K-State beats Long Beach State to win Diamond Head Classic

By KELLIS ROBINETT

The Kansas City Star

Twitter | Kellis Robinett tweets about K-State sports

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HONOLULU | The Kansas State basketball team’s championship run in the Diamond Head Classic could be summed up with one play during a 77-60 victory over Long Beach State on Sunday at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Late in the first half, Thomas Gipson held the ball in the paint with his back to the basket and all kinds of options. The freshman could have turned around and attempted a jumper and he could have driven to the rim and tried to beat his defender for a highlight play. Instead, he flipped the ball to a cutting Jamar Samuels, who threw down an emphatic two-handed dunk.

Not only did the Wildcats (10-1) pull ahead by 13 points at the time, and maintain a double-digit advantage the rest of the way over the 49ers (7-6), it showed exactly the type of team they are becoming.

They value scoring as a group more than scoring as individuals, they enjoy making the extra pass and they adore playing high-energy basketball.

K-State found a way to mix all that together for three games in four days, and for that reason left Hawaii with the Christmas gift it wanted. The Wildcats claimed their first tournament championship since 2006 when it defeated New Mexico to win the Las Vegas Holiday Classic.

Bringing a trophy back to Manhattan was something Frank Martin and his players talked about all week leading up to these games. They wanted to accomplish something that hadn’t recently been done at K-State, and they did. As a bonus, it may move into the Top 25 for the first time this week.

It was something everyone on the team could appreciate, because they all played a part.

On Sunday, Rodney McGruder did most of the heavy lifting. The junior forward made 10 of 11 shots from the field on his way to a game-high 28 points. He was strong from the opening tip, making all five of shots in the first half and taking a gutsy charge that helped the Wildcats build a big lead.

He stayed hot all night, and made several key shots in the second half as well. After beginning the tournament with two sub-par games by his standards, he guided the Wildcats when it mattered most. For his efforts, he was named tournament MVP.

But what makes K-State so dynamic, especially in a tournament setting, is that it doesn’t rely on any single player to win.

While McGruder was quiet early in this tournament, along with fellow starters Will Spradling, Martavious Irving and Thomas Gipson, K-State’s bench had two big games. Freshman guard Angel Rodriguez had led K-State in scoring on back-to-back nights. On Sunday, he was held scoreless. It didn’t matter.

Thanks to 17 points from Will Spradling, 11 points and eight rebounds from Jamar Samuels, a high-pressure defensive effort that had Long Beach State exhausted by halftime and 14 assists, K-State still won rather easily.

With a tournament championship on the line, it was exactly the scenario K-State was hoping for.

It played its style of basketball to get there.

KANSAS STATE NOTEBOOK

FUTURE TOURNAMENTS: K-State is still planning which nonconference tournaments it will play in during future seasons, but it knows where it will head next year: The preseason NIT. If the Wildcats can win two home games during the tournament’s early rounds it will advance to New York to play two games in Madison Square Garden.

THE LONG TRIP HOME: The Wildcats began their journey home to Manhattan immediately after Sunday’s game. It headed to the Honolulu airport and boarded a plane headed for Los Angeles. From there it was scheduled to change airlines and fly to Kansas City with a stop in Denver on the way. After a bus ride to Manhattan, the team was schedule to return home at about 6:30 p.m.

WORTH NOTING: Junior transfer Jeremy Jones showed no signs of injury during Sunday’s game. He rolled his left ankle in the semifinals against Texas-El Paso but had enough time to heal with a day off in between games … Martavious Irving and Rodney McGruder both briefly left Sunday’s game with injuries, but were able to return and celebrate with the team afterward … McGruder and Jamar Samuels both made the Diamond Head Classic all-tournament team.