Kansas State Upsets Huggins, West Virginia

The Kansas State Wildcats handled the pressure and defeated 7th ranked West Virginia on Saturday night 79-75.

The victory marked another win over a top 10 team at Bramlage for coach Bruce Weber.

It also moved Kansas State closer to the top of the Big 12 standings as they improve to 4-3 in the conference race, tied with the Mountaineers.

The Wildcats looked sharp in their black uniforms on black out night in Bramlage.

Going into the game the Wildcats were just 2 and 4 in games decided by 10 points or less

The Wildcats didn’t let a controversial technical foul on Wesley Iwundu with just over 7 minutes left in the game affect the outcome.

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The call allowed the Mountaineers to score 6 points in 29 seconds and take the lead with 4 minutes left. The Wildcats and their fans didn’t give up.

Why the Wildcats won.

Kansas State survived a 16-1 Mountaineer first half run. Bruce Weber’s guys went on a 10-zip run of their own to end the first half and only trailed 38-36. The Wildcats also started the second half on a 14-6 run.

Having Kamau Stokes in the starting lineup was huge. His ankle injury was not a factor on Saturday night.

Dean Wade was aggressive. He hit a couple of early buckets and collected some big rebounds. At the 16 minutes mark of the 2nd half, Wade hit a put back and free throw to put the ‘Cats up 50-44.

The two early fouls on Barry Brown really hurt the ‘Cats but he responded with 15 big points.

Weber did a nice job of rotating players in an out to keep them fresh.

The Wildcats held a 26-25 rebound advantage with 10 minutes left in the game. The Mountaineers ultimately won the rebounding battle but lost the game.

The Wildcats shot 50% from the floor.

Kansas State only had 16 turnovers. West Virginia usually forces 25 or more a game.

The Wildcats are now 15-4 on the season. The same record as #7 West Virginia.

Kansas State’s win riled up the Mountaineers for their next game when the Jayhawks visit Morgantown.