MANHATTAN, Kan. (KStateSports.com) – Junior Dug McDaniel scored a game-high 24 points, including two pivotal baskets to start a late 8-0 run, as Kansas State ran its winning streak to 6 games with a 73-70 win over No. 13/13 Arizona on Tuesday night before 8,914 fans at Bramlage Coliseum.
The 6-game winning streak is the second-longest of head coach Jerome Tang‘s tenure and the longest since a 9-game winning streak from Dec. 3 to Jan. 10, 2023. It is the longest such streak in Big 12 play since a 9-game winning streak from Jan. 9 to Feb. 12, 2019.
Tang is now 13-3 at home vs. AP Top 25 opponents, including 4-1 in 2024-25. His 16 career Top 25 wins tie Tex Winter (1954-68) for the fourth-most in school history. K-State’s 16 Top 25 wins are the third-most nationally since 2022-23, trailing just the 17 by Kansas and Tennessee.
In battle of the Big 12’s two hottest teams, it was K-State (13-11, 7-6 Big 12) which was able to pull away late in a back-and-forth game that included nine ties and 10 lead changes. The victory snapped Arizona’s Big 12-best 6-game winning streak and its 3-game winning streak in the series.
After Arizona (17-7, 11-2 Big 12) ripped off a 10-2 run to take a 62-60 lead with 4:05 to play, McDaniel sparked 8 straight points by K-State with back-to-back baskets followed by a layup from senior David N’Guessan and a steal and dunk by sophomore Mobi Ikegwuruka that sent the Bramlage Coliseum crowd into a frenzy with 1:39 remaining.
Arizona closed to within 70-68 on a layup from fifth-year guard Caleb Love with 28 seconds left then to 71-70 after a jumper by sophomore K.J. Lewis with 7 seconds. Junior Brendan Hausen knocked down a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 73-70 with 6 seconds remaining, as McDaniel collected his fifth steal of the night by intercepting Arizona’s half-court lob with 3 seconds. However, senior Max Jones missed both free throws that would have sealed the game, but Arizona couldn’t get a shot off before the horn sounded.
McDaniel scored his game-high 24 points on 10-of-22 field goals, including the Wildcats’ lone 3-pointer of the night, to go with career-tying 5 steals, 4 rebounds and 3 assists in 37 minutes. It was his ninth career 20-point game, including his second this season.
McDaniel was joined in double figures by N’Guessan, who finished with 16 points and 7 rebounds before fouling out with 1:27 to play, and junior reserve C.J. Jones, who added 10 points, his second double-digit scoring game in Big 12 play. Max Jones matched N’Guessan’s 7 rebounds to go with 7 points, while senior Coleman Hawkins had a game-high 4 assists.
Arizona was led by Lewis, who finished with 15 points on 6-of-12 field goals to go with 8 rebounds, while junior Jaden Bradley (13 points), sophomore Henri Veesaar (12 points) and junior Tobe Awaka (10 points) all scored in double figures. Freshman Carter Bryant had a game-high 11 rebounds.
Arizona’s leading scorer Caleb Love, who averages 16.3 points per game, was held to just 6 points on 3-of-15 shooting, including 0-of-7 from 3-point range.
The teams scored 90 of the game’s 143 points in the paint with K-State holding a narrow 46-44 edge over Arizona, which paces the Big 12 in the category. K-State also forced a Big 12-high 17 turnovers by Arizona, including 14 steals that the home team converted into 23 points. Arizona dominated the glass with a 46-33 rebounding advantage, including 13 offensive rebounds that the visiting Wildcats turned into a 13-6 edge in second-chance points.
The tussle in the paint paled in comparison to the 3-point shooting in which the teams combined to 3-of-41 from beyond the arc, including 1-of-20 in the second half. K-State went 1-of-19 from the 3-point range, which was the worst percentage in school history with at least one make, while Arizona was 2-of-22 from long range, going 1-of-11 from beyond the arc in each half.
K-State connected on 45.2 percent (28-of-62) from the field with a season-high 46 points in the paint, while Arizona finished at 41.3 percent (26-of-63) shooting, including its 44 points in the paint. Both teams made 16 free throws.
The win enabled K-State to snap a 3-game losing streak to Arizona, as the home team earned their first win in the series since a 63-55 win at home on Dec. 9, 1981. K-State is now 6-0 all-time vs. Arizona at home, including 1-0 at Bramlage Coliseum.
K-State begins another 2-game road swing this week with a visit to Utah, where the Wildcats will face BYU (16-8, 7-6 Big 12) on Saturday at 7 p.m., CT on ESPN+ followed by Utah (13-11, 5-8 Big 12) on Monday at 8 p.m., CT on ESPN2. The team will return to Bramlage Coliseum on Sunday, Feb. 23 when they play host to Arizona State (12-11, 3-9 Big 12) at 3 p.m., CT on ESPN+. Tickets can be purchased online at kstatesports.com/tickets or by phone (800) 221.CATS.
HEAD COACH JEROME TANG
Opening statement…
“First of all, I want to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for the blessing of being able to work with these dudes every single day. Our message today, and the last couple of days was humility. For every 1,000 men who can handle adversity, only one can handle success. We wanted to show that we weren’t going to allow all the text messages, and everything else that people are saying, to impact what we needed to do to keep this thing going. All of that stuff just builds arrogance, and God can’t stand arrogance or pride. So, our thing is we want to be humble and keep working hard, realizing that it’s all of the little things that allow us to [succeed]. I’m very proud of our guys and thankful for our students and fans. I know we’ve got bad weather coming in, but to have people drive and come here tonight, and our students to show up, was a huge advantage for us and they impacted winning tonight.”
On the team’s new identity after facing adversity early in the season…
“We needed time. Over the course of time, our staff did an unbelievable job of connecting with our guys’ hearts. Our guys did an unbelievable job of opening their hearts and minds to what we needed to improve on and we did a really good job of listening to them. They had some thoughts that were very valuable in where we were at. This thing isn’t about coaches or X’s and O’s, it’s about players out there who decided they wanted to win more than anything else, and whatever was asked of them, or whatever was needed, they were willing to put forth. Last game we made shots, tonight we didn’t. We had to guard and not hang our heads when the ball didn’t go through the hole, and they did whatever was needed at the time for us to have a chance to win. So, all honor and glory goes to God.”
On Dug McDaniel’s leadership and improved play…
“I don’t think he realized how much he could impact the game without the ball in his hands. People put so much weight on how many points or how many assists from the point guard position, but there’s just so much more that the point guard has to do. What he’s done is he’s opened his heart and mind to say, ‘okay coach, what is it that you need from me?’ I’m watching him make that turn, and I think I’ve done a better job of being able to give him the information in a way that he could better receive it. But man, he wants to win. He said ‘coach, I want to go to the NCAA Tournament, and I want to be around winners.’ I know what his goal is, and I can rock with somebody like that.”
On whether or not Dug reminds him of Markquis Nowell…
“Yeah. I mean, we recruited him because we felt like he could give us that dynamic with his speed and his ability to score and put the defense in a bind. So, I’m super proud of him. But, his defense tonight, I know he had five steals, but that’s not even the best thing. The fact that he was tucking on ball screens, meeting guys where he’s supposed to meet them, and blocking out on the backside, those are the things that I’m fired up about.”
On the impact of the students and K-State community…
“To have a student section like that, who shows up on a night when it’s 19 degrees outside, and they stand in line and come to support us, I love that, I call them my people and I roll with them all of the time because they’ve got our backs. I know we’ve got two road games coming up, and then we come back home, but every game we play for the rest of the year is super important, and we need them. So, I’m so thankful for the students and the band. This is just an incredible community here at K-State. You’d be an idiot not to want to come here.”
FIRST HALF
The teams opened the game going back and forth, as they battled through 3 ties and 6 lead changes before K-State took a 10-9 lead into the first media timeout at the 15:43 mark. The game continued its back-and-forth nature with Arizona surging ahead 15-14 at the next media timeout.
A 4-minute scoring drought by K-State allowed Arizona to surge ahead 21-14 near the 8-minute mark. Junior Dug McDaniel’s layup right before the third media timeout just over 20 seconds later end the skid and pulled the home team within 21-16.
Arizona scored 8 of the next 14 points to expand its lead to 29-22 before K-State ended the half on a 13-0 run to take a 35-29 advantage into the locker room. Junior C.J. Jones and senior Max Jones each had 5 points in the pivotal stretch.
K-State shot 43.8 percent (14-of-32) from the field in the opening half, but just 1 of 10 from 3-point range, with 22 points in the paint. Arizona hit on 37.5 percent (12-of-32) of its field goals, including just 1 of 11 from beyond the arc, with 20 points in the paint.
McDaniel led all scorers with 11 points.
SECOND HALF
Arizona opened the second half with a layup to end the run before back-to-back baskets by Max Jones and McDaniel, along with a layup by senior David N’Guessan, helped K-State to a 41-35 lead at the first media timeout at the 15:20 mark.
K-State held a 45-38 after a layup by senior Coleman Hawkins before Arizona called a timeout with 13:06 remaining. The timeout seemed to work as the visitor rattled off 3 consecutive scores to close to within 45-44 just after the second media timeout. After a free throw by N’Guessan, Arizona continued its surge with back-to-back baskets to go ahead 48-46 at the 10:12 mark.
K-State responded with layups by N’Guessan and junior Brendan Hausen to retake the lead at 50-48 but two Arizona free throws once again tied it up at 50-all with 8:25 remaining. However, a 3-point play from N’Guessan and a jumper by McDaniel gave K-State a 55-52 lead at the next media timeout with 7:15 to play.
McDaniel was fouled on 3-pointer and made all 3 free throws to extend the lead to 58-52, but Arizona used a 10-2 run to jump ahead 62-60 with 3:29 remaining.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
- K-State (13-11, 7-6 Big 12) extended its winning streak to 6 games with a 73-70 win over No. 13/13 Arizona on Tuesday night at Bramlage Coliseum.
- The 6-game winning streak is the longest since a 9-game winning streak from Dec. 3 to Jan. 10, 2023… It is the longest such streak in Big 12 play since a 9-game winning streak from Jan. 9 to Feb. 12, 2019.
- K-State now leads the all-time series, 9-6, snapping a 3-game losing streak … It is the first win by K-State in the series since a 63-55 win on Dec. 9, 1981… K-State is now 6-0 all-time vs. Arizona at home, including 1-0 at Bramlage Coliseum.
- K-State is now 38-7 at Bramlage Coliseum under Tang, including 20-5 in Big 12 play.
- K-State is now 137-298 vs. Top 25 opponents, including 5-9 vs. the AP No. 13 team.
- Head coach Jerome Tang is now 13-3 at home vs. AP Top 25 opponents, including 4-1 in 2024-25… His 16 career Top 25 wins tie Tex Winter (1954-68) for the fourth-most in school history… His 16 wins rank third nationally since 2022-23.
- K-State is now 54-74 vs. Top 25 teams at Bramlage Coliseum, including 51-71 vs. ranked Big 12 opponents.
- K-State is now 440-151 all-time at Bramlage Coliseum, including 179-121 in league play.
- K-State used a starting lineup of junior Dug McDaniel, junior Brendan Hausen, senior Max Jones, senior Coleman Hawkins and senior David N’Guessan for the 14th time and the 13th straight game… Hausen, M. Jones, Hawkins and N’Guessan have now started the first 24 games… All 24 of Hausen’s career starts have come at K-State.
- Hawkins now has 106 career starts (Illinois/K-State), M. Jones now has 105 career starts (Tampa/Cal State Fullerton/K-State), N’Guessan now has 63 career starts (all at K-State) and McDaniel now has 66 career starts (Michigan/K-State).
TEAM NOTES
- K-State scored its 73 points on 45.2 percent (28-of-62) shooting, including 5.3 percent (1-of-19) from 3-point range, while hitting on 61.5 percent (16-of-26) from the free throw line.
- K-State is now 13-3 this season when scoring 70 or more points.
- K-State scored a season-high 46 points in the paint eclipsing the 42 vs. New Orleans in the season opener on Nov. 5, 2024… The team has 40+ points in the paint in 5 games.
- K-State forced Arizona into a Big 12 season-high 17 turnovers, including 14 steals… K-State scored 23 points off those turnovers.
- The 1-of-19 performance from the 3-point line was the worst by a K-State team with at least one make, surpassing a 1-of-18 effort at West Virginia on Jan. 26, 2016… There have been 6 instances where K-State did not make a 3-pointer in a game, including 0-of-13 vs. Wisconsin most recently in the 2008 NCAA Tournament.
- Arizona held a 46-33 advantage on the glass, including 13 offensive rebounds that the Wildcats converted 13 second-chance points (compared to 6 for K-State).
- K-State led 35-29 at the halftime and is now 13-4 on the season when leading at the half.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- Three Wildcats scored in double figures led by a game-high 24 points from junior Dug McDaniel… He was joined in double figures by senior David N’Guessan (16 points) and junior C.J. Jones (10 points).
- McDaniel scored his 24 points on 10-of-22 field goals, including 1-of-5 from 3-point range, to go with a career-tying 5 steals, 4 rebounds and 3 assists in 37 minutes… He now has 9 20-point games in his career, including 2 this season… He now has scored in double figures in 50 career games, including 13 this season.
- N’Guessan scored his 16 points on 7-of-9 field goals and 2-of-3 free throws to go with a team-high 7 rebounds… He now has 46 career double-digit scoring games, including a team-best 21 this season.
- Jones scored his 10 points on 4-of-7 field goals and 2-of-5 free throws to go with 4 rebounds and an assist in 19 minutes… He now has 28 career double-digit scoring games, including 3 this season (2 in Big 12 play).
