RAPID RECAP: Role players spur Wildcats to 77-65 win vs. Montana St
GREENSBORO, NC --Kansas State returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019, and the No. 3 seeded Wildcats beat vs. No. 14 seeded Montana State 77-65 in the Round of 64 on Friday night at Greensboro Coliseum.
The two teams traded buckets to start the game, but Montana State took an 11-10 lead RaeQuan Battle converted on a four-point play with 13:43 left in the first half. Fouling Battle was K-State's Nae'Qwan Tomlin, it was his second personal foul of the first half after being called for a moving screen in the first couple of minutes of the game.
Battle's made 3-pointer contributed to a strong first half for the Bobcats' best player. The former Washington Huskie scored 13 first-half points for Montana State, making 5-of-9 shots. he also had a couple of rebounds. But he was given two fouls in the first half and didn't play the final 6:18 of the first half.
Kansas State wasn't able to take great advantage of Battle's time on the bench, however. when Battle went to the bench, Kansas State held a five-point lead. But poor awareness by Kansas State point guard Markquis Nowell and a great take to the rim by Daris Brown with 28 seconds left in the half allowed the Bobcats to score the final three points of the half, making it a 34-28 game at the break.
Nowell was guilty of three turnovers in the first half, but the three turnovers weren't indicative of his play. His effort was noticeable, and it helped him convert on 4-of-7 shots to score a team-high 10 points in the first half. The senior point guard also dished out seven assists, including a beautiful pass to a cutting Cam Carter for a layup with 1:38 left in the half.
Keyontae Johnson also scored 10 points for Kansas State in the first half. But Johnson's shooting wasn't as efficient. He converted on 5-of-9 shots, but two of his made shots were mid-range jumpers. He also took advantage of a free path to the basket for a dunk that put Kansas State up four points and on the next possession he had a layup to five the Wildcats a 27-21 lead.
Kansas State had an early 6-0 run that sparked a Montana State timeout after Tomlin converted on a layup under the basket. Tomlin also scored the first bucket for K-State on an alley-oop pass. Shortly after the timeout, Tomlin was able to get into the paint again, converting on a layup at the rim to give Kansas State a 44-34 lead.
Montana State went on a scoring drought of 3:13, which included an 0-for-6 stretch and a 1-for-8 streak. The cold shooting by the Bobcats allowed Kansas State to open an 11-point lead at the under-12 media timeout of the second half. Desi Sills then got an open layup that put Kansas State ahead 13 points at 49-36. It was the first field goal of the game for Sills, who split a pair of free throws in the first half.
Nowell drilled a 3-pointer -- scoring his 15th point and converting on his third of four attempts from deep -- to give Kansas State an 11-point lead again after Nick Gazelas inserted some Montana State life into the mostly empty arena.
The Bobcats shrunk Kansas State's lead to eight points on a couple of occasions with less than 10 minutes left in the game, but the Wildcats often responded with a clutch bucket to avoid any serious concerns about being the only three seed to lose to a 14 seed in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
Tomlin converted on an and-1 bucket to reach 11 points with just over 3:00 minutes left to give Kansas State a 67-56 lead. But Brown responded by swishing a 3pointer over the outstretched arm of David N'Guessan. N'Guessan then forced a steal and made two free throws after an intentional foul, giving Kansas State a 71-59 lead.
Sills put an exclamation point on the Wildcats' win by throwing a dunk down with just under 2:00 let, giving Kansas State a 75-59 lead.
With the win, K-State advances to the Round of 32 where No. 6 seeded Kentucky awaits Kansas State. Kentucky advanced to the Round of 32 after being No. 11 Providence 61-53 with center Oscar Tshiebwe recording 25 rebounds in the win. Illinois State transfer Antonio Reeves scored 22 points, making 5-of-9 from the perimeter.
The last time Kansas State and Kentucky played was in 2018, and Kansas State beat Kentucky 61-58 in the Sweet 16 to advance to the Elite 8 where K-State lost to Loyola.
Kentucky and K-State have met 10 times previously and Kentucky holds 9-1 all-time advantage.