Oklahoma’s Lon Kruger is in group of Big 12 coaches with strong K-State ties

Lon Kruger used to feel strange coaching from the visitors’ bench at Bramlage Coliseum, but he’s not expecting butterflies when he enters the building on Saturday.

Even though Kruger played at Kansas State, coached at Kansas State and watched his jersey get retired at Kansas State, he has learned how to block out nostalgic feelings and focus on helping Oklahoma win basketball games inside the arena he once called home. His sixth trip to Bramlage with the Sooners will feel nearly routine.

“Time has passed,” Kruger said earlier this week. “So, from an emotional standpoint, not so much. I have a lot of great memories and see a lot of great people when I go back. It’s a terrific opportunity to relive some of those opportunities. But, again, time has passed. It’s more about the players and helping them go out there and make plays.”

K-State fans seem to feel the same way.

They more or less have to. Though it’s rare for a college basketball team to regularly face one of its former players and coaches, it’s common in Manhattan. Not only do the Wildcats see Kruger at least twice a season, they also encounter former K-State coach Bob Huggins with West Virginia and former K-State player/coach Brad Underwood with Oklahoma State.

“I think as a K-State person you should feel proud that you have got guys that were associated with the program,” K-State coach Bruce Weber said. “Not just those guys, but I don’t think people appreciate Tex Winter, Jack Gardner and all the other guys that came through here, Jack Hartman. In the history of college basketball we have had some really great coaches.

“ ... All of them, from Lon to Huggins to Underwood, even Dana Altman (Oregon), they all speak very highly of K-State and their time here.”

The weirdest thing about games involving them is that they don’t feel weird at all.

Beyond the first meeting, casual fans might not notice the connections. Huggins never makes a big deal about facing his old team, and Underwood is learning not to.

“I don’t like playing friends,” Underwood said. “That is very challenging in itself. Knowing so many people in this league and having those relationships is something I have to grow into a little bit and obviously deal with. However long the game goes, it’s about the players. I think sometimes too much gets made about the head coach. It’s about the players. I try to keep it that simple and in that perspective.”

Repeated matchups with former K-Staters can be challenging for Weber, given how much Huggins, Kruger and Underwood know about the Wildcats, but Kruger has held his own against them.

Weber has never lost at home to Kruger, going 6-2 overall. He is 3-5 against Huggins. He will face Underwood for the first time on Jan. 18.

One thing he has learned about facing coaches with K-State ties: They are fighters.

“I know Lon is a competitor,” Weber said. “You talk to guys that played with him and against him and they will all tell you that. He is always competing, so you have to be ready to play.”

This story was originally published January 6, 2017 at 6:35 PM with the headline "Oklahoma’s Lon Kruger is in group of Big 12 coaches with strong K-State ties."