‘It’s about the next thing’: Why K-State’s hot start doesn’t mean much to Jerome Tang
It took Jerome Tang nine seconds to respond to the question.
How meaningful is it for him to have guided the Kansas State men’s basketball team to a 9-1 record and to own the best start by a first-year coach in school history?
Tang could have gone in many different ways with his answer. After all, he currently owns bragging rights over a long list of accomplished coaches who came before him. Bruce Weber, Frank Martin, Bob Huggins, Dana Altman and Lon Kruger have all coached in the Final Four, but none of them got off to a hotter start than Tang during their first seasons in Manhattan.
Maybe Tang thought about taking a victory lap when he was given the opportunity. All sorts of ideas must have cycled through his brain as he sat silently for those nine seconds, deciding what to say. But he ultimately took a different approach, and it offered a window into the type of coach he wants to be with the Wildcats.
“I hadn’t really thought about that,” Tang eventually said with a shrug.
Tang has worked so tirelessly since taking over as K-State’s head coach that he was unaware that a 9-1 start had special meaning for the Wildcats. It’s the best start for any K-State team since the 2011-12 season.
Truth be told, he was more worried about helping his players make it through finals week and studying up on K-State’s next opponent than anything that happened in the first 10 games of the season.
“Our whole staff, we are such forward thinkers,” Tang said. “It’s not about what we have accomplished. It’s about the next thing. We did what we needed to do today, and now the next couple of days we need to figure out the best way to be prepared to do a great job with our exams and then be ready for Nebraska.”
When evaluating the early portion of K-State’s basketball season from a view of 10,000 feet, there are reasons for both celebration and concern.
Let’s start with the good. The Wildcats own victories over three teams that rank inside the Ken Pomeroy top 100 — Nevada (85), LSU (66) and Wichita State (84). They can add a fourth by beating Nebraska (81) on Saturday at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City.
K-State also won a tournament trophy at the Cayman Islands Classic. That early success has pushed the Wildcats up to No. 56 nationally, per Pomeroy. They are also receiving votes in both of the top 25 polls. ESPN currently projects them to reach the NCAA Tournament as a No. 11 seed.
Keyontae Johnson is averaging 17.3 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. Markquis Nowell is playing like one of the most improved point guards in the country. Nae’Qwan Tomlin could mature into a terrific player.
If the season ended today, Tang’s first year in purple would be considered a huge success.
Switching to the negatives, K-State lost its only true road game against a team with a pulse by double digits (76-64 at Butler) and needed late heroics to beat Nevada, LSU and Wichita State. It’s not like the Wildcats are demolishing everyone in their path.
On offense, they often struggle to make shots from three-point range (34.4%) and have a turnover rate (19.9%) that is far too high.
Tang also seems to truly trust only seven of his players and has used a small rotation in recent games. Depth is not currently a strength for K-State, as three players sit out this season with redshirts.
It’s fair to wonder how the Wildcats will hold up in the Big 12, where every team other than K-State currently ranks inside the Pomeroy top 50.
Impressive as Tang’s start has been, his finish will ultimately decide how his first year as a head coach will be judged.
That’s probably why he was much quicker to answer a question about what he thinks of the Big 12 this season.
“The league is incredible,” Tang said. “Who is not a NCAA Tournament caliber team in our league? It’s going to be a bunch of one-possession games and people beating up on each other. ... I’m looking forward to it.”
This story was originally published December 15, 2022 at 9:41 AM with the headline "‘It’s about the next thing’: Why K-State’s hot start doesn’t mean much to Jerome Tang."