Dec 19, 2020

🏀 Game Preview: K-State returns home to face Baylor Saturday

Posted Dec 19, 2020 1:38 PM

MANHATTAN, Kan.—Kansas State Men's Basketball returns home to take on Baylor at 3 p.m. Saturday. This game can be heard locally on KHMY My 93-1.

OPENING TIP

  1. Kansas State (3-4, 1-0 Big 12) returns home to face its biggest challenge to date, as the Wildcats welcome No. 2/2 Baylor (4-0) to Bramlage Coliseum at 3 p.m., CT on Saturday afternoon. This will be the earliest home conference opener and just the fourth Big 12 game in December (Texas at home on Dec. 30, 2016 and Iowa State on the road on Dec. 29, 2017 and Tuesday night). The game will air on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ with Mark Neely (play-by-play) and Bryndon Manzer (analyst) on the call.
  2. K-State has 7 wins against the AP's No. 2 team in its history, including a 56-54 win over the second-ranked Bears, 56-54, at the Ferrell Center on Feb. 4, 2017. Only 2 of the 7 all-time wins against No. 2 have come in Manhattan, including an 81-64 win over Kansas on Jan. 26, 1952 and an 84-75 win over the Jayhawks on Jan. 30, 2008. The Wildcats have lost 6 of the last 7 meetings against the No. 2 team. Overall, the school is 119-262 (.312) against ranked teams, including 25-78 (.243) vs. the Top 5. Head coach Bruce Weber does hold the school record for career Top 25 wins (26) and career home Top 25 wins (19), while is second in career Top 10 wins (9).  .
  3. K-State and Baylor have won one of the most competitive Big 12 series with the Bears holding a narrow 19-18 advantage since the start of league play in 1997 and splitting the last 18 meetings at Bramlage Coliseum. K-State does own a 23-20 lead in the all-time series, including a 12-9 mark in Manhattan.
  4. Led by a quartet of newcomers, K-State has won back-to-back games for the first time this season, earning a 76-75 win over Milwaukee on Dec. 11 before the 74-65 win at Iowa State to open Big 12 play on Tuesday night. The Wildcats have used a 4-guard lineup (Nijel Pack, Mike McGuirl, DaJuan Gordon and Selton Miguel) to go with the 7-footer Davion Bradford in these 2 victories, averaging 75 points on 49.5 percent shooting (51-of-103), including 63.8 percent (37-of-58) from inside the 3-point arc, and shooting 72.3 percent (34-of-47) from the free throw line.
  5. The 4 newcomers (Bradford, Rudi Williams, Miguel and Pack) have averaged double figures in the last 2 victories with a fifth newcomer (Carlton Linguard, Jr.) adding his first career double-digit scoring game at Iowa State. The 5 newcomers have accounted for 113 points on 54.7 percent shooting (41-of-75) in the last 2 games. Bradford (18), Miguel (17) and Pack (12) all scored in double figures in the win over Milwaukee to become the first freshmen trio to register double-digits in the same game since a Jan. 12, 2016 home game against Texas Tech when Kamau Stokes (17), Barry Brown, Jr. (15) and Dean Wade (10) all posted double figures.
  6. The strong point on nearly every Bruce Weber-coached team, the defense has so far struggled in the early going, as the Wildcats are allowing 71.9 points on 48.5 percent shooting, including 57.4 percent inside the 3-point arc. This has been even more evident in the second half, where opponents are averaging 41.3 points on 50.8 percent shooting, including 58.9 percent from inside the arc.
  7. One of the youngest teams in the country, K-State continued its youth movement at Iowa State on Tuesday night, as the Wildcats started 3 true freshmen (Bradford, Miguel and Pack) for the second consecutive game, including the first time ever in a conference game. The Wildcats played just 2 upperclassmen (Mike McGuirl and Williams) in the game.


NOTES ON BAYLOR

  1. No. 2/2 Baylor (4-0) returns to the floor on Saturday after a 9-day pause due to COVID-19 issues. The Bears are one of the most complete teams in the country, averaging better than 90 points per game while allowing less than 64 points per game. The team is defeating opponents by an average of 27 points per game, including wins over Louisiana (112-82), Washington (86-52), Illinois (82-69) and Stephen F. Austin (83-52). This will be the Bears' first game since the home victory over Stephen F. Austin on Dec. 9.
  2. Baylor is averaging a Big 12-best 90.8 points on 50.8 percent shooting, including 46.8 percent from 3-point range, to go with 39.3 rebounds, 20.0 assists, 9.0 steals and 3.8 blocks per game, while allowing 63.8 points on 44 percent shooting, including 27.1 percent from 3-point range. The team is connecting on 68 percent from the free throw line. The Bears are the only team in the country to rank in the Top 10 in both KenPom's adjusted offense (116.3/3rd) and adjusted defense (87.2/8th). They also rank among the best in the most recent NCAA stats rankings, including 16th in scoring, third in 3-point field goal percentage and 14th in 3-point field goals per game (11.0).
  3. The Bears are balanced offensively with 7 players averaging better than 7.5 points per game, including 5 in double figures. Butler is tied for the team lead in scoring at 15.3 points per game, while connecting on 48.0 percent from the field, including 47.4 percent from 3-point range with 4.8 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 2.3 steals in 27 minutes per game. Sophomore newcomer Adam Flagler is also averaging a team-best 15.3 points on 55.3 percent shooting, including 48 percent from 3-point range in 4 games off the bench. Teague is averaging 14.0 points per game on 45.7 percent shooting with 4.3 rebounds, while backcourt mate Davion Mitchell is averaging 12.5 points on 58.1 percent shooting with team-highs in both assists (6.8 apg.) and steals (2.5 spg.). Sophomore transfer Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua is averaging a team-best 7.8 rebounds to go with 10.0 points per game.
  4. Baylor was picked as the Big 12 favorite in the preseason poll with 79 points and 7 of the 10 first-place votes. The Bears' Jared Butler was named the Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year and was a unanimous preseason First Team selection, while MaCio Teague and Mark Vital were both honorable mention selection to the preseason team.
  5. Baylor is led by the Big 12's longest-tenured head coach in Scott Drew, who has posted a 346-213 (.617) record in his 18th season, which includes 8 NCAA Tournaments and 4 Sweet 16s.


SERIES HISTORY

  1. K-State and Baylor will meet for the 44th time in their histories with the Wildcats holding a 23-20 advantage in a series that dates to 1948. K-State holds a slight 12-9 edge in games played in Manhattan, including a 9-9 mark at Bramlage Coliseum.
  2. K-State had won 6 consecutive games in the series before won both games in 2019-20, which included a 73-67 win at Bramlage Coliseum on Feb. 3 and an 85-66 win at the Ferrell Center in Waco on Feb. 25. The Bears have won 3 of the last 5 games at Bramlage Coliseum, including wins in 2016 and 2017 to go with the win on Feb. 3 of last season.
  3. Saturday will mark the third time in the last 5 seasons that K-State will meet Baylor when they are ranked No. 2 in the AP poll and the first time in Manhattan. Last season, the Bears entered Bramlage Coliseum as the nation's top-ranked team. The Wildcats are 1-1 vs. Baylor when ranked No. 2, winning a thriller 56-54 in Waco on D.J. Johnson's blocked shot on Feb. 4, 2017 before last season's 85-66 loss on Feb. 25, 2020.
  4. Head coach Bruce Weber is 9-8 all-time against Baylor, including a 4-4 record at home, while he is also 9-8 against head coach Scott Drew. Drew is 13-16 all-time against K-State, including a 6-8 mark on the road.


LAST TIME OUT: K-STATE 74, IOWA STATE 65

  1. K-State used scoring balance with 4 players in double figures and clutch free throw shooting to snap a 10-game road losing streak on Tuesday night, as the Wildcats opened Big 12 play with a 74-65 win over Iowa State in front a limited capacity crowd of 1,337 fans at Hilton Coliseum.
  2. The win was the first in a Big 12 opener since a 91-75 win at Iowa State on Dec. 29, 2017, while it was the first in a Big 12 road game since a 64-52 victory at TCU on March 4, 2019, which snapped a 9-game skid.
  3. K-State took control of the game with a 13-0 run over a 4-minute span early in the first half then used clutch shooting from the field and from the line to earn its third win in its last 4 visits to Hilton Coliseum.
  4. The Wildcats were solid from the field, connecting on 44 percent (22-of-50) from the field, including 52 percent (13-of-25) in the first half, but were nearly perfect from the free throw line, converting on 26 of 29 attempts, including an 11-of-11 effort from sophomore DaJuan Gordon. The 89.7 free throw percentage was the 10th-highest with a minimum of 20 attempts in a game in school history and the highest since the team hit on 22 of 24 attempts (91.7 percent) in a win at Vanderbilt on Dec. 2, 2017.
  5. Four Wildcats scored in double figures, including a special performance from Gordon, who earned his first career double-double with 15 points and a game-high 11 rebounds in a career-best 38 minutes. Freshman Davion Bradford earned his second straight double-digit scoring game with 14 points on 5-of-7 field goals and a 4-of-4 effort from the free throw line, while reserves Carlton Linguard, Jr., and Rudi Williams added 10 points each.
  6. K-State broke open a tight game midway through the first half with a 13-0 run after Iowa State had taken a 14-13 lead on a steal and dunk by freshman Xavier Foster with 13:48 before halftime. Four players contributed points during the 13-0 run, including back-to-back 3-pointers from Linguard, as the Wildcats built a 40-26 lead at the break.
  7. K-State held a double-digit lead for much of the second half and seemed to have an answer to any type of run by ISU. Five times the Cyclones cut the deficit to single digits only to see the Wildcats respond with a key basket or free throws, including a 7-of-8 effort from the line in the last 1:35.


HISTORY AT BRAMLAGE COLISEUM

  1. K-State has posted a 389-129 (.751) all-time record at Bramlage Coliseum since its opening during the 1988-89 season. The 389 wins are the most at a home venue for the Wildcats, surpassing the 378 wins at Ahearn Field House (1950-88). It is the school's third home venue.
  2. K-State has registered a 189-49 (.794) record at home over the past 15 seasons, including an 82-39 (.678) mark in Big 12 play. The 189 wins rank fourth among all Big 12 schools in that span, while the 82 league victories at home are among the top in the Big 12. In all, the program has double-digit victories in 26 of its 32 seasons in the arena.
  3. K-State has a 250-72 (.776) record at home, including a 146-15 (.907) mark in non-conference action, since the 2001-02 season for an average of just over 13 home wins (13.1) per season in that span.
  4. Head coach Bruce Weber has tallied a 104-33 (.759) record at Bramlage Coliseum since taking over at K-State in 2012-13 with just 10 non-conference home losses. The 33 losses (25 of which have come in Big 12 play) have come by a grand total of 303 points or just 9.2 points per game.


NON-CONFERENCE HISTORY

  1. K-State has a 113-12 (.911) record at home venues (includes home games played at Bramlage Coliseum, INTRUST Bank Arena in Wichita and the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City) in non-conference play dating back to the 2006-07 season, including a 104-9 (.920) mark at Bramlage Coliseum.
  2. Despite seeing their 33-game winning streak end at Bramlage Coliseum with a loss to Marquette on Dec. 7, 2019, the Wildcats have still won 100 of their last 110 non-conference home games.
  3. K-State has posted a 149-46 (.767) record in non-conference play since the 2006-07 season. Prior to last season, the team had posted double-digit non-conference wins in 12 of the last 13 seasons.


UP NEXT: JACKSONVILLE (6-2)

  1. K-State will continue their 4-game homestand on Monday afternoon, as the Wildcats play host to Jacksonville (6-2) at 1 p.m., CT. It will mark the first meeting between K-State and Jacksonville on the hardwood.
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