On a day when he struggled to make shots, Angel Rodriguez delivered from the line for No. 18 Kansas State.

The sophomore guard hit two free throws with 5.6 seconds remaining to give the Wildcats a 52-50 win over Oklahoma on Saturday night.

Even though Rodriguez was 1 for 6 from the floor and his team wasted a late eight-point lead, coach Bruce Weber had confidence in Rodriguez to make a play.

Rodriguez drove by Sooners guard Sam Grooms into the lane and was fouled. He then put his shooting woes behind him and made both free throws.

”I was just saying, ‘It’s just another free throw like you practice by yourself in the gym,”’ Rodriguez said. ”I like the pressure. I think I function better with pressure.”

The free throws ended an 8-0 run by the Sooners in the final two minutes that tied the game for the first time since the 7:30 mark of the first half.

With Oklahoma trailing 50-42, Romero Osby scored the last of his 13 points on a three-point play to pull the Sooners within five with 1:58 to go. Grooms then tied it with a 3-pointer and a driving layup with 13 seconds left. Weber opted not to call a timeout, instead letting Rodriguez take the game into his hands.

”I told him to push it and see what happens,” Weber said. ”If it gets to where we don’t have anything, I’m going to call timeout. We practice that all the time. Sometimes you call timeout and it gives the defense a chance to set up. (Oklahoma head coach) Lon (Kruger) does a great job of taking things away, so we thought it was better to just go with it. It was a double ball-screen, Angel read it, got to the bucket and was fortunate to get the foul and get the free throws.”

Just as Weber had done, Kruger also did not call a timeout and Grooms had a chance to win it for Oklahoma. However, his 3-pointer at the buzzer was short. The win kept the Wildcats (17-4, 6-2) in second place in the Big 12, one game behind Kansas.

For the Sooners (14-6, 5-3), it was their third loss in their last five games after starting Big 12 play 3-0.

”We realize today that we have a lot way to go,” Kruger said. ”There is nothing wrong with that. With this group of people, they have done a great job and made a lot of progress. Today’s a reminder that we still have a ways to go.”

Will Spradling led the Wildcats (17-4, 6-2) with 12 points, including five in a row after the Sooners pulled within one with 11:27 to go. Their leading scorer, Rodney McGruder, was held to seven points on 2-for-8 shooting.

Osby had 13 points and seven rebounds to lead the Sooners (14-6, 5-3), who had no other player reach double figured in scoring.

”They were into it and dictated for most of the night with their defense,” Kruger said. ”We had trouble getting separation and trouble scoring. Credit Kansas State, they were the better club and deserved to win.”

Open looks were hard to come by for both teams and neither made more than 40 percent of its shots. Oklahoma was held scoreless for over 10 minutes, including the last 6:27 of the first half, but Kansas State was only able to go on a 6-0 run during that stretch to take a 30-23 lead.

The Wildcats were without McGruder and Spradling due to foul trouble for much of that stretch. And while the Kansas State reserves struggled to score, they made life difficult for Oklahoma on offense.

”That group that was in was a weird group for us because me and (McGruder) were in foul trouble,” Spradling said. ”They couldn’t get the flow going offensively. They did a great job defensively. They did what they had to do to keep us in the game.”

That included Rodriguez, who logged the most minutes of any Wildcat and helped hold the three starting guards for Oklahoma – Steven Pledger, Buddy Hield and Je’lon Hornbeak – to 2-for-12 shooting and six points.

— Associated Press —

Kansas State Director of Athletics John Currie announced today that legendary head football coach Bill Snyder has agreed to a new multi-year contract, securing the services of the 2011 and 2012 national and Big 12 coach of the year through the 2017 season.

The new contract, which has an automatic rollover provision after the completion of each season mirroring the agreement signed in 2009, increases Snyder’s compensation to $2.75 million for the 2013 season, while annual increases of $100,000 will bring the five-year total to $14.75 million through the 2017 season. The new deal has been approved by the K-State Athletics, Inc., Board of Directors and President Kirk Schulz.

“Coach Snyder’s daily drive, focus and energy in continuing to build the K-State football program are truly remarkable and inspirational,” said Currie. “While he is not one to focus attention on himself, President Schulz and I felt that it was important to recognize in this very significant way his tremendous leadership and commitment to continuing to lead the K-State football program.”

The architect of the “greatest turnaround in the history of college football” and a 21-5 overall record over the past two seasons, Snyder will be paid a base salary plus supplemental licensing payments totaling $2.75 million in the 2013-14 contract year, $2.85 million in 2014-15, $2.95 million in 2015-16, $3.05 million in 2016-17 and $3.15 million in 2017-18, as well as other benefits.

“Bill Snyder is one of college football’s most respected legends and a complete ambassador for K-State and Manhattan,” Schulz said. “We are so fortunate to have one of the very best coaches in college football history who also fully embraces and understands the value and mission of our university. Under his leadership our football program continues to raise the national visibility of Kansas State University which is a key component in our K-State 2025 vision of becoming a Top 50 public research university.”

Predicted to finish sixth in the Big 12 prior to the 2012 season, the Wildcats tallied an 11-2 record, including an 8-1 mark in Big 12 play to capture the school’s third conference championship and first since 2003. Snyder guided Kansas State to its seventh 11-win season, but only the second 11-win regular season (1998) in school history.

In addition to being named the 2012 Big 12 Coach of the Year by both the Associated Press and his fellow coaches, Snyder was also named the Bobby Dodd National Coach of the Year, a finalist for the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year and Bear Bryant Award for the second straight season as well as being a finalist for the Bobby Bowden and Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Awards and a semifinalist for the Maxwell Coach of the Year Award. He was also the 2011 Woody Hayes National Coach of the Year and Big 12 Coach of the Year after leading the Cats to a 10-3 record and a berth in the AT&T Cotton Bowl.

A five-time national coach of the year honoree, Snyder led K-State to a school-record six wins against ranked opponents in 2012, including its conference-championship clinching victory over No. 18 Texas. Additionally, the Wildcats obtained their first-ever No. 1 ranking in the BCS standings earlier this year.

“My entire family and I have been so very grateful for the genuine, caring and loyal support K-Staters have provided our coaches, staff, families and young people on a yearly basis,” Snyder said. “And, as I have stated so often we came to Kansas State because of the people, stayed because of the people and returned because of the people, and that remains unchanged. We have continued to make daily improvement as a football program, and I am grateful for the opportunity to continue and will do so as long as I feel that I am having a positive impact on our university, community and football program and the young men that are involved. I appreciate so very much the leadership of President Schulz and John Currie, in addition to all past administrators and staff, and their commitment to our football program.”

Snyder’s leadership also carries over into the classroom as the Wildcats have consistently ranked among the Big 12 leaders in football graduation rate, while the program’s APR scores have remained well above the NCAA’s .930 standard mark, including its most current .969 rate for 2011-12.

Student-athletes under Snyder have also made graduating from K-State a priority as a remarkable 17 members from the 2012 squad already had degrees in hand while participating in the2013 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. A total of 11 student-athletes under Snyder have also earned Academic All-America distinction including 2011 National Scholar Athlete and Campbell Trophy Finalist Tysyn Hartman, who is also currently a member of the Kansas City Chiefs.

Named the 32nd head football coach at K-State on November 30, 1988, and again as the 34th on November 24, 2008, Snyder has amassed a 170-85-1 (.669) record during his tenure with the Wildcats, including a 97-65-1 (.598) mark in Big 8/12 games and a 34-16 overall record since his return in 2009.

His 170 victories are the seventh-most among active FBS coaches and are more than triple the man in second place on K-State’s all-time coaching victories list.

K-State Athletics is enjoying an unprecedented combination of athletic, academic and administrative accomplishments as the Cats strive towards their vision of a model intercollegiate athletics program. Ongoing athletic facility improvements in excess of $100 million include the new $75 million West Stadium Center at Bill Snyder Family Stadium, slated to open August 31, 2013.

— KSU Sports Information —

Kansas State’s bench had become a popular place in the first half Wednesday night.

Rodney McGruder had taken a seat after picking up two fouls in the first 2 minutes against Texas. Martavious Irving quickly joined him. And then Will Spradling staggered in their direction after breaking his nose, blood spilling into a towel pressed tightly against his face.

Didn’t seem to matter one bit, though.

The way the No. 18 Wildcats were playing, coach Bruce Weber could have grabbed the equipment manager off the end of the bench and put him into the game with the same result.

Kansas State rolled to an 83-57 victory.

”I think we were all disappointed after last week,” said Weber, whose team was coming off back-to-back losses to Kansas and Iowa State. ”We challenged them to play hard.”

They certainly did that.

Thomas Gipson had 17 points off the bench, Omari Lawrence added a career-best 12 and Angel Rodriguez chipped in 11 points and eight assists as the Wildcats (16-4, 5-2) rolled to their most lopsided win in the series since an 87-60 victory on Dec. 8, 1971.

Suddenly, the Wildcats are back in a second-place logjam in the Big 12.

”We had two tough losses, so we had to bounce back,” said Lawrence, who played 19 minutes because of the Wildcats’ foul trouble. ”We came out with a lot of energy today.”

Not so much the Longhorns (9-11, 1-6), who committed 18 turnovers.

”They came out, they were terrific,” Texas coach Rick Barnes said, ”and we certainly helped them, not fighting. Not fighting their early determination, their intensity. We didn’t match them from the beginning. We had chances.”

Sheldon McClellan had 15 points and Jaylen Bond added 12 for the Longhorns who are still missing the ball-handling and playmaking ability of suspended guard Myck Kabongo.

Kabongo’s not eligible to return until Feb. 13.

”We had a lot of turnovers. I had a lot of turnovers,” McClellan said. ”We’ve just got to do a better job of taking care of the ball.”

The Longhorns, who snapped a five-game skid by beating Texas Tech last Saturday, still have not won a road game in five tries this season. They’ve also lost five of their last seven against the Wildcats, including three straight in Manhattan.

Kansas State tried to help them out with its early foul trouble.

McGruder couldn’t believe it when he heard two quick whistles, and neither could Weber when Irving joined him on the bench. The Wildcats’ first-year coach at one point got into a shouting match with officials that covered the entire width of the court.

The way Texas was executing, it didn’t matter who Kansas State played.

During one haphazard stretch, Texas turned the ball over five times in six possessions, and the one time it got a shot off, McClellan tossed up an air ball.

The Wildcats took advantage by putting together an 8-0 run. By the time Texas coach Rick Barnes called for a timeout, the Wildcats had pulled ahead 21-9 with 8 1/2 minutes left in the half.

Texas finally ended its drought when McClellan scored in transition, and in the process ran over Spradling. Trainers rushed out and pushed a towel against his bloody face, and after a few seconds on the bench, Spradling was accompanied to the Kansas State locker room.

Now without three key contributors, Kansas State continued to build on its lead.

Lawrence, who averaged just 2.4 points, matched his career high with 10 in the first half. Shane Southwell had his five first-half points during a stretch that included an intentional foul on the Longhorns’ Javan Felix that helped Kansas State take a 31-13 lead.

”It started with our defense. We turned them over,” Weber said. ”We got so many steals, turnovers, deflections. Omari ran the court, Angel pushed it. We got some inside looks, moved the basketball. That was the best part of it. That’s why we were able to survive.”

Texas had twice as many turnovers (12) as made field goals at the half, going 6 of 23 from the field and missing both of its 3-point attempts. And its 19 points barely eclipsed the season-low for a half – they managed 17 in the first half of a loss to Georgetown in December.

Felix finally got things going for Texas early in the second half, going straight to the rim for easy layups on three straight possessions. But McGruder, back on the court, made a three-point play with 17 1/2 left to put a stopper in the Longhorns’ momentum.

Gipson scored three straight baskets to answer another Texas salvo, and a pull-up 3-pointer by Spradling in transition pushed the Wildcats’ lead to 53-33 with less than 13 minutes to go.

Kansas State used a 14-2 run a few minutes later to put the game away.

”This was a pretty easy one to figure out,” Barnes said. ”If you weren’t ready to play right from the beginning, the rebounding, the mood – this is what you get. We definitely deserve what we got, because we didn’t do anything right in a lot of ways.”

— Associated Press —

The worst week of Kansas State’s season is over.

Fortunately for the Wildcats, they still have plenty of time to prove they’ll be a factor in the Big 12.

Will Clyburn had 24 points and 10 rebounds, and Iowa State beat No. 11 Kansas State 73-67 on Saturday to hand the Wildcats their second straight loss after a 15-2 start.

Freshman Georges Niang added 15 points for the Cyclones (14-5, 4-2 Big 12), who beat a ranked opponent for the first time this season.

”Now we had a reality smack,” Kansas State coach Bruce Weber said. ”We’ve got to get back to where we were and do the things that we did well to give us a chance.”

Kansas State did just that in the second half, shooting 64 percent and answering basket after basket by Iowa State.

The Wildcats simply ran out of chances.

Rodney McGruder broke free for a dunk to get the Wildcats within 70-67 with 48.5 seconds left, but Korie Lucious answered with a layup to make it a two-score game with 20 seconds to go.

Will Spradlin had 15 points and McGruder scored 13 to lead the Wildcats (15-4, 4-2), who lost on the road for the first time in four games.

”The things that made us good for most of the season is that we guarded and out-toughed and outplayed people,” Weber said, adding that Iowa State ”made more determined plays when it counted.”

Kansas State’s eight-game winning streak was stopped Wednesday by No. 3 Kansas, which won 59-55 for its 23rd victory in 25 tries at Bramlage Coliseum.

The Wildcats are now on their first losing streak of the season.

Iowa State finally got some breathing room with 5:24 left as Clyburn found Lucious, who stopped under the basket and flipped the ball back to Melvin Ejim for a two-handed stuff that put the Cyclones ahead 63-56. Clyburn then beat three Kansas State defenders for a rebound on the wing, and Niang turned it into a 3-pointer that made it 68-62 with 2:35 left.

Lucious had 10 points and eight assists a day after calling a players-only meeting to rally the Cyclones, who were 11 of 22 from 3-point range.

”We could never really get enough momentum to change the game,” Weber said. ”When you go 11 from 22 from the 3 it’s probably a difference maker. And yet, throughout the whole thing we’re right there.”

Iowa State had an impressive start to Big 12 play, rattling off wins over Texas, West Virginia and TCU after nearly beating Kansas in Lawrence in the league opener.

But the Cyclones had their momentum stunted by Texas Tech, which on Wednesday handed them their first bad loss, 56-51.

Iowa State responded by being the aggressor early against the Wildcats. The Cyclones went on a 10-0 run capped by a nifty, underhand scoop from Niang to go up 24-15. But Kansas State rallied, moving back in front 27-26 at halftime in large part because Iowa State was just 3 of 10 from the free throw line.

The teams went back and forth for much of the second half, as the Wildcats kept Iowa State from building anything more than a slim advantage until the final minute.

Free throws were a factor as well. The Cyclones were 10 of 22 from the line and Kansas State was 4 of 9.

”I challenged our guys. I said, ‘Fellas, we are scoring every time down the floor. We’ve got to find a way to get stops and string them together,”’ Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg said. ”The last 4 minutes I thought we did a much better job of finding a way to get stops.”

Kansas State entered play ranked seventh in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage defense, while the Cyclones were sixth in the country with 9 made 3s per game.

Iowa State got the better of the Wildcats as far as 3s went and withstood a number of impressive responses by Kansas State.

”We were big on focus,” Niang said. ”We came back and practice was real tough the last two days. We got after each other.”

Shane Southwell had 11 points for Kansas State, which lost despite shooting 50.9 percent from the field.

”We’ll be fine. We’ll be fine. We’re going to compete at a high level,” Southwell said.

— Associated Press —

Senior Rodney McGruder earned Phillips 66 Big 12 Player of the Week honors for the fourth time in seven weeks on Monday after helping Kansas State run its winning streak to eight games last week.

McGruder’s four Big 12 Player of the Week awards break his tie with Michael Beasley (three, 2007-08) for the most by a Wildcat in a single-season, while McGruder’s five overall weekly awards are the most-ever by a K-State player in the Big 12 era.  He first won the weekly honor as a junior on Dec. 26, 2011 then this season on Dec. 10 and 24, 2012 and again on Jan. 7.

McGruder posted back-to-back 20-point outings for the first time this season, as he averaged a team-best 20.5 points on 55.6 percent shooting (15-of-27), including 46.7 percent (7-of-15) from 3-point range, with 3.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.0 steals in 36 minutes per game in wins over TCU (67-54) and Oklahoma (69-60).  He has now scored in double figures in eight consecutive games with an average of 19.5 points per game.

McGruder opened the week with a 21-point effort in a road win at TCU on Jan. 16, as he knocked down 9-of-15 field goals, including 3-of-6 from 3-point range, with five rebounds, three assists and one steal in 32 minutes of action.  He followed with his fifth 20-point outings of the season in a win over Oklahoma on Saturday, as he went 6-of-12 from the field, including 4-of-9 from beyond the arc, with three assists and one steal in playing all 40 minutes.  It was his 17th and 18th 20-point games of his career with the Wildcats posting an impressive 16-2 mark in those contests.

K-State’s eight-game winning streak is the longest since the Wildcats won 10 in a row from Nov. 21, 2009 to Jan. 3, 2010, while the 15-2 start to the season ties eight other squads for the best start in school history.  The team is 4-0 in Big 12 play for just the second time in the Big 12 era and the first time since the 2007-08 squad won its first five league games.  The 15-2 start by a first-year head coach Bruce Weber ties for the best in school history with College Football Hall of Famer Zora Clevenger, who posted a 15-2 mark in 1916-17.

McGruder is just seven points shy of 1,300 career points and 12 points short of cracking the school’s Top 10 scoring list.  He is the only Wildcat in double figures at 15.5 points per game on 44.3 percent shooting with 5.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.2 steals in 31.5 minutes per game.  He has a team-leading 13 double-figure scoring games (five 20-point outings), all of which have come in the last 15 games.

The 16th-ranked Wildcats (15-2, 4-0 Big 12) will renew the Dillons Sunflower Showdown on Tuesday night, as they welcome No. 4/4 Kansas (16-1, 4-0 Big 12) to an expected sellout crowd at Bramlage Coliseum.  The game will tip at 7 p.m. CT on the Big 12 Network.  It will mark just the 16th time that the teams will play when both are ranked, including the fifth time in the last eight meetings.

— KSU Sports Information —

Kansas State finally got the better of its old coach.

Over the last decade, Lon Kruger has had the Wildcats’ number. While coaching at Illinois, UNLV and now Oklahoma, Kruger’s record against the Wildcats was 4-1.

Now it’s 4-2.

Rodney McGruder scored 20 points and Will Spradling added 15 as No. 16 Kansas State defeated Oklahoma 69-60 on Saturday in a matchup of unbeaten Big 12 teams.

Romero Osby and Amath M’Baye both scored 12 points for Oklahoma.

Shane Southwell and Angel Rodriguez both added 12 points for Kansas State. Southwell had seven rebounds, and Rodriguez had nine assists. With four Wildcats scoring in double figures, McGruder was quick to credit everyone for the win.

”We’re a team,” McGruder said. ”Not just one person can lead us to victory. We do this collectively. That’s great. I’m proud of everyone who stepped up.”

The Sooners (12-4, 3-1) kept pace with the Wildcats most of the way thanks to snagging 36 rebounds to Kansas State’s 24. That would not be enough to counteract the damage done by turnovers; Oklahoma gave the ball away 16 times.

”Our dives, loose balls, deflections, those little things make a difference,” Kansas State coach Bruce Weber said. ”We made up for the lack of rebounding by getting those . 50-50 balls, or those energy kind of plays that you need.”

Even so, Kansas State (15-2, 4-0) only got a double-digit lead in the second half. Oklahoma quickly responded with a 9-4 run that cut the Wildcats’ lead to five points.

After turning the ball over just four times in the first half, Kansas State got whistled for a backcourt violation and a travel on consecutive possessions. Oklahoma took advantage of neither opportunity.

Instead, the Wildcats rallied from the series of mistakes with an 8-1 run that began with a contested 3 by Spradling and continued with a basket by Jordan Henriquez and McGruder’s fourth 3 of the game. Free throws by Spradling gave Kansas State a 51-37 lead with 8:50 remaining.

With the Wildcats up 52-39 a few minutes later, Oklahoma went on a 9-2 run that included two baskets by Osby and a 3 by Steven Pledger, bringing the Sooners within 52-48.

Spradling promptly hit a long jumper to widen the gap to 55-48.

Rodriguez helped seal the deal in the closing minutes with a slashing layup in the paint and a 3 that put Kansas State up 61-52 with 2:25 left.

Down 66-56 with just under a minute to play, the Sooners resorted to fouling, and the Wildcats prevailed.

The game stayed close in the first half thanks to Oklahoma’s rebounding and Kansas State’s scoring off turnovers. The Sooners’ 20-10 edge on the boards yielded 16 points in the paint in the first half, but the Wildcats offset that advantage by scoring 19 points off 11 Oklahoma turnovers.

”That’s entirely because of Kansas State,” Kruger said. ”I thought their defense was outstanding.”

The Sooners got as much separation as they ever would when Andrew Fitzgerald scored twice in the paint and was credited with two more points after a goaltending call. The sequence gave Oklahoma a 12-7 lead 6 minutes into the game.

Consecutive 3s by Spradling allowed Kansas State within 14-13 of Oklahoma midway through the first half.

”I really started to understand what they were trying to do to guard us, and it actually got real easy towards the end to read them on the screens,” Spradling said. ”With our bigs screening the way they did today, it was real easy to get open.”

The Wildcats briefly took the lead after Rodriguez stole the ball and converted on a fastbreak layup.

The teams traded baskets, and then an emphatic dunk by Osby on an inbounds play gave the Sooners a 21-17 lead. Two free throws each by McGruder and Adrian Diaz tied the game.

The free throws were the first points for McGruder, but apparently those were enough to get him going. He proceeded to drain 3s on three straight possessions.

The Wildcats would go on to make 10 3s in the game.

”It’s a difference-maker in the game when you study the stats because they had more field goals than us and overall they dominated the rebounds,” Weber said. ”If you run motion, you keep moving the ball, you keep spacing, it’s going to get to the shooters, and finally we’re starting to make some shots.”

Following McGruder’s trio of long-range shots, a dunk by Diaz and a 3 by Southwell gave Kansas State a 35-27 halftime lead.

Kansas State won’t get to celebrate long. On Tuesday the Wildcats host No. 4 Kansas, their archrival and a perennial championship contender.

”It doesn’t stop here,” McGruder said. ”We just better prepare for Kansas.”

— Associated Press —

Rodney McGruder scored 21 points and No. 16 Kansas State stretched its winning streak to seven games with a 67-54 victory at Big 12 newcomer TCU on Wednesday night.

The Wildcats (14-2, 3-0 Big 12) got off to a slow start before taking control with a 19-4 run midway through the first half.

McGruder’s layup with 11 minutes left in the first half tied the game at 10, after Kansas State had fallen behind 10-5. The Wildcats led for good when McGruder had a defensive rebound and turned that into a fastbreak 3-pointer by Will Spradling. A floater by McGruder stretched the lead to 24-14.

Adrick McKinney had 18 points and nine rebounds for TCU (9-8, 0-4).

When the Horned Frogs cut the gap to five points with a chance to get closer before halftime, they started making mistakes.

Connell Crossland had a steal and passed to Kyan Anderson, but TCU’s top scorer missed a layup after getting himself in an awkward position under the rim. Martavious Irvin then hit a 3-pointer for Kansas State. Anderson had a turnover that led to a 3 by McGruder.

When TCU freshman Clyde Smith III was called for a 10-second violation, unable to get the ball past midcourt while being defended by Irving, McGruder drove for a high bank shot and a 34-21 lead that matched Kansas State’s biggest of the half.

TCU got the first basket after halftime when Devonta Abron scored, but McGruder responded with a 3-pointer and Spradling hit another from long range.

While McGruder finished 9-of-15 shooting with three 3-pointers and was the only K-State player in double figures, three others scored eight points. One of those was Jordan Henriquez, who had 10 rebounds.

Anderson had 10 points on 4-of-11 shooting for TCU

The Wildcats are two wins shy of matching the 16-2 mark they had three seasons ago that is their best start over the past 25 years. They have won their last five conference road games, dating to last season.

Kansas State and TCU played for the first time since a 1999 NIT game the Horned Frogs won. They had played five times previously, TCU winning that NIT game and another in the 1968 NCAA tournament while the Wildcats had won all three regular-season meetings.

— Associated Press —

Shane Southwell saw to it that No. 18 Kansas State’s winning streak would reach six games.

The junior made two free throws with 21 seconds left, then blocked Gary Browne’s layup attempt with 1 second to go to preserve the Wildcats’ 65-64 win over West Virginia on Saturday.

”We fought too hard for that game,” Southwell said. ”We just needed to find a way to win.”

Southwell and Rodney McGruder both had 17 points for the Wildcats (13-2, 2-0 Big 12). For Southwell, it was a career high and marked only the second time in double figures over a stretch of a dozen games.

”He did a tremendous job of stepping up,” McGruder said.

Jabarie Hinds had a career-high 15 points for West Virginia, (8-7, 1-2). Aaric Murray added 11 points and Terry Henderson scored 10.

The lead changed hands six times over the final eight minutes. After Southwell’s free throws, West Virginia had two chances to retake the lead.

But Hinds missed a wild jumper from 16 feet with 12 seconds left. The Mountaineers got the rebound and called timeout.

Kansas State’s Angel Rodriguez knocked the inbounds pass into the backcourt. Browne grabbed the loose ball, dribbled the length of the court and attempted a layup, which Southwell swatted away just before the final buzzer.

It was only the 6-foot-6 Southwell’s third block of the season and his biggest so far.

”I know (Browne) likes to get a lot of body contact and everything, so I just gave him a little room,” Southwell said. ”And once he tried to get the body contact, I stepped back and then I used my length on him.”

Kansas State coach Bruce Weber has been looking for such an effort from Southwell, who entered the game averaging 6.3 points.

”Shane is talented. I think anyone that’s watched him will have no doubt about that,” Weber said. He’s got very good skills. He’s got length. If we can get him to go a lot harder more consistently, and him be more consistent, he’s as talented as anyone we have in our program.”

West Virginia, coming off an overtime win at Texas, could have used a win over Kansas State to improve its standing for a postseason berth. Instead, the Mountaineers fell to 0-3 this season against ranked teams.

Both teams shot 51 percent from the floor for the game.

Weber shuffled his lineup down the stretch because four players had at least three fouls. But West Virginia couldn’t capitalize from the free-throw line, making just 12 of 22 free throws.

The Mountaineers played without second-leading scorer Juwan Staten, who was benched in a disciplinary move by coach Bob Huggins for the second straight game.

”He has to get on the same page as me or he is not going to play anymore,” Huggins said.

Browne got his first start of the season in Staten’s place and got a tough assignment – guarding McGruder, who was coming off a season-high 28 points in a Jan. 5 win over Oklahoma State.

McGruder, who finished 7 of 16 from the floor, has scored in double figures in every game during Kansas State’s winning streak.

”I thought during the second half that Rodney got tired and he missed a couple (of shots),” Weber said. ”You have to have other people make plays. We have eight guys that are pretty much eight starters, and they can all play.”

After a first half in which Kansas State nearly the entire way, it was a streaky second half for both teams.

West Virginia went on an 8-0 run in the first two minutes after halftime, with Hinds’ layup giving the Mountaineers their largest lead, 41-36.

Kansas State responded with 12 straight points – seven from McGruder – to go ahead 48-41, but the Wildcats couldn’t put away the Mountaineers. Kansas State scored just one basket – on a goaltending call – over a stretch of nearly eight minutes.

Freshman Eron Harris put West Virginia ahead 64-63 lead with an off-balanced jumper from the baseline with 26 seconds left, and the Mountaineers quickly fouled Southwell, who made both free throws for the final margin.

”What was going through my mind was that this is something that you’ve been dreaming about as a kid,” Southwell said. ”But it’s just free throws. You follow your routine and you’re going to make them. Since I came to college, I’ve been waiting to be in moments like that, in big-time pressure situations.”

Kansas State shot 68 percent (15 of 22) from the floor in the first half and the Mountaineers shot 65 percent (11 of 17). Most baskets made by either team were either layups or dunks.

— Associated Press —

Kansas State head coach Bill Snyder has been named one of five finalists for the 2012 Bobby Bowden National Collegiate Coach of The Year Award, the Over The Mountain Touchdown Club announced Monday.

Voting for the Bowden Award is done by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association, and will begin after Monday’s BCS National Championship game.  Snyder is joined by Notre Dame’s Brian Kelly, Ohio State’s Urban Meyer, Alabama’s Nick Saban and Texas A&M’s Kevin Sumlin as finalists for the award.

Presentation of the award will take place in Birmingham, Alabama, at the Cahaba Grand Conference Center, March 3, 2013.  Bobby Bowden will present the award to the winner, along with honoring a Lifetime Achievement award winner.

Predicted to finish sixth in the Big 12 prior to the 2012 season, the Wildcats tallied an 11-2 record, including an 8-1 mark in Big 12 play to capture the school’s third conference championship and first since 2003. Snyder guided Kansas State to its seventh 11-win season, but only the second 11-win regular season (1998).

In addition being named the 2012 Big 12 Coach of the Year by both the Associated Press and his fellow coaches, Snyder was also named the Bobby Dodd National Coach of the Year, a finalist for the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year and Bear Bryant Awards for the second straight season as well as being a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award and a semifinalist for the Maxwell Coach of the Year Award.

Snyder led K-State to a school-record six wins against ranked opponents in 2012, including its conference-championship clinching victory over No. 18 Texas. Additionally, the Wildcats obtained their first-ever No. 1 ranking the BCS standings earlier this year.

Named the 32nd head football coach at K-State on November 30, 1988, and again as the 34th on November 24, 2008, Snyder has amassed a 170-85-1 (.669) record during his tenure with the Wildcats, including an 97-65-1 (.598) mark in Big 8/12 games. His 170 victories are the 11th-most among active FBS coaches and are more than triple the man in second place on K-State’s all-time coaching victories list.

— KSU Sports Information —