Kansas State Basketball's Takeaways from the Hall of Fame Classic
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Kansas State made it to the championship game, but with 0.6 seconds left, they fouled a Nebraska guard, and a free throw was made to give the Cornhuskers a one-point lead and the championship.
The Wildcats had a lot going on at the Hall of Fame Classic with some outstanding play, especially on offense. Looking at their games against Nebraska and Mississippi State, here are the takeaways from the Hall of Fame Classic.
One of the best scorers in the country is P.J. Haggerty, and in this MTE, he proved that he can score against any opponent. In games against Mississippi State and Nebraska, Haggerty scored 37 points against the Bulldogs, which was the most points he had scored all season, and he followed it up with 27 points against the Cornhuskers. He is performing at the All-American level, and he undoubtedly leads the Wildcats' offense. His five straight games of 20 or more points make him one of two players in Wildcat history, with the other being Michael Beasley.
When the Wildcats attack, their offense moves quickly and fast. They demonstrated the strength of their offense by scoring 98 points against Mississippi State and 85 points against Nebraska. To stop their fast-break attack, the other teams had to run back quickly to stop K-State's transition offense. They can score many points rapidly for multiple reasons. The two big reasons are the Wildcat's three-point shooting and their guards' ability to get three's and one's and make their free throws when fouled in transition.
The three-point shooting was once again impressive in the Hall of Fame Classic for the Wildcats. K-State proved once again, and this time against Power Four conference competition, that they are a dangerous team from three-point range. They made 14 three-pointers against Mississippi State (47%), and Abdi Bashir Jr. scored 26 points by making seven three-pointers against Nebraska.
The team needs to work on how they finish games better, as seen in their game against the Cornhuskers. Nebraska defeated them in a tight game that hinged on a foul and a free throw in the final seconds. This result shows that they need to get better at handling close games on a neutral court in the last few minutes. It is only one game, and they have won a close game against Cal before this MTE, but their game against the Cornhuskers hopefully will be a learning experience and not the norm.
The bench and depth contributions showed up in the Hall of Fame Classic. The Wildcats' backups provided scoring off the bench in both games. In the game against MSU, David Castillo and Jayden Epps came off the bench and helped the offense score points when needed to extend the K-State lead throughout the game. This indicates that the support off the bench is reliable and provides scoring when needed.
Against Mississippi State, they had 22 assists and only 8 turnovers, which was outstanding. But in the first half against Nebraska, they had 9 turnovers, which led to 17 points and cost them the Hall of Fame Classic title.
Most of the early-season hype is true about the Wildcats. They went into the tournament with a perfect 4-0 record. They proved they belong in big non-conference games, even though they lost the title to the Cornhuskers, who are undefeated this season. As they get ready for Big 12 play, their success thus far in non-conference play will look better on their resume.
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Ryan Kay is a journalist who graduated from Michigan State in 2003 and is passionate about covering college sports and enjoys writing features and articles covering various collegiate teams. He has worked as an editor at Go Joe Bruin and has been a contributor for Longhorns Wire and Busting Brackets. He is a contributor for Kansas State On SI.