Kansas State blows out Missouri 66-42 in CBE Classic semis

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) Kansas State still views Missouri as one of its rivals, even though the two schools separated by a long drive down Interstate 70 haven't been members of the same league for years.

The Wildcats sure looked like the more motivated team Monday night.

Dean Wade had 14 points and 13 rebounds in his fourth college game, Justin Edwards added 13 points and the Wildcats pounded the Tigers 66-42 in the semifinals of the CBE Classic.

''I knew back then, Mizzou was a part of the Big Eight, Big 12 before they left, and it was kind of a rivalry game,'' said Wesley Iwundu, who finished with 10 points for the Wildcats. ''All the fans tweeting at you, kind of hyped us up for the game.''

Kansas State will play No. 9 North Carolina, an 80-69 winner over Northwestern, for the title on Tuesday night.

With a frustrating zone defense, the Wildcats (4-0) held the Tigers (2-2) to just 31 percent shooting from the field. They dominated on the offensive and defensive glass, and took care of the ball in beating the Tigers for the fifth time in their last six meetings.

The last time they played was 2012, before Missouri bolted for the Southeastern Conference.

''I was not surprised at the physicality of the game. I'm disappointed we didn't match it,'' Missouri coach Kim Anderson said. ''Because we warned them, we told them, `This is the game.'''

Things got so bad for the Tigers midway through the second half that Anderson was whistled for a technical foul for arguing with officials. The free throws gave the Wildcats a 58-34 lead with 7:12 left, but at least gave Missouri fans a reason to half-heartedly cheer.

''We just didn't come out ready,'' said Missouri freshman Kevin Puryear, who had a team-high nine points. ''They played harder than us in all aspects of the game.''

The game was mostly decided in the first 20 minutes when Kansas State kept packing into a zone defense and the Tigers were unable to shoot their way over top of it.

Missouri was just 5 of 27 from the field at halftime.

The Wildcats' big run came midway through the half, when Stephen Hurt converted a 3-point play to cap a 12-1 run. The Tigers had missed nine straight shots at that point, helping Kansas State establish a 19-9 lead and energize a heavily purple-clad crowd in the Sprint Center.

The highlight of the half for Missouri came when Terrence Phillips leapt over a courtside table used by the TV crew to save a ball from going out of bounds. Fans were still cheering when his teammate, K.J. Walton, was called for traveling about 25 feet from the hoop.

That was the way things went all night for Missouri, which won the CBE Classic four years ago - back in its Big 12 days - but has fallen on tough times in the years since.

''I thought we did a poor job of helping. I thought our defense was poor. I thought our whole game was poor,'' Anderson said. ''I don't see a whole lot of bright spots.''

WADE'S WORLD

Kansas State coach Bruce Weber hopes that nobody tells Wade, a freshman from tiny St. John, Kansas, how impressive he's been this season. ''It's a big transition from St. John to here,'' Weber said, ''but he's such a good young man. He wants to learn and do well. In a way, he's a little naive and I just hope we can keep him that way for a little while.''

TIP-INS

Kansas State: Former Wildcats and Dallas Mavericks star Rolando Blackman was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame over the weekend. ... Kansas State only committed one turnover in the first half. ... Iwundu also had eight rebounds and four assists.

Missouri: Wes Clark, who missed the end of last season with an elbow injury, had five points on 2-for-9 shooting. ... Missouri was 4 of 19 from beyond the arc. ... The Tigers did not score off a turnover until the game's final minute.

UP NEXT

Kansas State plays the Tar Heels for its first CBE Classic championship.

Missouri plays Northwestern in the tournament's third-place game.