #21 Kevin Samuel

SERIES HISTORY
Overall: K-State leads 17-9
Current Streak: TCU, 1
In Big 12 Play: K-State leads 14-7
In Fort Worth: K-State leads 6-3
At Schollmaier Arena: K-State leads 6-3
Last Meeting: L, 60-67 [1/2/21 in Manhattan, Kan.]
Weber vs. Dixon: 7-6 [2-2 on the road]

OPENING TIP

Kansas State (5-18, 1-13 Big 12) begins the stretch run of the regular season on Saturday afternoon, as the Wildcats travel to Fort Worth, Texas to take on TCU (11-8, 4-6 Big 12) at 4 p.m., CT at Schollmaier Arena. The Horned Frogs will be looking to sweep the regular-season series for the second consecutive season after posting a 67-60 win over the Wildcats in Manhattan on Jan. 2. Saturday's game will air on Big 12 Now with Ted Emrich (play-by-play) and Lance Blanks (analyst) on the call.
For the first time in the month of February, K-State will face an unranked team on Saturday, snapping a streak of 5 consecutive games against a Top 25 opponent. It is the longest such streak in school history and one of 10 ranked matchups the team has faced this season. Since the first game against the Horned Frogs on Jan. 2, the Wildcats have faced 11 consecutive conference opponents that we were either ranked at the time (9) or are currently ranked in the Top 25. The gauntlet continues next week, as the Wildcats will finish the regular season with matchups at home against No. 9/10 Oklahoma and on the road at No. 13/15 West Virginia.
Despite a solid defensive effort, K-State couldn't get anything going offensively in Wednesday's 59-41 loss to No. 23/24 Kansas in the Dillons Sunflower Showdown at Bramlage Coliseum. The Wildcats held the Jayhawks to 59 points, including just 4-of-16 shooting from 3-point range, while forcing 16 turnovers, but the offense hit season-lows in 9 categories, including points, field goal percentage (31.0), 3-point field goals (3), 3-point field goal percentage (12.5) and free throw percentage (33.3). The loss extended K-State's losing streak to 13 games, including 12 in Big 12 play. It is the longest such skid in a single season and the second-longest in school history.
The Wildcats got a lift from the return of sophomore DaJuan Gordon, who came off the bench to lead all scorers against Kansas with 12 points on 6-of-13 shooting in 28 minutes. Gordon had missed the last 4 games after sustaining an ankle injury against Texas A&M on Jan. 30. It was Gordon's 10th double-digit scoring game and the first since the Oklahoma game on Jan. 13.
The return of Gordon was a nice relief for a K-State team has seen 8 players miss a game due to injury or COVID-19 related protocols, as senior Mike McGuirl is the only player to start all 23 games. Due to these circumstances, the Wildcats have started 3 true freshmen (Davion Bradford, Selton Miguel and Nijel Pack) in more than half (12) of their 23 games, including 9 times in Big 12 play. These 3 true freshmen rank among the team's Top 5 in scoring.
Pack is enjoying an impressive start to K-State career, as the freshman is among the team leaders in several categories, including scoring (12.3 ppg./1st), double-digit scoring games (12/2nd), field goals (87/1st), 3-point field goals (44/2nd), assists (68/2nd), steals (24/1st) and minutes (32.9/2nd). He is attempting to become the first true freshman to lead the Wildcats in scoring since Marcus Foster averaged 15.5 points in 2013-14.
K-State has started at least 2 true freshmen in each of the last 17 games with Bradford and Pack each starting 19 games and Miguel starting 16. The Wildcats are one of 9 teams (Arizona, Duke, James Madison, Kentucky, Marist, North Carolina, Sacred Heart and Washington State) to start at least 3 true freshmen in at least one game, while the 54 combined starts by true freshmen rank second behind Kentucky's 60 and just ahead of WSU's 52.

NOTES ON TCU (11-8, 4-6 Big 12)

TCU (11-8, 4-6 Big 12) enters Saturday's game with wins in 2 of its last 3 outings, including back-to-back home wins over Oklahoma State (81-78) and Iowa State (79-76) on Feb. 3 and Feb. 9. The Horned Frogs have not played since a 70-55 loss at nationally-ranked Texas on Feb. 13.
On the season, TCU is averaging 69.1 points on 44.7 percent shooting, including 35.1 percent from 3-point range, to go with 35.8 rebounds, 13.7 assists, 5.9 steals and 3.7 blocks per game, while allowing 71.2 points on 44.6 percent shooting, including 32.1 percent from 3-point range. The team is connecting on 64.9 percent from the free throw line. The Horned Frogs are averaging 64.7 points on 41.6 percent shooting in Big 12 play, while allowing 74.3 points on 45.5 percent shooting.
Two Horned Frogs (R.J. Nembhard and Mike Miles) are averaging in double figures, as Nembhard is fourth in scoring in Big 12 at 16.9 points on 42.4 percent shooting, including 37.2 percent from 3-point range, while adding averages of 4.7 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.1 steals in 34.9 minutes per game. Miles is averaging 14.6 points per game on 43.9 percent shooting, including 40 percent from 3-point range, to go with 3.6 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 32.6 minutes per game. Miles ranks 11th in the Big 12 in scoring, while he is second among freshmen.
TCU is led by fifth-year head coach Jamie Dixon, who has posted a 95-65 (.594) record, which includes an NCAA Tournament trip in 2018 and bids to the NIT in both 2017 and 2019. He is 423-188 (.692) in his 18th season as a head coach, which includes a stint at Pittsburgh (2003-16).

SERIES HISTORY

K-State and TCU will meet for the 27th time in their histories with the Wildcats holding a 17-9 advantage in a series that dates to 1947. The Wildcats are 14-7 in the Big 12 era, including 5-3 in Fort Worth.
TCU has won 3 of the last 4 games in the series, including a 67-60 in the Big 12 opener in Manhattan on Jan. 2. The Wildcats nearly overcame an 18-point deficit, closing to within 61-58 with 38 seconds left, but the Horned Frogs closed it out from the free throw line.
Head coach Bruce Weber is 14-7 all-time against TCU, including a 5-3 mark on the road, while he is 7-6 against head coach Jamie Dixon.

LAST TIME OUT: 23/24 KANSAS 59, K-STATE 41

No. 23/24 Kansas broke open a tight defensive contest with a pivotal 14-3 run near the midway point of the second half, as Jayhawks captured the 295th edition of the Dillons Sunflower Showdown with a 59-41 win in front of a limited crowd of 1,248 fans at Bramlage Coliseum on Wednesday.
In a game where both teams struggled from long range, combining to make just 7 of 40 attempts from 3-point range, it was Kansas that used its defense to generate offense. The Jayhawks scored nearly half their points off turnovers, scoring 29 points off 18 miscues, while holding the Wildcats to just 11 points off their own 16 turnovers.
Kansas, which finished at 45.8 percent (22-of-48) shooting, got easy points in transition from the turnovers to make it up for its dismal shooting (4-of-16) from 3-point range. The Jayhawks converted on 56.3 percent (18-of-32) from inside the arc and outscored the Wildcats, 32-20, in the paint.
Leading 30-26 with just 14 minutes to play, Kansas rattled off a 14-3 run over a near 5-minute span in the second half, as five different Jayhawks had at least one basket in the stretch, including two each by reserves Mitch Lightfoot and Bryce Thompson. The Wildcats snapped the run with back-to-back buckets from senior Mike McGuirl and sophomore DaJuan Gordon, but the Jayhawks ended any chance of a comeback with quick 15-2 run that built the lead to a game-high 24 points with just over 2 minutes to play.
K-State was held to a season-low 41 points on 31 percent (18-of-58) shooting, including 12.5 percent (3-of-24) from 3-point range, and made just 2 of 6 free throw attempts. The 41 points were the fewest points scored in the Bruce Weber era, while they were the fewest at home since posting 39 vs. N.C. State in March 1998. In all, the team set or tied season-low in 9 offensive categories, including points, field goal percentage, 3-point field goals, 3-point field goal percentage and free throws made and attempted.
The Wildcats got a lift from the return of Gordon, who came off the bench to score 12 points on 6-of-13 field goals in 28 minutes. He had missed the last 4 games due to injury. Gordon was the only player to score in double figures, as two others (sophomore Antonio Gordon and freshman Nijel Pack) chipped in 6 points each. Gordon added a team-tying 7 rebounds and 3 steals, while Pack dished out a team-best 5 assists.

INJURIES, YOUTH DEFINE SEASON SO FAR FOR K-STATE

Very few teams in the country have had to deal with the mixture of injuries, COVID-19 protocols and youth quite like K-State has in 2020-21. Already one of the country's most inexperienced teams with just 4 returning lettermen (only 4 schools have fewer) and 11 underclassmen (only 6 schools have more), the Wildcats have seen 8 different players combined to miss 59 games this season, while senior Mike McGuirl is the only player to start all 23 games with 8 different starting lineups.

GAMES MISSED IN 2020-21 [58]

Montavious Murphy - 19 (expected to miss rest of season)
Luke Kasubke - 13 (saw first action at Texas)
Kaosi Ezeagu - 10 (returned to action at Oklahoma)
Antonio Gordon - 4 (returned to action at Texas)
Carlton Linguard, Jr. - 4 (returned to action vs. Fort Hays State)
Nijel Pack - 4 (returned to action at Baylor)
DaJuan Gordon - 4 (returned to action vs. Kansas)
Seryee Lewis - 1 (returned to action at Texas)

K-State is one of just 9 schools (Arizona, Duke, Kentucky, James Madison, Marist, North Carolina, Sacred Heart and Washington State) to start at least 3 true freshmen in one game, while the 54 combined starts by Wildcat true freshmen rank second nationally to Kentucky's 60 and just ahead of Washington State's 52.

A SPECIAL FRESHMAN

Freshman Nijel Pack is off to an impressive start to his K-State career, as he ranks among team leaders in several categories, including scoring (12.3 ppg./1st), double-digit scoring games (12/2nd), field goals (87/1st), 3-point field goals made (44/2nd), assists (68/2nd), steals (24/1st) and minutes per game (32.9/2nd). He is attempting to become the first true freshman to lead the Wildcats in scoring since Marcus Foster averaged 15.5 points during the 2013-14 season.
Before missing the Oklahoma State game on Jan. 9, Pack had started to hit his scoring groove, scoring in double figures in 3 of 4 games, including a then season-high 17 points at No. 18/19 Texas Tech (1/5/21). He returned to the court against No. 2/2 Baylor on Jan. 27 and has continued his stellar play, rattling off double-digit scoring games in 6 of the last 7 games.
It was during this stretch that Pack came up with a special performance in K-State's 68-61 loss to Texas A&M in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge Jan. 30, as the rookie scored a season-high 26 points on 9-of-16 field goals, including 8-of-14 from 3-point range, to go with 5 assists, 3 rebounds and 3 steals in just his second game back from missing 4 games due to COVID-19 protocols.
Dating back to the Big 12 opener with TCU on Jan. 2, Pack has scored in double figures 8 of the last 9 games. In this 9-game span, he is averaging 14.9 points on 44.9 percent (48-of-107) shooting, including 40.6 percent (26-of-64) from 3-point range, with 3.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.3 steals.
The 26-point effort was the most by a Wildcat true freshman since Marcus Foster scored 34 points against Texas on Feb. 8, 2014. The 8 3-pointers tie for the second-most in a game in school history and are the most-ever by a Wildcat freshman. His 8 treys are only surpassed by Askia Jones' school-record 14 against Fresno State on March 24, 1994, while Steve Henson (vs. Iowa State on Feb. 17, 1990) and Cortez Groves (vs. Texas A&M on March 23, 2000) also had 8 treys in a game. It was his team-leading eighth game of at least 5 assists, while he tied his season-high with 3 steals.
Pack ranks fifth in the Big 12 in 3-point field goals made per game (2.32), as he has knocked down at least 3 triples in 9 games, including a season-high 8 vs. Texas A&M (1/30/21). His 44 makes already rank third by a true freshman in school history, while his 38.9 3-point field goal percentage is on pace to be the best-ever by a freshman. He ranks sixth in the Big 12 with a 1.89 assist/turnover ratio, while he is also in the Top 15 in steals (11th/1.26), assists (12th/3.58) and minutes (11th/32.9).

McGUIRL DOING WHATEVER IT TAKES

Mike McGuirl is making the most of his senior season, as he is among the leaders in a number of categories, including first in total points (260), double-digit scoring games (15), field goals made (86) and attempted (247), 3-point field goals made (47) and attempted (148), assists (80), steals (22) and minutes (34.0). He is second in scoring (11.3 ppg.).
McGuirl ranks in the Top 15 in several categories in the Big 12, including 12th in assists (3.58 apg.), 10th in assist-turnover ratio (1.38), 10th in 3-point field goals made (2.04) and eighth in minutes (34.0 mpg.).
McGuirl has led the team in scoring a team-best 8 times, while he has led in rebounding twice, in assists 10 times and in steals on 7 occasions.
McGuirl's 15 double-digit scoring games have already surpassed his entire career total (10) that he had entering the 2020-21 season. He opened the year with his first career 20-point game vs. Drake on Nov. 25 with 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting, including 3-of-8 from 3-point range. He equaled that mark with 22 vs. Fort Hays State (12/8/20). He has scored in double figures in 11 of the last 15 games, where he is averaging 10.8 points per game.
In addition to his scoring, McGuirl has also set up his teammates, dishing out a team-best 80 assists (to 58 turnovers). He has 8 games at least 5 assists this season, including a career-best 8 vs. Milwaukee (12/11/20).

AGORDON LEARNING HIS ROLE

Despite an up-and-down season, in which, he missed 5 games due to COVID-19 protocols in late December and early January, sophomore Antonio Gordon is starting to settle into his role. He is averaging 5.9 points on 44 percent shooting with a team-best 5.7 rebounds, including 7.2 points on 49.2 percent shooting with a team-best 6.5 rebounds in Big 12 play.
Gordon came off the bench with a big game against No. 2/2 Baylor (12/19/20) by collecting a career-high 23 points on 9-of-9 field goals. The 23 points tie for the eighth-most by reserve in a conference game.
Since returning to start at No. 4/4 Texas (1/16/21), Gordon is averaging 6.2 points on 41.2 percent shooting with 6.8 rebounds in 25.9 minutes per game. He has started each of the last 5 games, averaging 8.0 points on 43.2 percent shooting (16-of-37) with 9.4 rebounds in 32.4 minutes per game. He earned his first double-double at No. 23/22 Oklahoma State on Feb. 13, posting a team-high 15 points to go with a career-best 14 rebounds.

MR. DO-EVERYTHING

Sophomore DaJuan Gordon has proved to be K-State's Mr. Do Everything, as he is third on the team in scoring at 9.5 points per game, while averaging 5.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game. He returned to the court on Wednesday night against No. 23/24 Kansas after missing the last 4 games due to injury, scoring a team-high 12 points on 6-of-13 field goals.
Gordon is 1 of 4 guards (OSU's Likekele and Cunningham and OU's Reaves) to rank in the Big 12's Top 15 in rebounding, as he is 13th with 5.5 rebounds per game, while he is 13th in defensive rebounds (4.1).
Gordon's 3 double-doubles are the most by Big 12 guard and rank sixth among all Big 12 players. Gordon's 3 career double-doubles have all come in the last 13 games played, including 2 in Big 12 play. He posted his first career double-double at Iowa State (12/15/20), scoring 15 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. He followed that with a 13-point, 12-rebound effort vs. Jacksonville (12/21/20) before his latest vs. Oklahoma State (1/9/21) with 14 points and 11 rebounds in a career-best 39 minutes. He has also grabbed double-digit rebounds in 4 games, including in back-to-back contests vs. Jacksonville (12/21/20) and Omaha (12/29/20). He is the first Wildcat to post double-digit rebounds in back-to-back games since Wesley Iwundu in March 2017.
Gordon has scored in double figures in 10 games this season, including a career-best 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting vs. TCU (1/2/21). Seven of those 10 double-digit scoring games have come in the last 14 games.

MIGUEL ANOTHER ROOKIE HAVING A SOLID YEAR

A starter in 16 of the last 18 games, freshman Selton Miguel is having a solid freshman campaign, averaging 7.2 points on 33.1 percent shooting, including 7.2 points on 32 percent shooting in Big 12 play. He is fourth on the team in scoring and steals (17), while his third in 3-pointers (18).
Miguel's 7 double-digit scoring games have come in the last 19 outings, including a team-tying 17 points at No. 18/19 Texas Tech (1/5/21). He also scored a season-tying 17 points vs. Milwaukee (12/11/20) on 7-of-14 field goals, while he had 14 vs. No. 2/2 Baylor (12/19/20).
Miguel connected on a 3-pointer with 9.7 seconds left to lift K-State to a 60-58 win over Omaha on Dec. 29. It was the rookie's first game-winner, as he capped his 11-point effort with his third trey of the game.

IMPRESSIVE YOUNG BIG MAN

With sophomore Kaosi Ezeagu out for an extended time, freshman Davion Bradford has had an opportunity to display his skills, earning starts in each of the last 19 games. He is averaging 6.9 points on a team-best 61.0 percent shooting (64-of-105) with 4.3 rebounds in 20.1 minutes per game.
Bradford has scored in double figures in 6 games thus far, including scoring a season-high 18 points vs. Milwaukee (12/11/20). He also played a major role in the win at Iowa State (12/15/20) with 14 points on 5-of-7 field goals and a 4-of-4 effort from the line. He has posted double digits 5 times in Big 12 play, including team-high 14 points at No. 4/4 Texas (1/16/21).
Bradford has already shown the ability to finish at the rim, totaling a team-high 29 dunks through 23 games, which in comparison surpasses Makol Mawien's entire total of 17 in 32 games played in 2019-20 season.

IRON 'CATS

Due to low numbers caused by injuries and COVID-19 protocols, K-State had just 8 available players - including 6 on scholarship - for its outing against Oklahoma State at home on Saturday, Jan. 9. To make the situation worse, sophomore Carlton Linguard, Jr., was on a minutes' limit due to a back injury (playing just over 14 minutes), while freshman Davion Bradford ended up playing just over 12 minutes due to foul issues.
This caused the remaining 6 to play the bulk of the minutes, including walk-on Joe Petrakis logging a career-high 15 minutes of action. Senior Mike McGuirl and junior Rudi Williams each played all 40 minutes, setting career-highs, while two others - sophomore DaJuan Gordon and freshmen Selton Miguel - each registered 39 minutes, also career-highs. All told, those 4 players were responsible for 158 of K-State's 200 total minutes.
McGuirl and Williams are the first Wildcats to play all 40 minutes of a regulation game since Barry Brown, Jr., played all 40 against Baylor on March 2, 2019. It marked the first time two teammates played all 40 minutes in a regulation game in more than 30 years since Steve Henson and LaKeith Humphrey accomplished the feat against Oklahoma State in a 69-62 win at home on Feb. 5, 1989.

PETRAKIS EARNS SCHOLARSHIP

Sophomore walk-on Joe Petrakis earned a scholarship for the rest of the 2020-21 season prior to the game with No. 14/15 West Virginia on Jan. 23.
After redshirting in 2019-20, Petrakis took advantage of his opportunity with the loss numbers against Oklahoma State on Jan. 9, outscoring freshman All-American candidate Cade Cunningham (6 points to 5 points), while logging a career-high 15 minutes of action.
Petrakis, who redshirt his first season in 2019-20 after playing one season at Dodge City College, scored his first career points with 6:13 left in the first half and finished with a career-high 6 points on 2-of-5 field goals, including his first 3-pointer, to go with 2 rebounds.

MURPHY EXPECTED TO MISS SEASON

Sophomore Montavious Murphy has elected to have what is expected to be season-ending surgery to fix his ailing knee, which has caused him to miss 19 games this season. Murphy, who was the opening day starter vs. Drake (11/25/20), saw action in 4 games, including the first 3.
Murphy, who became just the fourth true freshman to start an opener under Bruce Weber in 2019-20, has now missed 32 games in his career due to injury, including the last 6 games of his freshman season.
Murphy had a solid freshman season in 2019-20, averaging 5.2 points on 40.7 percent shooting with 3.7 rebounds in 25.1 minutes per game.

UP NEXT: 9/10 OKLAHOMA (13-5, 8-4 Big 12)

K-State starts the final week of the regular season with a pair of Top 15 matchups, beginning with a home game with No. 9/10 Oklahoma (13-5, 8-4 Big 12) on Tuesday at 8 p.m., CT. It will be Senior Night, as the Wildcats will honor its lone senior Mike McGuirl in a pregame ceremony. The Sooners are looking to sweep the regular-season series for the second straight season after posting a 76-50 win at home over the Wildcats on Jan. 19.

Game Preview // K-State Hits the Road to Play TCU Saturday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Davion Bradford

Barry Brown, Jr.

Kaosi Ezeagu

Antonio Gordon

DaJuan Gordon

Luke Kasubke

Seryee Lewis

Carlton Linguard, Jr.

Makol Mawien

Mike McGuirl

Selton Miguel

Montavious Murphy

Nijel Pack

Joe Petrakis

Rudi Williams

Kansas State University Athletics

Game Preview // K-State Hits the Road to Play TCU Saturday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Davion Bradford

Barry Brown, Jr.

Kaosi Ezeagu

Antonio Gordon

DaJuan Gordon

Luke Kasubke

Seryee Lewis

Carlton Linguard, Jr.

Makol Mawien

Mike McGuirl

Selton Miguel

Montavious Murphy

Nijel Pack

Joe Petrakis

Rudi Williams

Related Videos