Coming Together For the Stretch Run
Feb 15, 2022 | Men's Basketball, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
Kansas State used balanced scoring and stifling defense while storming back from a 10-point second-half deficit in a 78-73 win over West Virginia on Monday night at Bramlage Coliseum. The fact that star sophomore guard Nijel Pack didn't lead the pack after his recent hot stretch? No big deal. The Wildcats seem to be coming together at just the right time.
Markquis Nowell had 21 points, Mark Smith had his Big 12-leading seventh double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Ismael Massoud and Pack had 13 points apiece as the Wildcats, 14-11 overall and 6-7 in the Big 12 Conference, won their second consecutive game after trailing by large deficits.
"Every shot Nijel has taken lately it seems like it's gone in," K-State head coach Bruce Weber said. "West Virginia was physical with him, and they have size and stayed into him. But Nijel had 13 points, five assists, six rebounds. That's pretty good for a bad night. I'm happy we were able to win without him, and obviously we've made some strides. There are times early we wouldn't have won games if he wasn't getting 18 or 20 points."
K-State trailed 42-35 at halftime and then fell behind 54-44 with 16 minutes, 25 seconds remaining in the game before they made a remarkable push behind an 18-2 scoring run to take a 62-54 lead on a layup by Smith with 8:12 left.
However, the game seemed to shift into an even higher gear when Nowell drove to the basket and fell in a heap while appearing to grab his left knee. Nowell recovered to his feet, wagged his head at West Virginia defenders, then nailed a long 3-pointer on the next possession. The Wildcats led by nine points three different times down the stretch.
"I really want to stay in the game until I physically can't breathe anymore," said Nowell, who shot 7 of 11 from the floor, including 4 of 6 on 3-pointers, and added 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals in 32 minutes. "Basketball is important to me. I don't like being on the bench and not being able to control a situation or not be out there for my teammates."
Smith said that Nowell's determination "fired me up."
"I was happy to see him get up because I was scared for a second," Smith added. "Markquis is a little warrior. He brings that every day. He's going to fight regardless the situation. He brought a lot of energy."
The rest of the Wildcats brought plenty of energy as well.
This marked the second time in as many games that the Wildcats came back from a double-digit deficit to win a game. The Wildcats trailed by 15 points before beating Iowa State 75-69 in overtime on Saturday. It was their largest comeback in the Big 12 era.
This one in front of a lively crowd at Bramlage seemed nearly as sweet as the Wildcats snapped a four-game losing streak against the Mountaineers, 14-11 and 3-9, who have now lost nine of their last 10 games.
"We're bonding at a different level and are focusing at a different level," Nowell said. "We're coming together at the right time. We've got five more games left in the regular season and the ones who are going to win are the ones who are going to fight through and focus."
Although Nowell and Smith combined to score more than half of the Wildcats' points, Massoud came alive while manning the center position and recorded double digits for a second straight game.
"Coach said for me to worry about the things I can do and not the things I can't do," Massoud said. "At the end of the day, I knew what I could do. My teammates supported me the whole time. My coaches knew what I could do. I just had to play my game. I had confidence in myself."
Massoud shot just 2 of 8 from the floor but used his physicality to get to the foul line. He made 8 of 10 free-throw attempts. Smith shot 3 of 7 from the floor but made 10 of 11 free throws. The Wildcats made 31 of 39 free throws in the game. It was the most free throws made in a game in more than six years.
K-State showed confidence in itself to fight back in what was their third game in six days. The Wildcats appeared somewhat fatigued early on, but emerged from the locker room determined in the second half and held the Mountaineers to 1 of 11 shooting while they made their run.
"It's our grit," Smith said. "Once we get down, we all had that same passion. Even against Iowa State we felt it. We kept saying, 'We can't be afraid to win.' Guys came out and we brought the energy, cut the lead down, and once we did that, we knew we were going to get that win."
Pack, a two-time Big 12 Player of the Week honoree, came off a torrid stretch in which he scored 22, 20, 31 and 19 points while leading the Wildcats in scoring each of the past four contests. The fact that the Wildcats were able to produce without Pack scorching the nets showed noticeable growth from earlier this season.
"Nijel was making a lot of plays tonight. He just wasn't finishing like he normally does," Smith said. "We were surprised. He's so good at making shots. He still did a great job. When we have multiple scorers, we win games and we've done a great job picking each other up. We know Nijel will get it back next game."
Although Weber would rather the Wildcats not be forced to make double-digit comebacks, he was pleased with his team's effort to finish out a close victory.
"It takes focus and really takes composure and not panicking and staying the course and doing what you can," he said. "Obviously, our defense was much better in the second half. We got steals, deflections and got into transition and that's a world of difference coming back from those deficits."
Now the Wildcats prepare to head on the road to visit Oklahoma State on Saturday and Kansas next Tuesday.
"We just keep growing and getting better," Weber said. "We've persevered. That's a word we've talked about. We're not there. We have a long way to go. We've taken some steps. Now can we get three in a row? This is not any easy thing.
"If we want to get to our goal we've got to really see if we can fight to give us a chance to be in the top part of the league."
Kansas State used balanced scoring and stifling defense while storming back from a 10-point second-half deficit in a 78-73 win over West Virginia on Monday night at Bramlage Coliseum. The fact that star sophomore guard Nijel Pack didn't lead the pack after his recent hot stretch? No big deal. The Wildcats seem to be coming together at just the right time.
Markquis Nowell had 21 points, Mark Smith had his Big 12-leading seventh double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Ismael Massoud and Pack had 13 points apiece as the Wildcats, 14-11 overall and 6-7 in the Big 12 Conference, won their second consecutive game after trailing by large deficits.
"Every shot Nijel has taken lately it seems like it's gone in," K-State head coach Bruce Weber said. "West Virginia was physical with him, and they have size and stayed into him. But Nijel had 13 points, five assists, six rebounds. That's pretty good for a bad night. I'm happy we were able to win without him, and obviously we've made some strides. There are times early we wouldn't have won games if he wasn't getting 18 or 20 points."
K-State trailed 42-35 at halftime and then fell behind 54-44 with 16 minutes, 25 seconds remaining in the game before they made a remarkable push behind an 18-2 scoring run to take a 62-54 lead on a layup by Smith with 8:12 left.
However, the game seemed to shift into an even higher gear when Nowell drove to the basket and fell in a heap while appearing to grab his left knee. Nowell recovered to his feet, wagged his head at West Virginia defenders, then nailed a long 3-pointer on the next possession. The Wildcats led by nine points three different times down the stretch.
"I really want to stay in the game until I physically can't breathe anymore," said Nowell, who shot 7 of 11 from the floor, including 4 of 6 on 3-pointers, and added 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals in 32 minutes. "Basketball is important to me. I don't like being on the bench and not being able to control a situation or not be out there for my teammates."
Smith said that Nowell's determination "fired me up."
"I was happy to see him get up because I was scared for a second," Smith added. "Markquis is a little warrior. He brings that every day. He's going to fight regardless the situation. He brought a lot of energy."
The rest of the Wildcats brought plenty of energy as well.
This marked the second time in as many games that the Wildcats came back from a double-digit deficit to win a game. The Wildcats trailed by 15 points before beating Iowa State 75-69 in overtime on Saturday. It was their largest comeback in the Big 12 era.
This one in front of a lively crowd at Bramlage seemed nearly as sweet as the Wildcats snapped a four-game losing streak against the Mountaineers, 14-11 and 3-9, who have now lost nine of their last 10 games.
"We're bonding at a different level and are focusing at a different level," Nowell said. "We're coming together at the right time. We've got five more games left in the regular season and the ones who are going to win are the ones who are going to fight through and focus."
Although Nowell and Smith combined to score more than half of the Wildcats' points, Massoud came alive while manning the center position and recorded double digits for a second straight game.
"Coach said for me to worry about the things I can do and not the things I can't do," Massoud said. "At the end of the day, I knew what I could do. My teammates supported me the whole time. My coaches knew what I could do. I just had to play my game. I had confidence in myself."
ISH!!!!!#KStateMBB x @IsmaelMassoud pic.twitter.com/Mi4q0p6gJb
— K-State Men's Basketball (@KStateMBB) February 15, 2022
Massoud shot just 2 of 8 from the floor but used his physicality to get to the foul line. He made 8 of 10 free-throw attempts. Smith shot 3 of 7 from the floor but made 10 of 11 free throws. The Wildcats made 31 of 39 free throws in the game. It was the most free throws made in a game in more than six years.
K-State showed confidence in itself to fight back in what was their third game in six days. The Wildcats appeared somewhat fatigued early on, but emerged from the locker room determined in the second half and held the Mountaineers to 1 of 11 shooting while they made their run.
"It's our grit," Smith said. "Once we get down, we all had that same passion. Even against Iowa State we felt it. We kept saying, 'We can't be afraid to win.' Guys came out and we brought the energy, cut the lead down, and once we did that, we knew we were going to get that win."
Pack, a two-time Big 12 Player of the Week honoree, came off a torrid stretch in which he scored 22, 20, 31 and 19 points while leading the Wildcats in scoring each of the past four contests. The fact that the Wildcats were able to produce without Pack scorching the nets showed noticeable growth from earlier this season.
"Nijel was making a lot of plays tonight. He just wasn't finishing like he normally does," Smith said. "We were surprised. He's so good at making shots. He still did a great job. When we have multiple scorers, we win games and we've done a great job picking each other up. We know Nijel will get it back next game."
Although Weber would rather the Wildcats not be forced to make double-digit comebacks, he was pleased with his team's effort to finish out a close victory.
"It takes focus and really takes composure and not panicking and staying the course and doing what you can," he said. "Obviously, our defense was much better in the second half. We got steals, deflections and got into transition and that's a world of difference coming back from those deficits."
Now the Wildcats prepare to head on the road to visit Oklahoma State on Saturday and Kansas next Tuesday.
"We just keep growing and getting better," Weber said. "We've persevered. That's a word we've talked about. We're not there. We have a long way to go. We've taken some steps. Now can we get three in a row? This is not any easy thing.
"If we want to get to our goal we've got to really see if we can fight to give us a chance to be in the top part of the league."
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