First half

Key play: Rodney McGruder made a mid-range runner on K-State’s opening possession. It was sign of things to come.

Key stat: K-State made 61 percent of its shots.

Second half

Key play: Thomas Gipson blocked a shot on one end of the court and grabbed back-to-back offensive rebounds on the next possession. K-State dominated inside.

Key stat: K-State made two three-pointers in the game.

Southwell starts

Shane Southwell, a junior guard, got his first start of the year with Nino Williams recovering from a shoulder injury that he suffered against Gonzaga. Southwell played a hybrid position, posting up inside and bringing the ball up the court. He handled it well, finishing with eight points, seven rebounds and three assists in 36 minutes.

But Southwell thought he could do better. He was upset he didn’t make more shots and limit his turnovers.

“It was a mediocre game for me,” Southwell said.

Williams is expected to play against Florida.

Despite making all four of his shots, scoring eight points and grabbing two rebounds, senior forward Jordan Henriquez only played 10 minutes on Tuesday. Thomas Gipson and Shane Southwell played well inside and took away some of the minutes that would normally go his way.

Bill Snyder is up for the Paul “Bear” Bryant Coach of the Year Award for the second straight year. The K-State football coach was selected a finalist for the honor on Tuesday along with James Franklin of Vanderbilt, Urban Meyer of Ohio State, Bill O’Brien of Penn State, David Shaw of Stanford and Kevin Sumlin of Texas A&M.

| Kellis Robinett, krobinett@kcstar.com