Luis Colon News

Here's a fun game. Find a Kansas State basketball roster from the pre-Bob Huggins era, and see where all the players came from.

“He's the type of kid Frank (Martin) loves.”

It can be said with certainty. Kansas State is concerned about its perimeter game. via The Wichita Eagle

“We accepted it during the course of the season”

He practically brags about being stubborn, but Frank Martin couldn't help but wonder if he was hindering more than helping.

So, shortly after Kansas State's Big 12 Tournament quarterfinal loss to Texas A&M, Martin decided that he and his coaching staff would have to change their methods because this -- five losses in the last seven games -- wasn't tolerable.

'It's a new season,' Martin said Friday. 'I was unhappy with losing to Texas A&M. We fought and tried, but I wasn't going to accept it. We went into Monday's practice with the approach that we're all in this together. It's not anybody's fault, but it's a brand new season. Everyone is going to re-earn their jobs, their playing time. Read more

For the first time in 20 years, the Kansas State men's basketball team has won a game in the NCAA Tournament.No. 11-seeded K-State beat No. via KansasCity.com

“He knows this face D-ing him up”

Now you know - Ran into Mike, who looked relieved to be no longer answering questions. via The Wichita Eagle

“We came back on them at our place, and they said that wasn't going to happen this time”

There was no messing around this time.

Not for Kansas State's basketball team after the misstep against these same Missouri Tigers in Columbia on Feb. 2. The 18th-ranked Wildcats not only held onto their big halftime lead Saturday, they stretched it.

Then stretched it some more, finally spending the final 10 minutes of their extra-dominating 100-63 win toying with the clearly out-manned, out-talented, out-everythinged Tigers.

In those 10 minutes:

** Michael Beasley put the finishing touches on his career-high-tying 40 points with an easy lay-in off the glass. Read more

Orlin Wagner AP Photo Missouri coach Mike Anderson directs his team during the first half of their college basketball game against Kansas State in Manhattan, Kan., Saturday, Feb. via The News Tribune

“He can play like that a lot more than he does right now”

Three-point goals--OSU 8-21 ; KSU 9-19 . Steals--OSU 7 . Blocks--OSU 3 ; KSU 4 . Technicals--OSU team. via Kansas.com

“They were tougher than we were tonight.”

Wearing a dark suit and broad grin, Clent Stewart did his best Luis Colon impression on the Kansas State bench. via WHB-AM Independence

“We're family -- we're not a basketball team. We're brothers.... We are just one big family.”

For someone who insisted following an 82-61 rout of Oklahoma State that he didn't care about winning right now, Kansas State coach Frank Martin worked awfully hard Saturday.

But that wasn't the reason why he said, almost in a whisper an hour after the final buzzer, 'I'm tired.'

'One of ours was down,' Martin said. 'To me, that was the only thing that matters.'

Clent Stewart's mother, Vanessa, died Tuesday after a prolonged battle with bone cancer. The No. 20 Wildcats played and defeated Nebraska on Wednesday without Stewart, but he was in their minds. Read more

“It can be aggravating, but most of the time it's not a season-ending thing”

MANHATTAN, Kan. | When Michael Beasley decides to leave Kansas State, after his freshman basketball season or whenever, he certainly will leave big shoes to fill.

Let's hope the guy who tries to walk in them won't have a bum right big toe.

The biggest concern these days among K-State's fan base probably focuses more on Beasley's jammed toe rather than when he will leave for NBA riches. In the last two games, Beasley has come up gimpy from a jammed toe, the pain bad enough that he briefly exited games because of it. Read more

At this point, Beasley looks like the most valuable player in all of college basketball. via The Topeka Capital-Journal

Issue date: 1/25/08 Section: Fourum Hey, Fourum, stop printing stuff about the Stuni. via Kansas State Collegian

“They'll run that back-door Princeton stuff on you all night long if you're not prepared for it”

By Harold Bechard - The Hutchinson News - hbechard@hutchnews.com It took Frank Martin about two hours to enjoy the win over 10th-ranked Texas A&M on Saturday before he started looking ahead. via The Hutchinson News, Hutchinson Kansas

“That's what we're kind of getting ready to go through here.”

MANHATTAN, Kan. | If only what comes next, and the next game after that, were this easy.

Is the Kansas State basketball team Big 12 Conference ready? Sure looked like it Monday night. No record was safe in the Wildcats' 85-25 victory over Savannah State in front of an actual crowd of 5,476 at Bramlage Coliseum.

The 60-point margin was the second largest in K-State history, one point shy of a 61-point triumph over Delaware State in 1991 (115-54). The 25 points were fewest at Bramlage, the previous low 36 shared by Coppin State in 1998 and Chicago State last season. Read more

“Hey, what can I do? The guys were playing hard, they weren't making shots. I'm going to wake up tomorrow morning, if I'm fortunate, and I'm going to move on. And I expect them to move on. ”

Kansas State 85, SSU 25 MANHATTAN, Kan. - Anthony Jones missed a short jumper, then Patrick Hardy couldn't get the tip to fall in a seemingly innocuous start to the second half. via SavannahNow

“The love from the crowd was much appreciated.”

With a little more than eight minutes to play in Kansas State's 101-59 drubbing of Wagner, freshmen Bill Walker and Michael Beasley had combined to outscore the land-locked Seahawks by themselves, 48-41.

Offense wasn't an issue Saturday as the Wildcats improved to 9-3 with their fourth consecutive victory, scoring 55 points in the second half. But there were other matters to sort out, such as continuing to tighten an already stingy defense in preparation for the start of conference play and also breaking in a couple of recent additions to the roster, Dominique Sutton and Jamar Samuels. Read more

“I'm getting my legs back under me”

K-State muddles through win in Kansas City

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -One minute was all he could muster. All it took was 60 seconds into Kansas State's 87-60 rout of Florida A&M for Frank Martin to eliminate any thought that Monday would be little more than a showcase for Wildcat basketball in the lavish new Sprint Center.

Martin leapt to his feet, upset with what he'd seen.

His actions were repeated throughout a first half K-State senior guard Clent Stewart later described as 'lethargic.' Nevertheless, K-State (7-3) still led 47-28 going into the break, and for that, Martin provided a simple explanation. Read more

“I feel like everyone's a big family here and I really look forward to the meets and the team trips.”

When Central Florida Marlins coach Bill Vargo talks about Forest sophomore Katie Pheil, he compares her ability level to one of the best swimmers to ever come through Marion County. via Ocala.com

“Over the years we haven't had many opportunities to recruit against each other”

When Ron Everhart was a candidate for the coaching job at Duquesne two years ago, he talked often with his best friend in the profession, Bob Huggins. via Pittsburgh Post-Gazette