K-State powers past Creighton 89-82 in high-octane matchup
Wildcats bury 14 triples en route to 7-point marquee win over Power 5 opponent.
The Octagon of Doom roared to life Tuesday night for the annual ‘Doom After Dark’ game as K-State hosted the Big East’s Creighton Bluejays and came away with a major victory.
Senior guard Brandon Rechsteiner put up 26 points in the win, tying his career high, while senior forward Brock Vice contributed a game-high six assists. Fifth-year guard Jaden Schutt added 14 points of his own, helping the Wildcats match the Creighton tandem of BJ Davis (25 points) and Wes Enis (18 points).
The ‘Cats shot 57% from the floor and hit 14 of 30 shots (46%) from beyond the arc to propel them to their biggest win yet of the Casey Alexander era.
Both teams traded threes for much of the opening 20 minutes. Rechsteiner and Schutt combined for the Wildcats first 16 points, but turnovers allowed Creighton to stay in the game as they scored 17 off of 12 K-State giveaways. Davis and Enis knocked down shots to keep the game tight, and the teams entered the locker room deadlocked 40-40.
The teams once again found themselves knotted at 55 early in the second half after a barrage of 3-pointers followed the break, but it was K-State that found a decisive run and began to put their foot down.
After consecutive inside buckets from Isaiah Abraham and Dez Linsay, Rechsteiner connected on back-to-back 3-pointers for a 10-2 surge, giving the Wildcats a 65-57 lead. K-State continued to ignite from three, stretching the lead to 15 at 75-60 and forcing Creighton coach Alan Huss to call a timeout.
The Bluejays refused to go away, however, going on a 12-0 run with Enis and Davis hitting 3-pointers to trim the deficit to 75-72 with 6:20 remaining.
K-State did not let it slip away, though, as Rechsteiner connected on a triple when they needed him most before Vice added a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 8 again. Creighton could not mount another comeback, and the ‘Cats earned an 89-82 win on a night where both teams shot a grand total of 68 3-pointers.
“It’s amazing, man,” Rechsteiner said. “We worked so hard, and, you know, we were so upset we dropped that first one. So just coming together and still believing, it feels great.”
The Wildcats had four players reach the double-digit mark alongside Schutt and Rechsteiner, as Abraham recorded 12 points and nine rebounds while Matt Gilhool also added 11 points, all in the second half. K-State finished with 21 total assists on 30 made field goals.
Despite the team committing 22 turnovers, many of which directly led to Creighton buckets, they made up for it at the other end of the floor. The Wildcats' 47% 3-point percentage combined with a 15-for-17 mark at the line paved the way to victory.
Also notable was Slovakian senior forward Timo Malovec, who played his first minutes of the season after suffering an injury in July and missing most of the pre-season workouts.
Alexander praised both his players and the environment inside Bramlage as the key factors of the victory.
“A little taste of what Bram[lage] can be, right?” Alexander said. “And so really happy for our players. It was a fun game with really high-level plays made. Thought our guys did a great job of making them when they had to.”
The win improved K-State to 2-1 and continued a strong response to the season-opening upset against South Dakota State. It also showcased a hallmark of previous Casey Alexander-coached teams: explosive offense and 3-point shooting.
With momentum high, K-State returns to Bramlage Coliseum at 7 p.m. Monday to host the Montana Grizzlies, with coverage on Wildcat 91.9.
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