Kansas State vs. Washington State Basketball: Wildcats Hand Cougars 1st Loss

On the eve of the Apple Cup in Pullman, Klay Thompson struggled to find his game against the nation’s No. 5 team.  Going 5-for-16 from the field, including 1-for-7 from three, last weeks Pac-10 Player of the Week still managed 16 points, but struggled from the perimeter.  Despite 23 team turnovers and only eight points from preseason All-American Jacob Pullen, the Kansas State Wildcats managed to pull out the game.  Curtis Kelly and Rodney McGruder picked up the scoring load with 15 points each, along with 12 from Jamar Samuels, as the Wildcats held on to win 63-58.

Leading 30-22 at the half, the Wildcats were frequently beating the Cougars on the boards.  Washington State played zone throughout most of the game, forcing K-State to take perimeter looks.  Despite the strategy, there were offensive rebounds aplenty, and the length of Kelly and Samuels was too much in the opening minutes. 

Returning from injury for Washington State was Reggie Moore, who sparked scoring off the bench with some big second-half shots.  However, McGruder countered with back-to-back threes on one sequence to cool Wazzu’s momentum with about eight minutes left.

With solid defense and missed shots by the 'Cats, Washington State was able to keep it close and eventually took the lead with about a minute to play.  However, the Cougars failed to capitalize on their lead, and with the game tied, Pullen made a steal to start a quick transition bucket from Kelly.  From there, Klay Thomspon missed a three to give them the lead, and it became a game of intentional fouls, where freshman Will Spradling and the senior Pullen iced the game with a clutch pair of free throws. 

Coming into the game, Kansas State ranked last (347th in the nation) in free-throw percentage at roughly 53 percent.  Tonight was no exception, as they were 10-for-19 (52 percent), but made them when it mattered.  Washington State's biggest hurt was from behind the arc, where they were 3-for-18 (16.7 percent), including 0-for-7 in the first half.  

Klay Thompson looks to have added another dimension to his game with a greater ability to beat his man off the dribble, making numerous strong drives to the basket.  As the focal point of Kansas State's defensive efforts, he was aggressive early on, but settled for too many jumpers that rimmed out down the stretch, and had six first-half turnovers. 

Junior College transfer Faisel Aden came into this game red hot, averaging over 20 points per game.  However, he too was limited to perimeter jumpers and midrange looks that he couldn’t hit.  Reggie Moore also finished with 10 points in 38 minutes, and DeAngelo Casto added nine points, seven rebounds and three blocks from the post.

On the Wildcats side of the ball, former McDonald’s All-American forward Wally Judge did not play by coach’s decision.  Jacob Pullen is doing little to improve his NBA stock by sitting on the perimeter and waiting for the ball to come to him.  He is frequently shooting the three, often unnecessarily by a couple feet behind the line on his attempts (1-for-7 on the night from three).  He added the big steal and assist in the last minute, but he needs to be more active off-ball, looking to score more attacking the basket and using the midrange.  Pullen also added five rebound, five assists and five turnovers.

Pullen and the Wildcats return to Manhattan to take on Alcorn State Monday evening.  Kansas State is 7-1 this season, with their lone loss coming to No. 1 Duke last week.  Coach Frank Martin maintains his winning streak in the month of December with 12 in a row over the past few seasons.  In their first true test, Washington State lost their first game of the season, but returns to action against rival and 24th-ranked Gonzaga in Pullman on Wednesday.