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The K-State Sports Bracket moves on to the second round today, with the Basketball Region once again taking center stage. If you've missed out on round 1 so far, don't worry. As of press time, you can still submit your votes for the Football and Non-Revenue Regions. The first round of the Miscellaneous Region should also be posted shortly.
Round 1 of the Basketball Region went mostly according to script; the better seed won all but one matchup, and most of them weren't very close. What we're left with is six former players and three former head coaches (Lon Kruger counting for both), all of whom finished their time at K-State at least a quarter-century ago. Without further ado, I give you your round 2 matchups.
(1) Ernie Barrett vs. (8) Jack Hartman
Top seeded Barrett had little trouble in his first round matchup against Jack Parr. Mr. K-State secured 87% of the vote, easily advancing into the next round. There he finds Hartman, who took 73% of the vote against fellow coaching legend Jack Gardner.
(4) Lon Kruger vs. (5) Bob Boozer
Kruger breezed past Chuckie Williams in the first round, amassing 77% of the total vote. Meanwhile, Boozer absolutely crushed Willie Murrell in his first round matchup, taking 95% of the vote. Both are giants in K-State lore, each accounting for two conference POY honors in their playing days, among other accolades. I'm interested in seeing how this one plays out.
(3) Mitch Richmond vs. (6) Rolando Blackman
These two players had very different experiences in the first round. Richmond earned the round's most lopsided victory, taking 98.5% of the vote in his first round matchup (poor Dick Knostman managed only 2 votes total). Blackman won the round's closest contest, though his victory over Jacob Pullen was still relatively comfortable at 58%. These two players account for likely the two best NBA careers among former Wildcats, and it's another matchup I'm eager to see decided.
(2) Tex Winter vs. (10) Mike Evans
Coaching legend Winter took 88% of the vote in the first round against Steve Henson, moving on to the second round with ease. Evans scored the round's only upset, taking 63% of the vote from Michael Beasley, and proving that our readers put high value on longevity and team success. Can the school's second all-time leading scorer pull another upset, this time against the school's second all-time leader in wins?