Jerome Tang Previews Road Game at Texas Tech
Jan 11, 2024 | Men's Basketball
The Wildcats to meet the Red Raiders on Saturday at 3 pm CT on ESPN2
MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State head men's basketball coach Jerome Tang met with the media on Thursday afternoon (Jan. 11) to preview the Wildcats' upcoming road game at Texas Tech on Saturday afternoon at United Supermarkets Arena.
K-State (12-3, 2-0 Big 12) concludes its 2-game road swing with a trip with Lubbock, where they will face a Red Raiders team that has won a Big 12-best 8 in a row, including their first 2 Big 12 games (at Texas and at home against Oklahoma State). The matchup will be the first and only regular-season meeting between the schools, snapping a 12-year streak of playing home-and-home every year since the 2011-12 season.
Texas Tech (13-2, 2-0 Big 12) is flying high under first-year head coach Grant McCasland, who has won 365 games in his head coaching career including 135 during his most recent stint at 6-year stint at North Texas. The Red Raiders are averaging nearly 80 points per game (78.8 ppg.) and have 6 players averaging 9 or more points per game led by sophomore guard Pop Isaacs (16.7 ppg.).
The two schools have a number of connections, most notably Tang and McCasland, who will meet for the first time as head coaches after spending 5 seasons on Scott Drew's coaching staff at Baylor from 2011-16. The duo was apart of 125 wins at Baylor, including an Elite Eight in 2012 and NIT Championship in 2013. In addition, assistant coach Jareem Dowling and strength coach Phil Baier spent time working for McCasland at Arkansas State and North Texas, while senior Tylor Perry played 2 seasons (2021-23) for McCasland at North Texas.
Although K-State holds a 26-24 advantage in the all-time series, Texas Tech has a narrow 21-19 lead in the series since the start of Big 12 play, including 15-4 mark in games played in Lubbock. The Red Raiders have won 9 in a row at home in the series with the last Wildcat win coming in 2014.
K-State returns home on Tuesday to begin a 2-game homestand against No. 14/14 Baylor (13-2, 2-0 Big 12) before a matchup on Saturday against Oklahoma State (8-7, 0-2 Big 12). The Oklahoma State game is sold out, but there is a limited number of tickets available for Tuesday's game with Baylor through the Athletics Ticket Office by calling toll free at (800) 221.CATS (2287), by logging in online at www.kstatesports.com/tickets, and in-person at the main southwest Bramlage Coliseum ticket office.
HEAD COACH JEROME TANG
On the depth of the Big 12…
"Well, I don't know if there are any upsets in my mind. I mean, there's lines on the game as far as who certain people think are going to win, but it's hard to call any road loss and upset. And I'm guilty of thinking, 'oh that team's gonna win' but, man, every game is its own entity, and our league is the best. And it's not just the teams, it's the environments. I watch a lot of college basketball. I'm a junkie, like, I have the computer going, watching the team that we are getting ready to play. I got the TV on (watching a game). I got one going on my phone. I just like following as many games as I can. And the environments in the Big 12, they are special. So many great places to play. And this is on any given night, not just when there's a rivalry game in another league, right? On any given night, you watch a Big 12 game, and it's an incredible environment, so you have to prepare for that."
On Grant McCasland's coaching style changing from North Texas to Texas Tech…
"They're definitely playing faster, trying to play faster. But in our league, you can't just play at a super slow pace, you gotta try and get transition points, you gotta take shots, when they're available. The defenses in our league are just way too good to try and grind that down to the end of the shot clock and get a shot off. What I know about Grant (McCasland) is he's gonna do whatever it takes to win. It's all about winning. He is always thinking how does this convert to winning games. And so, whatever it takes, he's gonna figure it out, get it done."
On the play of Texas Tech's Pop Isaacs…
"He's a bucket and he loves the game of basketball. I have known him for a long time since he was little through his dad, who as a longtime AAU coach has helped a lot of kids. He loves the game, and you can just see it in how he plays. Whenever he touches the ball, you have to be locked in."
On Tylor Perry playing his college coach from last season and if it is no longer strange…
"Yes, I mean, it's just what it is. It was appropriate for Grant (McCasland) to do well at North Texas, and then go get the Texas Tech job. It is appropriate for Tylor Perry to do well at North Texas and then move to a higher level of competition. And I'm thankful he picked us."'
On the play of David N'Guessan…
"David is just playing at a high level right now. His hard work is paying off, you know, and that's the thing you love as a coach, because you tell the guys that hard work always pays off, you're just not sure when. I use the analogy to some of the guys to the seed planted in the ground. You don't plant a seed and then go out the next day and look to see if there is fruit to pick from a tree, you know, it takes time. And but all that hard work eventually pays off. And he's reaping the rewards of his own hard work."
How to follow the 'Cats: For complete information on K-State men's basketball, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
K-State (12-3, 2-0 Big 12) concludes its 2-game road swing with a trip with Lubbock, where they will face a Red Raiders team that has won a Big 12-best 8 in a row, including their first 2 Big 12 games (at Texas and at home against Oklahoma State). The matchup will be the first and only regular-season meeting between the schools, snapping a 12-year streak of playing home-and-home every year since the 2011-12 season.
Texas Tech (13-2, 2-0 Big 12) is flying high under first-year head coach Grant McCasland, who has won 365 games in his head coaching career including 135 during his most recent stint at 6-year stint at North Texas. The Red Raiders are averaging nearly 80 points per game (78.8 ppg.) and have 6 players averaging 9 or more points per game led by sophomore guard Pop Isaacs (16.7 ppg.).
The two schools have a number of connections, most notably Tang and McCasland, who will meet for the first time as head coaches after spending 5 seasons on Scott Drew's coaching staff at Baylor from 2011-16. The duo was apart of 125 wins at Baylor, including an Elite Eight in 2012 and NIT Championship in 2013. In addition, assistant coach Jareem Dowling and strength coach Phil Baier spent time working for McCasland at Arkansas State and North Texas, while senior Tylor Perry played 2 seasons (2021-23) for McCasland at North Texas.
Although K-State holds a 26-24 advantage in the all-time series, Texas Tech has a narrow 21-19 lead in the series since the start of Big 12 play, including 15-4 mark in games played in Lubbock. The Red Raiders have won 9 in a row at home in the series with the last Wildcat win coming in 2014.
K-State returns home on Tuesday to begin a 2-game homestand against No. 14/14 Baylor (13-2, 2-0 Big 12) before a matchup on Saturday against Oklahoma State (8-7, 0-2 Big 12). The Oklahoma State game is sold out, but there is a limited number of tickets available for Tuesday's game with Baylor through the Athletics Ticket Office by calling toll free at (800) 221.CATS (2287), by logging in online at www.kstatesports.com/tickets, and in-person at the main southwest Bramlage Coliseum ticket office.
HEAD COACH JEROME TANG
On the depth of the Big 12…
"Well, I don't know if there are any upsets in my mind. I mean, there's lines on the game as far as who certain people think are going to win, but it's hard to call any road loss and upset. And I'm guilty of thinking, 'oh that team's gonna win' but, man, every game is its own entity, and our league is the best. And it's not just the teams, it's the environments. I watch a lot of college basketball. I'm a junkie, like, I have the computer going, watching the team that we are getting ready to play. I got the TV on (watching a game). I got one going on my phone. I just like following as many games as I can. And the environments in the Big 12, they are special. So many great places to play. And this is on any given night, not just when there's a rivalry game in another league, right? On any given night, you watch a Big 12 game, and it's an incredible environment, so you have to prepare for that."
On Grant McCasland's coaching style changing from North Texas to Texas Tech…
"They're definitely playing faster, trying to play faster. But in our league, you can't just play at a super slow pace, you gotta try and get transition points, you gotta take shots, when they're available. The defenses in our league are just way too good to try and grind that down to the end of the shot clock and get a shot off. What I know about Grant (McCasland) is he's gonna do whatever it takes to win. It's all about winning. He is always thinking how does this convert to winning games. And so, whatever it takes, he's gonna figure it out, get it done."
On the play of Texas Tech's Pop Isaacs…
"He's a bucket and he loves the game of basketball. I have known him for a long time since he was little through his dad, who as a longtime AAU coach has helped a lot of kids. He loves the game, and you can just see it in how he plays. Whenever he touches the ball, you have to be locked in."
On Tylor Perry playing his college coach from last season and if it is no longer strange…
"Yes, I mean, it's just what it is. It was appropriate for Grant (McCasland) to do well at North Texas, and then go get the Texas Tech job. It is appropriate for Tylor Perry to do well at North Texas and then move to a higher level of competition. And I'm thankful he picked us."'
On the play of David N'Guessan…
"David is just playing at a high level right now. His hard work is paying off, you know, and that's the thing you love as a coach, because you tell the guys that hard work always pays off, you're just not sure when. I use the analogy to some of the guys to the seed planted in the ground. You don't plant a seed and then go out the next day and look to see if there is fruit to pick from a tree, you know, it takes time. And but all that hard work eventually pays off. And he's reaping the rewards of his own hard work."
How to follow the 'Cats: For complete information on K-State men's basketball, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
Players Mentioned
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