Yesterday saw the release of the Big 12 men’s basketball coaches’ poll, in which Kansas was tabbed as the conference’s preseason favorite, followed by Texas and Baylor. Once again, Kansas State landed in the ninth spot, well ahead of the dumpster fire that is their football opponents this very weekend. Iowa State was a unanimous choice for dead last.
But the gap between K-State and eighth pick TCU is razor-thin, with the Wildcats picking up 22 points rather than the 18 they’d have nabbed for a unanimous eight-place finish while TCU had 24, three less than a clean seventh. Oklahoma was a solid seventh, while the middle of the pack is being projected as a dogfight: fourth pick Texas Tech had 51 points while Oklahoma State and West Virginia tied for fifth at 49.
Volleyball
Both Teana Adams-Kaonohi and Aliyah Carter posted double-doubles last night while Holly Bonde and Kadye Fernhols each added double-digit kills. That allowed the Wildcats (11-5, 2-3 Big 12) to run out West Virginia (12-4, 2-3) in a four-set win at Bramlage, 25-22, 23-25, 25-16, 25-18. K-State held the Mountaineers to a .117 hitting percentage on the night.
The teams will meet again tonight at 7:00, and the match will air on ESPNU. That’s right, actual televison.
Soccer
The streak is over. K-State (6-7-2, 1-3-2 Big 12) was looking for its fourth consecutive non-loss, but Oklahoma State (6-6-2, 2-2-1) said no in a 2-0 result in Stillwater. K-State’s streak of second half clean sheets also came to an end as both Cowgirl goals came after intermission. The loss drops K-State to eighth in the conference standings, as they’d previously been a point ahead of the Cowgirls.
The Cats will take on the last-place Sooners at 1:00 on Sunday, airing only on Bally Sports Oklahoma.
Football
At the Star, Kellis Robinett took a deep dive into Malik Knowles in a feature story, surprisingly not paywalled. One bit that stood out: the only time some teammates have ever seen Knowles angry was the day it was erroneously reported that he was entering the transfer portal.