Kansas State men’s basketball will continue their season on Saturday afternoon against Cleveland State.

Cleveland State opened their season on Monday with a 101-53 loss to Michigan. The Wolverines shot 68.4 percent from the floor and 55.6 percent from three-point range in the win, while Cleveland State shot just 30 percent. On Wednesday, Cleveland State picked up their first win, defeating Baldwin Wallace 91-53.

Historically, Cleveland State has been a consistent threat in the Horizon League under head coaches Dennis Gates and Daniyal Robinson. Since 2020, the Vikings are a combined 102-48, including an NCAA Tournament birth in 2020-21.

K-State should win this game fairly comfortably, as Cleveland State currently ranks 208th in the country by KenPom’s rankings. For context, the Wildcats are ranked 48th.

Regardless of the comfortable result expected, the Wildcats will be looking to improve from an up-and-down performance in their season opener against New Orleans. Despite winning by 24 points, the Wildcats struggled to start the game and even trailed by double-digits with about ten minutes remaining in the first half.

Here are three things to watch as K-State prepares to host Cleveland State at 3 p.m. on Saturday.

There was a lid over the rim early in the season opener. Despite getting solid looks on offense, the Wildcats struggled to shoot the ball well, starting the game 3-for-13 from the floor. That slow start allowed New Orleans, who scored on six of their first ten shot attempts, to build a comfortable lead.

While K-State had the talent to overwhelm New Orleans, slow starts can be a dagger against better teams. And even if K-State has a similar talent advantage against Cleveland State despite a slow start, the Wildcats need to start the season with an exclamation point.

To some degree, the committee weighs margin of victory when deciding where teams are seeded in the NCAA Tournament. As a result, it benefits K-State to beat up against smaller programs in their ‘buy games.’

As a result, it behooves K-State to start fast against Cleveland State. They don’t have to win by close to 50 points like Michigan did, but this game shouldn’t be close.

David N’Guessan looked like a different player against New Orleans, finishing with a 21-point and 15-rebound double-double in the win. N’Guessan accounted for K-State’s first seven points, scoring on a jumper, layup, and three-pointer in the first four minutes.

As one of the few returning players from last year’s roster, N’Guessan is expected to be a major part of K-State’s team, especially as other big men like Ugonna Onyenso and Baye Fall continue to acclimate to K-State.

If it’s true that N’Guessan has taken another step forward this season, he should have no problems performing well against Cleveland State. The Vikings’s starting center is Dylan Arnett, a 6-foot-9, 240-pound big man who likely won’t have the athleticism to keep up with N’Guessan, should he want to run the floor.

Another double-double with 15 rebounds seems unlikely – frankly, it’s hard for any player to finish with a stat line like that – but N’Guessan should continue to impact the game on both sides, especially offensively.

K-State had just nine turnovers against New Orleans, which was their lowest total since their Sweet Sixteen win against Michigan State in 2023. Last season, the Wildcats had over double-digit turnovers in every game, significantly hindering their ability to build a sustainable offense.

To no one’s surprise, Jerome Tang was slightly shocked when he was asked about the lack of turnovers in the season opener.

“I don't know the last time we had single-digit turnovers, right? The staff did a great job in recruiting,” said Tang. “We brought in better ball handlers, decision-makers, and it's great to not have to scheme passes, but instead, we can scheme shots.”

Michigan guard Dug McDaniel was among the players who helped limit turnovers, finishing with eight assists to just two turnovers. Max Jones and Coleman Hawkins combined for ten assists and three turnovers.

Two games won’t show if this level of ball security is the new norm for K-State, but two games with low turnover figures would go a long way for a team looking to make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament. Last season, Cleveland State forced 13.3 turnovers per game. The Vikings also forced 21 turnovers against Baldwin Wallace.

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