Kansas State Wildcats
Big 12 (22-11, 10-8)
In his sixth year as the head coach at Kansas State, Bruce Weber has done another solid coaching job. The Wildcats finished the regular season with a 10-8 record in the Big 12, which was good enough for fourth place.
Big Wins: 1/16 Oklahoma (87-69), 1/20 TCU (73-68), 2/7 at Texas (67-64)
Bad Losses: 11/23 vs Arizona State (90-92), 12/9 Tulsa (54-61), 1/1 West Virginia (69-77)
Coach: Bruce Weber
Why They Can Surprise:
Kansas State has two very productive scorers in Barry Brown and Dean Wade. Brown, a 6-3 junior, averages 16.0 points per game and adds 3.4 assists and 1.8 steals. Brown has not been the most productive three-point shooter, but he is great at getting to the basket and knocking down mid-range jumpers. Brown is also one of the best defenders in the country. Wade, a 6-10 junior, will hit shots consistently from inside the arc and outside. He connects on 44.0 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc and 55.0 percent overall. Wade also leads the team in rebounds and is a very good passer for a big man.
Why They Can Disappoint:
Xavier Sneed, Carter Diarra and Kamau Stokes are decent scorers on the wing and Kansas State will need at least one of them to step up and provide another scoring option to supplement Brown and Wade. If that happens, the Wildcats can be a tough team to beat. However, the frontcourt is an area of concern after Wade. The team as a whole has not been very good on the glass and they lack a consistent enforcer in the paint. Makol Mawien will block an occasional shot, but there is not a lot of size or depth on the bench and that could be what sends Kansas State home earlier than they would hope.
Probable Starters:
Barry Brown, Junior, Guard, 16.0 ppg, 3.4 apg
Carter Diarra, Freshman, Guard, 7.2 ppg, 2.0 apg
Xavier Sneed, Sophomore, Forward, 10.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg
Makol Mawien, Sophomore, Forward, 7.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.1 bpg
Dean Wade, Junior, Forward, 16.5 ppg, 6.3 rpg,2.8 apg
Key Role Players:
Levi Stockard, Freshman, Forward, 1.9 ppg, 1.8 rpg
Kamau Stokes, Junior, Guard, 9.1 ppg, 3.5 apg
Amaad Wainright, Junior, Guard, 2.8 ppg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 72.7 (210th in nation, 9th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 67.5 (55, 2)
Field-Goal Percentage: 47.2 (52, 3)
Field-Goal Defense: 42.6 (96, 6)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.2 (215, 7)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 35.1 (165, 7)
Free-Throw Percentage: 74.7 (60, 4)
Rebound Margin: -3.2 (300, 10)
Assists Per Game: 14.4 (118, 7)
Turnovers Per Game: 11.4 (45, 2)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2017 NCAA Opening Round win over Wake Forest
2017 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Cincinnati
2014 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Kentucky
2013 NCAA Round of 64 loss to LaSalle
2012 NCAA Round of 64 win over Southern Mississippi
2012 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Syracuse
2011 NCAA Round of 64 win over Utah State
2011 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Wisconsin
2010 NCAA Round of 64 win over North Texas
2010 NCAA Round of 32 win over BYU
2010 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Xavier
2010 NCAA Regional Final loss to Butler
2009 NIT First Round win over Illinois State
2009 NIT Second Round loss to San Diego State
2008 NCAA Round of 64 win over USC
2008 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Wisconsin
2007 NIT First Round win over Vermont
2007 NIT Second Round loss to DePaul
*all team stats through 3/4
