Three takeaways from Kansas State’s exhibition basketball win over Pittsburg State
The Kansas State Wildcats men’s basketball team easily defeated the Pittsburg State Gorillas 78-59 in an exhibition game on Thursday at Bramlage Coliseum.
Here are some key takeaways from the game before K-State officially opens the season next week against Florida A&M.
Markquis Nowell is going to be fun to watch
The transfer guard from Arkansas-Little Rock was far and away the most exciting player on the court. He played with relentless energy every minute he was in the game and stuffed the stat sheet in every possible category.
Nowell finished with nine points, three assists, one rebound, two fouls ... and six turnovers.
That last number will obviously need to go down if he hopes to enter the starting lineup. Still, the good outweighed the bad in his K-State debut.
His two most impressive plays came on a deep three-pointer from the wing in the first half and a reverse layup against a much taller defender.
K-State coach Bruce Weber seemed to hold his breath every time Nowell came off the bench. Weber recruited Nowell for his shooting, defense and energy. Nowell delivered in all three categories, but Nowell was also a bit too aggressive at times, such as when he air-mailed a fullcourt pass to Mike McGuirl on a potential fastbreak play rather than simply bringing the ball up court himself. Weber didn’t admonish him for the mistake, but he was clearly not thrilled about the decision.
“He is dynamic, but he also has to learn that you don’t have to do everything every time,” Weber said. “He just over does it a little bit. Sometimes he will make a mistake and then try to go make another big play. He’s got to be a little more solid with the ball. But it was good for him.”
It will be interesting to see if Nowell learns how to take his foot of the metaphorical pedal at times as he settles into his new role with the Wildcats.
This team can make shots
It was only one exhibition game against a Division II opponent, but that was enough for the Wildcats to show they are a much improved team in the shooting department.
Scoring was a chore for K-State last year. Outside of McGuirl and Nijel Pack, no one on the roster could consistently make shots from the outside.
This team shouldn’t have that problem, thanks to an influx of transfers.
Mark Smith can get hot from the outside, Ismael Massoud has the size an touch to create his own shot from just about anywhere and Nowell can make shots all the way out at the halfcourt logo.
“They all impressed me,” K-State guard Selton Miguel said. “You saw it tonight. They all bring something to the table.”
They all showed off their touch against the Gorillas. Logan Landers, McGuirl, Miguel and Pack also made some shots.
Nine players saw extended action for the Wildcats, and all nine of them scored.
K-State shot 45.8% from the field and made eight three-pointers. The Wildcats averaged 1.05 points per possession.
Weber will gladly take those same numbers when the regular season begins.
The Wildcats have two big, versatile guards
Weber went with Smith in the starting lineup instead of Miguel, but it’s clear both guards are going to play a lot of important minutes this season.
Smith, a 6-foot-4 transfer from Missouri, led the Wildcats in hustle plays and did a little bit of everything. He finished with six points, five assists and 13 rebounds. That kind of effort created scoring opportunities for his teammates, and his defense was also solid.
Miguel, a 6-foot-4 sophomore, quietly led all scorers with 18 points. He came off the bench and looked much improved on the offensive end by driving to the basket and draining the occasional outside shot. But he also had six rebounds and one assist.
Interestingly, Weber said he started Smith in this game because he came off the bench and led K-State in scoring during a recent scrimmage against Oregon. Then Miguel did the exact same thing against Pittsburg State. There seems to be some healthy competition there.
Weber wants to rotate between big and small lineups this season, and he will be able to do exactly that if Miguel and Smith continue to provide that kind of versatility. If they are going to crash the boards, there is no reason for the Wildcats to insist on having two traditional bigs on the floor at all times.
“With the different lineups we have, we’re going to be playing a lot faster this year,” Smith said, “maybe not calling as many plays and just kind of playing up and down and getting into offense.”
K-State actually played some of its best basketball in this game without a towering center. Davion Bradford didn’t play while recovering from an illness and Kaosi Ezeagu spent lots of time on the bench in foul trouble. The Wildcats played fast and confident without them, turning to Landers and Massoud as their forwards.
Landers had an impressive 11 points and eight rebounds in his K-State debut.
Miguel and Smith opened up some fun lineup possibilities.
This story was originally published November 4, 2021 at 9:28 PM with the headline "Three takeaways from Kansas State’s exhibition basketball win over Pittsburg State."