Saturday, January 24
Manhattan, Kan.
7 p.m. CT
Kansas State University
10-10,1-6Big 12
62
vs
86
.png&width=60&height=60&type=webp)
Kansas
15-5,5-2Big 12
1
2
F
Kansas
37
49
86
Kansas St.
35
27
62
19/19 Kansas Too Much For K-State, 86-62
Jan 24, 2026 | Men's Basketball
Box ScoreFinal Stats (.pdf)Postgame Quotes (.pdf)HighlightsJerome Tang Press ConferencePlayer Press ConferencePhoto Gallery
Junior P.J. Haggerty led all scorers with 23 points.
MANHATTAN, Kan. – No. 19/19 Kansas broke open a tight contest with a decisive 8-0 run to snap a 3-game losing streak at Bramlage Coliseum and earn an 86-62 win in the 304th Dillons Sunflower Showdown on Saturday night.
Kansas (15-5, 5-2 Big 12) saw five players score in double figures led by sophomore Flory Bidunga's 21-point, 10-rebound double-double while senior Melvin Council Jr. added his own double-double with 17 points and a game-high 12 assists.
K-State (10-10, 1-6 Big 12) played its second consecutive game with just 10 available players due to injuries, as starters Abdi Bashir Jr. and Khamari McGriff each missed their second straight game. A third regular starter – Elias Rapieque – missed his fourth game in a row.
The potent Wildcat offense, which entered averaging 85.3 points on 47.3 percent shooting, was held to its lowest output of the season with just 62 points on 34.4 percent (21-of-61) shooting with season-lows for both field goals made (21) and points in the paint (18).
Junior P.J. Haggerty scored a game-high 23 points, doing most of his damage at the free throw line, where he was 10-of-12, to go with 5 rebounds and 4 assists in nearly 39 minutes. He has now scored in double figures in all 20 games this season with 15 20-point scoring efforts.
Freshman Andrej Kostic posted his first career double-digit scoring game with 12 points.
The Wildcats trailed just 59-55 after a 3-pointer by Haggerty just before the third media timeout with 7:26 to play. However, a Bidunga free throw sparked a run of eight straight points that pushed the lead to 67-55, prompting a timeout by head coach Jerome Tang with 5:37 to play.
A Haggerty free throw broke the run out of the timeout, but the Jayhawks continued their push with 7 of the next 9 points to go ahead 74-58 at the final media timeout with 3:41 to play. From there, the lead ballooned to as many as 24 points in the eventual 86-62 loss.
The first half was a back-and-forth affair with Kansas leading by as many as 7 points before K-State closed to with 37-35 at the halftime break. The Wildcats had a chance to take the lead just before halftime but senior C.J. Jones' 3-pointer just rimmed out at the buzzer.
Kansas now leads the eighth-most played rivalry in men's college basketball, 207-97, including 82-51 in Manhattan and 30-8 at Bramlage Coliseum. The schools have met every season since 1907.
The crowd of 9,111 for the usually sold-out Sunflower Showdown was heavily impacted by the winter snowstorm that swept the U.S. on Saturday with Manhattan getting 10 inches of snow.
HEAD COACH JEROME TANG
Opening statement…
"First of all, want to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for the blessing I have to coach at this incredible school with these unbelievable fans. Want to thank our fans for, you know, braving the cold, the snow, the bad weather conditions, our students who showed up in full force and gave us a home court advantage. Man, you know, just when you see people out there in this cold and they were plowing earlier today, and then they're making sure cars parked right. Just to give us an opportunity to play the game, you know, and it is such a blessing. I'm so thankful for them, and very disappointed that we didn't finish with the kind of effort that those people deserve. Credit to KU for, you know, 7:26 to go, it's 59-55 they close on a 27-to-7 run. That's a credit to them, and something that we have to go look at as a staff. But to close the last five minutes on an 18-to-2 paint point advantage when it was a point of emphasis for us, that was extremely disappointing. But, great thing about this league is you get a quick turnaround, and you have got to go play another really good team. And so, it's on to the next thing."
On if players might be tired playing extra minutes to account for injuries…
"No, no excuses. I mean, they just played harder than we did at the end. I mean, these dudes, 18- to 23-year-old, you know, and they all want to play, right. So, it's yeah, we got to be more competitive, and those moments got to be more competitive. And we weren't."
On what Kansas did in the last eight minutes of the game…
"Yeah, you know, they put two on the ball and stuff, but you can't let your offense dictate your defense. That had nothing to do with that, like, I mean, Flory [Bidunga] was getting shots at the rim. We just in those moments, man, you just have to be more competitive, have a little more fight to you and we didn't, you know, so it's a credit to them."
On if he prefers P.J. Haggerty to take over on offense in the second half…
"The other guys, like in the first half, other guys were taking and making shots, and second half they were taking that away. So, you know, that was your option. And you know, I like to see him be more aggressive, but we need some guys to step up with him."
On Andrej Kostic and the first half shooting…
"Andrej can make shots, man, that's not like something. What I was proud of Andrej, is that his transition defense and and he's trying to be in a stance now, he's got to pay attention to the scout report, not close out hard on a guy that's a short close out guy, or, you know, those type of things, and that's going to come with time, but he's a terrific player, and he's going to be a really good one. And so was happy for him in the first half, but happy for Dorin [Buca] in the first half, but now we got to put two halves together, because we don't get to stop at halftime, right. You got to put 40 minutes, and that's where your competitiveness, like, really kicks in, because they're going to make an adjustment, they're going to do something different and we got to have dudes that step up, like, raise their level of play, their intensity, their focus. You know, that's what you have to do to beat good teams."
On the advantage Kansas had with points in the paint…
"I'm gonna go back and watch and figure that out. But it wasn't that, it was 28-to-16 with five minutes to go, and then they went 18-to-2 to finish the game. And, I mean, like, our scheme didn't change, right? Like, and I'm just that's what I'm talking about, we just weren't competitive enough to execute what we needed to do. And they were more competitive than we were."
FIRST HALF
Three-point field goals from junior Taj Manning and senior Nate Johnson gave K-State an early 6-4 lead before Kansas ran off 7 straight points to go ahead 11-6 just after the first media timeout. A dunk by junior Dorin Buca ended the run, but the Jayhawks' hot shooting continued as they scored 6 of the next 8 points to extend their lead to 17-10 at the 12:11 mark.
Freshman Andrej Kostic unleashed 3 consecutive 3-point baskets to tie the game at 19-all before a jumper by sophomore Elmarko Jackson gave Kansas a 21-19 lead at the second media timeout. Kostic knocked down a fourth triple to pull K-State within 23-22 before a 3-point play by Jackson extended the KU lead to 26-22 at the third media timeout with 7:23 before halftime.
Back-to-back 3-pointers from Manning and sophomore David Castillo gave the Wildcats their first lead at 28-26, prompting a timeout from head coach Bill Self at the 5:54 mark. A free throw and jumper from senior Melvin Council Jr. returned the lead to the Jayhawks at 29-28 at the final media timeout with 3:17 to play. The teams exchanged points over the next few minutes with KU leading 37-33 before junior P.J. Haggerty connected on his first field goal to close the gap to 37-35.
K-State earned a defensive stop and had one last opportunity with 9.7 seconds left in the half, but senior C.J. Jones' 3-point attempt was just off the mark, as Kansas led 37-35. The Jayhawks shot 57.7 percent (15-of-26) from the field while K-State was held to just 35.3 percent (12-of-34) shooting. The Wildcats took advantage of 7 more made 3-pointers.
Kostic and freshman Bryson Tiller led all scorers with 12 points each.
SECOND HALF
The teams battled through the first few possessions of the second half before a 10-2 run capped by a pair of free throws on a technical called on K-State head coach Jerome Tang gave Kansas its first double-digit lead at 49-39. The technical seemed to spark the Wildcats as a Haggerty jumper and a Castillo 3-pointer cut the deficit in half at 49-44. However, the Jayhawks got a 3-pointer from Council and 2 more free throws to go ahead 54-46 at the second media timeout.
K-State got to within 54-50 on baskets from Castillo and Haggerty, but Kansas responded with a jumper and a Jackson 3-pointer to pull back ahead 59-52 at the 8:11 mark. A Haggerty 3-pointer made it 59-55 right before the third media timeout, but an 8-0 run by the Jayhawks gave them their largest lead at 67-55 before a timeout by Tang at the 5:37 mark.
The lead grew to 16 at 74-58 after a second 3-pointer from Jackson right before the final media timeout with 3:41 to play before ballooning to 24 in the final seconds.
Haggerty led all scorers with 18 points in the second half.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
TEAM NOTES
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
WHAT'S NEXT
K-State hits the road for Morgantown, W.Va., on Tuesday night for a matchup at West Virginia (13-7, 4-3 Big 12) at Hope Coliseum. Tip is set for 7:37 p.m., on FS1. This will be the first meeting in Morgantown since 2024. The Mountaineers own a 16-13 lead in the all-time series, including a 9-3 mark at home.
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, Instagram and Facebook.
Kansas (15-5, 5-2 Big 12) saw five players score in double figures led by sophomore Flory Bidunga's 21-point, 10-rebound double-double while senior Melvin Council Jr. added his own double-double with 17 points and a game-high 12 assists.
K-State (10-10, 1-6 Big 12) played its second consecutive game with just 10 available players due to injuries, as starters Abdi Bashir Jr. and Khamari McGriff each missed their second straight game. A third regular starter – Elias Rapieque – missed his fourth game in a row.
The potent Wildcat offense, which entered averaging 85.3 points on 47.3 percent shooting, was held to its lowest output of the season with just 62 points on 34.4 percent (21-of-61) shooting with season-lows for both field goals made (21) and points in the paint (18).
Junior P.J. Haggerty scored a game-high 23 points, doing most of his damage at the free throw line, where he was 10-of-12, to go with 5 rebounds and 4 assists in nearly 39 minutes. He has now scored in double figures in all 20 games this season with 15 20-point scoring efforts.
Freshman Andrej Kostic posted his first career double-digit scoring game with 12 points.
The Wildcats trailed just 59-55 after a 3-pointer by Haggerty just before the third media timeout with 7:26 to play. However, a Bidunga free throw sparked a run of eight straight points that pushed the lead to 67-55, prompting a timeout by head coach Jerome Tang with 5:37 to play.
A Haggerty free throw broke the run out of the timeout, but the Jayhawks continued their push with 7 of the next 9 points to go ahead 74-58 at the final media timeout with 3:41 to play. From there, the lead ballooned to as many as 24 points in the eventual 86-62 loss.
The first half was a back-and-forth affair with Kansas leading by as many as 7 points before K-State closed to with 37-35 at the halftime break. The Wildcats had a chance to take the lead just before halftime but senior C.J. Jones' 3-pointer just rimmed out at the buzzer.
Kansas now leads the eighth-most played rivalry in men's college basketball, 207-97, including 82-51 in Manhattan and 30-8 at Bramlage Coliseum. The schools have met every season since 1907.
The crowd of 9,111 for the usually sold-out Sunflower Showdown was heavily impacted by the winter snowstorm that swept the U.S. on Saturday with Manhattan getting 10 inches of snow.
HEAD COACH JEROME TANG
Opening statement…
"First of all, want to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for the blessing I have to coach at this incredible school with these unbelievable fans. Want to thank our fans for, you know, braving the cold, the snow, the bad weather conditions, our students who showed up in full force and gave us a home court advantage. Man, you know, just when you see people out there in this cold and they were plowing earlier today, and then they're making sure cars parked right. Just to give us an opportunity to play the game, you know, and it is such a blessing. I'm so thankful for them, and very disappointed that we didn't finish with the kind of effort that those people deserve. Credit to KU for, you know, 7:26 to go, it's 59-55 they close on a 27-to-7 run. That's a credit to them, and something that we have to go look at as a staff. But to close the last five minutes on an 18-to-2 paint point advantage when it was a point of emphasis for us, that was extremely disappointing. But, great thing about this league is you get a quick turnaround, and you have got to go play another really good team. And so, it's on to the next thing."
On if players might be tired playing extra minutes to account for injuries…
"No, no excuses. I mean, they just played harder than we did at the end. I mean, these dudes, 18- to 23-year-old, you know, and they all want to play, right. So, it's yeah, we got to be more competitive, and those moments got to be more competitive. And we weren't."
On what Kansas did in the last eight minutes of the game…
"Yeah, you know, they put two on the ball and stuff, but you can't let your offense dictate your defense. That had nothing to do with that, like, I mean, Flory [Bidunga] was getting shots at the rim. We just in those moments, man, you just have to be more competitive, have a little more fight to you and we didn't, you know, so it's a credit to them."
On if he prefers P.J. Haggerty to take over on offense in the second half…
"The other guys, like in the first half, other guys were taking and making shots, and second half they were taking that away. So, you know, that was your option. And you know, I like to see him be more aggressive, but we need some guys to step up with him."
On Andrej Kostic and the first half shooting…
"Andrej can make shots, man, that's not like something. What I was proud of Andrej, is that his transition defense and and he's trying to be in a stance now, he's got to pay attention to the scout report, not close out hard on a guy that's a short close out guy, or, you know, those type of things, and that's going to come with time, but he's a terrific player, and he's going to be a really good one. And so was happy for him in the first half, but happy for Dorin [Buca] in the first half, but now we got to put two halves together, because we don't get to stop at halftime, right. You got to put 40 minutes, and that's where your competitiveness, like, really kicks in, because they're going to make an adjustment, they're going to do something different and we got to have dudes that step up, like, raise their level of play, their intensity, their focus. You know, that's what you have to do to beat good teams."
On the advantage Kansas had with points in the paint…
"I'm gonna go back and watch and figure that out. But it wasn't that, it was 28-to-16 with five minutes to go, and then they went 18-to-2 to finish the game. And, I mean, like, our scheme didn't change, right? Like, and I'm just that's what I'm talking about, we just weren't competitive enough to execute what we needed to do. And they were more competitive than we were."
FIRST HALF
Three-point field goals from junior Taj Manning and senior Nate Johnson gave K-State an early 6-4 lead before Kansas ran off 7 straight points to go ahead 11-6 just after the first media timeout. A dunk by junior Dorin Buca ended the run, but the Jayhawks' hot shooting continued as they scored 6 of the next 8 points to extend their lead to 17-10 at the 12:11 mark.
Freshman Andrej Kostic unleashed 3 consecutive 3-point baskets to tie the game at 19-all before a jumper by sophomore Elmarko Jackson gave Kansas a 21-19 lead at the second media timeout. Kostic knocked down a fourth triple to pull K-State within 23-22 before a 3-point play by Jackson extended the KU lead to 26-22 at the third media timeout with 7:23 before halftime.
Back-to-back 3-pointers from Manning and sophomore David Castillo gave the Wildcats their first lead at 28-26, prompting a timeout from head coach Bill Self at the 5:54 mark. A free throw and jumper from senior Melvin Council Jr. returned the lead to the Jayhawks at 29-28 at the final media timeout with 3:17 to play. The teams exchanged points over the next few minutes with KU leading 37-33 before junior P.J. Haggerty connected on his first field goal to close the gap to 37-35.
K-State earned a defensive stop and had one last opportunity with 9.7 seconds left in the half, but senior C.J. Jones' 3-point attempt was just off the mark, as Kansas led 37-35. The Jayhawks shot 57.7 percent (15-of-26) from the field while K-State was held to just 35.3 percent (12-of-34) shooting. The Wildcats took advantage of 7 more made 3-pointers.
Kostic and freshman Bryson Tiller led all scorers with 12 points each.
SECOND HALF
The teams battled through the first few possessions of the second half before a 10-2 run capped by a pair of free throws on a technical called on K-State head coach Jerome Tang gave Kansas its first double-digit lead at 49-39. The technical seemed to spark the Wildcats as a Haggerty jumper and a Castillo 3-pointer cut the deficit in half at 49-44. However, the Jayhawks got a 3-pointer from Council and 2 more free throws to go ahead 54-46 at the second media timeout.
K-State got to within 54-50 on baskets from Castillo and Haggerty, but Kansas responded with a jumper and a Jackson 3-pointer to pull back ahead 59-52 at the 8:11 mark. A Haggerty 3-pointer made it 59-55 right before the third media timeout, but an 8-0 run by the Jayhawks gave them their largest lead at 67-55 before a timeout by Tang at the 5:37 mark.
The lead grew to 16 at 74-58 after a second 3-pointer from Jackson right before the final media timeout with 3:41 to play before ballooning to 24 in the final seconds.
Haggerty led all scorers with 18 points in the second half.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
- K-State saw its 3-game home winning streak over archrival Kansas end with an 86-62 loss.
- Kansas now leads the series, 207-97, including 82-51 in Manhattan and 30-8 at Bramlage Coliseum… The win snaps a 3-game winning streak by K-State at home in the series.
- K-State is now 16-20 vs. Top 25 teams under coach Jerome Tang, including 0-4 this season.
- K-State is now 47-14 under coach Jerome Tang at Bramlage Coliseum, including 22-10 in Big 12 play and 8-5 this season.
- K-State used a starting lineup of junior P.J. Haggerty, senior Nate Johnson, sophomore David Castillo, junior Taj Manning and junior Dorin Buca… This is the second time using this lineup and the fifth different lineup used this season.
- Haggerty and Johnson have now started all 20 games.
- Haggerty now has 86 career starts (Tulsa/Memphis/K-State), N. Johnson now has 80 career starts (Akron/K-State), Castillo and Manning now have 6 career starts while Buca earned his second straight start.
- K-State played with just 10 available players due to injuries with 8 seeing time.
TEAM NOTES
- K-State scored its 62 points on 34.4 percent (21-of-61) shooting, including 34.5 percent (10-of-29) from 3-point range, while hitting on 71.4 percent (10-of-14) from the free throw line.
- K-State was held to season-lows in both points (62) and field goals made (21) and its second-lowest field goal percentage (34.4).
- K-State made double-digit 3-point field goals (10) for the 11th time this season.
- K-State posted a 12-10 advantage in points off turnovers and a 9-8 edge in fast-break points.
- Kansas posted a 39-28 advantage on the glass, which included 13 offensive boards that the Jayhawks converted into a 21-11 edge in second-chance points.
- Kansas also won the points in the paint battle (46-18).
- K-State trailed 37-35 at halftime and is now 1-9 this season and 18-40 under head coach Jerome Tang when trailing at the break.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- Two Wildcats – junior P.J. Haggerty and freshman Andrej Kostic – scored in double figures.
- Haggerty scored his game-high 23 points on 6-of-17 field goals, including 1-of-2 from 3-point range, and 10-of-12 free throws to go with 5 rebounds and 4 assists in 39 minutes… He has now scored in double figures in 84 of 92 career games, including all 20 games this season… He has 58 games of 20 or more points in his career, including 15 this season.
- Kostic scored his 12 points on 4-of-7 field goals, all from 3-point range, with 4 rebounds and a steal in 23 minutes… It was his first career double-digit scoring game.
- Junior Dorin Buca grabbed a season-high 11 rebounds to go with 6 points in 26 minutes.
- Junior Taj Manning tied a career-high with 3 steals to go with 8 points and 4 rebounds.
WHAT'S NEXT
K-State hits the road for Morgantown, W.Va., on Tuesday night for a matchup at West Virginia (13-7, 4-3 Big 12) at Hope Coliseum. Tip is set for 7:37 p.m., on FS1. This will be the first meeting in Morgantown since 2024. The Mountaineers own a 16-13 lead in the all-time series, including a 9-3 mark at home.
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, Instagram and Facebook.
Team Stats
KU
KState
FG%
.534
.344
3FG%
.250
.345
FT%
.833
.714
RB
39
28
TO
10
8
STL
2
5
Game Leaders
Pts
23
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
10
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
C
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
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G
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/ Men's BasketballW
/ Men's Basketball
W
/ Men's Basketball
W
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