Kansas State Wildcats
Big 12 (25-8, 14-4)
Kansas State was a quietly good team throughout the 2018-2019 campaign. Despite not garnering too much national attention throughout much of the season, the Wildcats were extremely consistent throughout Big 12 play and ended up winning a share of the conference title.
Big Wins: 1/12 at Iowa State (58-57), 1/22 Texas Tech (58-45), 2/5 Kansas (74-67)
Bad Losses: 12/8 at Tulsa (46-47), 1/2 Texas (47-67), 1/26 at Texas A&M (53-65)
Coach: Bruce Weber
Why They Can Surprise:
Kansas State has played great defense this year. The opposition shoots just 41.3 percent from the floor and allows a mere 59.1 points per game. The defensive effort is not just about slowing down the play and getting a hand up. The team also ranks first in the Big 12 in total steals and Barry Brown, Xavier Sneed and Kamau Stokes are all consistent threats to nab a steal and get an easy bucket on the other end of the floor. Those three are also the top perimeter scoring threats. Brown leads the way with 14.9 points per game. Sneed and Stokes hover around the ten point per game mark and both are very good shooting threats.
Why They Can Disappoint:
Kansas State has not been a consistent shooting team this year. The team shoots just 43.4 percent from the floor and 33.8 percent from beyond the arc. But the most disconcerting shooting numbers come from the charity stripe. Often a team that does not shoot particularly well will attack the basket and find some easier points. That is not the case with KSU. They rank last in the conference in free-throw attempts and free-throw percentage. Dean Wade and Makol Mawien are solid players in the paint, but this team will have to be aggressive and get to the basket if they want to make a deep tournament run.
Probable Starters:
Kamu Stokes, Senior, Guard, 10.8 ppg, 3.3 apg
Barry Brown, Senior, Guard, 14.9 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 2.9 apg
Xavier Sneed, Junior, Forward, 10.6 ppg, 5.5 rpg
Dean Wade, Senior, Forward, 12.9 ppg, 6.2 rpg
Makol Mawien, Junior, Forward, 6.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg
Key Role Players:
Carter Diarra, Sophomore, Guard, 6.7 ppg, 3.4 rpg
Mike McGuirl, Sophomore, Guard, 3.5 ppg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 65.9 (321st in nation, 10th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 59.1 (4, 2)
Field-Goal Percentage: 43.4 (232, 8)
Field-Goal Defense: 41.3 (56, 4)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.0 (245, 9)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 33.8 (218, 9)
Free-Throw Percentage: 66.2 (317, 10)
Rebound Margin: 1.7 (131, 6)
Assists Per Game: 13.7 (151, 5)
Turnovers Per Game: 11.5 (48, 3)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
| 2018 | NCAA | Round of 64 win over Creighton |
| 2018 | NCAA | Round of 32 win over UMBC |
| 2018 | NCAA | Regional Semifinal win over Kentucky |
| 2018 | NCAA | Regional Final loss to Loyola (IL) |
| 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 3/10
