Kansas St. vs Southern Miss: Game Time, TV Schedule, Spread Info and Predictions

Kansas State and Southern Miss square off on Thursday in an exciting second round NCAA tournament matchup. 

Kansas State, who finished the season fifth in the Big 12 with a 21-10 record, earned the No. 8 seed after a great season. Southern Miss had one of their best seasons in recent memory with a 25-8 record, good enough for a No. 9 seed. 

Where: Pittsburgh, at the CONSOL Energy Center

When: Thursday, March 15 at 12:40 p.m. ET

Watch: TruTV

Listen: Here is the list of Basketball radio affiliates for Southern Miss. Here is the list of radio network affiliates for K-State. 

Betting Line: Kansas State by -5.5, according to wagerminds.com

Key Injuries

Christian Robbins is listed as questionable for Thursday's game with a foot injury that has kept him out since Dec. 17 for Southern Miss. Kansas State has no reported injuries.

(courtesy of USA Today)

What's at Stake? 

K-State head coach Frank Martin is looking for three consecutive seasons of making it to the round of 32 . Martin has made it to at least the NCAA third round in three of his first four seasons at Kansas State, including an Elite Eight appearance in 2010. Southern Miss will see their first tournament action since 1991, and are looking to go 3-0 against teams from power conferences.

Both have a shot at playing No. 1 seed Syracuse as their next opponent on Saturday, March 17.

What They're Saying 

Providing some quality insight on the thoughts of the Wildcats is The Kansas City Star's Kellis Robinett.

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K-State proved it belonged in the field by winning 21 games. But nothing felt like a given after losing to Baylor in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 tournament. K-State’s players felt they didn’t play with enough energy and said they wanted a shot at redemption.

It didn’t matter what seed or opponent they drew. They just wanted to play again. Those feelings didn’t change on Sunday. That’s part of the reason why no one seemed to mind a potential matchup with No. 1 seed Syracuse.

Though Martin and his players said they respected the Orange, they insisted their focus is solely on Southern Mississippi at the moment. Beating the Golden Eagles won’t be easy.

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Read more here."

The Southern Miss tournament profile CBSSports.com tells you what the Golden Eagles are all about.

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Neil Watson (12.2 ppg) leads the way on offense along with senior guard Angelo Johnson, who scored 24 points in the loss to Marshall. Johnson's career-high is 29 against Murray State,so he clearly plays his best basketball when the games matter most. Head coach Larry Eustachy was named the Conference USA Coach of the Year. 

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Most Important Player to Watch: Rodney McGruder, Guard, Kansas State. 

McGruder has been on a tear recently, scoring 24 points or more in three of his last five games. As the Wildcats' No. 1 scorer all season, He has been able to create matchup problems being a bigger guard (6'4", 205 pounds) who rebounds exceptionally well. 

He tends to perform in bigger games, scoring 22.0 points per game against Missouri as Kansas State swept the season series between the two. Him having a good game will dictate how well the Wildcats will perform.

Key Matchup: Jonathan Mills (Southern Miss) vs. Jamar Samuels (K-State)

Both teams are loaded with good guard play, but the matchup that may decide the outcome of the game is between the two forwards in Mills and Samuels. 

Expect it to be a physical game, with whoever can grab the most rebounds and draw the most fouls will probably end up being the victor.

Prediction: Kansas State 70, Southern Miss 68

Expect it to go down to the wire with a close game that will be decided in the final seconds. The Wildcats will prevail because they are the more physical team.