MANHATTAN, Kan. — Kansas State came out strong on Saturday night, ending a six-game losing streak with a decisive 73-60 victory against the No. 23 ranked West Virginia. Dug McDaniel led the Wildcats with 15 points, while David N’Guessan supported with 14 points, pushing Kansas State to improve their record to 8-11 overall and 2-6 in Big 12 play.
The match began in the Wildcats’ favor as they raced to an impressive 19-2 lead. The team shot 47.3% from the field, hitting 26 of 55 attempts, including 6 of 17 from beyond the arc. CJ Jones made a significant impact off the bench, contributing 10 points as Kansas State’s reserves outperformed West Virginia’s bench, scoring 15 to 5. Additional contributions included 12 points from Max Jones and 11 from Coleman Hawkins.
On the other side, West Virginia’s Javon Small, the conference’s leading scorer, managed to net 22 points, along with three steals and five assists. Teammates Toby Okani and Sencire Harris added 13 and 12 points, respectively. However, the Mountaineers struggled mightily with their shooting, finishing the game with only 36.8% accuracy by hitting 25 of 68 shots, and they were even worse from 3-point range, shooting just 4 of 21.
By halftime, West Virginia found themselves trailing by 24 points and could never narrow the gap to single digits for the remainder of the game.
In highlights from this matchup, West Virginia faced their first back-to-back losses of the season after a victory against No. 3 Iowa State the previous week, putting their place in the Top 25 in jeopardy. Conversely, Kansas State has shown improvement, competing closely with teams like Kansas and Baylor before this much-needed win.
A pivotal moment occurred when McDaniel sank a 3-pointer with 12 minutes remaining in the first half, capping a 17-0 run and prompting West Virginia to take a timeout to regroup.
On a statistical note, despite averaging nearly 72 points per game, West Virginia has struggled in their last two games, failing to score more than 60 points.
Looking ahead, both teams are scheduled to play again on Wednesday, with West Virginia set to host No. 7 Houston and Kansas State welcoming Oklahoma State to their court.
