Five takeaways from Kansas State’s overtime win against Michigan State in Sweet 16
Nothing, it seems, can stop Markquis Nowell from leading the Kansas State men’s basketball team to greatness in this NCAA Tournament.
Not even an injury to his right ankle slowed him down during a 98-93 overtime victory over Michigan State in a Sweet 16 game on Thursday at Madison Square Garden.
That made this an instant classic.
“It was like a Rocky fight tonight,” Nowell said. “We were going back and forth, and a lot of guys made big-time plays.”
But it was Nowell who made the most. The senior point guard from Harlem had his third straight sensational game in March Madness, finishing with 20 points and 19 assists despite missing a two-minute stretch of the second half when he was unable to put any weight on his right foot following an injury suffered under the basket.
K-State fans everywhere held their breath as he rolled around the floor in pain and then needed to be helped off the floor by a pair of team trainers. Was he done for the game? Fortunately, he was not.
Trainers wrapped up his ankle with tape and he re-entered the game after a brief absence. He was clearly in pain, but that didn’t stop him from putting up big numbers.
His 19 assists set a new single-game record for the NCAA Tournament. No one in the history of this event has had more assists in a game than Nowell.
“I just wanted to do it for my teammates,” Nowell said. “I love being out there with these guys. I wasn’t going to let a little injury like this that happens on the basketball court all the time stop me from playing in the Sweet 16 and advancing to the Elite Eight.”
He also set the record while playing in his hometown. After the final buzzer sounded, the folks at Madison Square Garden flashed his picture on the video board and announced his achievement with his family and closest friends watching.
What a moment.
He fittingly tied the record for assists with a lob dunk to Keyontae Johnson in overtime and then broke it with an inbound pass to Ismael Massoud, which he turned into a fadeaway jumper that swished through the net.
Those buckets allowed K-State to survive a thrilling, back-and-forth game that was easily the most exciting game of March Madness thus far.
No lead was safe. Neither team held an advantage of more than nine points. They went toe to toe like a pair of heavyweight boxers.
“It was an amazing college basketball game,” K-State forward Ismael Massoud said. “Looking back, I’m sure that will be one of the best college basketball games in history. Those are the type of games you grow up watching. To be a part of it, it was a blessing from God, really.”
Nowell led the Wildcats, but he got lots of help. Keyontae Johnson had 22 points and Massoud delivered 15. AJ Hoggard led Michigan State with 25.
With the win, the Wildcats advanced to the Elite Eight for the third time in the past 13 years. They will play Florida Atlantic at 5:09 p.m. (central time) on Saturday. A win in that game would propel them to their first Final Four since 1964.
Until then, here are some key takeaways from Thursday’s action:
Markquis Nowell continued his rampage through the bracket
Is anyone in all of college basketball playing at a higher level than Markquis Nowell right now?
That question can almost be asked rhetorically at this point. There is a very strong chance he would win MVP honors for the NCAA Tournament if that award was handed out after three rounds instead of six.
Nowell began March Madness hot with 17 points and 14 assists against Montana State. Then he backed that up with 27 points and nine rebounds. He was excellent once again vs. Michigan State, finishing the night with 20 points, 19 assists and five steals.
And he did it on one foot for much of the second half.
No one has been better than Nowell in March and he proved that once again on the biggest stage yet.
“He is the best point guard in the country,” K-State guard Desi Sills said. “This is what we expect from him every single game.”
K-State shot the cover off the ball from three
It shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise that Nowell piled up so many assists in this game.
The Wildcats were draining every shot they looked at while he was getting them the ball, especially from three-point range.
That was particularly true in the first half when he had 10 assists and a whopping six different players made shots from three-point range. Massoud made two and Johnson, Cam Carter, Desi Sills, David N’Guessan and Nowell all made one.
It was one of the most impressive shooting performances of the entire NCAA Tournament. It was also unexpected given how poorly the Wildcats shot from beyond the arc in their first two games of March Madness.
They were ready to make shots inside Madison Square Garden and ended up 11 of 24 from beyond the arc. It’s nearly impossible to beat K-State when it makes shots like that.
Call him “Swish” Massoud
No one had a hotter shooting touch than K-State junior forward Ismael Massoud in this game.
The Harlem native drained three-pointers from all over the court and shot the Wildcats into the Elite Eight.
He made 4 of 6 shots from beyond the arc and finished with 15 points.
His fadeaway jumper in overtime was the decisive shot of the game. He is a big reason why the Wildcats survived and advanced.
“When I’m locked in like that and I’m making shots, I try not to think about anything,” Massoud said. “But I remember when I made my first one I was like, ‘OK, if I can get a couple other of these to go down I’m going to keep knocking them down.’ That’s exactly what happened.”
Limiting turnovers and win
The Wildcats committed a season-low five turnovers on Thursday.
That is a tremendous number for K-State. Jerome Tang has a goal of 11 turnovers or less in every game and his team had no problem limiting turnovers against Michigan State. The Wildcats are undefeated when they keep their turnovers below that key number.
They also kept their turnovers low against Kentucky. No wonder they keep winning in this tournament.
Another overtime win for the Wildcats
Tang had a big smile on his face when Michigan State hit a shot in the final seconds to force overtime against K-State.
Why?
He knew his team was going to win. K-State entered Thursday with a 4-0 record in overtime games. They pulled away once again.
“We haven’t lost an overtime game this year,” Tang said. “When we sat down in the huddle every one of them said, ‘Hey we don’t lose in overtime.’ They knew it. We’ve been here before. This is fine. Five more minutes. Everyone was confident.”
This story was originally published March 23, 2023 at 8:16 PM with the headline "Five takeaways from Kansas State’s overtime win against Michigan State in Sweet 16."