K-State Wildcats vs. Texas Tech Red Raiders: Lineups, time, TV and a prediction
Details
When/where: 7 p.m. Tuesday at Bramlage Coliseum, Manhattan, Kansas
TV/radio: ESPN+ (streaming only, subscription channel); KKGQ (92.3 FM) in Wichita, KCSP (610 AM) in Kansas City.
Projected lineups
P | No. | Kansas State | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 14 | Makol Mawien | 6-9 | Sr. | 7.6 |
F | 23 | Montavious Murphy | 6-9 | Fr. | 4.8 |
G | 20 | Xavier Sneed | 6-5 | Sr. | 14.6 |
G | 00 | Mike McGuirl | 6-2 | Jr. | 6.3 |
G | 2 | Cartier Diarra | 6-4 | Jr. | 12.1 |
P | No. | Texas Tech | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 44 | Chris Clarke | 6-6 | Sr. | 6.9 |
F | 22 | T.J. Holyfield | 6-8 | Sr. | 9.1 |
G | 25 | Davide Moretti | 6-3 | Jr. | 13.0 |
G | 3 | Jahmi’us Ramsey | 6-4 | Fr. | 16.8 |
G | 0 | Kyler Edwards | 6-4 | So. | 10.5 |
About Kansas State (7-8, 0-3 Big 12): The Wildcats are still searching for their first Big 12 victory of the season. K-State is coming off its worst loss of the season against Texas 64-50. There’s a chance Bruce Weber will shake up the starting lineup and play DaJuan Gordon instead of Mike McGuirl at shooting guard, but he didn’t lock in any changes when speaking with media on Monday. Gordon has been figuring things out as a freshman in recent games, while McGuirl has entered a shooting slump. The Wildcats will rely on quality defense from its forwards all across the court in this game, as Texas Tech likes to play position-less basketball.
About Texas Tech (10-5, 1-2): The Red Raiders are coming off a pair of losses after starting Big 12 play with a blowout victory over Oklahoma State. Texas Tech is off to a bit of a disappointing start to the season, but this team is still capable of playing high-level basketball, as evidenced by a neutral-court victory over Louisville last month. Chris Beard’s team once again is relying on defense to win games, as it is allowing 62.1 points per game, but it has some offensive weapons, starting with freshman guard Jahmi’us Ramsey, who is leading the team with 16.8 points per game.
Prediction: It’s safe to assume this will be a low-scoring game. Both Kansas State and Texas Tech emphasize defense. They have also both failed to score 60 points in back-to-back games.
That makes this a winnable contest for the Wildcats. If they can get solid scoring nights from Xavier Sneed, Cartier Diarra and one other player they will have a shot at victory in the closing moments.
But making big plays in crunch time has not been K-State’s forte this season. Texas Tech is the better overall team and has proven it has a high ceiling. The Wildcats will need to play one of their best games to win. An above-average effort might be enough for the Red Raiders.
Texas Tech 59, K-State 54.