[10] KANSAS STATE (10-21, 3-15 Big 12) vs. [7] TCU (16-15, 7-11 Big 12)
Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship
Wednesday, March 11, 2020 // 8 p.m. CT // Sprint Center (18,972) // Kansas City, Mo.
TELEVISION
ESPNU / WatchESPN
- Rich Hollenberg (play-by-play)
- Chris Spatola (analyst)
- Kris Budden (sideline reporter)
- Andy Jacobson (producer)
RADIO
K-State Sports Network
Online: TuneIn.com [free] / www.kstatesports.com/watch [free]
Satellite Radio: Sirius 135 / XM 199
- Wyatt Thompson (play-by-play)
- Stan Weber (analyst)
LIVE STATS
TICKETS
www.sprintcenter.com
(816) 949.7100
Single Game: $195 (all-session)
COACHES
Kansas State: Bruce Weber (Wis.-Milwaukee ’78)
Overall: 473-265/22nd season
At K-State: 160-110/8th season
vs. TCU: 13-6 (2-1 at neutral sites)
TCU: Jamie Dixon (TCU ‘87)
Overall: 412-179/17th season
At TCU: 84-56/4th season
vs. Kansas State: 5-6 (1-2 at neutral sites)
PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
Kansas State (10-21)
G: #2 Cartier Diarra
G: #00 Mike McGuirl
G: #03 DaJuan Gordon
G/F: #20 Xavier Sneed
F: #14 Makol Mawien
TCU (16-15)
G: #1 Desmond Bane
G: #2 Edric Dennis
G: #5 Jaire Grayer
G: #22 R.J. Nembhard
C: #21 Kevin Samuel
CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
Overall: 35-41
Big 12 Championship: 15-23
As a No. 10 seed: 2-2 (last time: 2005)
First Round: 18-14
In Kansas City: 34-36
At Sprint Center: 8-11
Last Time: L, Iowa State, 59-63, 3/15/2019 (semifinals)
vs. TCU: 2-1 (last meeting: W, 70-61, 3/14/2019)
SERIES HISTORY
Overall: K-State leads 16-8
Current Streak: TCU, 2
In Kansas City: K-State leads 2-1
At Sprint Center: K-State leads 2-1
Last Meeting: L, 57-68 [2/15/2020 in Fort Worth]
Weber vs. Dixon: Weber leads 6-5 [2-1 at neutral sites]
OPENING TIP
- Kansas State (10-21, 3-15 Big 12) will open play as the No. 10 seed in the 24th annual Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship on Wednesday night against No. 7 seed TCU (16-15, 7-11 Big 12) at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo. The Horned Frogs won both regular season meetings with the Wildcats, first with a Kevin Samuel tip-in for a 59-57 win in Manhattan on Jan. 7 then a record-setting 3-point performance in a 68-57 win at home on Feb. 15. The game will follow the first game between No. 8 seed Oklahoma State (17-14, 7-11 Big 12) and No. 9 seed Iowa State (12-19, 5-13 Big 12) at around 8 p.m., CT on ESPNU with Rich Hollenberg (play-by-play, Chris Spatola (analyst) and Kris Budden (reporter) on the call.
- K-State enters as the tournament’s No. 10 seed for just the third time in program history and the first time since 2005. The Wildcats are 35-41 (.461) all-time in the Big Eight/12 Championship dating back to its inception in 1977, including a 15-23 (.385) mark in the Big 12 era. The school is 2-2 as a No. 10 seed in the Big Eight/12 Championship, while it is 8-2 vs. the No. 7 seed. The team is 2-1 all-time against the Horned Frogs, including a 70-61 win in the quarterfinals last season. The two teams also met in 2015 (a 67-65 TCU win) and 2018 (a 66-64 K-State overtime win).
- Senior Xavier Sneed enjoyed a storybook ending to his stellar career at Bramlage Coliseum, as he scored 26 of his career-high 31 points in a dominant first-half effort that propelled K-State past a short-handed Iowa State team, 79-63, to end a 10-game losing streak. The Wildcats led by as many as 24 points in the second half, including 19 at the half, in earning their first win since a 61-53 win over Oklahoma on Jan. 29. The team connected on 51.8 percent (29-of-56) from the field, including 70 percent (21-of-30) from inside the 3-point line, for its highest field goal percentage since shooting 59.2 percent (29-of-49) in a win over 12/13 West Virginia on Jan. 18. For Sneed, it was his first 30-point game of his career and the first by a Wildcat since Barry Brown, Jr., scored 34 points at Baylor on Jan. 22, 2018.
- Close games have been the story for K-State this season, as 17 of its 31 games have been decided by 10 points or less, including 16 by single digits. The Wildcats have lost 13 games by single digits (including 8 in Big 12 play) and 7 by 5 points or less. During its recent 10-game losing streak, the team lost 7 games by 10 points or less, including 6 by single digits. The 13 losses by single digits are the most in a single season since the 2002-03 team also lost 13 games by single digits.
- Injuries have also been a big part of K-State’s season, as 4 players have combined to miss 57 games, which has caused coach Bruce Weber to use 10 different starting lineups. The 10 lineups are the most since using 11 in 2014-15 with at least one true freshman starting in 27 of 31 games, including rookies Montavious Murphy and DaJuan Gordon starting together in 7 Big 12 games. The last time a pair of freshmen started together more came when Barry Brown, Jr., and Dean Wade started the last 9 games of the 2015-16 season.
Tom GIlbert
Director for Men's Basketball Communications - K-State Athletics