Reigniting the Spark

By: D. Scott Fritchen

It started inside a room. That's what Jerome Tang said. The Kansas State head coach didn't identify the exact room, far as we know, but inside that room the K-State coaching staff stood before its players and mapped out a path to reach the NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats were down coming off their lopsided loss at No. 14 Kansas. They needed something to make a final push.

They found their direction — and momentum — inside a room.

"Immediately, you saw the stuff turning in their heads and light in their eyes," Tang said. "The staff did an unbelievable job of presenting it and what we needed to do and how we could get there.

"There was just life. You could feel it. It was pretty great to watch."

It was pretty great to see K-State attack No. 6 Iowa State in a 65-58 victory on Senior Day at Bramlage Coliseum.

The Wildcats dug into the bulldog mentality that they harbored in Quad 1 or 2 wins against Providence, Villanova, LSU, UCF, No. 9 Baylor, No. 4 Kansas and No. 21 BYU. Then there's this: It was Senior Night for Taymont Lindsey, Will McNair Jr., David N'Guessan and Tylor Perry. Plenty of momentum. Plenty of adrenaline. Plenty of reasons to cap off the final home game of the season with a memorable victory in a season when victories have at times been difficult to come by.

"Man, that was great," said N'Guessan, whose family flew in from the Netherlands to watch him put up 11 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. "They mean the world to me. I love them. They came a long ways. It was Senior Night, so I had to show up. It was really important for us to get this win as a team. It felt even better having my family here. I just want to win."

K-State's road in the Big 12 Tournament begins as the 10^th-seed Wildcats, 18-13, face No. 7 seed Texas, 20-11, in Wednesday's 6 p.m. tipoff at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri.

"We didn't get to stay in Kansas City very long last year," Tang said, "so hopefully we can stay a little bit longer."

The motivation began in a room and translated onto the floor against the Cyclones, and the momentum from that victory could serve the Wildcats well.

"It was huge for us," said K-State junior Cam Carter, who had 21 points and five rebounds. "We talked about it as a team. Even on the bench, we made it a big thing. Nobody wants to play the first game in the Big 12 Tournament and have to play all five days. That was a part of our motivation, really."

As for Carter's confidence level coming off the win over the Cyclones?

"It's the start of a winning streak," he said.

Tang came prepared when asked about the importance of winning on Senior Day.

"Winning on Senior Day against the sixth-ranked team in the country, giving us our fourth Top 25 win this year, I'm not really sure what happened with Villanova today, but there's a chance it moves us to six Quad 1 wins, and three top-10 wins," Tang said. "I mean, that's pretty impressive. No Quad 3 or Quad 4 losses. It's building up a pretty darned good resume."

There will be more words to write as K-State prepares to face Texas, for sure, but stories erupted from the Wildcats in their win over the Cyclones.

Carter, who had been struggling lately, rediscovered his groove.

"It was huge, man," Tang said. "Cam, the last couple days, he's looked more like himself and acting more like himself. He figured out what he needed to do to get himself back rolling. Our team, his teammates have done a great job of encouraging him and supporting him, but at some point in time you've got to do it and say it to yourself. You have to be the one to make the turn and he did that these past couple days."

Meanwhile N'Guessan is shining at the right time as well. Tang let it be known that N'Guessan, who could return for another year, is more than welcome to rejoin the Wildcats.

"We want David back," Tang said. "I think he knows we want him back. I believe it's going to help his career in the long run from the growth that he's making and the confidence that he's starting to play with, and to be able to add a little bit more and do it at a higher level and just his leadership skills, I'm just so proud of him. We're doing everything we can to make sure that young fella comes back."

K-State was one-and-done with an 80-67 loss to TCU in the Big 12 Tournament last season.

The Wildcats are back and eager to stick around a little bit longer this time around.

"(Texas) is going to be another Quad 1 game," Tang said. "There's an opportunity and a path for us, and I'm excited about that path. I'm just looking forward to seeing how our guys respond."

Kansas State University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Cam Carter

Taymont Lindsey

Will McNair Jr.

David N'Guessan

Tylor Perry

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