Late Run Lifts West Virginia Past K-State, 73-67

Wednesday, March 9

Kansas City

6 p.m.

Kansas State University

14-17,6-12Big 12

West Virginia

16-16,4-14Big 12

West Virginia

Kansas St.

Mar 09, 2022 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Final Stats (.pdf)Postgame Quotes (.pdf)Photo Gallery

Sophomore Nijel Pack leads all Wildcats with 18 points

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Senior Taz Sherman's 3-pointer with 4:44 to play ignited an 8-0 run that carried No. 9 seed West Virginia to a 73-67 win over No. 8 seed Kansas State in the opening game of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship on Wednesday night before 15,295 fans at the T-Mobile Center.

West Virginia (16-16) got the decisive run after K-State (14-17) had closed to within 61-60 on a layup by sophomore Nijel Pack with less than 6 minutes to play. The Wildcats had spent much of the second half rallying from deficits, including an 8-0 run that tied the game at 55-all with 9:12 remaining.

However, the Mountaineers were able to stay in front either with a big defensive stop or with a big bucket.

After Sherman hit his big 3-pointer with 4:44 to play, fellow senior Malik Curry connected on another triple then yet another senior Sean McNeil, who led all scorers with 21 points, followed with a layup that gave the Mountaineers a 69-60 lead and forced a timeout by K-State head coach Bruce Weber with 3:29 remaining.

The Wildcats, which got big efforts from Pack, fifth-year senior Mark Smith and sophomore Ish Massoud who combined for 48 of the 67 points, could never get closer than 6 points the rest of the way, as the Mountaineers advanced to the quarterfinals to take on top-seed Kansas (25-6) on Thursday at 2 p.m., CT.

Pack led three K-State players in double figures with 18 points on 5-of-13 field goals, including 3-of-7 from 3-point range, and a perfect 5-of-5 effort from the free throw line. He finished the season by scoring in double figures in 22 consecutive games, which is the longest such streak since Jacob Pullen had a 41-game streak during the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons. He also finished with 95 made 3-point field goals, which are the third-most in a single season in school history and the most since Pullen tied the school-record with 110 3-pointers in 2009-10.

Pack was joined in double figures by Smith, who scored 17 points on 6-of-8 field goals, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range to go with 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals, and Massoud, who played his best all-around game of the season with 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting, including 3-of-4 from long range, to go with 6 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Junior Markquis Nowell, who returned after missing the last 2 games due to a hamstring injury, added a game-high 4 assists to go with his 8 points, 2 rebounds and a steal.

McNeil led all scorers with 21 points on 7-of-10 field goals, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range, and a perfect 4-of-4 effort from the free throw, while Curry gave the Mountaineers a big lift off the bench with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting. Sherman finished with a near double-double with 9 points and 9 rebounds.

With the loss, K-State finishes the season with a 14-17 overall record, including a 6-12 mark in Big 12 play. The Wildcats, which made a habit of playing close games, lost their eighth game by 6 points or less.

KEY STRETCH(ES)
After West Virginia jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead, K-State slowly chipped away at the deficit, taking the lead twice in the early going behind baskets from fifth-year senior Mark Smith, including 10-9 after a 3-pointer. However, the Mountaineers exploded for 7 straight points to take a 16-10 advantage and forced head coach Bruce Weber to call his first timeout at the 12:27 mark.

WVU maintained its lead, including pushing ahead by as many as 8 points (24-16), before K-State used a 7-2 run to close to within 26-23 at the third media timeout with 6:55 before halftime. The Wildcats twice closed to within a single point before a jumper by sophomore Nijel Pack gave them a 31-30 lead with 3:22 remaining. However, the Mountaineers responded with 8 straight points to take a 38-31 advantage with 39 seconds left. Sophomore Ish Massoud finished off the scoring in the first half with his third 3-pointer to close the gap to 38-34 at the break.

K-State got back into the game with its 3-point shooting, twice tying it on triples from senior Mike McGuirl and Pack. However, WVU broke a 45-all tie with a jumper by senior Kedrian Johnson that started a 10-2 run and gave the Mountaineers a 55-47 lead at the 10:38 mark. The Wildcats answered back with 8 in a row, including 5 straight free throws by Pack and 3-pointer by junior Markquis Nowell, that tied the game at 55-all.

The teams went back and forth over the next few minutes with WVU keeping the lead before the decisive 8-0 run that forced a K-State timeout with 3:30 to play. Senior Taz Sherman started the run with a 3-pointer followed by another triple from senior Malik Curry and a jumper from Sean McNeil. The Wildcats could get no closer than 6 the rest of the way, as the Mountaineers advanced to the quarterfinals with a 73-67 win.

PLAYER(S) OF THE GAME
Sophomore Nijel Pack finished with a team-high 18 points on 5-of-13 field goals, including 3-of-7 from 3-point range, and a perfect 5-of-5 effort from the free throw line to go with 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal in 38 minutes. It marked the 18^th time in 29 games played this season that he led the Wildcats in scoring.

Fifth-year senior Mark Smith scored 17 points 6-of-8 field goals, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range, and a 2-of-2 effort from the free throw line, while adding 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in 33 minutes.

STAT OF THE GAME
29 – West Virginia got a huge lift from its bench, outscoring K-State 29-5, which included a 17-point effort from senior Malik Curry.

IN THEIR WORDS
K-State Head Coach Bruce Weber
On the game…
"I just told the players how much we appreciate them; we love them. They've come every day. We have been through a bunch, and they keep coming back and playing their all. Obviously, I just said today be special. Don't let your teammates down. Don't let yourselves down. I had a couple of guys, maybe Mike McGuirl especially, instead of being relaxed and enjoying it. I think he played a little uptight and struggled a little bit. Nijel (Pack) got us going early. And they're a good defensive team and they're not going to let him get looks, and we expected a lot out of Nijel, but it wears on him, and we just needed something from our bench."

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE

K-State ended the season with a 14-17 overall record, including a 6-12 mark in Big 12 play.
K-State is now 37-43 all-time at Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship, including 20-15 in the first round… The loss snapped a six-year streak of winning the first game in the tournament.
West Virginia now leads the all-time series, 15-9, including 2-0 at the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship.
K-State played 13 games decided by 6 points or less, posting a 5-8 record.
K-State fell to 1-14 this season when allowing an opponent to score 70 or more points… In contrast the team is 13-3 when holding its opponent below 70 points.
K-State connected on 11 made 3-point field goals, which marked the 12^th time this season that the Wildcats have hit on 10 or more 3-pointers this season.
K-State set the school record for 3-point field goals in a single season with sophomore Ish Massoud's triple at the 8:48 mark of the first half… The Wildcats finished the season with 261 3-point makes, eclipsing the previous mark of 254 set during the 2017-18 season.
Sophomore Nijel Pack kept his streak of consecutive games in double figures at 22 with 18 points on 5-of-13 shooting, including 3-of-7 from 3-point range and a perfect 5-of-5 effort from the free throw line… It is the longest double-digit streak since Jacob Pullen had 41-game streak in 2008-09 and 2009-10 season… He has double figures in 44 of 53 career games, including 28 of 29 this season.
Pack has now hit a 3-pointer in 34 consecutive games dating back to last season, which extends his own school record that he broke at home vs. Baylor on Feb. 9, 2022 and was originally set by Steve Henson (25) between Jan. 5, 1989 and Dec. 2, 1989.
Pack finished third on the school's single-season Top 10 list for 3-point field goals with 95, only Askia Jones (1993-94) and Jacob Pullen (2009-10) have had more 3-pointers in a single season… It is the most 3-pointers in a single season since the 2009-10 season when Jacob Pullen tied the school record with 110… He has already broken the sophomore record for 3-pointers (92).
Fifth-year senior Mark Smith scored 17 points on 6-of-8 field goals, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range, and 2-of-2 free throws to go with 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in 33 minutes… He has now scored in double figures in 63 career games, including 23 this season.
Smith's 260 rebounds this season are the most since Michael Beasley's 408 in 2007-08.
Sophomore Ish Massoud scored 13 points on 4-of-8 field goals, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range, to go with 6 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks in 35 minutes… It marked his 22nd double-digit scoring game, including his 11th this season.
Junior Markquis Nowell finished with a team-high 4 assists to go with 8 points, 2 rebounds and a steal in 35 minutes… Nowell had 136 assists on the season, which are the most since Kamau Stokes dished out 145 in 2016-17, while he had 59 steals, which ranks 10^th on the school's single-season chart.
K-State used a starting lineup of junior Markquis Nowell, sophomore Nijel Pack, fifth-year senior Mike McGuirl, fifth-year senior Mark Smith and sophomore Ish Massoud… This marked the first time using this lineup and the 12th different lineup this season… Smith is the only Wildcat to start all 31 games.

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