GAME 1

KANSAS STATE (0-0) vs. NORTH DAKOTA STATE (0-0)

Tuesday, November 5, 2019 >> 7:02 p.m. CT >> Bramlage Coliseum (12,528) >> Manhattan, Kan.

 

COACHES

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

Overall: 463-244/22^nd season

At K-State: 150-89/8^th season

1. NDSU: First meeting

 

North Dakota State: David Richman (NDSU ’02, ‘05)

Overall: 96-67/6^th season

At NDSU: 96-67/6^th season

1. Kansas State: First meeting

 

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP

Kansas State

G: #00 Mike McGuirl

G: #2 Cartier Diarra

G/F: #20 Xavier Sneed

F: #34 Levi Stockard III

F: #14 Makol Mawien

 

North Dakota State

G: #0 Vinnie Shahid

G: #11 Jared Samuelson

G: #24 Tyson Ward

F: #5 Sam Griesel

F: #34 Rocky Kreuser

 

SERIES HISTORY

Overall: K-State leads 4-0

Current Streak: K-State, 4

In Manhattan: K-State leads 4-0

At Bramlage Coliseum: K-State leads 2-0

Last Meeting: W, 83-81 [12/9/2006 in Fargo, N.D.]

Weber vs. Richman: First meeting

 

OPENING TIP

• Kansas State (0-0) will officially open its 116th season on Tuesday night, as the Wildcats play host to preseason Summit League favorite and 2019 NCAA Tournament participant North Dakota State (0-0) at 7 p.m., CT at Bramlage Coliseum. It will mark the earliest season opener in school history, eclipsing the previous mark of Nov. 8, 2014 against Northern Colorado, and the second time that the Wildcats have opened a season against the Bison, a 70-61 victory on Nov. 19, 2004.
• K-State will open a season against an NCAA Tournament opponent (from the previous season) for the first time in nearly 20 seasons since an 88-69 loss at Arizona on Nov. 16, 1999. It will be the first time that the Wildcats have opened a season at home against an NCAA Tournament opponent since hosting Purdue in the first-ever game at Bramlage Coliseum on Nov. 26, 1988. Current head coach Bruce Weber was an assistant coach on that Boilermaker staff for K-State alum Gene Keady.
• K-State is 90-25 (.783) all-time in season openers dating back to the first season in 1903, including a 78-9 (.897) mark at home. The Wildcats have a 25-2 (.926) record in season openers played at Bramlage Coliseum, which includes a 16-game winning streak from 1995 to 2012. The two losses in that span have come to Southern Miss (74-60 on Nov. 27, 1993) and Northern Colorado (60-58 on Nov. 8, 2013). Overall, the team is 27-4 (.871) at Bramlage Coliseum in home openers.
• The Wildcats have won 29 consecutive games against non-conference opponents at Bramlage Coliseum since the start of the 2015-16 season. Overall, the school has an 102-6 (.944) record at home in non-conference play since 2006-07, including 100-5 (.952) in the regular season, and has won 91 of its last 96 non-conference home games. The team went 10-3 in non-conference action in 2018-19, including 7-0 at home venues. The last non-conference home loss came to Tulsa, 61-54, on Dec. 9, 2017 in Wichita, while the last at Bramlage came to Georgia, 50-46, on Dec. 31, 2014.
• K-State, which has won 15 of its last 16 home openers, earned a 56-41 win over Kennesaw State in last season’s opener on Nov. 9, 2018, seniors Barry Brown, Jr., and Dean Wade scored a game-high 15 points. The Wildcats held the Owls to 32.7 percent shooting (17-of-52), including just 21.4 percent (6-of-28) in the second half, while also forcing 21 turnovers. The 41 points were the fewest allowed in a season opener at Bramlage Coliseum and the fewest allowed in a home opener since holding Northern Iowa to 38 points on Dec. 1, 1979.
• Head coach Bruce Weber is 19-2 (.905) in his 21-year head coaching career in season openers (Southern Illinois, Illinois and K-State), including a 19-1 (.950) mark in home openers. He is 6-1 (.857) in season openers at K-State.
• K-State went 2-0 in exhibition play, knocking off Emporia State, 86-49, on Oct. 25 before a 66-56 win over Washburn on Oct. 30. The Wildcats have now won 26 consecutive exhibition games at Bramlage Coliseum since 2003, including 16 straight under Weber. Xavier Sneed (14.0 ppg.) was one of 4 Wildcats to average double figures in exhibition play, along with Antonio Gordon (11.0), Montavious Murphy (10.5) and Makol Mawien (10.0).

 

NOTES ON NORTH DAKOTA STATE

• North Dakota State returns 10 lettermen, including all five starters (Vinnie Shahid, Tyson Ward, Rocky Kreuser, Jared Samuelson and Sam Griesel), from a squad that posted a 19-16 overall record en route to winning the Summit League Tournament Championship, defeating North Carolina Central (78-74) in the First Four and advancing to the first round of the NCAA Tournament, where they lost to top-seed Duke, 85-62.
• North Dakota State was picked to win the nine-team Summit League in the preseason by the media, earning 23 of 34 first-place votes and 526 points over second-place South Dakota. It marked the first time since the 2013-14 season that the Bison were picked to win the league. Reigning Summit League Newcomer of the Year and senior Vinnie Shahid (13.1 ppg., 2.6 apg.) was selected to the preseason All-Summit League First Team, while senior Tyson Ward (12.4 ppg., 6.2 rpg.) was named to the second team.
• North Dakota State played one exhibition game, overwhelming NAIA foe Dickinson State, 104-63, on the strength of 62.3 percent (38-of-61) shooting on Oct. 31 at home. Six different Bison (including all five starters) scored in double figures, including 20 points from Shahid in just 21 minutes, while junior Rocky Kreuser had a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 10 rebounds in just 20 minutes of action. NDSU connected 50 percent (14-of-28) from 3-point range and 73.7 percent (14-of-19) from the line.
• A season ago, the Bison averaged 73 points per game on 45.4 percent shooting, including 36.5 percent from 3-point range, with 31.5 rebounds, 11.5 assists, 4.6 steals and 2.5 blocks per game, while allowing opponents to average 72.6 points on 46.1 percent shooting, including 36.2 percent from long range. The team connected on 77.7 percent from the free throw line.
• Shahid is one of two returners who averaged double figures in 2018-19, as he led the Bison at 13.1 points per game on 44 percent shooting, including 36.6 percent from 3-point range, with 3.0 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 29.5 minutes per game. He was named the Summit League Newcomer of the Year and the MVP of the Summit League Tournament. He also led in 3-point fielg goals (64) and assists (91). Ward also averaged double figures at 12.4 points on 48.8 percent shooting to go with a team-best 6.2 rebounds per game. Five others (Rocky Kreuser, Jared Samuelson, Cameron Hunter, Tyree Eady and Sam Griesel) averaged 6 or more points per game last season.
• Head coach David Richman enters his sixth season as a head coach with a 96-67 (.589) overall record, as he has led the Bison to four seasons of 19 or more wins and two NCAA Tournament appearances (2015, 2019). He was promoted to the position on April 8, 2014 by then athletic director (and current K-State AD) Gene Taylor after serving 11 years as an assistant to head coaches Tim Miles and Saul Phillips from 2005-14. Richman has been a part of nearly 300 wins and all four NCAA Tournament appearances at NDSU.

 

SERIES HISTORY

• K-State and North Dakota State will meet for the fifth time on Tuesday night in a series that dates to 1967. The Wildcats are 4-0 in those previous meetings, including a 79-52 win at home on Dec. 19, 1967, a 70-61 win at home on Nov. 19, 2004, a 82-56 win at home on Jan. 2, 2006 and an 83-81 nail-biter in Fargo on Dec. 9, 2006.
•  This will be first matchup for head coach Bruce Weber against NDSU, while David Richman was on the coaching staff for its last three meetings (2004, 2006 twice) but this will be his first as the Bison head coach.
• K-State is 33-2 all-time against teams from the Summit League, including a 32-0 mark at home. The Wildcats have played at least one Summit League foe (two in 2013-14) in each of Weber’s seven seasons, posting an 8-0 mark in those matchups. Weber’s first win at K-State came against Summit League opponent, North Dakota, 85-52, on Nov. 9, 2012.

 

• o be selected to the honorable mention All-Big 12 preseason team, along with Oklahoma’s Kristian Doolittle, Oklahoma State’s Yor Anei, Texas’ Matt Coleman, Texas Tech’s Chris Clarke, Davide Moretti and Jahmi’us Ramey and West Virginia’s Derek Culver.
• Kansas’ Udoka Azubuike and Devon Dotson, along with Baylor’s Tristan Clark, Iowa State’s Tyrese Haliburton and TCU’s Desmond Bane were named to the Preseason All-Big 12 team. Azubuike was the Preseason Player of the Year, while Chris Clarke was the Preseason Newcomer of the Year and West Virginia’s Oscar Tshiebwe was the Preseason Freshman of the Year.

 

SNEED NAMED CANDIDATE FOR JULIUS ERVING AWARD

• Senior Xavier Sneed was named one of 20 watch list members for the 2020 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award, as announced by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on Oct. 16.
• Sneed was one of two Big 12 players named to the watch list, including Texas Tech transfer Chris Clarke. Other candidates include Arizona’s Josh Green, Duke’s Matthew Hurt, Florida’s Scottie Lewis, Gonzaga’s Corey Kispert, Harvard’s Seth Towns, Kentucky’s Kahlil Whitney, Louisville’s Jordan Nwora, Memphis’ Precious Achiuwa, Oregon State’s Tres Tinkle, Providence’s Alpha Diallo, Purdue’s Nojel Eastern, St. John’s L.J. Figueroa, Syracuse’s Elijah Hughes, Vermont’s Anthony Lamb, Villanova’s Saddiq Bey, Washington’s Jaden McDaniels, Washington State’s C.J. Elleby and Xavier’s Naji Marshall.
• Wade is the first K-State player to be a preseason candidate for the Wooden Award since Rodney McGruder in 2012. Jacob Pullen, who was a preseason candidate in 2010, was the last Wildcat to earn recognition to the Wooden All-American team, while Michael Beasley (2008) was the last finalist.
• The 20-member watch list for the Erving Award will be narrowed to just 10 by mid-February. In March, five finalists will be presented to Julius Erving and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee. The winner will be presented at The College Basketball Awards presented by Wendy’s on April 10, 2020.

 

NEXT UP: AT UNLV

• K-State will hit the road this weekend to take on UNLV on Saturday at 3 p.m., CT at the Thomas & Mack Center. It will be the earliest road game in school history and the first at UNLV since 2009. The game will air on ESPN+.

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TOM GILBERT
Director for Men’s Basketball Communications | K-State Athletics