Why Kansas State’s win over Alabama State was a confidence-booster for Xavier Sneed
The Kansas State Wildcats defeated the Alabama State Hornets 86-41 on Wednesday at Bramlage Coliseum.
Here are some takeaways from the game, which improved K-State’s record to 6-3:
Efficient outing for Sneed
This was the type of game K-State fans have been waiting for from Xavier Sneed all season.
The senior swingman not only scored 20 points, he found his shooting touch along the way. Sneed began the game by swishing a corner three … and then making three more, plus a long two-point jumper before he finally missed nearly midway through the first half. He scored 14 points before the Hornets scored six.
Sneed cooled off a bit, but this was still his most efficient game of the season. He only needed 10 shots to get his 20 points. The last time he reached that number, he needed 16 shots.
“I thought Xavier got us off to a great start,” K-State basketball coach Bruce Weber said. “He obviously made some shots but that led to us sharing the basketball.”
Sneed can thank his teammates for helping him find the bottom of the net. A year ago, Sneed was at his best when shooting corner threes and throwing down lob dunks. He had some of both on Wednesday, with David Sloan and Cartier Diarra finding him open with kick outs on the perimeter.
It won’t be quite so easy for Sneed to duplicate this type of offensive performance against more difficult teams. But it could boost his confidence as the Wildcats prepare for the harder part of their schedule.
“My guys did a great job of finding me in spots,” Sneed said. “I hit a couple early ones and the basket starts to look pretty big when you get those to go down. It was just a good night shooting.”
No Williams, no problem
K-State didn’t miss Shaun Williams at all in this game.
The sophomore point guard announced that he would transfer before tipoff on Wednesday, and his departure from the roster could make things difficult ont he Wildcats as the season progresses. But it could also be a blessing in disguise.
K-State is 4-0 this season without Williams in the rotation and 2-3 without him.
Though Williams has lots of talent, his playing style didn’t exactly complement the rest of K-State’s roster. Williams was a shoot-first point guard. This team seems to play its best with a pass-first guard like Cartier Diarra and David Sloan on the floor.
Weber has no choice but to lean on those type of players now.
“We have got to move forward,” Weber said. “It gives David an opportunity and I thought he did a great job today.”
Diarra logged 10 assists against Alabama State and Sloan had four off the bench. The also combined for just three turnovers. As a team, K-State had 29 assists (the most of any team during the Weber era) on the same day it lost one of its point guards.
K-State will surely miss Williams in in certain games this season, but the Wildcats might be better served in the long run giving extra minutes to Diarra and Sloan moving forward.
Former walk-on gets his moment
Some of the best crowd-pleasing moments of Wednesday’s game happened when Pierson McAtee was on the floor.
The senior forward checked in midway through the first half, much earlier than usual, and then played like he belonged in the starting lineup by scoring a career-high six points and grabbing three rebounds on four shots.
The student section erupted after every basket he made. It could be the start of bigger things. With several K-State big men currently out with injuries, the Wildcats will likely continue asking him to play a few minutes in each game.
This story was originally published December 11, 2019 at 9:55 PM.