No. 10 seed Kansas State rallies to beat No. 7 seed Texas 78-74 in Big 12 Tournament
AP
Mar 13, 2024
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) Tylor Perry scored 21 points, making four pressure-filled free throws down the stretch, and No. 10 seed Kansas State Wildcats rallied from a 10-point halftime deficit to beat seventh-seeded Texas Longhorns 78-74 in the Big 12 Tournament on Wednesday night.
Arthur Kaluma added 14 points, David N'Guessan had 13 and Dai Dai Ames and Cam Carter finished with 10 apiece for the Wildcats (19-13), who gave their flickering NCAA Tournament hopes a big boost by following their upset of sixth-ranked Iowa State to end the regular season with a win over the Longhorns.
Now, they get another shot at the Cyclones - the No. 2 seed in the tournament - in the quarterfinals on Thursday.
The Longhorns (20-12), who led 39-29 at the half before falling behind 67-57 late in the game, gave themselves a chance when Dylan Disu - the tournament MVP a year ago - scored on a putback to get within 70-68 with 28 seconds to go.
But when Kansas State inbounded the ball to Perry, and he was hammered by the Longhorns' Chendall Weaver, the officials assessed him a flagrant foul. Perry hit both free throws, and when the Wildcats retained possession and inbounded again, Carter caught a deep throw down the court and laid it in for a 74-68 lead with 18 seconds left.
Abmas answered with a 3 for the Longhorns, and Perry calmly made two more free throws. And when the Texas guard hit one more 3 with 8 seconds left, Carter stepped to the line and made his two foul shots to put the game away.
Abmas finished with 26 points to lead Texas. Ithiel Horton had 14 points and Dillon Mitchell scored 13, while star guard Tyrese Hunter was held to three points on 0-for-7 shooting from the field.
The Wildcats' biggest problem early on was turnovers, just as it has been all season. They entered the game 338th out of 351 teams in Division I in giving the ball away, and they did it eight more times in the first half against Texas. Several turned into run-outs for the Longhorns, whose edge in points-off-turnovers nearly matched their lead for the game.
When the Wildcats began valuing the ball in the second half, their comeback was on.
Kaluma took it upon himself to drive for a series of tough buckets early in the half, not only drawing Kansas State closer but getting Disu and Brock Cunningham into foul trouble. And when Perry hit a 3-pointer from near the midcourt line with the shot-clock winding down, the Wildcats had pulled ahead 48-47 with 12:30 remaining in the game.
Kansas State still led 69-64 with just over two minutes to go when Abmas made a falling-sideways 3-pointer from right in front of the Texas bench, then got another bucket to go moments later, making it a three-point game in the final minute.
UP NEXT
Texas hoped to improve its NCAA Tournament seed in Kansas City. It will likely be on the 8- or 9-line come Sunday.
Kansas State split with the Cyclones in the regular season, losing on the road before winning last Saturday.
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1st Half
KSU
Wildcats
29
TEX
Longhorns
39
Time
Team
Play
Score
20:00
(Longhorns gains possession)
19:40
+2
Dillon Mitchell makes two point jump shot (Tyrese Hunter assists)
0-2
19:40
Arthur Kaluma shooting foul (Dillon Mitchell draws the foul)
19:40
Dillon Mitchell misses regular free throw 1 of 1
19:40
Jerrell Colbert defensive rebound
19:26
Arthur Kaluma misses two point layup
19:24
Dillon Mitchell defensive rebound
19:16
Ithiel Horton misses two point jump shot
19:14
Arthur Kaluma defensive rebound
19:08
Tylor Perry turnover (bad pass) (Dylan Disu steals)
19:01
+2
Dillon Mitchell makes two point dunk (Max Abmas assists)
0-4
18:29
Wildcats turnover (shot clock violation)
18:11
+2
Dylan Disu makes two point layup
0-6
17:55
Dai Dai Ames misses two point jump shot
17:53
Dillon Mitchell defensive rebound
17:45
Dylan Disu misses three point jump shot
17:43
Wildcats defensive rebound
17:23
+2
Arthur Kaluma makes two point layup
2-6
16:59
+2
Max Abmas makes two point layup (Dillon Mitchell assists)
2-8
16:42
Will McNair Jr. misses two point jump shot
16:40
Dillon Mitchell defensive rebound
16:39
David N'Guessan personal foul
16:12
Will McNair Jr. shooting foul (Dylan Disu draws the foul)
16:12
Dylan Disu misses regular free throw 1 of 2
16:12
+1
Dylan Disu makes regular free throw 2 of 2
2-9
15:48
Cam Carter misses two point jump shot
15:46
Will McNair Jr. offensive rebound
15:44
+2
Will McNair Jr. makes two point layup
4-9
15:29
Tyrese Hunter turnover (lost ball) (Will McNair Jr. steals)
15:20
Tyrese Hunter shooting foul (Tylor Perry draws the foul)
15:20
TV timeout
15:20
+1
Tylor Perry makes regular free throw 1 of 2
5-9
15:20
+1
Tylor Perry makes regular free throw 2 of 2
6-9
15:10
Ithiel Horton turnover (bad pass)
14:53
+3
Tylor Perry makes three point jump shot (Will McNair Jr. assists)
9-9
14:47
Tylor Perry shooting foul (Tyrese Hunter draws the foul)
14:47
Tyrese Hunter misses regular free throw 1 of 2
14:47
+1
Tyrese Hunter makes regular free throw 2 of 2
9-10
14:30
Tyrese Hunter personal foul
14:18
Kadin Shedrick blocks Arthur Kaluma's two point layup
14:16
Wildcats offensive rebound
14:13
Cam Carter turnover (lost ball) (Max Abmas steals)
14:08
+2
Kadin Shedrick makes two point dunk (Max Abmas assists)
9-12
13:53
+3
Cam Carter makes three point jump shot (David N'Guessan assists)
12-12
13:38
Max Abmas misses three point jump shot
13:36
Wildcats defensive rebound
13:18
Chendall Weaver shooting foul (Tylor Perry draws the foul)
13:18
+1
Tylor Perry makes regular free throw 1 of 2
13-12
13:18
+1
Tylor Perry makes regular free throw 2 of 2
14-12
13:05
Dylan Disu misses three point jump shot
13:03
Arthur Kaluma defensive rebound
12:55
David N'Guessan misses two point layup
12:53
David N'Guessan offensive rebound
12:51
+2
David N'Guessan makes two point layup
16-12
12:40
+3
Brock Cunningham makes three point jump shot (Max Abmas assists)
16-15
12:25
Cam Carter turnover (bad pass) (Dylan Disu steals)