Entering the 2022-23 college basketball season, Kansas State Basketball was a near-consensus pick to finish last in the Big 12 and have no hope of a postseason appearance. It made sense at the time, as first-year head coach Jerome Tang was taking over a roster with questions regarding its talent, especially compared to the rest of the league.
But the Wildcats were impressive early, going 12-1 in the non-conference that only had a loss to Butler. Yet there was still some doubt about how good they’d be in Big 12 play, where all 10 teams looked to be formidable and a tough out both at home and on the road. Kansas State proved to be a tough out in itself, winning a pair of overtime games and scoring 116 points against Texas to move to 4-1 and tied for second in the standings, heading into a matchup with rival Kansas at home.
The Jayhawks were the lone team without a loss in league play entering Tuesday night but all but one game came down to the final minute. At some point, the odds eventually go away from you and you lose one. But, Kansas, who trailed for most of the second half against the Wildcats, once again found a way to force the game into overtime, led by 38 points from Jalen Wilson.
In the end, though, Kansas State prevailed in the final five minutes to pull off the 83-82 overtime victory. There is a lot to take away from this game from a team likely to be ranked in the top 10 next week in the AP poll. Here are the three things that stood out to me.