With 4:50 remaining in Wednesday night’s contest between Big 12 bubble-dwellers Kansas State and Texas, Barry Brown had scored just two points on the night.
But there’s that whole ‘It’s not how you start’ thing.
Brown scored 14 points in the final five minutes as K-State defeated Texas, 58-48, to sweep the season series.
“Down the stretch, he didn’t back down,” Bruce Weber said. “He went to the hoop.
“You win games when you have older players who make plays.”
A game plagued by 35 minutes of lackluster offense — on both sides — did not finish that way. K-State played its best basketball when it mattered most in what ESPN’s Joe Lunardi labeled the most important bubble game in America this week.
Texas (16-12, 6-9) made just six field goals after halftime, shooting a frigid 18.8 percent.
“We talked about building a wall with our bigs, and we made things hard for their guards.”
In addition to Brown’s 16 points, Dean Wade scored 13 and Cartier Diarra added 12. But the Wildcats (20-8, 9-6) had just 7 assists on the night and struggled against the Longhorns’ lengthy defense.
Style points don’t matter in a game like this, though.
“We’ve got a great group that plays together,” Weber said. “They’ve matured and they’re winning close games. Everyone is worrying about the team and doing what the team needs to be successful.”
Xavier Sneed struggled to score, going just 3-of-10 from the field, but his 13 rebounds keyed a strong performance on the glass.
The Longhorns were led by Matt Coleman’s 14 points. Future NBA draftee Mo Bamba was held to just nine points and six rebounds.
The game was tied at halftime, 27-27, and neither team led by more than 5 points until K-State’s late run. The previous three meetings between these teams had ended the exact same way — all K-State wins; all by 3 points.
The win pushed the Wildcats back into a tie for third place in the Big 12 with three games left in the regular season. K-State returns to action Saturday at reeling Oklahoma.
