Another matchup with TCU, another snapshot of where Kansas State stands. The Wildcats’ 14th conference loss came on senior day — and it went about how you’d expect.
At this point in the season, it’s fair to wonder where the momentum went, especially with next weekend’s Sunflower Showdown looming. The margin for error is gone, and the timing couldn’t be any worse.
Turnovers plaguing the Wildcats in 77-68 senior day defeat
Kansas State’s afternoon ended with 18 turnovers, one of their highest home totals in conference play. Numbers like that tell the whole story.
And what happens when you turn the ball over? It leads to fast-break points. Nate Johnson committed six, and PJ Haggerty was right behind with five. That’s more than half of the K-State total coming from just two players.
TCU made them pay, too. The Horned Frogs scored 28 points off turnovers, including 13 on the fast break. Kansas State? A meager six.
That margin more than doubled TCU’s total and left little doubt where those second-half runs came from. When that happens, it’s hard to believe the Wildcats momentum can build, let alone be sustained down the stretch.
Same script as Fort Worth, but Kansas State never held an 18-point cushion
Saturday’s ending echoed Kansas State’s earlier 84-82 road loss to the Horned Frogs. They led, just never by enough. Again, it was late-game runs that did the damage. TCU closed on a 9-0 run, led by four points from Xavier Edmonds, who also finished as the team’s leading scorer and one of three players in double figures.
The Horned Frogs played the same game in the first half, opening with seven unanswered points. Four players ended the game in double figures for TCU, including Edmonds, David Punch, Liutauras Lelevicius and Tanner Toolson.
That inability to stop extended stretches of scoring continues to haunt the Wildcats, and they once again learn that the hard way.
Similar formula to Baylor, not the same end result
Johnson and Haggerty set the pace, but the high-scoring formula that worked against Baylor — both finishing with 30+ points — didn’t translate. The duo combined for 34 points, Haggerty with 18 and Johnson with 16.
Both Johnson and Andrej Kostic found their rhythm beyond the arc, Johnson closing out 4-of-7 and Kostic knocking down a pair. The foul totals also mirrored previous games, with McGriff fouling out with just over a minute remaining.
Even with triples from returners like Elias Rapeique, who just made it back from injury, this one was just too far out of reach.
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