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In a position where the Cats needed to win or possibly be sitting at home later in March, the Cats won. And didn’t just beat anyone, but knocked off 9/10 Baylor to earn another signature win to add to their NCAA Tournament resume. It was the first win over a Top 10 teams in conference tournament since the Wildcats knocked off No. 7 KU in 1993
Another stiff test faces the Cats tonight, as the Cats will take on 11/11 West Virginia in the semifinal round of the Big 12 Tournament. The Mountaineers beat Texas 63-53 in their quarterfinal game yesterday, and are the top seed remaining in the tournament after TCU’s big upset over KU. The Cats rode to their upset win on the back of Barry Brown and his 21-point performance, and a 67% team effort from the free throw line.
The Wildcats and the Mountaineers split home and home games this season, with the Cats upsetting WVU in January before falling during the early February skid. In the Cats victory, they were able to beat the press with ease and convert at the free throw line. A similar performance will be needed if K-State wants to advance to the championship game.
We’re the second game again, slated for an 8:00 pm CT tip, bit starting at least 30 minutes following the first game. Tonight’s game has been promoted a level and will be broadcast on ESPN2, with Bob Wischusen (play-by-play), Fran Fraschilla (analyst), and Holly Rowe (reporter) on the call, and streaming may be available to you (depending on your location and provider/package) at WatchESPN.com. Audio, as always, is available on the K-State Sports Network with Wyatt Thompson (play-by-play) and Stan Weber (analyst) (streaming online at K-StateSports.com), with a national audio broadcast available on ESPN Radio, Sirius 81/XM 81, with Marc Kestecher (play-by-play) and Miles Simon (analyst)
PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
Kansas State
G: #3 Kamau Stokes
G: #5 Barry Brown
G: #25 Wesley Iwundu
F: #32 Dean Wade
F: #4 D.J. Johnson
West Virginia
G: #2 Jevon Carter
G: #4 Daxter Miles, Jr.
G: #12 Tarik Phillip
F: #11 Nathan Adrian
F: #45 Elijah Macon