Kansas State basketball signs guards Brian Patrick, Cartier Diarra

Brian Patrick and Cartier Diarra made their commitments to Kansas State official by signing basketball letters of intent to play for the Wildcats on Wednesday.

The pair of incoming freshmen join guard Xavier Sneed and forward James Love as members of K-State’s 2016 recruiting class.

K-State coach Bruce Weber described both players as welcome additions.

Patrick, a 6-foot-5, 180-pound shooting guard from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., will help the Wildcats immediately in an area of need, outside shooting. K-State made 30 percent of its three-pointers last season, a number that ranked last in the Big 12 and 334th nationally.

“One of our recruiting priorities was getting better from the three-point line,” Weber said in a statement.

“Brian gives us a big-time perimeter shooter with tremendous range who has legitimate size. He connected on better than 42 percent from long range as a senior, averaging over two made 3-pointers per game. He also has tremendous athleticism and a great jumping ability. He comes from a high school program with great tradition who always turn out tough players.”

Two of those players ended up at K-State. Mitch Richmond and Martavious Irving both attended Patrick’s school, Boyd Anderson High, and went on to have strong careers with the Wildcats. Richmond was also a successful pro player and is a member of the Naismith Hall of Fame. Weber said Irving advised K-State coaches to take a look at Patrick.

A three-star recruit, per Rivals, Patrick didn’t receive much interest from other power-conference schools. Weber attributed that to a broken leg Patrick suffered as a junior, which robbed him of exposure.

Diarra could give K-State needed depth at point guard. The 6-foot-4, 185-pounder from Florence, S.C., is the 54th-rated point guard in the 247Sports recruiting rankings.

He is expected to push returning starter Kamau Stokes for minutes, and add a capable backup at the position. He may also help at shooting guard.

“We needed depth in our backcourt,” Weber said, “someone who could give us some point guard play but also play some at the two. Cartier’s name came up many times in recruiting circles and we were able to jump in at the right time and get him on a visit.

“Cartier is a versatile combo guard who has exceptional athleticism and strong basketball IQ. He is great in the transition game and has a unique ability to get to the basket to score or to drop it to a teammate. He’s only seriously been playing basketball since his sophomore year and his skill development has just gotten better and better. That’s credit to not only his work ethic but to his high school coaches and mentors. He’s very committed and hungry to improving his game.”

K-State has one scholarship remaining to use during the spring signing period. It is recruiting Neosho County forward Freddie McSwain. He is set to choose between K-State and Indiana on April 24 in a ceremony at his junior college.

This story was originally published April 13, 2016 at 5:24 PM with the headline "Kansas State basketball signs guards Brian Patrick, Cartier Diarra."