Jerome Tang’s new offensive coordinator has changes in mind for K-State basketball
Matthew Driscoll will formally be known as Jerome Tang’s associate head coach when he arrives in Manhattan within the next few weeks and officially joins the Kansas State basketball family.
But K-State fans will likely be more interested in his informal title of offensive coordinator, especially those who have grown frustrated by scoring struggles over the past two years.
After a terrific first season under Tang, the Wildcats have turned mediocre on offense. Two years ago, they ranked 136th nationally in Bart Torvik’s efficiency ratings and unsurprisingly missed the NCAA Tournament. Last year, their offense ranked 116th nationally in the same category and the team slumped to a losing record.
Both were massive drops in production from when K-State’s offense ranked inside the top 40 and the Wildcats reached the Elite Eight.
Tang felt like he needed a new offensive guru to help K-State get back its scoring mojo. And he made that abundantly clear after the Wildcats announced that Driscoll was leaving a head coaching job at North Florida to take over as the lead assistant in EMAW country.
“His ability to develop players,” Tang said, “and implement high-level offensive systems is second to none.”
So what kind of changes can K-State fans expect next season?
For starters, the Wildcats will almost certainly attempt more 3-pointers. A lot more. Driscoll loved to spread the floor and shoot from the perimeter when he was in charge at North Florida. In fact, the Ospreys ranked No. 1 nationally in 3-point rate in both 2024 and 2025. Nearly 54% of their shots came from beyond the arc in both seasons.
By comparison, K-State ranked 148th in 3-point rate last season at 40.2%.
North Florida made at least 35% of its perimeter shots in those years, which enabled the Ospreys to rank within the top 4 of the Atlantic Sun in scoring efficiency.
Driscoll’s teams also liked to play an up-tempo style throughout his long tenure at North Florida.
He explained his style during a Zoom interview with reporters on Friday, saying that he aims to have “constant pressure on the rim” in order to keep defenses off balance. Two of his favorite words are also “pace” and “space.”
“That’s why we’re always one of the best offensive teams in the country,” Driscoll said. “What it creates is the opportunity to have two gaps. When you have two gaps, you can really take the ball and put pressure on the rim.
“People think when you become a great 3-point shooting team, it’s because you have great players. Don’t get me wrong, players make plays. There’s no doubt about it. But when you have multiple guys, usually four for us (who can shoot and drive), it naturally creates space.”
He went on to stress the importance of taking open shots when they are available. Too often, he said, K-State players passed up good looks midway through a possession only to take a much worse attempt to beat the shot clock. Sometimes, the Wildcats just turned the ball over.
By tracking potential assists and urging his players to fire away when they are open, North Florida rarely turned it over.
He hopes K-State can follow the same model.
“If we continue to change just some minor things,” Driscoll said, “and continue to get better players and continue to help them understand that synergy (we will improve). Because when you have it, stuff just happens.”
Over the past two years, K-State predominantly ran a “five out” attack on offense. It led to the occasional big game for David N’Guessan, Coleman Hawkins, Brendan Hausen and Tylor Perry. But turnovers and poor shooting often doomed K-State to clunkers.
Tang would like to change that next season. A new offensive coordinator is on the way to help.
This story was originally published May 23, 2025 at 3:20 PM with the headline "Jerome Tang’s new offensive coordinator has changes in mind for K-State basketball."