Kansas State Basketball has become as relevant as its football program as of late, losing to Loyola in the Elite Eight is nothing to be upset about.
Before this season started, many experts and know-it-all voices had the Wildcats finishing toward the bottom of a league that would prove to be one of the best. Not only did the Wildcats finish fourth in a tough conference, they made it all the way to the Elite Eight. Similar to the football program in Manhattan, Kansas State Basketball is a relevant program.
Let’s face it, Kansas State did better than we all expected this season. That is a testament to what Bruce Weber actually brings to this program. So what if he can’t beat Kansas, he isn’t the only one, he just needs to beat everybody else.
The biggest question mark in this tournament for Kansas State was whether or not they could keep advancing with out the contributions of Dean Wade. In the game against the Cinderella Ramblers from Loyola, not even a healthy Wade could have helped.
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Loyola came out attacking, after falling behind 5-4, yes, 5-4, the Ramblers took off and never really looked back. Mid-way through the second half the Ramblers led by a whopping 23 points on their way to an easy 78-62 win.
It happens
The tournament is a crazy thing. You put these teams against each other 100 times and the results will definitely go to the better team. If Virginia played UMBC 99 more times, their record very well may be 99-1. The Wildcats would probably win at least 80 of 100 against Loyola. This is the big dance though, what is supposed to happen, very rarely does.
The Wildcats went from a team really playing without any pressure to being one of the most watched teams in the tournament, not for who they are, but who they were playing.
After Kansas State beat Creighton in the opening round, their next round opponent wasn’t the number one overall seed in the tournament as expected. Nope, they got to face the first ever No. 16 seed in the 2nd round.
The whole country was behind the Retrievers of UMBC. Of course, why wouldn’t they? America loves the under-dog. Kansas State got the pleasure of being the ultimate villain in that game, and they put the nation’s hopes to bed with a 50-43 victory over the darling Retrievers, ending the movement.
Next up was blue-blood Kentucky. The Wildcats in blue hadn’t quite had the year they were hoping to have, but still found themselves in the Sweet Sixteen. Few believed Kansas State would be able to advance beyond Kentucky, but that defense Bruce Weber brings was just enough to send the Wildcats players home, without a hand shake.
As disappointing as it is for Wildcat fans, Kansas State made the Elite Eight. They lost to what has turned out to be the media’s favorite new toy, Loyola. With Sister Jean in tow, Loyola has a chance to become the lowest seed to ever win a championship, and there is no reason to think they can’t. The players and staff should hold their heads high, Kansas State had a heck of a run and absolutely nobody should say otherwise.
Be excited
Kansas State will return almost everybody next season. They are bring back all but 1.8 points and 1.9 rebounds per game, losing senior forward Mawdo Sallah. Barry Brown, Dean Wade, Xavier Sneed, Kamau Stokes, Cartier Diarra, Makol Mawien, Amaad Wainright and Mike McGuirl should all be back.
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That means the experience that this years team received, that defense that they brought to the table, it’s all coming back next season. The Wildcats should be expected to at least return to the Sweet Sixteen. In fact, they may be in the best shape to upend Kansas for the Big 12 title.