Kansas State vs TCU: Open Game Thread

Welcome to 2021 Wildcats! If you’re reading this, that means you survived hell 2020 and are ready for a fresh start in 2021. Things won’t change overnight, but at least we’ve got something to look forward to.

And how fitting that the first Big 12 game of 2021 for these two teams is a rematch of the last Big 12 game of the 2020 season? (Also, the Big 12 and TV partners really screwed up by not having this as the first game back overall in 2021, because you could have really talked it up, regardless of how bad these two teams are) The last time these two teams met on the hardwood was in Kansas City at the Big 12 Tournament, and they ended up playing what would become the final Big 12 game, and one of the last college basketball games, of the season. It’s been a long, strange nine and a half months since then.

These two teams have changed a lot since that game back in March. The Wildcats have seven players that weren’t on the roster at that tournament game, and TCU has five newcomers. It’s not quite as much “newness” as when K-State and Iowa State squared off a few weeks ago, but it’s pretty close. The Wildcats have been starting three freshmen, a sophomore, and a senior for probably one of the youngest starting fives in the country. TCU starts two newcomers (a freshman and a transfer sophomore), plus a true sophomore, but Jamie Dixon does have two redshirt juniors in the starting lineup who are very familiar to Wildcat fans.

Neither team looked especially good after the Christmas break, so we could be in for a rough day. Or it could be thriller. With so much youth around, it feels like just about any outcome is possible. But at the end of the day, one purple team will have a win and the other will have a loss.

Let’s just hope it’s the purple team with the powercat that gets the W.

We’ve got an early afternoon game today in Bramlage Coliseum, with a 1:05pm CT start that can be seen on ESPNU with Rich Hollenberg (play-by-play) and Lance Blanks (analyst) on the call. You might be able to stream the game via WatchESPN if the game isn’t blocked in your area.

If you don’t get ESPNU, or can’t access the stream, you can listen to Wyatt Thompson (play-by-play) and Stan Weber (analyst) call the game on much of the K-State Sports Radio Network, and also available online via the TuneIn App and at K-StateSports.com, and satellite radio on XM 375.

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP

Kansas State Wildcats (5-5)

G: #24 Nijel Pack
G: #00 Mike McGuirl
G: #2 Selton Miguel
G: #3 DaJuan Gordon
F: #21 Davion Bradford

TCU Horned Frogs (8-2)

G: #1 Mike Miles
G: #22 R.J. Nembhard
G: #4 P.J. Fuller
F: #15 Kevin Easley Jr.
C: #21 Kevin Samuel

Go Cats!