The second game of the season was a lot like the first.
Kansas State beat a mid-major opponent by more than 30 points and no one, from coach Frank Martin on down, was thrilled about the performance.
But K-State looked much tougher during its 82-50 win over Western Illinois on Sunday, and outrebounded the Leathernecks 48-31.
After being beaten in that category by Loyola-Chicago, that was a nice sign of improvement.
So was Jamar Samuels scoring 19 points and snaring seven rebounds, and Jordan Henriquez-Roberts’ stat line of 10 rebounds, seven points, five blocks and two assists.
But players insist they could have done much better. In particular, they could have prevented Western Illinois from grabbing 13 offensive boards and rotated more quickly on defense.
Martin said the Wildcats need to get a lot better in those areas before they head to Puerto Rico if they hope to have success in their upcoming early season tournament.
And he will be asking his players to work a lot harder this week in practice to make that improvement happen. Those who don’t bring high energy to practice, he said, won’t be in uniform for this week’s games.
Emptying the notebook: Had this game been for a spot in the NCAA tournament, Martin said he would have played center Luis Colon. But he is making sure Colon’s hand fully recovers before he puts him on the floor. Ideally, Martin said, Colon will play in Puerto Rico … The game’s leading scorer was Matt Lander of WIU, who scored 20 points … Despite starting the game Dominique Sutton saw 7 minutes of playing time … Martin said Samuels will move back and forth between the 3 and 4 positions depending on the opponent. In a perfect world, he will play more 3 than 4. … Chris Merriewether started in the second half.
Player of the game: Jordan Henriquez-Roberts. The center had 10 rebounds, seven points, five blocks and two assists. As Curtis Kelly would later say “those are some stats right there.”
Play of the game: Henriquez-Roberts had a nifty transition layup in the second half that, coupled with a Samuels dunk on the play before, brought the crowd at Bramlage to its feet.
Do that again: K-State outscored Western Illinois 22-0 in fast-break points Sunday. It’s tough to beat those numbers.
Try to avoid it: Missing 13 of 28 free throws will hurt the Wildcats against stronger teams.
Bottom line: These first two games were nothing but a warm up. We will find out how good Kansas State is later this week in Puerto Rico.