“Bulldogs actually catch the car and finish off K-State 73-70 OT”.

Let’s make this quick, because you and I probably both have better things to do.

The Kansas State Wildcats hosted the undefeated (10-0) Drake Bulldogs at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, where the visitors will go home with a 73-70 victory.

K-State had a different starting lineup tonight, David Castillo instead of CJ Jones, and it didn’t really work. K-State looked completely unprepared and disjointed and fell behind by several twenty (29-9) in the first half before finally three straight three-pointers between CJ and Max Jones that cut the lead to 9 at halftime, 36-27.

The Wildcats tried to reverse roles in the second half, playing with much more composure while their opponents struggled to find anything offensively. Continuous efforts to gain the lead resulted in K-State actually taking its first lead of the game at 51-50 with about 9 minutes left. The rest of the game was back and forth, eventually K-State held the ball for one final (terrible) possession that failed, sending the teams into OT tied at 63.

K-State took an early 64-63 lead in OT, but Drake’s subsequent possessions were much more successful; Drake took a 70-64 lead before K-State made three free throws to break a 3-point deficit.

The Cats’ Coleman Hawkins sank a three-pointer from 25 feet to make it 70 with 8 seconds left, and Drake’s Bennett Stirtz threw an absolute dagger of his own with just a handful of seconds left. Max Jones spins from 30 feet and hits the back iron, and Drake completes the score, 73-70.

Things we noticed along the way:

1. Tang is no longer undefeated in OT. Before that loss, his OT record at the top was 12-0.
2. There are glaring Problems with this team, most notably the inability to achieve any semblance of scoring efficiency in the halfcourt, as well as Drake’s effectiveness in absolutely exposing K-State’s defensive fundamentals. Yes, you read that right – we can’t play offense unless it’s a main or secondary break, and we can’t defend consistently. This is…not great.
3. Hawkins finished with 16pts/5reb/5ast/4stl, and I still stand by my claim that he is one of the worst investments I’ve seen in the NIL era. His effort doesn’t last nearly until the end and this is likely to be an average evening for him.
4. Doug Sirmons is still a shitty officer, and I stand by my statement that if you know an officer’s name, you know the name of an officer bad officially.

OK – that’s all I can think of for tonight. At the moment, it’s hard to say that this team deserves much more effort.

The next game is a trip to Wichita to take on the Shockers on Saturday night.