K-State Plays Wake Forest in NCAA First Four Tuesday

[11] WAKE FOREST (19-13, 9-9 ACC

[11] KANSAS STATE (20-13, 8-10 Big 12)

NCAA First Four

Tuesday, March 14, 2017 8:10 p.m. CT UD Arena (13,409) Dayton, Ohio

RADIO

K-State Sports Network

Wyatt Thompson (play-by-play)
Stan Weber (analyst)

COACHES

Kansas State: Bruce Weber (Wis.-Milwaukee ’78)

Overall: 412-222/19^th season

At K-State: 99-67/5^th season

Wake Forest: 1-0 (0-0 at NCAA Championship)

Wake Forest: Danny Manning (Kansas ‘91)

Overall: 81-81/5th season

At Wake Forest: 43-52/3rd season

Kansas State: 0-0 (0-0 at NCAA Championship)

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP

Kansas State (20-13, 8-10 Big 12)

G: #3 Kamau Stokes (11.6 ppg., 4.3 apg.)

G: #5 Barry Brown (11.7 ppg., 3.2 rpg.)

G: #25 Wesley Iwundu (12.5 ppg., 6.4 rpg.)

F: #32 Dean Wade (9.4 ppg., 4.6 rpg.)

F: #4 D.J. Johnson (11.2 ppg., 5.8 rpg.)

Wake Forest (19-13, 9-9 ACC)

G: #1 Keyshawn Woods (12.8 ppg., 3.5 apg.)

G: #13 Bryant Crawford (16.1 ppg., 5.4 apg.)

F: #34 Austin Arians (8.3 ppg., 1.9 rpg.)

F: #20 John Collins (18.9 ppg., 9.8 rpg.)

F: #44 Dinos Mitoglou (9.0 ppg., 6.3 rp.g)

NCAA TOURNAMENT CAPSULE

Overall: 33-32 (10-4 in first round) | 29th appearance

First Four: First appearance | In Dayton: First appearance

In South Regional: 0-1 (lost to No. 11 Tulane, 55-53, on 3/18/1993)

As a No. 11 seed: 1-2 (1990, 2008) | vs. a No. 11 seed: 0-2

Wake Forest: First meeting (0-0 at NCAA Championship)

Weber vs. Wake Forest: 1-0 (0-0 at NCAA Championship)

Weber vs. Manning: First meeting

GAME 34 – QUICK HITTERS

Kansas State (20-13, 8-10 Big 12) was rewarded for a successful season on Sunday night, as the Wildcats earned their 29th overall bid to the NCAA Tournament, including the third in 5 seasons under head coach Bruce Weber.
K-State was selected to participate in the First Four at the University of Dayton Arena in Dayton, Ohio, where the No. 11 seeded Wildcats will play fellow 11-seed Wake Forest (19-13, 9-9 ACC) on Tuesday at 8:10 p.m., CT on TruTV with Brian Anderson, Clark Kellogg and Lewis Johnson.
The winner of the First Four matchup will advance to play No. 6 seed Cincinnati (29-4, 16-2 AAC) in the South Regional on Friday night at 6:27 p.m. CT at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif., on TruTV.
K-State is making its 36th postseason appearance, which includes 29 in the NCAA Tournament and seven in the Postseason NIT. The Wildcats advance to the NCAA Tournament for the 7th time in the last 11 seasons, including their first since losing to Kentucky, 56-49, in the NCAA Midwest Regional second round in St. Louis on March 21, 2014. The program has now advanced to the postseason nine times in the last 11 seasons.
K-State has posted a 33-32 all-time record in NCAA Tournament play. The school will be making its second appearance in the South Regional with its other trip coming in 1993 when the 6-seeded Wildcats lost to No. 11 seed Tulane, 55-53, on March 18 in Orlando, Fla.
K-State will be making its third appearance as a No. 11 seed (1990, 2008) and the first since the 2008 NCAA Tournament when the Wildcats defeated No. 6 seed USC, 80-67, in first round before falling to No. 3 seed Wisconsin, 72-55, in the second round at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Neb. The team is 0-2 vs. No. 11 seeds (losing to Minnesota in 1989 and Tulane in 1993).
Weber is the fifth different coach to lead K-State to at least three NCAA Tournament appearances (2013, 2014). Overall, Weber advances to his 11th NCAA Tournament, which includes six at Illinois and two at Southern Illinois, and boasts an 11-10 record in those appearances. He will be attempting to win his 100^th game at K-State on Tuesday.
K-State and Wake Forest have never met, but the Wildcats are all too familiar with Demon Deacon head coach Danny Manning, who led archrival Kansas to a 71-58 win over K-State in the Midwest Regional Final in Pontiac, Mich., en route to winning the NCAA title in 1988.
The Wildcats, which earned their third 20-win season under Weber and finished sixth in the rugged Big 12, have won 3 of their last 4 games, including going 1-1 at the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship.
Defense has been a key element in the Wildcats’ success, as the team is 14-1 when holding an opponent to 65 points or less. K-State is holding foes to 61.2 points in its 20 wins on 39.9 percent shooting, including 65.6 points in 9 wins vs. Big 12 foes.

AT THE NCAA TOURNAMENT

K-State is making its 36th postseason appearance, which includes 29 in the NCAA Tournament and 7 in the Postseason NIT… The Wildcats advance to the NCAA Tournament for the seventh time in 11 seasons, including their first since playing in the second round in 2014… The program has now advanced to the postseason 9 times in the last 11 seasons (7 trips to NCAA Tournament and 2 to the NIT). The 29 overall bids ties for 23rd nationally (along with Utah and BYU), including fourth among Big 12 schools.
In K-State’s 29 previous NCAA Tournament appearances, the Wildcats have advanced to the Sweet 16 a total of 16 times… The program has also reached the Elite Eight 11 times, made four Final Four appearances and played in one NCAA title game (1951).
The program has posted a 33-32 all-time record in NCAA Tournament play, including a 1-2 record as a No. 11 seed… K-State will be making its third appearance as a No. 11 seed (1990, 2008) and the first since the 2008 Midwest Regional, in which, the Wildcats defeated No. 6 USC, 80-67 before falling to No. 3 seed Wisconsin in Omaha, Neb. … In the other appearance as an 11-seed, K-State lost to 6-seed Xavier, 87-79, in the 1990 Midwest Regional First Round in Indianapolis.
The Wildcats are 0-2 all-time vs. No. 11 seeds, losing to Minnesota, 86-75, in the 1989 East Regional First Round in Greensboro, N.C., and Tulane, 55-53, in the 1993 South Regional First Round in Orlando, Fla.
K-State is 6-6 in the NCAA Tournament in the last 5 appearances, including a run to the Elite Eight in 2010… The Wildcats’ last win in an NCAA Tournament game came against Southern Miss, 70-64, at the 2012 East Regional Second Round in Pittsburgh.

LAST APPEARANCE IN NCAA TOURNAMENT

KENTUCKY 56, K-STATE 49 [MARCH 21, 2014]

Julius Randle tallied a double-double with 19 points and 15 rebounds to help No. 8 seed Kentucky upend No. 9 seed K-State, 56-49, in the first round of the Midwest Regional at Scottrade Center in St. Louis on March 21, 2014.
Kentucky broke open a tight 35-33 advantage with a 7-0 run early in the second half and never trailed the rest of the way.
K-State connected on just 35.8 percent (19-of-53), including 23.8 percent (5-of-21) from 3-point range, and hit on just 6-of-12 from the free throw line… Freshman Marcus Foster led with 15 points, while senior Shane Southwell and junior Thomas Gipson added 11 and 10 points, respectively… Foster had a team-high 5 assists and Gipson corralled a team-best 7 rebounds.
Current senior Wesley Iwundu and D.J. Johnson both played in the game with Iwundu posting 7 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block and 1 steal in a start in 31 minutes, while Johnson played just 4 minutes before leaving with a broken foot.

BRUCE WEBER AT THE NCAA TOURNAMENT

Head coach Bruce Weber becomes fifth different coach to lead K-State to at least 3 NCAA Tournament appearances and joins Jack Hartman (1978-82), Lon Kruger (1986-90) and Frank Martin (2007-12) as the only coaches to accomplish it three times in a five-year period… His 3 appearances trails Hartman (7), Tex Winter (6), Kruger (4) and Martin (4) in school history.
Overall, Weber advances to his 11th NCAA Tournament, which includes 6 at Illinois (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011) and 2 at Southern Illinois (2002, 2003)… He is 41st head coach in NCAA history to take 3 different schools to the tournament, including the 21st active coach.
Weber has an 11-10 record in the NCAA Tournament with three trips to the Sweet 16 and the 2005 Final Four… He is 0-2 in NCAA Tournament at K-State, losing to 13-seed La Salle, 63-61, in the 2013 West Regional and Kentucky in 2014.

THE OPPONENT: WAKE FOREST (19-13, 9-9 ACC)

Wake Forest enters Tuesday’s game with a 19-13 overall record, which includes a 10th-place finish in the rugged ACC with a 9-9 mark… The team won 4 of their last 5 games, including NCAA Tournament teams Louisville and Virginia Tech.
The Deacons are averaging 82.7 points on 47.2 percent shooting, including 38.7 percent from 3-point range, on the season with 36.8 rebounds, 15.6 assists, 5.5 steals and 3.8 blocks per game… They are allowing opponents 77.9 points per game on 45.2 percent shooting, including 35.8 percent from beyond the arc… The team is shooting 77.2 percent from the free throw line.
Wake Forest ranks 2nd in the ACC in scoring offense and free throw percentage, 3rd in 3-point field goal percentage and assists, 4th in field goal percentage, rebounding and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.3) and 5th in 3-point field goals (8.1).
The Deacons are led by First Team All-ACC selection John Collins, who is averaging a team-best 18.9 points on an ACC-best 62 percent shooting to go with team-highs in both rebounding (9.8 rpg.) and blocked shots (1.6 bpg.)… Collins is joined in double figures by sophomore guards Bryant Crawford (16.1 ppg.) and Keyshawn Woods (12.8 ppg.)… The duo have combined for 102 3-pointers and 285 assists, as Crawford leads the team in 3-pointers (53), assists (5.4 apg.) and steals (1.4 spg.) while shooting 43.7 percent… Woods is connecting on 50.2 percent from the field, including 45.8 percent from 3-point range.
Wake Forest is led by Danny Manning, who has an 81-81 overall record in 5 years, including a 43-52 mark in this third season at the school… He was the coach at Tulsa from 2012-14, leading the Golden Hurricane to the NCAA Tournament in 2013-14.

FAMILIAR FOE

Wake Forest head coach Danny Manning is familiar to K-State, having played for archrival Kansas from 1984-88 and serving on the staff of head coach Bill Self from 2003-12, including the last five seasons as an assistant coach.
Manning is a combined 30-5 as a player and coach against K-State, including leading the Jayhawks to a 71-58 victory over the Wildcats in the Midwest Regional Final en route to the national championship in 1988.

BREAKING DOWN THE SERIES

This will be the first meeting between K-State and Wake Forest on the hardwood.
K-State is 12-21 all-time vs. the Atlantic Coast Conference, including 0-7 in the NCAA Tournament… The Wildcats have lost to current ACC members Louisville (1968, 1972, 1980), Syracuse (1975, 2012), North Carolina (1981) and Boston College (1982).
Head coach Bruce Weber is 1-0 all-time against Wake Forest, as his Illinois squad defeated the top-ranked Demon Deacons, 91-73, at home in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge on Dec. 1, 2004.

POSSIBLE OPPONENT: CINCINNATI (29-5, 16-2 AAC)

The winner of Tuesday’s matchup will face No. 6 seed Cincinnati (29-5, 16-2 AAC) on Friday.
The Bearcats have a balanced attack with six players averaging 8 or more points, including four in double figures… Sophomore guard Jacob Evans III leads the way with 13.7 points per game on 47.1 percent shooting, including a team-high 66 3-pointers, while second team All-AAC selection junior forward Kyle Washington averages 13.1 points on 51.3 percent shooting to go with 6.9 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game… Junior forward Gary Clark averages a team-best 7.9 rebounds per game to go with 10.7 points per game, while senior guard Troy Caupain dishes out 4.6 assists per contest.
Cincinnati is led by head coach Mick Cronin, who has a 305-158 overall record in 14 years as a head coach, including a 236-134 mark in this 11th season at the helm of the Bearcats… He has been to 7 straight NCAA Tournaments.

CATS EFFICIENT ON OFFENSE

K-State is averaging 71.7 points on 45.8 percent shooting (817-of-1782) and 36.1 percent from 3-point range (234-of-649), through 33 games with assists on 60.5 percent of its made field goals (494/817) and a +2.1 turnover margin.
The 2,367 points scored this season is the 10th highest total in school history and the highest since 2,414 were scored in 2012-13, while 234 3-pointers (5th), 649 3-pointers attempted (6th) and 494 assists (9th) are all in the single-season Top 10.
The current 71.7 points per game scoring average is the highest since the 2010-11 team averaged 72.9 points per game, while the 45.8 field goal percentage is the highest since the 1997-98 team connected on 45.9 percent and the 36.1 3-point field goal percentage is the highest since the 2012-13 team connected on 36.2 percent from long range.
K-State’s 9 games of 80 or more points equals the entire total of such games from 2015-16 and are the most since the Wildcats scored 80 or more points 11 times in 2010-11… The 9 games are double the totals from 2013-14 (4) and 2014-15 (4).
K-State has shot 50 percent or better 12 times this season, including on 7 occasions vs. Big 12 competition… The Wildcats have shot 50 percent or better vs. Omaha (11/15), Hampton (11/20), Green Bay (11/30), Saint Louis (12/3), Prairie View A&M (12/6), Kansas (1/3), Oklahoma (1/7), Texas Tech (1/10), Oklahoma State (1/18), West Virginia (1/21), Texas (2/18) and Baylor (3/9).
The 12 games of 50 percent or better field goal shooting is the highest since doing it in 13 games in 1988-89.
K-State has connected on at least 50 percent of its field goals in at least one half of 22 games this season, including hitting the mark in both halves vs. Hampton (11/20), Green Bay (11/30), Prairie View A&M (12/6), Oklahoma (1/7) and OSU (1/18).
The Wildcats also performed well offensively during Big 12 play, averaging 70.7 points in Big 12 play on 44 percent shooting (427-of-970), including 34.8 percent (123-of-353) from long range, with assists on 60.2 percent of its field goals (257/427) and a +1.9 turnover margin… It is the highest scoring average in Big 12 play since averaging 76.8 points in 2009-10.

IMPROVEMENT FROM LONG RANGE

One of the focal points for K-State in the offseason was to make improvement from 3-point range, where the Wildcats finished 10th in the Big 12 in both 3-point field goal percentage (30.0) and 3-point field goals made per game (5.3).
K-State is shooting 36.1 percent (234-of-649) from 3-point range and is averaging 7.1 3-point field goals per game.
After ranking 330th nationally in 3-point field goal percentage and 325th in 3-point field goals per game a year ago, K-State is currently 126th in 3-point field goal percentage and 200th in makes… The team ranks 6th in both categories in the Big 12.
K-State eclipsed 200 3-pointers in a season against Oklahoma State (2/22) for the first time since 2012-13… The 234 triples this season tie for the 5th-most on the single-season list and the most since totaling 238 in 2012-13.
K-State has at least 7 3-pointers in 21 games, including double digits vs. Western Illinois (11/11), Hampton (11/15) and Prairie View A&M (12/6) and Texas Tech (1/10)… The Wildcats have at least 6 treys in 15 of their 20 wins this season.
11 Wildcats have at least one 3-pointer, including 5 with 25 or more treys (Kamau Stokes, Barry Brown, Xavier Sneed, Dean Wade and Wesley Iwundu)… Stokes ranks in the Big 12’s Top 10 in 3-pointers per game (9th) and percentage (14th).
Six different Wildcats have recorded at least 3 made 3-pointers in a game on 11 occasions this season, including a team-high 5 by Stokes at Texas Tech (1/10), TCU (2/1) and Kansas (2/6), 4 by Brown vs. Prairie View A&M (12/6), at Oklahoma State (1/18) and Baylor (3/9), 4 by Sneed vs. Western Illinois (11/11) and at Saint Louis (12/3), 4 by Wade at TCU (3/1), 3 by Iwundu vs. Hampton (11/20) and 3 by Brian Patrick at West Virginia (2/11).
K-State has made at least one 3-pointer in 305 consecutive games dating back to the start of the 2008-09 season.