GAME #20

KANSAS STATE (14-5, 4-3 Big 12) at Baylor (12-7, 2-5 Big 12)

Monday, January 22, 2018 >> 8 p.m. CT >> Ferrell Center (10,284) >> Waco, Texas

 

RADIO

K-State Sports Network

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

Listen Online: TuneIn.com [free] // www.kstatesports.com/watch [free]

Satellite Radio: Sirius 83 // XM 83 // Internet 83

 COACHES

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

Overall: 427-228/20^th season

At K-State: 114-73/6^th season

1. Baylor: 5-6 (2-3 on the road)

Baylor: Scott Drew (Butler ’93)

Career Record: 309-198/16^th Year

Record at Baylor: 289-187/15th Year

1. Kansas State: 11-12 (5-4 at home)

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP

Kansas State (14-5, 4-3 Big 12)

G: #2 Cartier Diarra

G: #5 Barry Brown, Jr.

G: #20 Xavier Sneed

F: #32 Dean Wade

F: #14 Makol Mawien

Baylor (12-7, 2-5 Big 12)

G: #20 Manu Lecomte

G: #22 King McClure

F: #11 Mark Vital

F: #25 Tristan Clark

F: #00 Jo Lual-Acuil, Jr.

SERIES HISTORY

Overall: K-State leads 19-18

Big 12 era: Baylor leads 17-14

In Waco: Baylor leads 8-6

In Manhattan: K-State leads 10-8

Active Streak: K-State, 2

Weber vs. Baylor: 5-6 (2-3 on the road)

Drew vs. K-State: 11-12 (5-4 at home)

Weber vs. Drew: 5-6 (2-3 on the road)

OPENING TIP

• Winners of three of its last four games, Kansas State (14-5, 4-3 Big 12) makes a quick turnaround on Monday night, as the Wildcats travel to Waco, Texas to take on Baylor (12-7, 2-5 Big 12) at 8 p.m., CT at the Ferrell Center. The Bears enter the game with losses in three of their last four outings, but have won back-to-back home games (Texas and Oklahoma State). The game will air nationally on ESPNU and the WatchESPN app with Matt Schick (play-by-play) and Dino Gaudio (analyst) on the call.
• K-State is 4-3 away from home this season, including 3-2 in true road games, which includes wins at Vanderbilt (84-79), Washington State (68-65) and Iowa State (91-75). The Wildcats are one of five Big 12 schools with at least three true road wins this season. However, the squad has lost back-to-back on the road at Texas Tech (58-74) and No. 12/12 Kansas (72-73) after opening league play with a win at ISU.
• K-State and Baylor will meet for the 28th time on the hardwood with the Wildcats holding a slight 19-18 edge in the series after consecutive wins last season for the first time since sweeping the season series in 2013. Baylor holds a 17-14 advantage since the start of Big 12 play with wins in six of the last nine meetings. The Wildcats snapped a three-game losing streak with a 56-54 upset of the second-ranked Bears last season at the Ferrell Center on a last-second block by D.J. Johnson before posting a 70-64 win in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championship in Kansas City.
• K-State’s games with Baylor in Waco have been some of the Big 12’s most exciting contests with four of the last five meetings being decided in the closing moments, including a buzz-beater by the Wildcats in 2013, a pair of double-overtime wins by the Bears in 2014 and 2016 and Johnson’s shot block in 2017. Dating back to 2000, 10 of the last 12 games betwee the schools at the Ferrell Center have been decided by single-digits, including three points or less eight times.
• A balanced scoring effort led by a game-high 20 points from junior Dean Wade helped carry K-State to its second consecutive Top 25 win of the week on Saturdayin a 73-68 victory over No. 24/25 TCU before a season-best crowd of 11,194 fans at Bramlage Coliseum. It marked the first time the Wildcats have posted back-to-back victories at home over Top 25 teams since knocking off No. 8 Kansas (70-63) and No. 12 Iowa State (70-69) on February 23 and 28, 2015. The team now has 36 wins over Top 25 teams at Bramlage Coliseum, including 16 under head coach Bruce Weber.
• For the fourth consecutive game and eighth time this season, four Wildcats reached double figures in the win against TCU, including a game-high 20 points from Wade, and a career-best 18 points from sophomore Makol Mawien. Junior Barry Brown, Jr., scored 12 of his 15 points after halftime, while sophomore Xavier Sneed added 10 points. Brown, who nearly posted a double-double with a career-best nine assists, became the 28th Wildcat in school history to post 1,000 career points.
• Although K-State is averaging 79.5 points on 52.3 percent shooting in the last four games, the defense has been one of the most important aspects of the Wildcats’ recent success. During this stretch, the team has held Oklahoma, Kansas, Oklahoma and TCU to an average of 73 points per game on 44.5 percent shooting, including 32.6 percent from 3-point range, while forcing an average of 14.5 turnovers per game.

LAST TIME OUT: K-STATE 73, 24/25 TCU 68

• K-State still leads the all-time series with TCU, 12-5, including 9-3 in the Big 12 era… The Wildcats are now 7-2 at home in the series, including 5-1 since the start of Big 12 play.
• K-State is 36-57 all-time against Top 25 teams at Bramlage Coliseum, which includes 17 over teams ranked in the Top 10… The school is 33-54 against ranked Big 12 teams (since 1997), including a 21-17 mark since 2008… The Wildcats are 2-3 vs. ranked opponents this season (No. 6 West Virginia, No. 18 Texas Tech, No. 12 Kansas, No. 4 Oklahoma)… The team has now executed consecutive home Top 25 victories for the first time since defeating No. 8 Kansas (70-63) and No. 12 Iowa State (70-69) on Feb. 23 and Feb. 28, 2015.

• K-State scored 73 points on 52.9 percent shooting (27-of-51), including 42.1 percent (8-of-19) from 3-point range, and connected on 78.6 percent (11-of-14) from the free throw line… It marked the 14^th time scoring 70 or more points as well as the 10th time connecting on 50 percent or better from the field.
• K-State connected on 8 3-point field goals, which marked the 14^th time in 19 games with at least 6 treys.
• K-State scored 14 points off 14 TCU turnovers, which marked the 18^th time that the Wildcats have had double digit points off opponent miscues.
• K-State had four players score in double figures for the eighth time this season, including four consecutive games for the first time this season.

• Junior Dean Wade scored 20 points on 7-of-16 field goals, including 4-of-9 from 3-point range, grabbing six rebounds, six assists and two blocks… It marked his ninth career 20-point game, including his fifth this season… It marked the 15^th time leading the team in scoring… He has now scored in double figures in 49 career games, including 15 this season… He also added a team-high 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals in a career-best 39 minutes.
• Sophomore Makol Mawien scored 18 points on 8-of-11 field goals, nabbed 5 rebounds and 2 blocks… It marked the most points he has scored in a Big 12 game and the first time in double figures… He has now scored in double figures in four career games and the first time since Washington State (12/20/17).
• Junior Barry Brown, Jr., scored 15 points on 5-of-11 field goals, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range and added a career-high 9 assists… He scored 12 of his 15 points in the second half… He has now scored in double figures in 50 career games, including 16 this season… He also played a career-high 40 minutes.

• Sophomore Xavier Sneed scored 10 points on 3-of-5 field goals, including 1-of-3 from 3-point range… It marked his 24^th time scoring in double figures, including the 12^th time this season.

OFFENSE OFF TO A GOOD START

• K-State is averaging 76.9 points on 48.6 percent shooting, including 37 percent from 3-point range, to go with a solid 74 percent clip from the free throw line through 18 games. The Wildcats’ offensive numbers are slightly better since the start of Big 12 play with the team averaging 77.2 points on 49.2 percent shooting, including 42 percent from 3-point range, and 74.4 percent from the free throw line in Big 12 play. The squad has scored 80 or more points nine times, including a pair of 90-point efforts against Arizona State (11/23) and Iowa State (12/29), and have eclipsed the 75-point barrier nine times in the last 15 games. It is the most 90-point and 80-point games in the first 17 games since 2009-10 (which had 13 80-point and 4 90-point games), while the 1,384 points are the most points through 18 games since scoring 1,483 (82.4 ppg.) in the same span to start the 2009-10 season.
• The Wildcats scored a season-best 91 points at Iowa State (12/29) on 55.2 percent shooting (32-of-58), including 50 percent (13-of-26) from 3-point range. It was the most points in a Big 12 opener since scoring 97 at home against Nebraska on Jan. 8, 2000, while it was the most in a Big 12 opener on the road since scoring 92 at Colorado on Jan. 21, 1987. The 91 points were the most in a Big 12 road game overall since scoring 96 at Oklahoma State on Jan. 18, 2017. The Wildcats connected on 50 percent or better in both halves for the sixth time this season. The 13 3-point field goals tied for the ninth-most makes in school history and most in a Big 12 game since hitting 14 against the Cyclones at Hilton Coliseum on Feb. 5, 2011.
• K-State also posted 90 points vs. Arizona State (11/23), which tied for the fourth-most points ever scored in a loss and the most since a 112-95 loss at No. 4 Oklahoma on Feb. 13, 1988. The 84 points at Vanderbilt (12/3) were the most in a non-conference road game since also scoring 84 at Saint Louis on Dec. 3, 2016. The squad also has 80-point efforts vs. American (11/10), NAU (11/20), USC Upstate (12/5), SE Missouri State (12/16), Oklahoma State (1/10) and Oklahoma (1/16). The 87 points against the Sooners were the most in a Big 12 home game since scoring 89 vs. OSU on Jan. 23, 2016. The Wildcats put up 53 points in the second half against the Cowboys and tied for the most in any half this season (SE Missouri and Iowa State).
• K-State has connected on better than 50 percent from the field in nine games, including a season-best 62.5 percent (35-of-56) in the win over SE Missouri State (12/16). The team has hit on 50 percent or better in both halves in six games (American, Arizona State, Vanderbilt, USC Upstate, SE Missouri State and Iowa State). The Wildcats tied a season-high for both field goals made (35) and attempted (62) against Oklahoma (1/16), while they registered season-highs for assists (25), points in the paint (44) and dunks (7) vs. SE Missouri State (12/16). It was the most assists in a game since dishing out 25 at Baylor on Feb. 15, 2014, while it was the most points in the paint since posting 46 in a win over Iowa State on Feb. 28, 2015.

TRIPLE SCORING THREAT

• Even without junior Kamau Stokes, K-State still has a trio of scoring threats in juniors Barry Brown, Jr. (17.0 ppg.) and Dean Wade (15.3 ppg.) and sophomore Xavier Sneed (11.6 ppg.). They rank fifth, 14th and 26th in scoring in the Big 12, as the three are averaging 43.9 points per game on 49.5 percent shooting, including 36.1 percent from long range, and 77.6 percent from the free throw line. Since the injury to Stokes, the trio have averaged 51.5 points per game on 50 percent shooting, including 38.1 percent from long range, and 81.4 percent from the free throw line.
• The trio of Brown, Wade and Sneed have all scored in double figures in 11 career games, including seven this season. The three have combined for 50 or more points three times this season, including 51 against No. 6/5 West Virginia (1/1) on 50 percent shooting, 59 against Oklahoma State (1/10) on 55.2 percent shooting and 58 against No. 4/6 Oklahoma (1/16) on 57.5 percent shooting (23-of-40). They combined for 48 points against No. 12/12 Kansas (1/13) on 46.2 percent shooting. They have combined for 40 double-digit scoring games, including Brown’s team-high 15 this season.
• Brown is averaging 22.2 points on 51.7 percent shooting (45-of-87) and 72.3 percent (34-of-47) from the free throw line, through the first six Big 12 games. His scoring average ranks second in the Big 12 behind Oklahoma’s Trae Young (30.8 ppg.). His 133 points are the second-most by a Wildcat though the first six Big 12 games since 2007-08, trailing the 157 scored by Michael Beasley in 2008. Brown’s career-best 38 points vs. Oklahoma State (1/10) were the most by a Wildcat since Jacob Pullen also scored 38 against Wisconsin on March 19, 2011 and the most in a home game since Pullen’s 38 against Kansas on Feb. 14, 2011. It was also the fifth-most by a junior in school history. Brown leads the Wildcats with 11 career 20-point games, including a team-best seven this season (with five in the last seven outings.
• Wade is not far behind Brown in Big 12 games, averaging 19.7 points on 62 percent shooting (44-of-71), including 64.7 percent (11-of-17) from 3-point range, and 82.6 percent (19-of-23) from the free throw line to go with 6.7 rebounds through the first six league contests. The average ranks fourth in the league, while Wade is second in 3-point field goal percentage, third in field goal percentage, eighth in free throw percentage and 11th in rebounding. His 118 points are the fourth-most by a Wildcat through the first six Big 12 games. He scored a game-high 22 points against No. 12/12 Kansas (1/13), his third consecutive 20-point game against the Jayhawks, while he added 21 points against No. 4/6 Oklahoma (1/16).
• Brown (22.2 ppg.) and Wade (19.7 ppg.) have combined to score 251 points on 53.9 percent shooting through the first six Big 12 games, which is the most points by a duo since Michael Beasley (26.2 ppg.) and Bill Walker (17.0 ppg.) combined for 259 points in the first six league games in 2008.
• Sneed is starting to heat back up with four double-figure scoring games in the last five outings and has registered double-digit points 11 times this season, including three 20-point games (Vanderbilt, SE Missouri State and West Virginia). He is now the leader in 3-point field goals with Stokes out with 32, which includes a career-best 6-of-9 effort in the setback to the Mountaineers on New Year’s Day. He collected his first career double-double in the win over Oklahoma State (1/10) with a career-best 12 rebounds to go with 11 points.

TOM GILBERT
Associate Director for Athletics Communications | K-State Athletics