Carter’s Hard Work Starting to Pay Off
Nov 18, 2022 | Men's Basketball, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
Cam Carter is finding a home at Kansas State. And it seems to be behind the 3-point line.
Carter, the sophomore transfer from Mississippi State and the second-ever signee for K-State head coach Jerome Tang, struck early in scoring 14 of his 16 points in the first half of the Wildcats' 69-53 win over Kansas City on Thursday night at Bramlage Coliseum.
The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Carter shot 5-of-10 from the floor, including 4-for-7 on 3-pointers to go along with three rebounds and one block in a game-high 35 minutes during his third career start with the Wildcats.
Swish.
Swish.
Swish.
Swish.
"It feels good," Carter said. "I work on that all the time. I put in the work, and it showed. Coach Tang saw it in me, too."
Carter, a native of Donaldsonville, Louisiana, transferred from Mississippi State after one season and has three years of eligibility remaining. Playfully chided at times for being too quiet as one of the Wildcats' primary floor leaders, Carter made plenty of noise from behind the 3-point arc in the first half against the Roos.
He attempted all of his 3-pointers in the first half as the Wildcats built a 41-25 lead.
Tang's wish? That Carter's teammates would've found him more in the second half.
"I was very disappointed that he didn't get another catch-and-shoot 3 in the second half," Tang said. "As teammates, when you have a teammate who's going like that, that has to be something you're actively seeking, like, 'Let's keep him rolling.' That's what we're going to look at and address."
Carter played in 27 of 34 games, including four starts, while helping Mississippi State to an 18-16 record, including an 8-10 mark in the Southeastern Conference, and an NIT appearance last season. He played the most games of any freshman, twice reaching double-digits in scoring with a season-high 15 points (3-f0r-6 on 3-pointers) in his first-career start at No. 25 Alabama.
He's gradually become stronger for the Wildcats.
Carter had six points on 2-of-6 shooting, including 1-for-5 on 3-pointers in a season-opening win over UTRVG (93-59), and he had four points on 1-of-3 shooting and misfired on his only 3-point attempt in a win at California (63-54).
Then came his breakout performance against the Roos.
He seems to be fitting in just fine in Manhattan.
"It helps out a lot on offense knowing that another player is hitting," said junior Keyontae Johnson, who had a team-high 19 points to go along with seven rebounds, six assists and two steals. "You want to keep finding him. He hit three or four in the first half. We just have to get him the open looks."
After hitting his first 3-pointer in front of the Kansas City bench with 11 minutes, 23 seconds left in the first half, Carter drained three more 3-pointers, with each of the final two lifting the Wildcats to 14-point leads at 27-13 and 34-20.
"Cam Carter works really hard," Tang said. "He's relentless in the gym and he knew he had to improve his shooting. The fact that he's being rewarded for that hard work, as a coach that's a joy to see. He probably could've made eight tonight if we'd gotten him enough looks, so we've got to figure that out."
Carter has certainly shown why Tang pursued him after he entered the transfer portal.
Carter was the 114th-rated player by 247Sports out of Oak Hill (Va.) Academy in 2020-21. He shot 50.4% from the floor, including 34.9% on 3-pointers, and averaged 4.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.0 steals while helping the Warriors to a 20-9 record and the quarterfinals of the GEICO High School National Championships.
He had four double-doubles and one triple-double. He earned the 2020-21 Coaches Award at Oak Hill, which is given to the player who gave himself each day to make the team better.
He's shown an early ability to do so with the Wildcats.
"They got me going and that got us going," Carter said of his first-half barrage of long-distance baskets. "That got us some momentum to go up by a lot."
Carter and K-State, 3-0, will try to keep their momentum going when they embark up the Cayman Islands Classic against Rhode Island at 7:30 p.m. Monday at John Gray Gym.
"I'm really excited," Carter said. "This is my second time going out of country. Different weather. Different kind of water. Different everything."
Hopefully, the same shooting touch.
"I just want to see him keep getting better," Tang said. "Winning allows everyone to achieve what they want to achieve. Let's focus on winning and then his potential and everything will come."
Cam Carter is finding a home at Kansas State. And it seems to be behind the 3-point line.
Carter, the sophomore transfer from Mississippi State and the second-ever signee for K-State head coach Jerome Tang, struck early in scoring 14 of his 16 points in the first half of the Wildcats' 69-53 win over Kansas City on Thursday night at Bramlage Coliseum.
The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Carter shot 5-of-10 from the floor, including 4-for-7 on 3-pointers to go along with three rebounds and one block in a game-high 35 minutes during his third career start with the Wildcats.
Swish.
Swish.
Swish.
Swish.
"It feels good," Carter said. "I work on that all the time. I put in the work, and it showed. Coach Tang saw it in me, too."
Carter, a native of Donaldsonville, Louisiana, transferred from Mississippi State after one season and has three years of eligibility remaining. Playfully chided at times for being too quiet as one of the Wildcats' primary floor leaders, Carter made plenty of noise from behind the 3-point arc in the first half against the Roos.
He attempted all of his 3-pointers in the first half as the Wildcats built a 41-25 lead.
Tang's wish? That Carter's teammates would've found him more in the second half.
"I was very disappointed that he didn't get another catch-and-shoot 3 in the second half," Tang said. "As teammates, when you have a teammate who's going like that, that has to be something you're actively seeking, like, 'Let's keep him rolling.' That's what we're going to look at and address."
Carter played in 27 of 34 games, including four starts, while helping Mississippi State to an 18-16 record, including an 8-10 mark in the Southeastern Conference, and an NIT appearance last season. He played the most games of any freshman, twice reaching double-digits in scoring with a season-high 15 points (3-f0r-6 on 3-pointers) in his first-career start at No. 25 Alabama.
He's gradually become stronger for the Wildcats.
Carter had six points on 2-of-6 shooting, including 1-for-5 on 3-pointers in a season-opening win over UTRVG (93-59), and he had four points on 1-of-3 shooting and misfired on his only 3-point attempt in a win at California (63-54).
Then came his breakout performance against the Roos.
He seems to be fitting in just fine in Manhattan.
"It helps out a lot on offense knowing that another player is hitting," said junior Keyontae Johnson, who had a team-high 19 points to go along with seven rebounds, six assists and two steals. "You want to keep finding him. He hit three or four in the first half. We just have to get him the open looks."
After hitting his first 3-pointer in front of the Kansas City bench with 11 minutes, 23 seconds left in the first half, Carter drained three more 3-pointers, with each of the final two lifting the Wildcats to 14-point leads at 27-13 and 34-20.
"Cam Carter works really hard," Tang said. "He's relentless in the gym and he knew he had to improve his shooting. The fact that he's being rewarded for that hard work, as a coach that's a joy to see. He probably could've made eight tonight if we'd gotten him enough looks, so we've got to figure that out."
Carter has certainly shown why Tang pursued him after he entered the transfer portal.
Carter was the 114th-rated player by 247Sports out of Oak Hill (Va.) Academy in 2020-21. He shot 50.4% from the floor, including 34.9% on 3-pointers, and averaged 4.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.0 steals while helping the Warriors to a 20-9 record and the quarterfinals of the GEICO High School National Championships.
He had four double-doubles and one triple-double. He earned the 2020-21 Coaches Award at Oak Hill, which is given to the player who gave himself each day to make the team better.
He's shown an early ability to do so with the Wildcats.
"They got me going and that got us going," Carter said of his first-half barrage of long-distance baskets. "That got us some momentum to go up by a lot."
Carter and K-State, 3-0, will try to keep their momentum going when they embark up the Cayman Islands Classic against Rhode Island at 7:30 p.m. Monday at John Gray Gym.
"I'm really excited," Carter said. "This is my second time going out of country. Different weather. Different kind of water. Different everything."
Hopefully, the same shooting touch.
"I just want to see him keep getting better," Tang said. "Winning allows everyone to achieve what they want to achieve. Let's focus on winning and then his potential and everything will come."
Players Mentioned
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