:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/65900512/usa_today_12397121.0.jpg)
The Kansas State men (6-3) will take on Mississippi State (6-2) on Saturday morning in Newark at the Never Forget Tribute Classic. Tipoff is scheduled for 10:30 AM.
Following the loss to Marquette and a blowout win over Alabama State, Bruce Weber stressed the importance of “maintaining DNA,” and noted that this was also Chris Beard’s mantra during Texas Tech’s run last season.
Against an overmatched Alabama State, Xavier Sneed finally had himself a game. He scored 20 points about as efficiently as possible, shooting 8-of-10, including 4-of-6 from beyond the arc. That was a far cry from his 2-of-9 performance against Marquette, and while the improvement could be because of the opponent, Sneed also made the right decisions, made the open shots and capitalized on his teammates’ support.
The Kansas State women are also in action this weekend. The Wildcats will face off against Kansas City on Saturday afternoon at the Municipal Auditorium. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 PM.
The key point of interest here is Kansas City’s coaching staff. They’re fronted by Jacie Hoyt, a former Kansas State assistant who is now in her third season at Kansas City. Hoyt’s staff includes one Kindred Orpin (formerly Wesemann), a former all-conference player for the Wildcats.
In other sports news, the Kansas State track and field athletes are back in action this weekend, first at the Carol Robinson/Attila Zsivoczky Winter Pentathlon, and then at the K-State Winter Invitational on Saturday.
Cliff Rovelto thinks both the men’s and women’s teams are likely to be “pretty darn good” this season. But he also noted that the teams aren’t quite good enough yet and will have to put in solid work to contend for the Big 12 conference.
The pentathlon will feature three All-Americans from the 2018-19 indoor season, including seniors Lauren Taubert and Aaron Booth who will compete in the pentathlon this weekend, along with high jumper Tejaswin Shankar and last year’s Big 12 indoor weight throw champion Helene Ingvaldsen.