The Kansas State Wildcats are no strangers to losing games this season, but there’s no time like the present to turn things around. If a postseason run is on the horizon, it won’t start with the starting five – it will come from the bench.
Wildcats’ bench players key to Big 12 tournament success
Most of Kansas State’s offense this season has come from Nate Johnson and P.J. Haggerty. Haggerty averages 23.3 points per game, ranking among the nation’s top five scorers. He led the team in scoring for 18 straight games before missing the last home matchup against West Virginia.
Lately, it’s been all Johnson. Against the Kansas Jayhawks, both players scored 21 points, with Johnson grabbing seven rebounds, dishing out three assists, and recording two steals.
The duo first drew national attention in the Feb. 17 win over Baylor, becoming the first Kansas State starters since 2008 to each score 30 points in a single game. Numbers like that are impossible to ignore.
But when Johnson and Haggerty are the only consistent scorers, the Wildcats face a problem. It’s a familiar struggle, one Kansas State experienced before former head coach Jerome Tang’s departure – one player doesn’t make a team.
Against both Baylor and Utah, Haggerty scored 34 points, but in most games he’s the only player to crack 20 points. Against Big 12 competition, that just doesn’t work.
Bench duo C.J. Jones, Andrej Kostic called to step up
The Wildcats’ lack of depth has been a problem all season. What began as a few injuries eventually left Kansas State with seven-man rotations, forcing increased minutes for a handful of players.
No example is better than Andrej Kostic, whose three-point accuracy and in-game consistency have kept Kansas State competitive. Against Kansas on Saturday, Kostic made three of four shots from beyond the arc and previously hit as many as four in a home game against the Jayhawks earlier this season.
C.J. Jones, however, is a different story. His scoring appears minimal compared to Kostic. Jones has scored in double figures only once this season, against Indiana back in November.
Even when playing upwards of 35 minutes against West Virginia in their last meeting, Jones scored just eight points. That’s not an outlier. He’s scored fewer than seven points in nine of the last 10 games, including multiple 20+ minute outings.
That said, Jones contributes in other ways. He’s consistent in both rebounds and assists, with two or more per game in a handful of conference games. If Kansas State looks at turning the tables against BYU, however, that production needs to translate into points. It can’t rest on one end of the floor.
If Jones can expand his impact in the frontcourt, he has the potential to emerge as a dark horse for the Wildcats. Combining his ability with Kostic’s shooting, and a strong bench performance gives Kansas State a real chance to pull off an upset against the Cougars in the Big 12 tournament.
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