Wesley Iwundu’s all-around season spurring K-State

Wesley Iwundu is Kansas State’s most versatile basketball player, and he has the statistics to prove it.

After stuffing box scores for 3 1/2 seasons, Iwundu has become the first person in Wildcat history to total 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 300 assists and 100 steals in a career.

Iwundu, a senior wing, reached the milestone during K-State’s 79-75 victory over No. 7 West Virginia by doing what he does best — a little bit of everything. He drove at the Mountaineers’ defense for 13 points, got near the rim for nine rebounds and sent out three assists. One game before that, he had 15 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. It was a fitting week for him to reach the milestone.

“It’s a great feeling to do something like that for my career,” Iwundu said. “I am about as excited as I can be reaching a goal like that and getting a win, there couldn’t be anything better.”

It should come as no surprise that K-State won consecutive games and moved to within one spot of a national ranking with Iwundu playing this way.

K-State coach Bruce Weber has long insisted the Wildcats are at their best when they flash versatility, and they did exactly that against West Virginia. All five starters reached double figures. No one could agree who had the best game, but there was no downplaying Iwundu’s performance.

“Wes is a major key for our team,” point guard Kamau Stokes said. “When he is playing well it gives us a push and it helps take some pressure off certain people. I think what he is doing is great for us.”

Iwundu has played so well of late that it’s been difficult for Weber to single out his top contribution.

“Congratulations to Wesley on an unbelievable accomplishment,” Weber said. “I loved his focus. I loved his rebounds. I think that was huge.”

K-State travels to Iowa State for its first of two road games this week. The Wildcats also play at Tennessee on Saturday as part of the Big 12/SEC Challenge.

Iwundu is averaging 13.1 points, 6 rebounds and 4.4 assists in seven Big 12 games, but he did hit a tiny slump against Texas Tech and Baylor. The usually dependable Iwundu made three shots in 16 attempts in those games. His rebounds and assists were down, too.

Iwundu isn’t quite sure what happened during stretch. But he thinks that is behind him. When asked what he thought he did best in his past two games, Iwundu pointed to his passing.

“Definitely the assists,” Iwundu said. “It’s just a part of my game, something I pride myself on. I’m happy for myself and happy for the team right now. I just want to keep getting some wins.”

This story was originally published January 23, 2017 at 2:58 PM with the headline "Wesley Iwundu’s all-around season spurring K-State."