In a spirited encounter on Sunday, Kansas State pulled off an impressive 65-56 victory over Colorado in Manhattan, Kansas, bringing an end to their four-game losing streak. David N’Guessan played a pivotal role for the Wildcats, contributing 21 points and grabbing eight rebounds.
Kansas State established an 11-point advantage by halftime. N’Guessan further solidified the lead with five points in a 7-0 surge that pushed the score to 46-29 with 14 minutes remaining. The Wildcats maintained a double-digit lead for the majority of the game. Although Colorado narrowed the gap to eight points, a pair of free throws by Sebastian Rancik brought the score to 63-54 with only a minute left.
Final moments saw Macaleab Rich nail two free throws for Kansas State with just 48 seconds on the clock, while a last-second dunk by Rancik concluded the game’s scoring. Notably, the matchup featured only one tie and zero lead changes, with the Wildcats maintaining the lead for nearly the entire game duration.
For Kansas State (14-15, 8-10 Big 12), Brendan Hausen and Dug McDaniel also made significant contributions, scoring 11 and 10 points respectively; McDaniel additionally had seven assists. On the opposing side, Colorado (11-18, 2-16 Big 12) saw RJ Smith leading with 11 points, and both Rancik and Bangot Dak added 10 points each.
The Wildcats jumped ahead with an early 12-2 lead sparked by a 10-0 run, during which Colorado’s mistakes resulted in three shooting fouls that Kansas State capitalized on, converting five free throws. Capturing a 33-17 lead with two minutes left in the first half, Kansas State saw Colorado close the gap slightly, ending the half 33-22.
This game marked the first showdown between Kansas State and Colorado since Colorado’s departure from the Big 12 after the 2001 season. With two regular-season games remaining, Kansas State finds itself in ninth place in the conference standings, while Colorado resides at the bottom.
Kansas State will next face Cincinnati on Wednesday followed by a home game against Iowa State on Saturday, while Colorado will travel to Texas Tech on Wednesday and then conclude their season at home against TCU on Saturday.
