MORGANTOWN - Kansas State looks to start a new conference winning streak against the same team the Wildcats beat to kick off a nine-game Big 12 surge: West Virginia.
Follow along all day for updates on the Wildcats and Mountaineers from Morgantown - and throughout the contest - in the KSO GameCenter.
THREE KEYS (and a pick)
1. Play Defense Without Fouling
K-State's depth is going to be severely limited tonight, but the Wildcats also will have a significantly more talented group of players at their disposal than a less-than-deep West Virginia bunch. If the Wildcats can get a massive percentage of their minutes from their top five players - and not be forced to lean on Shaun Neal-Williams or Levi Stockard to play significant roles - K-State should be fine.
2. Finish Inside
K-State probably wasn't beating Iowa State on Saturday with the way the Cyclones shot the basketball. That said, if the Wildcats get four or five easy finishes around the hoop converted early on, it likely would have been a different game. This game is going to be too low scoring to miss on any easy opportunities, and finishing inside better may mean attacking the rim with an intention to jam.
3. Big Game Barry
For 35 minutes Brown willed K-State to a chance against ISU before the Cyclones pulled away late. He looked more aggressive than he did at any point against Texas or Baylor, however, and will almost certainly need to take on a big offensive load in this one. It wouldn't be crazy to see Brown account for a third - or more - of K-State's point production.
PREDICTION: It's not going to be easy. K-State is playing on 48 hours rest travelling from Manhattan to Morgantown and will have to do so lacking depth. Bluntly, West Virginia doesn't have a lot to play for, but it's not wild to think they'd be motivated to play against a team they blew a 21-point lead to earlier this year. K-State will win a grinder, because Barry Brown is the best player on the floor.
K-State 59, West Virginia 54
OFFICIAL PREVIEW: Provided by the KSU Sports Information Department.
No. 18/18Kansas State (19-6, 9-3 Big 12) begins a stretch of three consecutive appearances on ESPN’s Big Monday, as the Wildcats travel to Morgantown, W.Va., to take on former head coach Bob Huggin sand his West Virginia Mountaineers (1015, 2-10 Big 12) at the WVU Coliseum.
K-State used a historic 21-point comeback to win the first meeting, 71-69, on Jan. 9 at home, which started the team’s 9-game winning streak in Big 12.
Monday’s game will tip at 8:05 p.m., CT on ESPN with Bob Wischusen(play-by-play) and Fran Fraschilla(analyst) on the call.
Despite its 78-64 loss to No. 23/22 Iowa State, K-State enters Monday’s game still in first place in the Big 12, just a half-game ahead of the second-place duo of No. 15/15Texas Tech (21-5, 9-4 Big 12) and No. 14/14 Kansas (20-6, 9-4 Big 12) and one game ahead of fourth-place Iowa State (19-6, 8-4 Big 12). Seven Big 12 schools have at least 5 league wins with between 5 and 6 games left in the regular season.
K-State saw its 9-game conference winning streak come to an end on Saturday, as Iowa State scorched the nets from long range in posting a 78-64 victory to even the season series at 1-all. The Cyclones’ 14 made 3-point field goals tied for the most by an opponent this season and the most since Texas also connected on 14 triples on Jan. 2, 2019. Overall, it tied for the third-most 3-point field goals by an opponent in school history.
The winning streak was the longest by a Wildcat team in the Big 12 era and the longest regular-season conference winning streak in 45 seasons since the Wildcats won 11 consecutive league games from Jan. 14 to Feb. 26, 1974.
After averaging 72.5 points on 47.4 percent shooting, including 44.8 percent from 3-point range, with 17.5 assists during its 4-game winning streak, the K-State offense took a step back in the loss to Iowa State. The Wildcats connected on just 42 percent (21-of-50), including 26.3 percent (5-of-19) from long range, against the Cyclones and managed just 8 assists on 21 made field goals. Senior Barry Brown, Jr., scored more than a third of the team’s points, totaling a game-tying 23 points on 10-of-16 shooting, including 3-of-6 from long range. He has now scored in double figures in a team-high 21 games this season, including 12 consecutive games.
West Virginia has dropped 6 of its last 7 games, including 3 in a row, after falling to No. 14/14 Kansas, 78-53, at Allen Fieldhouse on Saturday afternoon. The injury plagued Mountaineers, who have been without their All-Big 12 forward Sagaba Konatefor all but 8 games this season, are led by Big 12 Freshman of the Year candidate Derek Culver, who is averaging a near double-double with 11.5 points on 48 percent shooting and 8.9 rebounds per game.
K-State and West Virginia will meet for the 17th time in its respective histories on Monday with the Mountaineers holding a 10-6 advantage in a series that dates to 1949. The Mountaineers are 9-5 in the series since the start of Big 12 play, including a dominant 5-1 mark at home. The Wildcats have lost 5 straight at the WVU Coliseum with the last victory coming in a 65-64 decision in the first meeting in the Big 12 era on Jan. 12, 2013.
Although it allowed a Big 12-high 78 points on 52.2 percent shooting in the Iowa State loss, K-State has been one of the better defensive teams in the country, allowing 60.2 points on 41.8 percent shooting, including 32.2 percent from 3-point range, and forcing foes into 15.0 turnovers per game.
