The First Round of the NCAA Tournament in Oklahoma City is over for Kansas State. What a great first day it was. Fans got to see a game which was decided by a three-point shot in the final minute of double-overtime, a Wildcat victory, and a mini-Jayhawk scare. All of the higher seeds in Oklahoma survived and advanced to the Second Round. The Wildcats came ready to play against an experienced North Texas team, winning 82-62. Kansas State played aggressively, fouling the Mean Green 25 times, but it wasn’t like some of the Big 12 games where the Wildcats were whistled for ticky-tack touch fouls. Rather, both teams had players hitting the ground hard. There were two scary moments in the game for K-State: Chris Merriweather hit the floor hard and Jacob Pullen landed awkwardly on his tailbone and had to head to the locker room for several minutes. He emerged later and chipped in a few more minutes to end the game.
This is the second time Kansas State has advanced to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament in three years. This year’s NCAA Tournament appearance marks the 4th consecutive post-season tournament K-State has played in after an 8-year drought from post-season play.
A look at the Mountain West
This has to be the best season in recent memory for the Mountain West Conference. They had four teams who were invited into the NCAA Tournament this season. All four played very strongly in their First Round tournament games, but only two advanced (New Mexico and BYU). San Diego State almost upset the 6-seed Tennessee Volunteers, but eventually fell, 62-59. UNLV lost to Northern Iowa, 69-66, in a game that came down to the wire. Northern Iowa (the Missouri Valley Conference champion) hit a late three-point shot with 4.5 seconds remaining in the game and UNLV was unable to get a decent shot off after a timeout. Utah is typically very strong but had a bit of an off year in the Mountain West. Colorado State was also a competitive team, finishing the year 7-9 in conference play.
A Look at Brigham Young
The fans from BYU had a lot to cheer for Thursday afternoon as the Cougars defeated the Florida Gators in an epic double-overtime game, 99-92. The Cougars were lead by junior guard Jimmer Fredette and sophomore reserve guard Michael Loyd, Jr. The game went back and forth for the entire 40 minute regulation period and then through the first overtime period. It wasn’t until the second overtime that the Cougars began to take the game over from the exhausted Gators. Florida had a chance to win at the end of regulation as well as in the 1st overtime, but BYU scrapped it out and forced the game to a 2nd overtime. The win breaks a streak of seven-consecutive (spanning 17 years) First Round losses for BYU. For the past two seasons, the Cougars were defeated in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, both times by Texas A&M.
BYU had an impressive non-conference record (16-1). This included victories over Nebraska (88-66), NIT-bound Nevada (110-104), Arizona (99-69), and Arizona State (81-68). Most of their non-conference wins were landslides, including a 91-34 thrashing of Eastern Washington. The Cougars only lost two games by more than 4 points (a 14 point loss at UNLV and a 10-point loss at Utah State). They also won a total of 13 conference games, coming up just short of a conference title. BYU is lead by its guard-play which is as good as any in the country.
Guard Play
The guards for BYU average 58.6 of their 83.4 points per game. Their three leading scorers are all guards, (juniors Jimmer Fredette and Jackson Emory and freshman Tyler Haws). In their win against Florida, sophomore Michael Loyd Jr. stepped up big off the bench, scoring 26 points. The cougars run a three-guard offense instead of the conventional two-guard set.
Key Players
Jackson Emery
Emery (6’3 junior guard out of Alpine, Utah) is a sharpshooter. He shoots 43% from the 3-point line and 75% from the free-throw line. Amazingly, his 75% average from the charity stripe is among the worst on his team. Emery has scored in double figures in 23 of the games this season including a season-high 25 points against Nevada. Emery rarely turns the ball over as he averages just over one turnover while dishing nearly three assists per game. Probably the most impressive stat for Emery, however, is that he averages five rebounds per game. Emery is not afraid to hit the boards. He had seven boards in the win against Florida. He was named 2nd team All-Mountain West as well as to the Mountain West All-Defensive team.
Tyler Haws
Haws (6’5 freshman guard out of Highland, Utah) is another star guard for the Cougars. Similar to Emery, Haws has a great shot (he is 37% from the 3-point line on the year and an incredible 91% from the charity stripe) and isn’t afraid to go after rebounds (he averages 4.2 rebounds per game). The former three-star rated recruit is also a very smart kid (4.0 GPA in high school). He averages 1.6 assists per game, but only turns the ball over on average 1.2 times per game. He only played 21 minutes against Florida so he should be very fresh on Saturday against Kansas State. Haws was named 3rd team All-Mountain West.
Jonathan Tavernari
Tavernari (6’6 senior forward out of Sao Bernardo, Brazil) is the key forward for BYU. He has struggled this year compared to the past two seasons, as his minutes per game have dropped from 31.7 to 23.7. Additionally, his points per game have dropped from 15.7 to 10.1, rebounds from 7.2 to 4.5, and field goal percentage has slipped from 43% to 41%. Tavernari is a great free-throw shooter as he shoots 81%. He isn’t afraid of busting a couple three-point shots as well, and he averages 39% there. He was named Mountain West’s 6th man of the year.
Jimmer Fredette
Fredette (6’2 junior guard out of Glen Falls, New York) is the leader of this BYU team. He lit up the Gators for 37 points in BYU’s First Round victory. He is quick and a solid defender. Additionally, he shoots a whopping 44% from behind the arc as well as 89% from the free throw line. He is also great with the ball only turning it over an average of 2.7 times per game while averaging 4.7 assists per game. His 46% field goal percentage is also very impressive. Fredette has scored in double figures in 27 games this year including a season high 49 points against the Arizona Wildcats. He has scored 30-plus points 8 times, and that is including a four-game stretch where he did not play much due to an injury. Fredette will need to be guarded heavily the entire game. He was named to the All-Mountain West 1st team.
Battle of the Bench
BYU does not have the depth that Kansas State has, but they do have key players that come off the bench. Tavernari is their best forward and he doesn’t start. Loyd, Jr. is a 45% three-point shooter off the bench. Against Florida, Lloyd, Jr. scored a season-high 26 points and should be expected to play a lot in the game against the Wildcats. K-State will need to wear down the Cougars with their forwards down low. K-State has a size and depth advantage. BYU plays 8 players consistently while K-State can go 10 deep.
3 Keys to Victory
Don’t Foul: BYU is the best free-throw shooting team in the country. K-State needs to stay aggressive but the Wildcats simply cannot make stupid fouls and give up too many opportunities at the free-throw line.
Make Presence Felt: Kansas State has a definite size advantage down low against BYU. Curtis Kelly, Jamar Samuels, and Wally Judge need to have big games. The Wildcats need to consistently look down low and absolutely cannot miss easy lay-ups.
Guard Shooters Constantly: There needs to be somebody in Fredette’s face on every play. K-State cannot let the shooters (especially Fredette) get open looks.
Kansas State will face BYU immediately following the KU vs. Northern Iowa game. Tip off will be around 7:00 PM on CBS.
