SLATE: K-State basketball splits pre-holiday games

Basketball

It was win one, lose one for the K-State basketball squads before the holiday break.

The men’s team raced to a double digit first-half lead behind hot three-point shooting (alternate universe check, y’all!) and never looked back as they sank the Jacksonville Dolphins 70-46. Kellis Robinett notes that the 24-point margin of victory eclipses the Cats’ combined winning margin in their other three victories (14 points).

The game was highlighted by the return of freshman Nijel Pack’s shooting efficiency, as he scored 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting, including 4-6 from beyond the three-point arc. The win was also keyed by 23 assists on 27 made field goals. Though the margin of victory was comfortable and finally allowed the walk-ons to get a few minutes of playing time, the Cats’ 19 turnovers prevented the outcome from being even more of a laugher.

Things did not go as well for the women’s squad against No. 22 Texas, and turnovers were the theme of that contest, as well.

K-State trailed by 22 points, 49-27, with 2:42 remaining in the third quarter. The Cats would close the quarter on a 10-0 run to pull within 12 and would actually narrow the gap to five points, 52-47, with 5:54 to play. But they could not complete the comeback and ultimately fell, 62-52.

Turnovers were more that “a” cause of the loss. The Wildcats committed an absurd, insane, impossible 34 (that is not a typo) of them in the game. Texas, by comparison, committed 17. Highlighting the problem the sloppiness caused, Texas attempted 62 shots from the floor, while K-State only managed to put up 36. That disparity explains how the Cats lost, despite outshooting Texas (47% to 34%) and from three-point range (38.5% to 13.3%). Only 13 of the 34 turnovers resulted from steals, so the damage was obviously self-inflicted. And it cost K-State the chance at an upset.

The Mercury’s headline aptly states, “K-State women’s basketball throws away chance at upset.” Throws away, indeed.

Football

A day after quarterback Skylar Thompson announced his intention to return for the 2021 season, Chris Kleiman and company got more good news, as defensive end Bronson Massie announced he will remain with the Wildcats, and Utah State linebacker Eric Munoz will join the team as a graduate-transfer.

In the NFL, D.J. Reed highlighted former Wildcats’ performances, as he intercepted a pass and defended three others in Seattle’s 20-15 win at Washington.

Soccer

Transfers are news not only in football today. Coach Mike Dibbini announced that Aliya El-Naggar will transfer to Kansas State from (“The”) Ohio State University. The defensive back line specialist, who was considered the 119th-best prospect in the nation as a prep player, started 13 matches in her first year with the Buckeyes. The Big Ten Conference moved its soccer season to the spring due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and El-Naggar will have three seasons of eligibility remaining in Manhattan.