Suffocating Defense Carries K-State in Big 12 Opener

Final Stats (.pdf) | Postgame Quotes (.pdf) | Highlights | Jerome Tang Press Conference | Players Press Conference

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State held UCF to a season-low 52 points, including just 19 points in the first half on 21.6 percent shooting, as the Wildcats opened Big 12 play with a decisive 77-52 win over the Knights on Saturday night before 9,698 fans at Bramlage Coliseum.

K-State (11-3, 1-0 Big 12) led by as many as 35 points in the second half, as the Wildcats built upon their 16-point halftime advantage with a 25-6 run out of halftime. The Knights (9-4, 0-1 Big 12) never got closer than 23 points the rest of the way in playing their first Big 12 game.

The 25-point margin of victory was the largest in a Big 12 opener in more than 25 seasons since a 111-56 win over Missouri on Jan. 3, 1998, while it was the largest such margin in a Big 12 game under head coach Jerome Tang. In addition, the 52 points were the fewest allowed in a Big 12 game under Tang and were the fewest in a Big 12 opener since surrendering 44 to No. 25 Texas Tech on Jan. 11, 2003.

K-State has stepped up defensively in the last 5 games, allowing just 57.8 points per game.

Four Wildcats scored in double figures led by a game-high 25 points from senior Tylor Perry, who scored 17 of his 25 points in the second half on 5-of-9 field goals, including 5-of-8 from 3-point range. Juniors Arthur Kaluma (14 points) and Cam Carter (12 points) and senior Will McNair Jr. (11 points) also registered double figures, while senior David N’Guessan collected a career-high 14 rebounds.

K-State shook off any idea of a slow start, scoring the game’s first 12 points, including the first 7 points before UCF head coach Johnny Dawkins took his first timeout at 17:20 mark. The Knights got their first points in a Big 12 game on a 3-pointer by junior Darius Johnson at the 16:22 mark as part of a 7-2 run that cut the deficit in half. However, the Wildcats responded with 9 straight points to push the lead back out to double figures (23-7) en route to a 16-point advantage at the half.

Behind the sharp shooting Perry, K-State scored 25 of the first 31 points out the halftime break to push the lead to 60-25 with 12 minutes to play. Perry was responsible for 15 of the 25 points during the pivotal run, all coming from the 3-point line. UCF made a run to close to within 71-48 just before the final media timeout with less than 3 minutes remaining.

K-State connected on 43.1 percent (25-of-58) from the field, including 37.5 percent (9-fo-24) from 3-point range, and made 18 of its 23 attempts from the free throw line. The Wildcats also held a 40-36 edge on the glass, including 13 offensive rebounds which led to 16 second-chance points. The team, which ranks top-40 in rebounding nationally, has outrebounded 10 of 14 opponents.

In addition to the double-digit scoring night for Perry, Kaluma, Carter and McNair Jr., the Wildcats got a boost from redshirt freshman guard Dorian Finister, who finished with 6 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists in a season-high 18 minutes off the bench.

UCF was held to more than 26 points under its season scoring average (78.6 ppg.) and 16 points under its previous season-low of 68 points against Ole Miss on Dec. 10. The Knights hit on just 33.8 percent (22-of-65) from the field, including 23.8 percent (5-of-21) from 3-point range.

Only one Knight player – junior Darius Johnson – scored in double figures, as he registered 10 points on 3-of-8 field goals, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range, to go with 3 steals. The Big 12’s No. 2 scorer – junior Jaylin Sellers (18.6 ppg.) – was held to just 8 points on 3-of-13 shooting.

K-State is now 56-55 all-time in conference openers dating back to Missouri Valley play in 1914, including 13-15 in the Big 12 era. The Wildcats have now won 3 of their last 4 conference openers, including the last 2 under Tang.

HOW IT HAPPENED

K-State enjoyed a quick start to the game, scoring the first 7 points before UCF called its first timeout at the 17:20 mark. The run continued after the timeout as junior Arthur Kaluma knocked down a 3-pointer and junior Cam Carter added a layup for a 12-0 lead. Three different Wildcats (Carter, Kaluma and senior Tylor Perry) scored in the opening run, including 7 points from Kaluma.

UCF finally broke through at the 16:22 mark, scoring its first Big 12 points on a 3-pointer by junior Darius Johnson. The triple ignited a 7-2 run from the Knights that cut the deficit to 14-7. However, K-State responded with 9 straight points, including 6 in a row from senior Will McNair Jr., to push the lead to 23-7 with just under 10 minutes before halftime.

UCF closed to within 23-13 with 6 straight points around the third media timeout at the 7:49 mark, but K-State once again countered with an 8-0 run, highlighted by 6 points from Perry, to push it back out at 32-13. The Knights were able to close out the half on a high note, scoring 6 of the last 9 points, to cut the deficit to 35-19 at the break.

K-State was able to hold UCF to 21.6 percent (8-of-37) shooting in the first half, including 18.2 percent (2-of-11) from 3-point range, while recording 6 blocked shots. In contrast, the Wildcats shot 42.9 percent (12-of-28) and made 8 of its 10 free throws, as Kaluma led all scorers with 11 points.

K-State opened the second half with a 3-point play from McNair, in what foreshadowed a huge offensive performance. The Wildcats scored 25 of the first 31 points out of halftime, building a 60-25 lead with 12 minutes remaining. Perry was responsible for 15 of those 25 points, all from 3-point range.

The Knights rattled off 9 straight points as part of a larger 23-11 run that cut the deficit to 71-48 just before the last media timeout with under 3 minutes to play. They would get no closer as the reserves finished off the game.

HEAD COACH JEROME TANG

On the game…

“I want to thank our fans. What a crowd– you could tell our players were juiced about it. During warmups Coach Jareem [Dowling] came back and said, ‘Coach there is a heck of a crowd out there.’ That was really cool, and their energy really played a big part in it. I thought over the last two or three days, our guys were very focused. That focus showed in how much we talked on defense out there, then our defense turned into offense, and we made some shots too. When the ball goes through the hoop, it makes the game a lot easier and a lot more fun for everybody. We just trust our work and keep going. [We are] just thankful for the win and I am blessed to be in this program with these dudes.”

On Tylor Perry’s performance…

“Tylor Perry did our mentor today after scout walk through and talked about looking at himself in the mirror. He told our guys how special the situation is that they have here and that he was going to approach it being more thankful. Just knowing that everybody doesn’t get this opportunity, you can tell he played with a lot more freedom and less stress. One of my things is, I like to breed confidence into guys. Markquis Nowell was the best point guard in America last year, long before he was the best point guard in America. Ismael Massoud was the best shooter in America long before he became “Big 12 Ish”. I’ve called Tylor Perry the best shooter in America, I believe it. Somebody posted ‘If Tylor Perry is the best shooter in the country, then our basketball is in a bad state,’ or something crazy like that. I don’t read that stuff, but our kids do. [Tylor Perry] is absorbing that thing, so I was very thankful that he was willing to be so transparent with the team and talk about his struggle and use it to help the whole team move forward. I believe the best thing we do is our mentor segments where we talk about life, the things we’re going through, and how we approach things. I was really thankful that Tylor Perry was willing to do that today and be transparent. I think it helped everybody including staff and players.”

On Dorian Finister’s performance the last two weeks…

“[Finister] understands what he needs to do to help us win. He defends, rebounds, and moves the ball because he’s done those things and has been very efficient at doing them. Now we can start coaching him about looking for when you need to look for your shot. When a kid goes in the game, they think the way they stay out there is by shooting shots, and if it goes in. That’s not what we need from certain guys right now, and Dorian has bought into it. He is going to be allowed to be on the floor longer, his confidence is going to grow, and our confidence in him is going to grow greater.”

On the attention to detail defensively in the Big 12…

“You start in the Big 12 and everybody’s a little bit more locked in. Obviously, we would like to play better earlier. I believe that the fact that we were in so many close games earlier in the season and figured out how to win, allows us to grow in a way that we wouldn’t have been able to grow had we had blowouts, and everybody thought we were really great. The focus is a part of the maturity that we’ve talked about.”

TEAM NOTES

K-State (11-3, 1-0 Big 12) opened Big 12 play with a 77-52 win over league newcomer UCF.
The 25-point win was the largest in a Big 12 opener since a 111-56 win over Missouri on Jan. 3, 1998… The Wildcats led by as many as 35 points in the second half.
The 25-point win was also the largest in a Big 12 game under head coach Jerome Tang.
The 52 points were the fewest allowed in a Big 12 opener since allowing 44 to Texas Tech on Jan. 11, 2003… It was the fewest points allowed in a Big 12 game under Jerome Tang.
K-State is now 56-55 all-time in conference openers, including 13-15 in the Big 12 era… The Wildcats are 38-20 at home all-time in league openers, including 12-5 at Bramlage Coliseum.
K-State has won 3 of its last 4 conference openers, including 2-0 under coach Jerome Tang.
K-State is now 3-0 all-time vs. UCF.
K-State is now 23-2 in Bramlage Coliseum under Jerome Tang, including 9-1 in Big 12 play.
K-State scored its 77 points on 43.1 percent (25-of-58) shooting, including 37.5 percent (9-of-24) from 3-point range, while the Wildcats hit on 78.3 percent (18-of-23) from the free throw line.
K-State held a 40-36 advantage in rebounding, including 13 offensive rebounds that led to 16 second-chance points… The Wildcats have now won the rebounding battle in 10 of 14 games.
K-State held the advantage in points off turnovers (17-16), points in the paint (32-24), second-chance points (16-11) and fast-break points (8-4).
K-State started a lineup of senior Tylor Perry, junior Cam Carter, junior Arthur Kaluma and senior David N’Guessan and senior Will McNair Jr. … It marked the 10th time using this lineup… Carter has now started all 50 games in his K-State career… Carter, N’Guessan and Perry have started all 14 games… Kaluma and McNair earned their 12th starts, respectively.

PLAYER NOTES

Four players scored in double figures led by a game-high 25 points from senior Tylor Perry.
Perry was joined in double figures by junior Arthur Kaluma (14 points), junior Cam Carter (12 points) and senior Will McNair Jr. (11 points).
K-State is now 9-1 and 21-5 in the last 2 seasons when 4 or more players score in double figures.
Perry scored his 25 points on 7-of-13 field goals, including 6-of-11 from 3-point range, and 5-of-4 free throws to go with 5 assists and 3 steals in 35 minutes… He scored 17 points in the second half on 5-of-9 shooting, including 5-of-8 from 3-point range… It was Perry’s 24^th career 20-point game, including his team-leading 5^th of the season… He has now scored in double figures in 69 career games, including 12 of 14 games this season.
Kaluma scored his 14 points on 3-of-9 field goals, including 1-of-3 from 3-point range, and 7-of-9 free throws to go with 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and a block in 32 minutes… He has now scored in double figures in 51 career games, including 11 this season.
Carter scored his 12 points on 5-of-12 field goals, including 2-of-6 from 3-point range, to go with a team-leading 6 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 blocked shots and a steal in 32 minutes… He has now scored in double figures in 22 career games, including 12 times this season.
McNair scored his 11 points on 5-of-7 field goals and 1-of-1 free throws to go with 6 rebounds, 2 steals and a block in 28 minutes… He has now scored in double figures in 19 career games, including 5 times this season.
Senior David N’Guessan collected a career-best 14 rebounds to go with his 5 points in 33 minutes of action… N’Guessan now has double-digit rebounds in a team-best 5 games.
Redshirt freshman Dorian Finister scored 6 points on 3-of-5 field goals to go with 4 rebounds and 2 assists in a season-best 18 minutes off the bench.
Senior walk-on Taymont Lindsey saw his first career action.