Kansas State blows by Coppin State 83-58, improves to 7-1
Kansas State’s 83-58 victory over Coppin State was exactly the result coach Bruce Weber was hoping for on Wednesday at Bramlage Coliseum.
Sure, execution could have been better, and the Wildcats could have made more shots, but there was no complaining about the final score. It was their first drama-free win in 2 1/2 weeks, and it provided the desired warm up for a challenging trip to Texas A&M on Saturday.
“Every win is a good win,” said K-State senior guard Justin Edwards after scoring 14 points. “I think we kind of wanted more out of this. We wanted to go up a bit more and get rest and let the other players go in, but we enjoyed it and had fun. It was good.”
K-State (7-1) continued its strong start by outclassing Coppin State (2-7) in every facet. The Wildcats jumped to an early lead, won the rebounding battle and made several nice hustle plays.
At one point in the second half, guard Carlbe Ervin crashed into a monitor on press row while trying to save a ball from going out of bounds. The play didn’t work and Coppin State was rewarded the ball, but Ervin showed no regret. Like many on this roster, he prides himself on hard play.
That helped K-State cruise despite 12 turnovers in the first half and sloppy play at times in the second.
“We did a good job of that today,” said K-State junior guard Wesley Iwundu. “We got off to a great start today and then kind of slowed down. As far as being prepared for the game, you just have to be consistent with it.”
The Wildcats continue to show consistency on offense.
Five K-State players reached double figures and another had nine points. Justin Edwards and Wesley Iwundu led the way with 14 points each, Dean Wade and Stephen Hurt both added 12 points and Austin Budke finished with 11.
Things were going so well that seldom-used walk-on Zach Winter drained a three in the final minute.
“We have been a team,” Weber said. “That has been our strength and if we are going to continue to make progress that has got to be the thing that carries us. They did crash the glass and hurt us on the boards. We also had turnovers in the first half. Those are two things you are disappointed in, but we are 7-1.”
That made it a fun evening for everyone associated with the home team.
Coppin State never threatened, making 28.8 percent of its shots and going 2 for 21 from three-point range.
Now the Wildcats can start focusing on the Aggies, potentially the strongest opponent they will face before the start of Big 12 play next month.
As good as K-State has looked early into the season, it hasn’t beaten a high-level team. That will change if it takes down Texas A&M on the road.
“Do we have to get better? Yes, we do have to get better, Weber said. “I hope they understand that. That is what we are pushing for. We will have a big game Saturday against a Top 25 team on the road. I think we have proven we can play with people. Now, we have got to do it consistently.”
KANSAS STATE 83, COPPIN STATE 58
TableStyle: SP-bkwideplayersCCI Template: SP-bkwideplayers
COPPIN STATE | Min | FG-A | FT-A | O-R | A | PF | PT |
Harris Jr | 32 | 4-11 | 6-8 | 2-4 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
Simpson | 21 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 2-4 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Sylvester | 23 | 4-14 | 4-7 | 5-8 | 2 | 3 | 12 |
Kessee | 25 | 4-8 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 3 | 4 | 11 |
Shivers | 29 | 2-10 | 1-2 | 2-4 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
Treadwell | 19 | 1-10 | 5-6 | 3-3 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
Brownlee | 15 | 1-4 | 1-2 | 0-2 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
Fejokwu | 13 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
Hicks | 11 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 2-5 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
Batts | 6 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Armstrong | 3 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Murinda | 3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
TEAM | 4-6 | ||||||
Totals | 200 | 19-66 | 18-27 | 20-42 | 8 | 21 | 58 |
Percentages: FG .288, FT .667. Three-Point Goals: 2-21, .095 (Kessee 2-5, Hicks 0-1, Harris Jr. 0-2, Brownlee 0-2, Shivers 0-3, Treadwell 0-4, Sylvester 0-4). Blocked Shots: 6 (Fejokwu 3, Shivers, Simpson, Batts). Turnovers: 11 (Shivers 3, Kessee 3, Harris Jr., Brownlee, Treadwell, Simpson, Sylvester). Steals: 4 (Kessee, Shivers, Sylvester, Simpson). Technical Fouls: None.
TableStyle: SP-bkwideplayersCCI Template: SP-bkwideplayers
KANSAS STATE | Min | FG-A | FT-A | O-R | A | PF | PT |
Wade | 22 | 5-6 | 2-5 | 3-7 | 1 | 3 | 12 |
Hurt | 22 | 5-9 | 1-1 | 2-5 | 2 | 3 | 12 |
Stokes | 22 | 2-10 | 0-0 | 0-3 | 5 | 2 | 5 |
Edwards | 27 | 5-10 | 2-3 | 3-6 | 3 | 1 | 14 |
Iwundu | 29 | 4-7 | 6-8 | 0-3 | 5 | 0 | 14 |
Budke | 20 | 2-2 | 7-8 | 2-7 | 0 | 2 | 11 |
Brown | 19 | 3-9 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 1 | 1 | 9 |
Ervin II | 17 | 0-5 | 0-0 | 1-3 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
Johnson | 8 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-3 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Rohleder | 8 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
Freeman | 4 | 0-2 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Winter | 2 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
TEAM | 3-3 | ||||||
Totals | 200 | 28-64 | 19-27 | 16-43 | 22 | 18 | 83 |
Percentages: FG .438, FT .704. Three-Point Goals: 8-23, .348 (Brown 3-6, Edwards 2-4, Hurt 1-2, Winter 1-2, Stokes 1-6, Freeman 0-1, Ervin II 0-2). Blocked Shots: 4 (Hurt 2, Johnson, Edwards). Turnovers: 12 (Edwards 3, Stokes 2, Johnson 2, Budke, Wade, Hurt, Brown). Steals: 6 (Edwards 2, Brown 2, Freeman, Stokes). Technical Fouls: None.
Half: Kansas State 42-29. Att: 11,409. Officials: Ray Natili, Paul Janssen, Marques Pettigrew.
AP-WF-12-10-15 0330GMT
Kellis Robinett: @KellisRobinett
This story was originally published December 9, 2015 at 8:08 PM with the headline "Kansas State blows by Coppin State 83-58, improves to 7-1."