Takeaways from Kansas State’s blowout victory over New Orleans in basketball opener
The Kansas State men’s basketball team began its season with an 89-65 victory over New Orleans on Tuesday at Bramlage Coliseum.
It wasn’t an effortless game for the Wildcats, who fell behind by double digits in the early going and needed big nights from guards Max Jones and Brendan Hausen to pull away in the second half. But Jerome Tang’s team took care of business and won by a big margin.
It would have been hard for the home crowd to ask for much more from a squad that was breaking in 10 newcomers.
David N’Guessan led all scorers with 21 points. Jones wasn’t far behind with 19 points. And Hausen hit four 3-pointers on his way to 17.
The Wildcats will next be in action on Saturday against Cleveland State back at the Octagon of Doom.
Until then, here are some takeaways from Tuesday’s action:
Max Jones was as good as advertised
Jerome Tang has said many times that K-State basketball fans will enjoy watching Max Jones play this season.
Now we know why.
Jones, a 6-foot-4 senior guard who transferred in from Cal State Fullerton, was arguably the best player on the court as he raced his way to 19 points, five assists and three rebounds.
The most impressive thing about his performance is that he did a little bit of everything. Jones made 4 of 5 3-pointers and also got to the basket for a few buckets. He played with impressive levels of energy and distributed the ball when he wasn’t looking to score.
His best pass, by far, came on a behind-the-back pass to N’Guessan for a transition dunk in the second half.
His best moment came at the end of the first half when Dug McDaniel found him in the corner with an excellent pass just before time expired. He caught the ball and drained a 3-pointer while he was being fouled. Then he went to the the free-throw and scored two more points when he rebounded his own miss and converted a layup.
That gave K-State a 44-32 halftime lead after it trailed by 10 early. Jones gave his team a noticeable lift.
Brendan Hausen has a shooter’s mentality
Whenever K-State needs a 3-pointer, Brendan Hausen is happy to fire away.
Hausen, a 6-foot-4 junior transfer from Villanova, plays with a NBA Jam mindset. As soon as he makes three shots, he assumes he is on fire. And then he bombs away.
You have to respect the confidence he shoots with — and the 17 points he scored in this game. Hausen connected on 4 of 9 shots from beyond the arc, and he got super aggressive after he saw a few go through the net.
At one point, he jumped in the air and appeared ready to attempt a deep 3-pointer in transition, only to shake his head in frustration when the officials said one of his K-State teammates had stepped out of bounds before passing.
That is the type of aggressiveness you want to see from a team’s primary outside shooter.
Coleman Hawkins had a nice hustle play
It can be hard to judge exactly how good or bad a player and team truly are in an early season game like this.
Just because someone plays well at home against New Orleans doesn’t mean that same player will light up the scoreboard against Big 12 competition.
But Coleman Hawkins gave K-State fans plenty of reasons to trust that he is all-in with his new team. The Illinois transfer proved that much when he dived to the hardwood and fought for a loose ball in the first half of the the first game of the season.
Some might not have expected the 6-foot-10 big man to put his body on the line in a low-stakes game like this. But he clearly wanted to win, and that meant helping his team with a hustle play. That is an encouraging sign for how hard he is willing to play this season.
David N’Guessan had a fast double-double
It’s hard to imagine any player in K-State basketball history recording a double-double faster than N’Guessan was able to do in this game.
The senior forward piled up 11 points and 10 rebounds less than 15 minutes into the season and finished with 21 points and 15 rebounds.
He was efficient in all areas, as he connected on 10 of 14 shots and also sent out two assists.
N’Guessan was a go-to player of sorts for the Wildcats, as he was responsible for their first seven points. His early production made it hard for New Orleans to pull ahead by more than 10, even when the Privateers were making shots and the Wildcats were missing.