Hot Battle in the Little Apple: Kansas State Gets It Done

So it's finally over.  Kansas State has toppled Texas and left the Longhorns with a look of embarrassment on their faces.

The former undefeated Longhorns headed to Manhattan to take on a surprise underdog Kansas State Wildcats team that had lost only two of their games this season to Mississippi and Missouri. 

The game started out close, and it remained that way until the second half.  Turnovers and missed opportunities flooded the Wildcats offense, and the fact that Texas was their opponent wasn't helping the situation.

With a capacity crown in attendance to watch the game, the chant of "Lets go Wildcats!" was heard all game long and in the end helped Kansas State get the victory that they needed on the season.

With a roster of underrated players, particularly Jacob Pullen and Denis Clemente, Kansas State utilised all of their talent and gave head coach Frank Martin something to smile and think about as the game unfolded.

The final two minutes seemed like an eternity.  Fouls, controversial calls, pushing and shoving and a barrage of missed buckets and rebounds.  The crowd then turned it up a gear with a minute to go chanting "Overrated" and "We Own Texas."

As pleasing as this is to those that wanted to see Texas get toppled, to help their respective teams out, it was a fairly unclassy act.  I am all for chanting in sports, it makes the games all the much better.  However when your insulting a team and using the word "Own," that's when it gets a bit to overboard.

One thing that Texas did take from this game is a need for revenge.  If the stars align and these two meet again in the NCAA Tourney, expect it to be fierce.  Longhorn fans don't take anything lightly, and tonight's display by Kansas State fans will surely get them fired up.

Team wise Texas played well but fouled way too often.  Dexter Pittman was constantly hearing the whistle in his ear, and that is part of what led to Texas' demise. 

Overall though, hats off to Kansas State.  They got the win and did it in convincing style.  Whether or not they can build from it, well we'll see.  As for Texas, they need not fear.  One loss isn't the end of their season, and with the talent and coaching they have, it is a mere obstacle in the quest for their Final Four hopes.

The team everyone has their eye on now is Kentucky.  Syracuse, Villanova, Duke, Kansas and Texas all are relying on a loss by the Wildcats, and it could come in the near future.  With narrow losses to Stanford and Miami (Ohio) recently, and upsert could be on the horizon for the Kentucky.  An upset style team like Tennessee could get the job done, and leave everyone open for a spot in the Final Four come March.

For now though, we'll just have to wait and see.