WVU routs Kansas State 89-51
No. 11/15 West Virginia (17-6, 6-4) snapped its three-game losing streak by defeating Kansas State (16-7, 5-5) by a score of 89-51 inside the Coliseum Saturday afternoon.
The Mountaineers never trailed during the game and shot 55 percent from the field to Kansas State’s 30 percent. West Virginia also held an advantage at the free throw line, shooting 96 percent from the line to Kansas State’s 72 percent.
Sophomore forward Sagaba Konate led the Mountaineers with 19 points to along with nine rebounds. For Kansas State, junior Dean Wade led the Wildcats with 17 points.
Sophomore James “Beetle” Bolden, who was making his first-career start Saturday, scored the first points of the game with a three-pointer less than one minute into the game.
West Virginia would then jump out to an early 9-5 lead with 15:24 remaining in the first half with the help of its defense forcing five Kansas State turnovers. At one point, the Wildcats had more turnovers (4) than shot attempts (2).
The Mountaineers would extend their lead to 12-7 with a layup and free throw from sophomore Logan Routt, but the two teams would trade multiple three-pointers. Five consecutive possessions saw five straight three-pointers between West Virginia and Kansas State, but West Virginia maintained a 21-16 lead at the 11:32 mark in the first half.
Kansas State’s Xavier Sneed then hit his third three-pointer of the game to narrow West Virginia’s lead to 21-19, but a three-pointer from junior forward Esa Ahmad and a layup from Konate allowed the Mountaineers to stay ahead, leading 26-22 with 7:58 remaining until halftime.
West Virginia then extended its lead to 31-22 with a three-pointer from Bolden and a layup from Carter.
The Mountaineers would continue their strong defensive effort in the first half, holding Kansas State without a field goal for over 10 minutes. The Wildcats finished the first half making just one field goal out of their final 10 attempts as West Virginia took a 39-30 lead at halftime.
Bolden and Konate led the Mountaineers after one half with nine points each and Ahmad was behind them with eight. West Virginia finished shooting 50 percent from the field to Kansas State’s 40 percent and also held advantages in forced turnovers (10-6) and second chance points (10-4). The two teams finished the first half even in total rebounds, 13-13.
West Virginia extended its lead to 44-32 during the early stages of the second half, but a three-pointer from Wade cut the Mountaineers’ lead to nine points. The Mountaineers would then go on a 6-0 run which included four free throws. Two of them came from Carter after a technical foul was called on Kansas State’s Barry Brown.
Wade ended West Virginia’s run with a layup, but the Mountaineers still held a 50-37 lead with 15:34 left to play.
West Virginia continued to contain Kansas State and led 60-42 with 9:22 remaining. At this point in the game, the Mountaineers held the Wildcats scoreless for over four minutes and Kansas State missed five straight field goal attempts.
From there, the Mountaineers would eliminate any chance for a second half comeback from Kansas State and earned their first home victory since Jan. 20 when they defeated Texas, 86-51.
The Mountaineers will travel to Norman to face No. 12/15 Oklahoma Monday at 9 p.m. EST.
