MANHATTAN, Kan. — Is there such a thing as a basketball hangover?
One could argue that it exists after watching much of Kansas State’s 68-58 victory over Texas Tech on Saturday at Bramlage Coliseum. The Wildcats appeared sluggish as they fell behind by as many as eight points against the Red Raiders and needed a late surge to beat at home the only winless team in the Big 12.
Perhaps it was hard to move past an emotional overtime victory against Kansas earlier this week.
Still, the first 27 minutes of this game had little impact on the final score. Texas Tech was in control with 13 minutes remaining at 45-37. But K-State coach Jerome Tang called a timeout, and then everything changed. The Wildcats responded with nine straight points in taking the lead, and the home crowd went bonkers as athletic director Gene Taylor instructed the arena crew to play “Sandstorm.”
K-State kept its foot on the gas the rest of the way and ended the game on a 31-13 run and won by double digits.
“That’s what championship teams do,” Texas Tech coach Mark Adams said. “They rally when they are down.”
K-State’s Markquis Nowell led all scorers with 23 points; Keyontae Johnson added 15 and Ismael Massoud came off the bench to score 12.
It wasn’t the easiest victory that No. 13 K-State (17-2, 6-1 Big 12) has recorded this season, but it was rather impressive how quickly the Wildcats flipped the switch with their backs against the wall against Texas Tech (10-9, 0-7). Backing up emotional victories like the one K-State had against KU is never easy, and yet it found a way to win while doing so.
If K-State was experiencing a hangover on Saturday, it didn’t show on the scoreboard.
The Wildcats will hope to continue their winning ways in their next game at Iowa State on Tuesday. Until then, here are some takeaways from Saturday’s action:
Nowell gets back to his old scoring self
After a pair of unusually quiet games, Nowell got back to looking like his normal self as a scorer against Texas Tech.
The K-State point guard came out firing and made four 3-pointers before halftime on his way to 23 points, eight rebounds and five assists for the game.
It’s not like Nowell played poorly in his last two games. He simply didn’t flirt with 30 points the way he did at the start of conference play. He found a way to finish with 16 points against TCU and then helped K-State defeat KU while only scoring four points.
But many wondered if he was in a slump. TCU coach Jamie Dixon and KU coach Bill Self both drew up new defensive plans to slow him down. Could he get back to scoring the way he was earlier in the season with all this new attention on him?
This was a step back in that direction.
Nowell handled everything that Texas Tech threw at him, and he responded with one of his best games.
Massoud continues to be a difference-maker
When you think of a good role player in college basketball you think of Massoud.
The junior forward has done everything that Tang has asked of him while coming off the bench during Big 12 games. Massoud makes three-pointers when he is open, he fights for rebounds, he plays adequate defense and he plays every bit as hard as the team’s starters.
Massoud was at his best against Texas Tech while scoring 12 points and sending out two assists.
He has been one of K-State’s better players since the start of conference play. That comes as a surprise given that Tang didn’t even trust him enough to play in four nonconference games and publicly challenged him to do more while speaking with reporters at the outset of the season.
But something changed at the start of January. Massoud has played right around 20 minutes in seven straight games, and he has scored at least six points in five straight games.
Some of those points have come at opportune times. Massoud knocked down a go-ahead 3 in overtime at Baylor. He also made important shots against KU and Texas Tech. He made a key layup and then a 3-pointer during the 9-0 run that shifted momentum toward K-State in this game.
This is the best we have seen him play in a K-State uniform.
David N’Guessan returns to the lineup
The Wildcats were back to full strength for the first time in nearly a month on Saturday.
David N’Guessan, a 6-foot-9 junior transfer from Virginia Tech, saw his first action in weeks and played 4 minutes after missing the past five games with an injury to his right foot/ankle.
He was obviously rusty after the long layoff, but his return was most welcome for the Wildcats. N’Guessan has the ability to unlock their full potential moving forward.
Remember, it was N’Guessan who had emerged as K-State’s starting five man before he got hurt and the Wildcats were off to an 11-1 start. Abayomi Iyiola has played well in N’Guessan’s absence and may remain in the starting lineup until N’Guessan gets back to full speed. But N’Guessan is the better overall player and brings more versatility to the court.
K-State will have options inside moving forward, especially now that Massoud is playing at a high level.
The Wildcats will need all of them to stay at the top of the Big 12 standings. So it’s a good thing N’Guessan is back.
