Kansas State University Athletics
2025-26 Men's Basketball Roster
Manning, Taj
Jersey Number 15
Taj Manning
- Position:
- Wing
- Ht./Wt.:
- 6-7 / 230
- Class:
- Redshirt Junior
- Hometown:
- Grandview, Mo.
- High School:
- La Lumiere (Ind.) School
Bio
FEATURES (click on headline for link)
HONORS
CAREER OVERVIEW
Career-High Points: 6 vs. UAPB (12/1/24) while at K-State
Career-High Rebounds: 4 vs. Central Arkansas (11/22/23) while at K-State
Career-High Assists: 1 vs. Chicago State (1/2/24) while at K-State
Career-High Steals: 1, 3 times (while at K-State)
AS A SOPHOMORE AT K-STATE (2024-25) | 0.8 PPG, 0.8 RPG | Game-by-Game Stats (.pdf)
AS A REDSHIRT FRESHMAN AT K-STATE (2023-24) | 1.0 PPG, 1.1 RPG | Game-by-Game Stats (.pdf)
SUMMER 2023 | INTERNATIONAL TRIP TO ISRAEL, ABU DHABI | 3.0 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 0.3 BPG
AS A FRESHMAN (2022-23)
HIGH SCHOOL
PERSONAL
- One Trip, Two Missions (K-State Sports Extra, June 18, 2025)
- 'You Can Count on a Guy Like That' (K-State Sports Extra, Jan. 3, 2024)
- This unsung freshman has Jerome Tang excited about Kansas State basketball’s future (Kansas City Star, Feb. 9, 2023)
- Why Taj Manning remained true to Kansas State after Jerome Tang took over as coach (Wichita Eagle, June 9, 2022)
HONORS
- 2021 KBCA Class 4A First Team All-State Team
CAREER OVERVIEW
- Selected for Athletes in Action International Tour to the Czech Republic, June 28 to July 11, 2025.
- Has seen action in 22 games with a start in his K-State playing career, including 14 games with a start as a redshirt freshman in 2023-24.
- Was signed by the previous coaching staff on November 10, 2021.
- Spent the 2021-22 season at the famed La Lumiere School in La Porte, Ind., helping the Lakers to the GEICO National Championships.
- Played locally at Grandview (2018-20) and Bishop Miege High Schools (2020-21), winning a Missouri Class 4 state title with the Bulldogs in 2019 with a 29-2 record and a Kansas Class 4A state title with the Stags in 2021 with a 22-1 record.
- Overall won two state titles and 93 games at La Lumiere, Grandview and Bishop Miege.
Career-High Points: 6 vs. UAPB (12/1/24) while at K-State
Career-High Rebounds: 4 vs. Central Arkansas (11/22/23) while at K-State
Career-High Assists: 1 vs. Chicago State (1/2/24) while at K-State
Career-High Steals: 1, 3 times (while at K-State)
- vs. South Dakota State (11/13/23)
- vs. Central Arkansas (11/22/23)
- vs. Houston (1/11/25)
AS A SOPHOMORE AT K-STATE (2024-25) | 0.8 PPG, 0.8 RPG | Game-by-Game Stats (.pdf)
- Helped guide the Wildcats to a 16-17 overall record, including a tie for ninth in the Big 12 with a 9-11 mark.
- Saw action in 8 games, all off the bench… Played in 21 total minutes, averaging 2.7 minutes per game… Played a season-high 4 minutes vs. Colorado (3/2/25).
- Averaged 0.8 points on 50 percent (2-of-4) shooting, including 50 percent (2-of-4) from 3-point range, with 0.8 rebounds per game… Did not have an attempt from the free throw line.
- Scored a season-high 6 points vs. UAPB (12/1/24), connecting on both 3-point attempts.
- Grabbed a season-best 2 rebounds vs. Oklahoma State (1/29/25).
- Played in 3 Big 12 games… Did not register any points, but did grab 3 rebounds and a steal.
- Coached by Jerome Tang.
AS A REDSHIRT FRESHMAN AT K-STATE (2023-24) | 1.0 PPG, 1.1 RPG | Game-by-Game Stats (.pdf)
- Helped guide the Wildcats to a 19-15 overall record, including a tie for ninth in the Big 12 with an 8-10 mark, and a trip to the NIT.
- Saw action in 14 games, including a start vs. No. 21/22 USC (11/6/23) in the season opener in first career action… Totaled 68 minutes, averaging 4.9 per game.
- Averaged 1.0 points on 62.5 percent (5-of-8) shooting, including 33.3 percent (1-of-3) from 3-point range, with 1.1 rebounds per game… Connected on 42.9 percent (3-of-7) from the free throw line.
- Scored in 5 games, including a season-high 4 points twice… Had 4 points vs. Chicago State (1/2/24) on 2-of-2 field goals in 15 minutes and vs. No. 23/24 Oklahoma (1/30/24) on 1-of-2 field goals, including his first 3-pointer of his career, in 10 minutes.
- Posted his first career points with a field goal and free throw for 3 points vs. Central Arkansas (11/22/23) to go with 4 rebounds and a steal in 9 minutes.
- Totaled 16 rebounds, including 10 on the defensive end… Had a season-high 4 boards vs. Central Arkansas (11/22/23).
- Saw action in 9 Big 12 games… Averaged 0.6 points on 33.3 percent (1-of-3) shooting in league-only games with 0.4 rebounds in 2.8 minutes per game.
- Scored his first points in Big 12 action with a free throw vs. UCF (1/6/24).
- Coached by Jerome Tang.
SUMMER 2023 | INTERNATIONAL TRIP TO ISRAEL, ABU DHABI | 3.0 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 0.3 BPG
- Played in all 3 games with 1 start in the Wildcats’ historic 10-day trip to Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, Israel, and Abu Dhabi, U.A.E., which ran from August 9-20.
- Averaged 3.0 points on 37.5 percent (3-of-8) shooting with 3.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.3 steals in 16.0 minutes per game.
- His best performance came in a close loss to Team Mexico (8/17/23), where he scored 6 points on 3-of-4 field goals with 4 rebounds, 3 assists, a steal and a block in 19 minutes.
- Played a tour-high 22 minutes in the win over Al-Sharjah Club (8/18/23).
AS A FRESHMAN (2022-23)
- Did not see action as a redshirt.
HIGH SCHOOL
- Was rated as a consensus 3-star prospect by 247Sports and Rivals… Rated among the top 200 prospects nationally (No. 189 by 247Sports), including the top-40 power forwards (No. 36 by 247Sports).
- Played his senior season at the La Lumiere School in La Porte, Ind. … Helped the Lakers to a 21-5 record and a berth at the GEICO National Championships in 2021-22.
- Averaged 8.9 points and 5.3 rebounds per game as a senior… Posted a near double-double vs. IMG Academy (3/31/22) at GEICO Nationals with 14 points on 5-of-8 field goals, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range, to go with a team-tying 9 rebounds and 3 blocks in 21 minutes.
- Spent the 2020-21 season at Bishop Miege High School in suburban Kansas City, where he helped the Stags to a 22-1 record and their sixth Class 4A State Championship, alongside current Missouri junior Mark Mitchell… The team dominated their competition, losing just one game (a 68-55 setback to Class 6A Blue Valley Northwest) all season and defeating their other 22 opponents by an average of 30.4 points per game… Won their 5 playoff games by an average of 42.6 points, including a 94-40 victory over Louisburg in the championship game.
- Named to the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association (KBCA) Class 4A First Team All-State Team… Also selected First Team All-Eastern Kansas League.
- Averaged 15.1 points on 63 percent (131-of-208) shooting with 7.1 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.1 steals per game in 2020-21… Also connected 84.9 percent (79-of-93) from the free throw line… Led the team in rebounding and blocks and was second in scoring.
- Scored in double figures in 19 of 23 games played, including six games of 20 or more points… Posted a season-high 29 points vs. St. Michael (2/10/21) on 11-of-17 field goals and 7-of-7 free throws to go along with 12 rebounds… Also had 25 points twice, first vs. Blue Valley West (2/5/21) on 10-of-13 field goals and vs. St. Thomas Aquinas (2/19/21) on 9-of-14 field goals.
- Collected 9 double-doubles on the season, including 4 20-10 point/rebound efforts… One of those double-doubles came in the state championship game, scoring 20 points and grabbing a game-high 10 rebounds vs. Louisburg (3/13/21).
- Played two seasons (2018-20) at Grandview High School in his hometown of Grandview, Mo., where he led the Bulldogs to a combined 50 wins those two seasons, including a 29-win campaign and the Missouri Class 4 State Championship in 2018-19.
- Paced Grandview in scoring (16.1 ppg.), rebounding (6.9 rpg.) and blocks (1.9 bpg.) in 2019-20, while connecting on 50.1 percent (172-of-343) from the field and 64.2 percent (79-of-123) from the free throw line.
- Averaged 10 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.9 blocks and 1.3 assists per game for Grandview in 2018-19, in which, the Bulldogs posted a 29-2 record and won the Missouri Class 4 State Championship.
- Coached by Pat Holmes (La Lumere), Rick Zych (Bishop Miege) and Reggie Morris (Grandview).
PERSONAL
- Parents are Lorenzo Manning and Jacquelyn Anderson… Has three siblings (Nia, Kai, and Tre).
- Chose K-State after offers from Creighton, East Carolina, Milwaukee, Missouri State, New Mexico State, Tulsa and Wake Forest.
- Major is nutrition and health.
K-State MBB | Hang With Tang On The Go (Season 4, Episode 1)
Friday, September 05
K-State MBB | Coach Driscoll Mic'd Up
Friday, August 08
K-State MBB | Vet Week 2025
Monday, August 04
K-State MBB | Weight Room Renovations
Thursday, July 24
