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Kansas State begins a run through the toughest part of conference play starting Saturday at bubble-hopefuls Texas.
Head coach Frank Martin has to be proud of his Kansas State Wildcats defensive effort in the first half versus the Texas Longhorns. The Longhorns are shooting a woeful 7-of-25 thus far and have forced nine turnovers as the Wildcats lead 40-27 on the road at the Irwin Center in Austin, Texas.
Rodney McGruder's 11 points and 5 rebounds along with Will Spradling's 11 points and 3 rebounds have spearheaded the offensive attack for K-State. Combine that with the bench contribution of Adrian Diaz's 7 points and the Wildcats have had a well-rounded offense versus a Texas team in disarray.
The Longhorns' two point guards have combined for 15 points, but J'Covan Brown's 8 points have come from a 2-of-8 shooting effort and Myck Kabongo's 7 points have come with 3 turnovers.
For more on the Kansas State Wildcats, check out Bring On The Cats. For news and notes from the Texas Longhorns, visit Burnt Orange Nation. Go to SB Nation's college basketball news hub for everything going on in hoops.
Kansas State (17-6, 6-5 Big 12) and Texas (15-9, 5-6 Big 12) are both fighting for their NCAA Tournament lives, with the Longhorns in the unusual situation of sitting on the wrong side of the bubble under Rick Barnes. K State's defense has stepped up in conference play, as the Wildcats held their 10th opponent under 60 points on Tuesday, beating Texas Tech 65-46.
K State enters a critical - and grueling - stretch that begins with the Horns continues with a home game against rival Kansas and road trips to Top 10 ranked Baylor and Missouri.
Date / Time: Saturday, February 11, 1 p.m. CT
Location: Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas
TV: ESPN
Radio: K State Radio Network
Streaming: ESPN3
Line: Texas (-4)
For more on the Kansas State Wildcats, check out Bring On The Cats. For news and notes from the Texas Longhorns, visit Burnt Orange Nation. Go to SB Nation's college basketball news hub for everything going on in hoops.
Kansas State Vs. Texas: Wildcats Blow 13-Point Lead, Lose 75-64
The 13-point first half lead looked to be safe for the Kansas St. Wildcats, but the Texas Longhorns reversed their poor first half to outscore Kansas State 48-24 in the second half to defeat Kansas State 75-64.
The Kansas State offense came out stagnent and their defense was not much better as Texas went on a 16-2 run over the first eight minutes of the second half to cut into Kansas State's lead. Texas then took the lead for good when J'Covan Brown made a three-point shot to go up 56-54.
For the rest of the second half Texas was camped out at the free throw line to build on their lead while no one from Kansas State could do anything to get them back in this game. The free throw disparity was the reason why Kansas State lost this game. Kansas State fouled Texas 33 times and had two players foul out while Texas committed 16 fouls. That difference transferred to free throw shooting as Texas was 35 of 48 from the line while Kansas State was eight of 12.
The loss puts Kansas State in a tie with Texas at 6-6 and fifth place in the Big 12 standings.
For more on the Kansas State Wildcats, check out Bring On The Cats. For news and notes from the Texas Longhorns, visit Burnt Orange Nation. Go to SB Nation's college basketball news hub for everything going on in hoops.
Feb 11 3:35p by Jeremy Mauss