What does Kansas State have to do to advance to the NCAA Tournament?

FLANDO: It is simple. Win the more realistic games. That means take down Oklahoma State this weekend, defeat Iowa State at home next week and knock off Oklahoma in Manhattan in the final regular season game.

I believe that would be enough in itself to get them in based on their strength of schedule and the amount of quadrant one wins they possess. If they drop one of those three games, they better steal one on the road in either Lawrence or Lubbock.

At least one win in the Big 12 tournament would help them a lot, too.

DY: Grant spit a lot of truth above. I do think that a win in Kansas City is something they would rather not bank on at this point. They'll likely face either one of Baylor, Texas or Texas Tech and those are strong clubs.

Avoiding another showdown with the Bears would especially be optimal. Kansas State would rather see Kansas on the other side than Baylor at this point. That's how their luck has been versus Scott Drew and company.

Because relying on a victory at the T-Mobile Center is dangerous, I think 9-9 in the Big 12 would do it. And they can't accomplish that by just being unscathed the rest of the way in Bramlage Coliseum.

They'll need a road win, and let's face it, coming out on top in Stillwater seems much more doable than doing so in Lawrence or Lubbock. That is why Saturday's game against Oklahoma State is critical.

FAN: K-State needs three more wins at this point. Two more probably means they are on the wrong side of the bubble.

I've discussed margin for error a lot this year and there was too much damage done early to have any remaining. The close losses to teams like Marquette, TCU and Kansas, plus a bad performance against Ole Miss reduced that to zero.

However, the team is playing well and there are plenty of opportunities to finish on a high note and be alone in fifth place in the league, which would be a great finish considering the tough January that the Wildcats endured

But that month also included the best two wins of the season.

DREW: To make the tournament, Kansas State needs to finish the regular season 3-2 or better and win a game in the Big 12 Tournament.

I think any of the combinations of the three wins would work but the most likely scenario is winning Saturday in Stillwater and coming out on top in the remaining home games versus Iowa State and Oklahoma.

While that isn’t easy by any stretch, K-State has already defeated the Cowboys and Cyclones once and the Sooners only got them by two in Norman.

The key to winning a game in the Big 12 Tournament to me is avoiding Kansas, Texas Tech or Baylor in the first game. If they potentially play Texas, I like their chances.

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