Jerome Tang Previews Road Game at Cincinnati
Feb 29, 2024 | Men's Basketball
The Wildcats plays the Bearcats for the first time as Big 12 foes on Saturday
MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State head men's basketball coach Jerome Tang met with the media on Thursday afternoon (Feb. 29) to preview the Wildcats' upcoming road trip to Cincinnati on Saturday. Links to the audio and a transcript of Tang's availability are above.
K-State (17-11, 7-8 Big 12) will be playing Cincinnati (16-12, 5-10 Big 12) for the first as Big 12 members on Saturday night at 6 p.m., CT at the Fifth Third Arena on Big 12 Now. This will be the first regular season meeting between the schools since 1968 and the first overall since the 2017 NCAA Tournament.
The Wildcats have won back-to-back games for the first time since mid-January after knocking off No. 25/21 BYU, 84-74, last Saturday and West Virginia, 94-90, in overtime on Monday. The win over the Mountaineers was the 12th in a row in overtime, including the Division I single-season record seventh this season.
Cincinnati has lost 5 of its last 6 games, including 3 straight, after Tuesday's 67-59 setback at No. 1/1 Houston. The team is 12-5 at home this season, including 2-5 in Big 12 play. The Bearcats are one of the nation's top rebounding teams, ranking eighth in rebounding margin (+8.9), 10th in offensive rebounds (14.04) and 12th in rebounds/game (40.46). Seven players are averaging 7 or more points, including 3 in double figures led by sophomore Dan Skillings Jr. (11.9 ppg.). Big men Viktor Lakhin (9.9 ppg., 6.3 rpg.) and Aziz Bandaogo (7.4 ppg., 7.7 rpg.) nearly average a double-double individually and combine for 54 blocked shots.
The Bearcats own a 7-1 advantage in the all-time series with 7 straight wins. The Wildcats' lone win in the series came in the first meeting in the 1958 NCAA Tournament at Allen Fieldhouse.
Following Saturday's game with Cincinnati, K-State finishes the regular season with back-to-back top-10 matchups at No. 7/9 Kansas (21-7, 9-6 Big 12) on Tuesday night at Allen Fieldhouse before hosting No. 6/6 Iowa State (22-6, 11-4 Big 12) at 1 p.m., on Saturday at Bramlage Coliseum.
HEAD COACH JEROME TANG
On a winning streak for NCAA tournament chances…
"You hope so, like greater belief continues to grow and stuff, but it's still one game at a time, it's the next one up and it doesn't get any easier, you know."
On what allowed West Virginia to come back in the second half…
"They made shots. I mean we didn't really guard them that well in the first half. Going back and looking at the film, they just missed shots. And then the second half RaeQuan Battle and Kerr Kriisa made shots and then when Battle got hot, it didn't matter what we did, he just made shots."
On the game plan for Cincinnati's rebounding…
"We just hope that we do a better job. Kind of remind you of those [Bob] Huggins' Cincinnati teams, their best offense is a missed shot, and they go get it man. You know they have the bigs first of all, but those two wings, the way they go rebound, I mean, we got clips, guys taking mid-range shots, and they're at darn near half court and they're at the rim on the miss, and their relentless pursuit of the ball, and we have to be able to match that."
On the impact of the Cincinnati game on NCAA Tournament chances…
"We are in the same boat that they are in. And they have an advantage because they're at home, so we have to be more desperate than they are. And, you know, this is the biggest game of the year, not just because it's the next one, this one's huge. And we might as well call this an NCAA Tournament game, I think whoever wins this game is gonna go to the tournament, not that whoever loses is not, but I think whoever wins this game is going to go to the NCAA Tournament."
On Dai Dai Ames' improvement…
"Dai Dai is growing up. He's learning he just can't get the ball and just go and then when he gets there figure it out. He's learning to have a plan on his drives, he's learning just to move the ball, something doesn't always have to happen when he touches it and so he's grown up and in that area. He's understanding scouting reports better and so I mean, this is some valuable experience that he's gained and it's gonna help him continue on, but it is nice in the last five games to see him shoot 47% from three and take the right shots."
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 (17-11, 7-8 Big 12) will be playing Cincinnati (16-12, 5-10 Big 12) for the first as Big 12 members on Saturday night at 6 p.m., CT at the Fifth Third Arena on Big 12 Now. This will be the first regular season meeting between the schools since 1968 and the first overall since the 2017 NCAA Tournament.
The Wildcats have won back-to-back games for the first time since mid-January after knocking off No. 25/21 BYU, 84-74, last Saturday and West Virginia, 94-90, in overtime on Monday. The win over the Mountaineers was the 12th in a row in overtime, including the Division I single-season record seventh this season.
Cincinnati has lost 5 of its last 6 games, including 3 straight, after Tuesday's 67-59 setback at No. 1/1 Houston. The team is 12-5 at home this season, including 2-5 in Big 12 play. The Bearcats are one of the nation's top rebounding teams, ranking eighth in rebounding margin (+8.9), 10th in offensive rebounds (14.04) and 12th in rebounds/game (40.46). Seven players are averaging 7 or more points, including 3 in double figures led by sophomore Dan Skillings Jr. (11.9 ppg.). Big men Viktor Lakhin (9.9 ppg., 6.3 rpg.) and Aziz Bandaogo (7.4 ppg., 7.7 rpg.) nearly average a double-double individually and combine for 54 blocked shots.
The Bearcats own a 7-1 advantage in the all-time series with 7 straight wins. The Wildcats' lone win in the series came in the first meeting in the 1958 NCAA Tournament at Allen Fieldhouse.
Following Saturday's game with Cincinnati, K-State finishes the regular season with back-to-back top-10 matchups at No. 7/9 Kansas (21-7, 9-6 Big 12) on Tuesday night at Allen Fieldhouse before hosting No. 6/6 Iowa State (22-6, 11-4 Big 12) at 1 p.m., on Saturday at Bramlage Coliseum.
HEAD COACH JEROME TANG
On a winning streak for NCAA tournament chances…
"You hope so, like greater belief continues to grow and stuff, but it's still one game at a time, it's the next one up and it doesn't get any easier, you know."
On what allowed West Virginia to come back in the second half…
"They made shots. I mean we didn't really guard them that well in the first half. Going back and looking at the film, they just missed shots. And then the second half RaeQuan Battle and Kerr Kriisa made shots and then when Battle got hot, it didn't matter what we did, he just made shots."
On the game plan for Cincinnati's rebounding…
"We just hope that we do a better job. Kind of remind you of those [Bob] Huggins' Cincinnati teams, their best offense is a missed shot, and they go get it man. You know they have the bigs first of all, but those two wings, the way they go rebound, I mean, we got clips, guys taking mid-range shots, and they're at darn near half court and they're at the rim on the miss, and their relentless pursuit of the ball, and we have to be able to match that."
On the impact of the Cincinnati game on NCAA Tournament chances…
"We are in the same boat that they are in. And they have an advantage because they're at home, so we have to be more desperate than they are. And, you know, this is the biggest game of the year, not just because it's the next one, this one's huge. And we might as well call this an NCAA Tournament game, I think whoever wins this game is gonna go to the tournament, not that whoever loses is not, but I think whoever wins this game is going to go to the NCAA Tournament."
On Dai Dai Ames' improvement…
"Dai Dai is growing up. He's learning he just can't get the ball and just go and then when he gets there figure it out. He's learning to have a plan on his drives, he's learning just to move the ball, something doesn't always have to happen when he touches it and so he's grown up and in that area. He's understanding scouting reports better and so I mean, this is some valuable experience that he's gained and it's gonna help him continue on, but it is nice in the last five games to see him shoot 47% from three and take the right shots."
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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