Kansas State Wildcats look to snap long losing streak in basketball road games at TCU
How long has it been since the Kansas State men’s basketball team won its last road game?
The answer to that trivia question might surprise you.
Even though the Wildcats gave their fans reason to hope for a mid-season turnaround when they upset No. 17 Cincinnati earlier this week, it’s worth pointing out that game was played in front of a friendly crowd inside Bramlage Coliseum.
Coach Jerome Tang’s team has won plenty of games over the past few seasons at the Octagon of Doom. But that kind of success has been hard to duplicate away from home.
K-State hasn’t won a road game in nearly a year. The last time it happened was when it defeated West Virginia 81-67 on Jan. 9 of 2024. The Wildcats have lost 10 straight road games since then. They dropped their final eight road contests of conference play last season and then suffered a pair of blowout losses at St. John’s and Wichita State this season.
The Wildcats will look to end that streak at 3 p.m. on Saturday when it takes on TCU at Schollmaier Arena in Fort Worth.
“This is the best league in America,” Tang said. “We play in great venues against great coaches and great teams. We tried to (simulate) that in the non-conference to give us a chance to know what it’s about. But winning on the road is hard.”
It’s possible this could be a get-right opportunity for K-State. At 7-5, the Horned Frogs are not exactly setting the college basketball world on fire this season.
A win would be quite meaningful for the Wildcats. With TCU and Oklahoma State up next, they have an opportunity to start fast in conference play before they enter the hardest stretch of their schedule.
But both of K-State’s next two games will be on the road, which hasn’t been kind to them over the past year.
“In the Big 12 every team is a beast,” Tang said. “You have to bring the same type of energy on the road. You don’t have the crowd, so you have got to be even more locked in. That’s just a tough thing.”
K-State players seem eager to end their road losing streak.
Beating Cincinnati boosted their confidence, and they are ready to leave the past behind them.
“Our mindset has just been that we’re 0-0 coming into conference play,” guard Coleman Hawkins said. “This is where we’re going to try to make the most noise.
“We’re going to play extremely hard, no matter where the location is every night we step on the court whether it’s a road game or a hostile environment. I feel like the (non-conference season) has prepared us for that. Conference play is where we can really put a stamp on things and come together as a team.”
This story was originally published January 3, 2025 at 10:08 AM with the headline "Kansas State Wildcats look to snap long losing streak in basketball road games at TCU."