Kansas State will look to end a two-game losing streak when it hosts Arizona State in Manhattan, Kan., on Sunday afternoon. The Wildcats will look back to a come-from-behind 71-70 victory at Arizona State on Feb. 4 for inspiration.
K-State (13-13, 7-8 Big 12) had won six straight games and put themselves in the discussion for an at-large berth in the upcoming NCAA Tournament prior to back-to-back losses at BYU on Feb. 15 and Utah on Feb. 17.
One of those six consecutive victories was in Tempe, Ariz., after the Sun Devils (12-14, 3-12) missed two free throws with 4.1 seconds remaining trailing by one point.
The Sun Devils have now lost six straight games, dating back to a Feb. 1 loss to Arizona prior to the K-State loss. They have allowed an average of 83.8 points per game during the skid, raising their season scoring average allowed to 74.4, third worst in the Big 12 Conference.
In their last loss, 80-65 to Houston, the Sun Devils faced the nation’s best defense, but ASU coach Bobby Hurley was just as impressed with the Cougars’ offense.
“(LJ) Cryer is a really tough matchup,” he said. “We lost him and we lost (Emanuel) Sharp some in the second half. They have shooting and they have fierce interior players that could really get stuff done. So they present a lot of issues for you. They’re a well-built team.”
During their winning streak, the Wildcats beat four ranked teams, which made the streak more impressive. Their ability to overcome the sluggish start against the Sun Devils was encouraging, as was their recovery after allowing an 11-2 run that gave Arizona State a 63-62 lead with 3:24 left.
K-State coach Jerome Tang hopes to recapture the momentum his team had during its winning streak.
“In our six-game winning streak, we had three, and sometimes four, guards who had 3-plus rebounds,” Tang said. “In (the two games in) Utah, our guards didn’t rebound. We need our guards to rebound for us.
“We know how teams are going to try to stop us. Now we have to make the adjustments.”
–Field Level Media
