Kansas State advanced to the second round of the Big 12 Tournament after a 71-66 win over Arizona State on Tuesday—a much-needed win against a team that beat them by double digits just a couple of weeks ago.
Despite a midseason resurgence that saw K-State string together six consecutive wins—including four wins over Top 25 teams—the Wildcats’ only chance of making an NCAA Tournament appearance is wining the Big 12 Tournament.
That’s a longshot considering some of the teams they’d have to go through, with Texas Tech waiting in the quarterfinal round, and teams like Arizona, Iowa State, and Houston likely waiting further down the road.
Kansas State, and more specifically Wildcats’ big man Coleman Hawkins, doesn’t see it that way, though. After Tuesday’s victory over the Sun Devils, Hawkins said he’s confident in this team’s ability to make that kind of run.
“My message to the team before we started the game was if there’s anyone in the country that can do what our task is to do, it’s us,” Coleman said. “I feel very comfortable with this group. I feel like we can beat anybody in this conference and I feel like March is made for these type of moments.
“We’re gonna play as hard as we can and go out and compete every night and try to accomplish something special.”
Hawkins ended the night with a season-best 26 points to help Kansas State advance to Day 2 of the Big 12 Tournament, where the Wildcats will now face No. 7 seed Baylor. The Wildcats and Bears played once this season, with BU winning in Waco, 70-62.
Tip-off is scheduled for 6 pm CT, with coverage provided on ESPN.
