Takeaways from Kansas State's impressive win vs. No. 23 West Virginia

Kellis Robinett, The Wichita Eagle on Jan 25, 2025

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MANHATTAN, Kan. — This was the type of basketball game that Kansas State has been waiting for.

The Wildcats demolished West Virginia, 73-60, on Saturday at Bramlage Coliseum with a performance that was every bit as impressive as it was unexpected. Not only did the Wildcats end a frustrating six-game losing streak, they won in style and crushed an opponent that was No. 23 in the national polls.

K-State basketball coach Jerome Tang predicted that the Wildcats were on the verge of a breakthrough game, and that is exactly what they gave their fans inside the Octagon of Doom.

Things got off to an impressive start for K-State as it raced to a 42-16 lead behind a balanced scoring effort. Dug McDaniel led the Wildcats with 15 points, but four of his teammates also reached double figures.

David N’Guessan had 14 points, Max Jones finished with 12, Coleman Hawkins added 11 and CJ Jones contributed 10.

West Virginia fought back in the second half behind 22 points from Javon Small, but it wasn’t enough. K-State essentially clinched the game when Hawkins sent a terrific pass to N’Guessan for a dunk that gave the Wildcats a 62-42 lead with 5:41 remaining.

K-State (8-11, 2-6 Big 12) picked up its second win of the season against a ranked team in the process. West Virginia (13-6, 4-4 Big 12) lost its second game of the week after pulling off an upset against Iowa State last weekend.

The Wildcats will next be in action on Wednesday against Oklahoma State.

Until then, here are some takeaways from Saturday’s action:

K-State showed its potential against West Virginia

We have seen the Wildcats at their worst several times this season.

This game was an opportunity for fans to see them at their best.

K-State came to play in its throwback lavender-and-purple uniforms. The Wildcats jumped on the Mountaineers and led 19-2 before the second media timeout. Tang’s team went on to lead by as many as 26.

They couldn’t sustain that pace for a full 40 minutes and only ended up winning by 13. But no one will complain about that. The Wildcats won this game in the opening moments.

They played with impressive levels of energy on defense. They also made shots.

Five different players reached double figures and K-State finished with 26 field goals on 16 assists.

Together, they beat a team that owns victories over Arizona, Iowa State, KU and Gonzaga. They also gave fans reason to hope moving forward.

K-State still has no chance of earning an at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament. But it can be a competitive team against most Big 12 teams if it plays more games like this.

McDaniel can help K-State the most as a scorer

As a point guard, it is McDaniel’s job to be a facilitator and get the ball to his teammates when they have open looks.

But he doesn’t always have to be a passer. The Michigan transfer can also help the Wildcats by scoring on his own.

McDaniel made that much clear against West Virginia as he scored 15 points on 13 shots and made the defense respect him as both a shooter and a slasher.

By taking a shoot-first mentality, he actually opened up passing lanes for his teammates. He finished this game with six assists and only three turnovers.

Coleman Hawkins also helped him out by piling up seven assists. It may be unorthodox, but K-State seems to be at its best when McDaniel focuses on scoring and Hawkins focuses on passing.

It has been a mostly disappointing season for McDaniel, but he has been a steady contributor throughout conference play. Perhaps he can lift his game to an even higher level by continuing to be aggressive and looking to score.

The Wildcats played great defense against the Mountaineers

K-State learned a valuable lesson from its road loss against Baylor earlier this week. It didn’t allow an uber talented Big 12 player to get hot against it in this game.

Baylor freshman VJ Edgecombe torched K-State for 30 points in a come-from-behind victory for the Bears. Javon Small had no such luck for the Mountaineers in this game.

K-State held West Virginia’s leading scorer to 22 points on 16 shots. His teammates didn’t find things much easier. West Virginia only made 19% of its shots from 3-point range and 37% of its field goals.

Winning the rebounding battle 40-36 was a big deal for K-State. That limited the amount of second-chance points that West Virginia could pile up in this game.

Overall, the Wildcats held the Mountaineers to 0.923 points per possession.