After an absolute beat down against No. 14 Kansas on Tuesday, March 5, Kansas State was 7-10 in the Big 12 and an NCAA Tournament appearance seemed to have slipped away. Well, Wildcat fans I am here to give you a little hope. Kansas State has taken down No. 6 Iowa State 65-58 in the regular season finale to improve to 8-10 in conference play on the season.
KANSAS STATE UPSETS NO. 6 IOWA STATE 🤯
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 9, 2024
The Wildcats close out the regular season with a HUGE home win 😼 pic.twitter.com/MHnj23oaVO
While this win doesn't secure a spot in the NCAA Tournament, it is a big win to add to the resume and it helped the Wildcats in the Big 12 Tournament. With this win, K-State secured a first-round bye in the Big 12 Tournament, which may not seem like much, but anything helps. The Wildcats will now have an extra day of rest and preparation.
Kansas State started slow in the first half dropping to an 11-2 deficit early. The Wildcats however picked it up scoring the next eight points of the game to bring the game within one. Kansas State officially took the lead with about two minutes in the first half with a big three-pointer from Cam Carter who finished the day with 21 points.
Once the Wildcats got the lead, they did not relinquish it for the rest of the game. Going into the half, Iowa State gained a little momentum with a last-second shot by Tamin Lipsey to bring the game within four points 28-24.
Jerome Tang and his squad came out firing in the second half going on a 15-2 run getting thier largest lead of the game. Iowa State wasn't going to just go away though as the Cyclones fought thier way back into the game. Iowa State was only able to bring it within five points with about seven minutes left in the second half, But Kansas State made sure to keep the gap between them and the Cyclones.
While Carter had himself an amazing game, Arthur Kaluma outscored him by two points with 23 on the day going 8-12 from the floor and 2-3 from beyond the arc, including a big three late in the game. Kaluma also added seven rebounds to his impressive stat line, but David N'Guessan, who was recognized on Senior Day today, had a team-high 16 rebounds and added 11 points for the Wildcats.
Turnovers were a storyline for this game, but this time it wasn't all about Kansas State. The Wildcats were able to force 15 turnovers against Iowa State and score 20 points off said turnovers. Iowa State technically won the turnover battle due to Kansas State's 15, but the Cyclones did not capitalize as much as the Wildcats scoring only 11 points.
The job is not done yet for the Wildcats and it is only going to get tougher from here on out. K-State is in survival mode as it will be win or go home from here on out. If the Wildcats can find a way to make it to the semifinals of the Big 12 Tournament, that could be just enough for an NCAA Tournament appearance, but nothing will be guaranteed.