We have a brand new updated website! Click here to check it out!

Salvador Perez should be ready for Royals’ season opener

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — All-Star catcher Salvador Perez should be ready for Kansas City’s season opener after tests showed there was no structural damage to his injured left knee. The Royals, though, are still concerned about his hyperextended left elbow.

Royals manager Ned Yost said Perez would probably be ready to play in a week.

Perez returned to the Royals camp Wednesday after playing for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic. He was injured Saturday in a collision at the plate with his Royals backup, Drew Butera, who was playing for Italy.

Initially, the knee was Perez’s main concern, and he had a second MRI on Tuesday. But the test only showed inflammation, not serious damage.

K-State Defeats Wake Forest

PowerCatDAYTON, Ohio (AP) — Kamau Stokes scored 19 of his 22 points in the second half of a wide-open game on Tuesday night, and Kansas State’s balance was the difference as the Wildcats pulled away to a 95-88 victory over Wake Forest in the First Four.

Eleventh-seeded K-State (21-13) got its first NCAA Tournament win in five years and a trip to play No. 6 Cincinnati on Friday in Sacramento as part of the South Regional.

In a matchup of two versatile offenses, the Wildcats had the most options and hot shooters. Wesley Iwundu added 24 points, and D.J. Johnson scored 18.

Chiefs sign DT Bennie Logan to 1-year contract

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs signed defensive tackle Bennie Logan to a one-year contract on Tuesday, filling the void left by free agent Dontari Poe in the middle of the Kansas City defensive line.

Logan made 51 starts and appeared in 59 games during the past four seasons in Philadelphia. He made 24 tackles and had 2 1/2 sacks last season, when he played for former Chiefs offensive coordinator and longtime Andy Reid assistant Doug Pederson.

Chiefs general manager John Dorsey said in a statement that Logan is “a versatile player whose presence in the middle will allow us flexibility along the line.”

The 6-foot-2, 315-pound Logan was a third-round pick out of LSU. He’s made 164 tackles, 27 tackles for loss, and 5 1/2 sacks during his professional career.

Bramlage Coliseum Site of First and Second Round Women’s NCAA Tournament Games

PowerCatThe Kansas State Wildcats will play the Drake Bulldogs and the Stanford Cardinal will meet the New Mexico State Aggies in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament.

Kansas State University officials announced that the games will be played at Bramlage Coliseum in Manhattan Saturday afternoon. The contest between Stanford and New Mexico State will tip off at 12:30 p.m. while the contest between Kansas State and Drake is scheduled at 3 p.m. The winners will play Monday night at Bramlage Coliseum in a second round game.

These contests are part of the Lexington Regional in the tournament. Stanford is the number two seed, Kansas State number seven, Drake the tenth seed, and New Mexico State the number 15 seed.

The top seed in the Lexington regional is Notre Dame.

All session tickets for the first and second rounds of the NCAA Women’s Basketball tournament begin at $25 and are on sale online now and will be available today at 8:30 a.m. at the Bramlage Coliseum Ticket Office or by calling 1-800-221-CATS. Season ticket holders will have the opportunity to purchase all-session chairback tickets before the general public.

K-State Plays Wake Forest in NCAA First Four Tuesday

PowerCat[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: 412-222/19th season

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

  1. 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

  1. 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

  1. 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 100th 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.

 

 

And so it begins….March Madness 2017

ncaa-bracketMarch is the time of the year that college basketball fans live for – March Madness, and this year’s NCAA tournament is sure to do just that – serve up a heap of madness.

The first games include Kansas State taking on Wake Forest Tuesday evening as part of the First Four games. If the 20-13 Wildcats are able to knock off the 19-13 Demon Deacons, they advance to a Friday night game versus Cincinnati as part of the South bracket. If the Wildcats are able to defeat Cincinnati (29-5), they will play either Kent State or UCLA in the following round on Sunday, March 19th.

In the Midwest region, Kansas is the 1 seed taking on the winner of the First Four game between North Carolina Central and UC Davis on Friday, March 17th. If the Jayhawks are able to coast to the Regional Championship, it will virtually be a home game, as the Midwest Regional Championships are at the Sprint Center in Kansas City.

Top seeds in each region include Kansas in the Midwest, North Carolina in the South, Gonzaga in the West, and Villanova in the East.

The real fun of March Madness is filling out the bracket hoping your favorite team soars to the National Championship game on April 3rd.

Are you #KU, or #KState; or are you rooting for fan favorites UNC, Duke or Kentucky?

Click here for a printable NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship bracket and tell us your predictions in the comments below.

Centennial League All-League Selections, MHS wins Coach of the Year

2016-17 Centennial League All-League Boys Basketball Selections

1st Team All-League

  • Trevor Hudgins–Manhattan –Sr.
  • Trey Brown –Shawnee Heights–Sr.
  • Tanyon Schafer–Seaman–Sr.
  • Zach Harvey –Hayden –So.
  • Poncho Freeman –Shawnee Heights –Sr.
  • Koriyon Carr –Topeka West –Jr.

2nd Team All-League

  • Tommy Ekart –Manhattan –Sr.
  • DeShawn Hanika –Hayden –Jr.
  • Brayden White–Washburn Rural –Sr.
  • Jordan White –Washburn Rural –So.
  • Nysir Scott –Topeka High –Sr.
  • Larry White –Highland Park –Jr

Honorable Mention All-League

  • Cade Roberts –Manhattan –Sr.
  • Jett Canfield –Hayden –Jr.
  • Dylan Farr–Emporia –Jr.
  • Dasani Giardina–Highland Park –Jr.
  • Michael Brooks –Shawnee Heights –Sr.
  • Tyler Lynn–Seaman –Sr.
  • Zachary Ebert–Washburn Rural –Sr.
  • Will White–Highland Park –Jr.
  • Jack Hamilton–Washburn Rural –Jr.
  • Jenner Hickel–Washburn Rural –Sr.
  • Jesse Moss–Shawnee Heights –Sr
  • .Ky Thomas–Topeka High –Fr.

Newcomer of the year–Jack Hamilton –Washburn Rural –Jr.

Player of the year– Trevor Hudgins –Manhattan –Sr.

Coach of the year– Benjamin George –Manhattan

Award Recipients at Blue Jay Basketball Postseason Assembly

small-blue-jay100% summer attendance – DeAndre Eaves

90% summer attendance – Lonnie Autry, AJ Range, Kenson Henderson, Davante King, Aaron Hamilton, Kody Westerhaus, AJ Dickerson, Calvin Range, QuaVez Humphries, Darrin Battiste

No missed practices – Lonnie Autry, AJ Range, Cody Magee, DeAndre Eaves, Aaron Hamilton, Aurthur Pine, Markell Samuel, JoJo Nieves, Darrin Battiste

Practice player of the year – Elijah Gardner

Top newcomer – Tye Dale

Most improved – AJ Range

Best teammate – Cody Magee

Charges taken – Xavier Cason

Offensive MVP – AJ Dickerson

Defensive MVP – Aaron Hamilton

Champion’s Club –  AJ Range, Davanate King, Aaron Hamilton, Kody Westerhaus, AJ Dickerson

Criteria for the Blue Jay Champions Club

–The Club includes includes members of the boys basketball team that have displayed five intangibles of the program, including character, toughness, accountability, family and extra effort. The members successfully completed a list of high achieving goals set throughout the summer and winter. They include 90% attendance to summer workouts, attend summer team camp, participate in one summer tournament, complete required amount of fundraising, no unexcused abscences ( failure to communicate prior to abscence ), show high character on and off the court, 3.0 gpa or higher, five or more community service hours, and volunteer at one Junior Jays practice and / or game.

 

 

Blue Jay Basketball Spring Skills Academy

small-blue-jayJunction City High School boys head basketball coach Nate Schmitt will conduct the Spring Skills Academy for third through eighth grade boys. The camp will focus on fundamentals such as ball handling, shooting and passing.

Dates for the academy include April 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th plus May 2nd from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Shenk Gym.

The cost to participate is $25. All campers will receive a t-shirt. Make checks payable to Jays Basketball. The registration deadline is the first day of camp.

You can contact Nate Schmitt at 620-521-2069 or at nateschmitt@usd475.org if you have questions.

K-State to Meet Wake Forest in First Four Tuesday

ticket-punched

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State was rewarded for a successful season on Sunday, as the Wildcats earned their 29th overall bid to the NCAA Tournament, including the third in five seasons under Bruce Weber.

 

K-State (20-13, 8-10 Big 12) was selected as a No. 11 seed in the South Regional and will travel to Dayton, Ohio, to play in the First Four to play fellow No. 11 seed Wake Forest (19-13, 9-9 ACC) on Tuesday, March 14 at the University of Dayton Arena. The winner will advance to play No. 6 seed Cincinnati (29-4, 16-2 AAC) on Friday, March 17 at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California.

 

The Wildcats will be joined at the venue by fellow No. 11 seeds Providence and USC and No. 16 seeds Mount St. Mary’s and New Orleans of the East Regional and No. 16 seeds North Carolina Central and UC Davis of the East Regional. The top seeds in the South Regional are No. 1 seed North Carolina, No. 2 seed Kentucky, No. 3 seed UCLA, No. 4 seed Butler and No. 5 seed Minnesota.

 

K-State and Wake Forest will tip off at 8:10 p.m. CT or 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first game of the evening session between No. 16 seeds Mount Saint Mary’s and New Orleans on Tuesday. The game will be broadcast nationally on TruTV with Brian Anderson, Clark Kellogg and Lewis Johnson.

 

Tickets may be requested by current Ahearn Fund members, men’s basketball season ticket holders, faculty/staff, studentsand alumni. Ahearn Fund members and season ticket holders received an email and can now order online. Faculty/staff, students and alumni should call the K-State Ticket Office at (800) 221.CATS on Monday between 8:30 a.m. and noon. Tickets are priced at $65 for the First Four match-up.

 

Fans can also pre-order tickets for the 1st and 2nd rounds in Sacramento. Tickets are priced at $100, and the deadline to request is 5:30 p.m. Monday. Orders placed for Friday will automatically be rolled over to Sunday should K-State advance. All seats will be assigned in order of K-State Athletics priority points following the noon and 5:30 p.m. deadlines. Any first and second round tickets remaining on Tuesday, March 14 will be made open to the public at 8:30 a.m., while tickets for the game in Dayton will be made available to public beginning at 1:00 p.m. Monday.  All tickets are will call only.

 

Kansas 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 seventh time in 11 seasons, including their first since a second-round appearance in 2014. The program has now advanced to the postseason nine times in the last 11 seasons (seven trips to NCAA Tournament and two to the NIT). The 29 overall bids ties for 23rdnationally (along with Utah and BYU), including fourth among Big 12 schools.
In its last appearance, the ninth-seeded Wildcats fell to No. 8 seed Kentucky, 56-49, in the NCAA Midwest Regional second round at the Scotttrade Center in St. Louis. The team shot just 35.8 percent (19-of-53), including 23.8 percent (5-of-21) from 3-point range, as then freshman Marcus Foster led three players in double figures with 15 points. Two current players – seniors Wesley Iwundu and D.J. Johnson – played in the game with Iwundu scoring 7

points on 3-of-4 shooting with 3 rebounds, 2 assists and a block in 31 minutes while Johnson played just 4 minutes before breaking his foot in the first half. K-State has a 6-6 NCAA Tournament mark in its last six appearances.

 

The program has posted a 33-32 all-time record in NCAA Tournament play, including 10-4 in the first round. The school will be making its second appearance in the South Regional with its other trip coming in 1993 and is 0-1 all-time in the region. K-State will be making its third appearance as a No. 11 seed and the first since the 2008 NCAA Tournament, in which, the Wildcats defeated No. 6 USC, 80-67 before falling to No. 3 seed Wisconsin in Omaha, Nebraska. Overall, the school is 1-2 as a No. 11 seed.

 

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 National Championship game (1951).

 

Head coach Bruce Weber becomes fifth different coach to lead K-State to at least three 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. Overall, Weber advances to his 11th NCAA Tournament, which includes six at Illinois and two at Southern Illinois. He is 41st head coach in NCAA history to take three different schools to the tournament, including the 21st active coach. He has an 11-10 record in the NCAA Tournament with three trips to the Sweet 16 and the 2005 Final Four.

 

The Wildcats earned their third 20-win season under head coach Bruce Weber and finished sixth in the Big 12. Overall, the team has four of five starters averaging in double figures led by by Third Team All-Big 12 selectionWesley Iwundu (12.5 ppg., 6.4 rpg.) and All-Big 12 Honorable Mention pick D.J. Johnson (11.2 ppg., 5.8 rpg.).

 

Wake Forest enters Tuesday’s game with a 19-13 overall record, which includes a 10th-place finish in the rugged Atlantic Coast Conference with a 9-9 mark. The Demon Deacons are led by sophomore forward John Collins, First Team All-ACC performer and the league’s Most Improved Player, who is averaging a team-best 18.9 points on 62 percent shooting to go with 9.8 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game. Two others average in double figures, including sophomore guards Bryant Crawford (16.1 ppg., 5.4 apg.) and Keyshawn Woods (12.8 ppg., 3.5 apg.), while four others average between 6.6 and 9.0 points per game.

 

Wake Forest is led by Kansas legend and former assistant coach Danny Manning, who led the Jayhawks to a 71-58 victory over the Wildcats in the Midwest Regional Final en route to the national championship in 1988. He has an 81-81 overall record in 5 years as head coach, including a 43-52 mark in this third season at Winston-Salem. He was the head coach at Tulsa from 2012-14, leading the Golden Hurricane to the NCAA Tournament in 2013-14. He spent nine seasons at Kansas from 2003-12, including the last five seasons as an assistant coach.

 

This will be the first-ever meeting between K-State and Wake Forest on the hardwood.

 

The winner of Tuesday’s First Four matchup will face No. 6 seed Cincinnati (29-5, 16-2 AAC) on Friday. The Bearcats, which finished second in the American Athletic Conference with a 16-2 mark, has 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 coached by 1997 alum Mick Cronin, who has a 305-158 overall record in his 14th season as a head coach, including a 236-134 mark in his 11th season at the helm of the Bearcats.

 

A meeting with Cincinnati would be the eighth in school history, including the fourth in the NCAA Tournament.

 

K-State was one of six Big 12 teams to earn berths in NCAA Tournament, joining No. 1 seed Kansas (Midwest), No. 3 seed Baylor (East), No. 4 seed West Virginia (West), No. 5 seed Iowa State (Midwest) and No. 10 seed Oklahoma State (Midwest) in the field.

 

In addition, all three Division I programs in the state of Kansas (Kansas, Kansas State and Wichita State) all advanced to the NCAA Tournament for fourth time in six seasons.

 

Kansas State Press Conference Quotes

 

Head coach Bruce Weber
On feeling of selection Sunday…
“We kept hearing that we were in, anyone we talked to, and we felt pretty good. As it got closer to the time I became more nervous and Rhode Island won and I did not know if they were in or not and it could have taken a spot and changed the set-up of it. I am thrilled for our kids and for our coaches that they get the opportunity, it is well deserved. It has been an up and down, all around type season and they have stayed the course. I thought we played as well as anybody in the league and maybe even in the country the last two weeks and now we have to do it again on Tuesday night and that is the most important. You have the opportunity, make the most of it.”

 

On if the team is peaking…
“I do not know about peaking. We have played better at different times of the year and obviously the last two weeks we have been pretty good and like I said we have to do it Tuesday night and that is what we have to focus on. It is a quick turnaround for everybody, and for us. The preparation and the short period of time, it is important to focus and have that determination that we had with TCU and Texas Tech and then again with Baylor and West Virginia. We have to come out with that drive and that determination. I think the defense, I told the guys after we shot and did a couple of drills, I went to the shell drill and I told them this is what gave you a chance, getting after them on defense and that this is going to give us a chance to be successful in the tournament. We have to guard well, and they have a big guy in John Collins, we recruited him. Coach [Chester] Frazier and I were the first to go see him when he was not a name in Florida, and you know he has really gotten good and they are saying he is a draft choice. They have some other guys that can really shoot the basketball. We have to guard them, and that will be the most important thing.”

 

On playing in the first four tournament games…
“I told the kids three weeks ago, just kind of chatting and at the time we were just hoping to survive to get into the tournament and I told them, even if you do get into the first four, if you get by that first game I think you have somewhat of an advantage. Obviously you have to win it first. It is very hectic, we do not even know when we are leaving and we are playing Tuesday night. We went through it with LaSalle, we came off of winning the Big 12 ad then getting to the tournament championship game and all of the celebration and hoopla and trying to get them to realize that LaSalle is pretty good. They came in loose and free and got up nineteen and we scrambled to get back in the game. There are a lot of teams who have been in this situation. Obviously Coach [Shaka] Smart is at Texas because of his VCU team. They did not even watch the selection Sunday show together, I remember that story but they ended up winning three games and going to the final four so a lot of good things can happen but we just have to worry about Wake Forest.”

 

On reward of getting into the tournament…
“I appreciate the players and our staff. This is simply staying the course and staying positive and staying after it and believing. It is your goal every year to be in the NCAA tournament. We were picked ninth in the league beforehand but we finished ahead of that prediction. I think we went into the Big 12 tournament and showed very well, now can we make it a special season and do something here in the NCAA tournament. I am just happy for our guys, they get an opportunity to play in the tournament and to be a part of it.”

 

Senior Guard Wesley Iwundu
On the reaction to making the tournament…
“I was probably the happiest in the room. It is a big time accomplishment for me, my teammates, and for the seniors to go out on this note. We are not done yet but we are happy we are in the NCAA tournament. We are ready to do some things.”

 

On the bracket standings…
“I had a feeling it would be this scenario for us. We are excited for it and we feel like we have a good shot at some things.  We are just ready to play.”

 

On motivation being the last team in the tournament…
“It is always motivation but we are in so what more can you ask for. Anyway you put it, we have a chance just like every other team does in this tournament to go on and win the Championship. We cannot ask for anything more, it is there in our face and we have to go take it.”

 

On Wake Forest …
“We have actually seen them play a lot throughout the whole year. They have good players, you know John Collins is a big man and they have some other good players. We have been in the Big 12 all year so it is nothing we have not seen. We have been playing against a bunch of good players all year so we are ready for this challenge. We just have to go take it.”

 

Senior Forward D.J. Johnson

On the week ahead…
“It should be a fun week. It will keep us on our toes and get us in shape for Friday.”

 

On what the tournament means to you…
“It is just to show how we came back and we are just happy to be back. I do not know exactly what it means but we are ready to make some noise.”                                        

 

On Isaiah Maurice …
“He has been practicing a little bit better. They say you play how you practice so the past few weeks of practice he has played really good. Sometimes he cares too much about missing a shot so it is just about bouncing back. It is really good to see him not let that one mistake get the best of him and mess up the rest of his night. He really cares and it is great to see that he does care, and put that performance on the court.”

 

On going against Wake Forest…
“I definitely did not want to leave this place without getting back into the tournament. It is something I want to give back to the fans and my teammates, who have worked really hard for it for the past two years.”                

 

Senior Guard Carlbe Ervin II

On feelings before the announcement…
“I was definitely nervous just waiting and waiting. When I got that text I was ready, and I was happy.”

 

On thoughts on making the tournament after losing in the semi-finals…
“I did not know if we were in. I did know that we were in good shape to be playing another game but I honestly just did not know.”

 

On the bench players’ performance…
“We make runs when we get in. we are just locking in the defense. It is the best defense we have been playing all year. We held West Virginia to 51 points so that was some good defense.”

 

On how rewarding it is making the tournament …
“It feels great and it is an honor to go to the NCAA tournament. We have a chance to win some games so I am happy.”

 

www.k-statesports.com

 

TOM GILBERT

Associate Director for Athletics Communications | K-State Athletics

Copyright Eagle Radio | FCC Public Files | EEO Public File