MANHATTAN, Kan. – The Kansas State Wildcats (14-15, 8-10 Big 12) snapped a four-game losing streak on Sunday, defeating the Colorado Buffaloes (11-18, 2-16) by a score of 65-56.
Kansas State came out of the gates hot, thriving off energy from its home fans. It won the opening tip-off and took its first lead of the day off a jumper by guard David N’Guessan. Fueled by a 10-0 run through the first five minutes of play, KSU held this lead for the entire afternoon.
Colorado’s turnover woes were back early on, two of which came off the hands of Buffs guard Julian Hammond III and led to points. It was a tough first half for the senior, as he went to the locker room with 6:30 to play in the period after a re-aggravated lower-back injury and did not return for the remainder of the game.
The theme of turnovers continued throughout the first half, with the Buffaloes reaching a total of seven through the first 20 minutes.
CU’s turnover struggles were accompanied by inefficiency from 3-point range and at the free throw line. Despite guard RJ Smith scoring seven points on 3-of-5 shooting in the first half, his teammates shot just 2-of-13 from beyond the arc and 2-of-6 from the charity stripe.
The Buffs prevented the game from getting out of hand with stout defense and on the boards, holding the Wildcats to 35.7% shooting and zero second-chance buckets while scoring five points of their own off offensive rebounds in the first half. The hole they dug themselves through scoring inefficiency, however, saw the Wildcats lead by a score of 33-22 at halftime.
Colorado was able to shrink its deficit to nine early in the second half with forward Andrej Jakimovski opening the scoring on a layup. This was short-lived though, as Kansas State’s offense came alive quickly.
N’Guessan was instrumental for the Wildcats, finishing the night with 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting. His night was supported by guard Dug McDaniel’s seven assists, just four short of his season-high.
Turnovers continued to be an issue for Colorado, as it registered eight in the second half. Inefficiency from the 3-point line continued, as CU finished the afternoon 4-of-23 from beyond the arc, good for 17.4%.
Buffs forward Bangot Dak began to heat up in the second half, finishing the game with 10 points and four rebounds. The same could be said for forward Sebastian Rancik, who registered 10 points and five rebounds. Smith wasn’t as productive in the second half but finished as CU’s leading scorer with 11 points.
Despite a late offensive surge that saw Colorado bring its deficit down to eight, Kansas State strung together long possessions to salt the clock down, defeating the Buffs by nine.
The Buffaloes remain on the road for their next game, taking on the No. 10 Texas Tech Red Raiders (22-7, 13-5 Big 12) on Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. MT (ESPN+).
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