MANHATTAN -- Kansas State men's basketball begins a two-game homestand tonight when they take on 23/23 Texas Tech.
The game is scheduled to begin 7:02 p.m. Tuesday in Bramlage Coliseum. You can catch the game on Big 12 Now on ESPN+, listen to it online via TuneIn.com [free], www.kstatesports.com/watch [free], and on satellite radio at XM 386 or Internet 976.
COACHES
Kansas State: Bruce Weber (Wis.-Milwaukee ’78)
Overall: 470-252/22nd season
At K-State: 157-97/8th season
vs. Texas Tech: 8-6 (6-1 at home)
Texas Tech: Chris Beard (Texas ‘95)
Overall: 257-86/11th season
At Texas Tech: 86-36/4th season
vs. Kansas State: 4-2 (1-2 on the road)
PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
Kansas State (7-8)
G: #00 Mike McGuirl
G: #2 Cartier Diarra
G/F: #20 Xavier Sneed
F: #23 Montavious Murphy
F: #14 Makol Mawien
Texas Tech (10-5)
G: #0 Kyler Edwards
G: #3 Jahmi’us Ramsey
G: #25 Davide Moretti
F: #22 T.J. Holyfield
F: #44 Chris Clarke
SERIES HISTORY
Overall: K-State leads 24-16
Current Streak: K-State, 1
In Manhattan: K-State leads 16-3
At Bramlage Coliseum: K-State leads 12-3
Last Meeting: W, 58-45 [1/22/19 in Manhattan]
Weber vs. Beard: Beard leads 4-2 [1-2 on the road]
OPENING TIP
Kansas State (7-8, 0-3 Big 12) embarks on one of its most challenging stretches of the season on Tuesday night, as the Wildcats welcome fellow reigning Big 12 co-champion and No. 23/23 Texas Tech (10-5, 1-2 Big 12) to Bramlage Coliseum. The Red Raiders are the first of 3 consecutive Top 25 teams for K-State, which includes a home game with No. 12/13 West Virginia (13-2, 2-1 Big 12) on Saturday and a trip to No. 6/7 Kansas (12-3, 2-1 Big 12) on Jan. 21. Tuesday’s game will tip at 7 p.m., CT on Big 12 Now with Mark Neely (play-by-play) and Lance Blanks (analyst) on the call.
K-State has performed well against Top 25 opponents at Bramlage Coliseum since its opening in 1988, posting a 38-60 (.388) record against ranked foes, including a 35-57 (.380) mark against ranked Big 12 teams. Those numbers are even better under head coach Bruce Weber, where the Wildcats have tallied a 16-14 (.533) record vs. Top 25 teams. Among those 16 victories are 11 over Top 15 opponents, including No. 1 Oklahoma in 2016 and No. 14 Texas Tech and No. 13 Kansas last season.
K-State saw its struggles continue on Saturday night, as Texas opened the second half on a 12-0 run, part of a 20-2 run that was sandwiched between the two halves, to help them snap a 3-game losing streak to the Wildcats at home in a 64-50 victory at the Frank Erwin Center. With K-State leading 25-23 after a layup by junior Cartier Diarra with 2:48 before halftime, Texas scored 20 of the next 22 points, flipping a 2-point deficit into a 43-27 lead with 13:11 to play. The 50 points marked a season-low, as the Wildcats connected on 37 percent (20-of-54) from the field, including 33.3 percent (5-of-15) from 3-point range. The loss punctuated a frustrating day for K-State, which saw the team not arrive in Austin until 2:30 p.m., CT due to inclement weather and mechanical issues with the team’s charter flight.
Texas Tech enters Tuesday’s game on the heels of back-to-back losses to current No. 2/2 Baylor (52-57) at home and at 12/13 West Virginia (54-66) last week. The Red Raiders had won 5 consecutive games before their recent skid with their other 3 losses coming in overtime to both Creighton (76-83) and DePaul (60-65) and to current nationally ranked Iowa (61-72). The reigning national runner ups are led by one of the nation’s top freshmen in Jahmi’us Ramsey (16.8 ppg., who has averaged 16.2 points in the last 5 games, while 3 other players (Davide Moretti, Terrence Shannon, Jr., and Kyler Edwards) also average double figures.
This will be the 41st meeting between K-State and Texas Tech with the Wildcats holding a 24-16 advantage, including a 16-3 mark at home. The Red Raiders had won 6 of the previous 8 meetings (3 in a row, before the Wildcats earned a 58-45 win in the last meeting at Bramlage Coliseum on Jan. 22, 2019.
With the offense continuing to develop, K-State has had to rely on its defensive foundation. The Wildcats are allowing just 60.8 points on 40.5 percent shooting, including 32.3 percent from 3-point range, while averaging 16.9 turnovers forced and a Big 12-best 8.8 steals per game. K-State ranks 27th in scoring defense, 31st in steals and 34th in turnovers forced. The team is allowing just 54.4 points on 37.3 percent shooting, including 27.1 percent from 3-point range, in their 7 wins compared to 66.4 points on 43.3 percent shooting, including 36.8 percent from long range, in their 8 losses.
NOTES ON 23/23 TEXAS TECH
No. 23/23 Texas Tech (10-5, 1-2 Big 12) has dropped consecutive games in Big 12 play to current No. 2/2 Baylor (52-57) and at No. 12/13 West Virginia (54-66) after winning 5 in a row from Dec. 10 to Jan. 4. Two of the Red Raiders’ 3 other losses have come in overtime to Creighton (76-83) and at DePaul (60-65) and to ranked Iowa team (61-72) at a neutral site. In the 66-54 loss to West Virginia on Saturday, Texas Tech connected on just 28.4 percent from the field, including 21.4 percent from 3-point range.
Texas Tech is averaging 73.7 points on 43.6 percent shooting, including 32.4 percent from 3-point range, to go with 37.3 rebounds, 16.9 assists, 7.8 steals and 3.7 blocks per game, while allowing 62.1 points on 39.6 percent shooting, including 32.8 percent from 3-point range. The team is averaging 63.7 points in Big 12 play on 38.8 percent shooting, including 29.3 percent from 3-point range, while allowing 57.7 points on 37.7 percent shooting.
The Red Raiders return several key components from last season’s run to the NCAA Championship game, including Davide Moretti (13.0 ppg.) and Kyler Edwards (10.5 ppg., but have added several important pieces in freshmen Jahmi’us Ramsey, who leads the team in scoring at 16.8 points on 46.5 percent shooting, including 46.8 percent from 3-point range to go with 5.3 rebounds and a team-best 1.7 steals per game in 11 games. Fellow freshman Terrence Shannon, Jr., averages 11.6 points, while transfers T.J. Holyfield (9.1 ppg., 4.8 rpg.) and Chris Clarke (6.9 ppg, 8.5 rpg., 5.9 apg.) have brought experience to a team that lost 11 lettermen. Clarke paces the team in both rebounding and assists in starting just 5 games.
Texas Tech is led by reigning National Coach of the Year candidate head coach Chris Beard, who has posted an 86-36 (.705) record in his fourth season. He has a 257-86 (.749) overall record in his 11th season as a head coach, which includes head-coaching stints at McMurry (2012-13, Angelo State (2013-15) and Little Rock (2015-16).
SERIES HISTORY
K-State and Texas Tech will meet for the 41st time in their histories with the Wildcats holding a 24-16 advantage in the series, including a 16-3 mark at home. The Wildcats own a slight 17-15 edge since the start of Big 12 play.
Texas Tech has won 6 of the last 9 meetings, including a 4-2 mark under head coach Chris Beard. Last season, the teams split their 2 meetings with the Red Raiders winning 63-57 at home on Jan. 5, while the Wildcats snapped a 3-game skid in the series with a 58-45 win at home on Jan. 22, 2019.
Head coach Bruce Weber is 9-6 all-time against Texas Tech, including a 6-1 mark at home, while Weber is 2-4 against head coach Chris Beard.
Junior Cartier Diarra has had the most success against Texas Tech in his career, averaging 8.0 points and 3.3 rebounds in 4 career games with 2 starts, while senior Xavier Sneed has averaged just 4.7 points in 6 career games.
LAST TIME OUT: TEXAS 64, K-STATE 50
Texas opened the second half on a 12-0 run, part of a 20-2 run that was sandwiched between the two halves, as the Longhorns earned their first Big 12 win of the season and kept Kansas State winless in league play with a 64-50 win on Saturday night before 8,496 fans at the Frank Erwin Center.
The loss punctuated a frustrating day for K-State, which saw the team not arrive in Austin until 2:30 p.m., on Saturday due to weather delays and mechanical issues with the team’s charter flight.
With K-State leading 25-23 after a layup by junior Cartier Diarra with 2:48 before halftime, Texas scored 20 of the game’s next 22 points, flipping a two-point deficit into a 43-27 lead with 13:11 to play. The Wildcats missed their first 12 field goals of the second half before the Longhorns were called for a goaltend on a Diarra layup at the 12:00 mark. The team shot just 30 percent (9-of-30) after halftime with 10 turnovers.
In contrast, the Texas offense was firing on all cylinders for much of the game, as the Longhorns connected on 49 percent (24-of-49) from the field, including 43.5 percent (10-of-23) from 3-point range, in leading for nearly 34 minutes. They became the second consecutive team to knock down 10 3-pointers against K-State after TCU had 10 on Jan. 7.
Diarra was the only Wildcat to score in double figures with a game-tying 14 points on 6-of-16 field goals to go with 5 assists, while freshman DaJuan Gordon added 9 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals off the bench.
Junior Matt Coleman III paced 3 Longhorns in double figures with a game-tying 14 points on 4-of-12 field goals, while sophomore Courtney Ramey and junior Jase Febres added 11 and 10 points, respectively. Junior Jericho Sims chipped in 8 points, a game-high 8 rebounds and 2 blocks.
The 50 points marked a season-low for K-State, as the team connected on 37 percent (20-of-54) from the field, including 33.3 percent (5-of-15) from 3-point range, made just 5 of 9 free throws. The Wildcats did take advantage of some Longhorn turnovers, scoring 23 points off 20 miscues.
It marked just the second double-digit loss for the Wildcats (and largest of the season) after losing 6 by single digits.