Kansas State basketball coach Frank Martin, looking more rested than he has in weeks, met with the media one final time today before heading off to the Final Four.
He said he has yet to look back at video replays of either K-State’s epic win over Xavier in the Sweet 16 or disappointing loss to Butler in the Elite Eight, but remembered both so vividly that he could describe every possession.
Martin said he felt bad for Jacob Pullen, because after draining big shot after big shot all season, he had to watch a key three-pointer rattle in and out late against Butler. Had that trey stayed down, K-State would likely be headed to Indianapolis.
Martin also said he still can’t believe the Wildcats held off Xavier. Regrettably, his lasting memory of the NCAA Tournament was watching Jordan Crawford hit a step-back three (from about 30-feet away) at the end of the first overtime. K-State went on to win in double overtime, but at that moment Martin remembers saying, “I don’t know if we can overcome this.”
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By Kellis Robinett
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Tags: Bob Huggins, Denis Clemente, Frank Martin, Freddy Asprilla, Jacob Pullen, Jordan Henriquez-Roberts, K-State, Martavious Irving, NCAA Tournament, Nick Russell, Salt Lake City, Shane Southwell, Will Spradling
Filed under Basketball
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Over the past month, as Kansas State challenged for a Big 12 championship and a spot in the Final Four, Frank Martin routinely talked about how important it was for his players to embrace the moment.
He told them to push their bodies to the brink, to focus as hard as they could during games and take a shot at being great.
If the Wildcats could accept those challenges, their season would end in one of two ways: euphoria or heartbreak.
Well, Martin’s team did everything he asked, and that meant tears were everywhere in the K-State locker room Saturday.
After winning more games than any other squad in program history, after climbing high up into the national rankings and after making a name for itself in the NCAA Tournament, K-State was beaten by Butler 63-56 and fell one game short of the Final Four.
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By Kellis Robinett
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Tags: Butler, Chris Merriewether, Curtis Kelly, Denis Clemente, Final Four, Freddy Asprilla, Gordon Hayward, Jacob Pullen, Luis Colon, Salt Lake City, Shane Southwell, Will Spradling
Filed under Basketball
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Butler 63, KSU 56 FINAL
Butler 60, KSU 54 :53.4 Clemente misses front end of 1 and 1, then a huge bucket from Gordo. KSU has ball, and if they can’t get a bucket here that’s ballgame.
Butler 56, KSU 54 2:41 Denis hits a nice floater to tie it, but Gordo makes great grab on alley-oop for layin to give Bulldogs lead back.
Butler 54, KSU 52 3:35 Gordo hits2 of 2 FTs and foul on Sutton puts Butler back on line … Howard hits 1 of 2
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Kansas State’s 101-96 win over Xavier at EnergySolutions Arena on Thursday was so entertaining, so incredible and so epic that you could call it “the greatest game I’ve ever seen,” without fear of disagreement.
Denis Clemente willed K-State to victory in the second half. Jordan Crawford refused to let Xavier lose. Jacob Pullen hit some game-altering three-pointers for the Wildcats. Terrell Holloway played 47 minutes of clutch basketball for the Musketeers.
Both teams were impressive, and that’s what made the game so great.
The madness went on for nearly three hours and two overtimes, and as play went deeper the reactions got bigger.
Exuberant CBS announcer Gus Johnson stood up multiple times during his call and hopped around with excitement. Everyone in the arena — including crushed Syracuse fans — were on their feet after all the huge plays. At one point, the officials all looked at each other in disbelief and shook their heads. They couldn’t believe what they were witnessing either.
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By Kellis Robinett
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Tags: Chris Merriewether, Curtis Kelly, Denis Clemente, double overtime, Energy Solutions Arena, Frank Martin, Jacob Pullen, Jordan Crawford, Kansas State, Terrell Holloway, Xavier
Filed under Basketball
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KSU 101, XAVIER 96 FINAL IN 2 OT what a game. I am humbled.
KSU 101, Xavier 96 :11.6 Clemente hits 2 of 2 free throws.
KSU 99, Xavier 96 :24.3 Pullen hits 2 of 2 free throws
KSU 97, Xavier 96 :25 Pullen hits another 3. The Beard is Farokhmanesh. Farokhmnaesh is The Beard. Holloway hits 2 fts on other end to get Muskies within 1.
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One minute, Frank Martin yells at his players and they try to avoid eye contact.
The next, he is walking around Bramlage Coliseum with them and they look like the best of friends.
What makes Martin such a special basketball coach is his ability to blend these styles together. He can rant and he can scream and he can show tough love, but his team still adores him. Everyone on the K-State roster considers him a player’s coach.
How has he established such a reputation? There are several reasons. Too many to list, really. But Martin gave his players another reason to love him on the way out to Salt Lake City this week.
They got to ride first class.
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While chatting Kansas State basketball with Fran Fraschilla today, the knowledgeable ESPN college basketball analyst told me he liked the Wildcats’ chances of reaching the Final Four.
“They’re a contender,” he said. “There is no doubt about that. They have all the components to get there.”
But the compliment was followed by a warning.
“I think this is a trap game for them coming up,” he said. “I think this is a dangerous game for them, because they handled Xavier so easily at home earlier in the year. This is a different, dangerous Xavier team now.
“That team at the time was still searching for an identity with a new coach. They’ve got to be careful not to fall into the trap that they’ve already beaten this team easily.”
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KSU 84, UNI 72 FINAL First Sweet 16 for Wildcats since 1988. Thanks for following along with our in-game blogs from Oklahoma City, and I’ll talk to you in Salt Lake City.
KSU 71, BYU 61 3:25 The Beard hits another 3! This one is almost over.
KSU 66, BYU 54 6:31 Wally Judge becomes a man right before our very eyes with that dunk and Pullen gets uncontested layup, knifing through BYU defense.
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