K-State Wildcats vs. Iowa State Cyclones: Basketball lineups, TV, time, prediction
The details
When/where: 3 p.m. Saturday, Hilton Coliseum, Ames, Iowa
TV/radio: ESPNU; KKGQ (92.3 FM) in Wichita, KCSP (610 AM) in Kansas City.
About Kansas State (12-11, 4-7 Big 12): The Wildcats are coming off a 75-60 home loss to Baylor, but they have still won two of their past three games. Nijel Pack is K-State’s leading scorer, averaging 17.7 points per game. Mark Smith leads the Big 12 in rebounding with 8.4 boards per game. There is a chance K-State will get sophomore guard Selton Miguel back on Saturday. He hasn’t played since he suffered an ankle injury in late January, but he is close to a return. Consider him a game-time decision.
About Iowa State (16-8, 3-8 Big 12): The Cyclones have piled up a perfect 13-0 record against nonconference opponents this season, but they haven’t performed nearly as well against Big 12 foes. Iowa State is only 3-8 in league play. It is currently on a three-game losing streak with all three of those losses coming by double digits. Izaiah Brockington is the team’s best player, averaging 16.6 points and 7.8 rebounds. Tyrese Huneter is next at 11 points per game.
Projected lineups
P | No. | Kansas State | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 21 | Davion Bradford | 7-0 | So. | 3.9 |
G | 00 | Mike McGuirl | 6-3 | Sr. | 6.3 |
G | 13 | Mark Smith | 6-4 | Sr. | 11.9 |
G | 24 | Nijel Pack | 6-0 | So. | 17.7 |
G | 1 | Markquis Nowell | 5-8 | Jr. | 11.3 |
P | No. | Iowa State | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 12 | Robert Jones | 6-9 | Jr. | 2.6 |
G | 23 | Tristan Enaruna | 6-8 | Jr. | 5.4 |
G | 11 | Tyrese Hunter | 6-0 | Fr. | 11.0 |
G | 22 | Gabe Kalscheur | 6-4 | Sr. | 9.5 |
G | 1 | Izaiah Brockington | 6-4 | Sr. | 16.6 |
Prediction
This is close to a must-win game for both teams.
Iowa State needs a victory to stop its current tailspin and get back on track for a NCAA Tournament berth. K-State needs a win to stay above .500 and keep its postseason chances alive.
Motivation should be easy to come by on both sides.
So which team will prevail? The answer will probably come down to defense.
A few teams have been able to make scoring extremely difficult for the Cyclones lately, and those teams have all beaten Iowa State. For example, TCU and Texas both limited T.J. Otzelberger’s team to below 45 points and won easily. But the Cyclones beat Oklahoma State and Missouri when their offense was operating at a higher level.
If K-State can take advantage of Iowa State’s suspect shooting from three-point range (33.7%) and prevent it from scoring 65 points, it will stand a good chance at pulling off a road upset.
Here’s guessing that happens, and Mike McGuirl or Markquis Nowell step up in an important moment for the Wildcats.
K-State 68, Iowa State 64.