It wasn’t pretty. As a matter of fact, it was downright ugly.
But it’s a trip to the Sweet Sixteen all the same.
Behind a strong finish by forward Xavier Sneed and stifling defense, No. 9 Kansas State beat No. 16 UMBC, 50-43, to advance to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament. It was the first-ever matchup between a 9-seed and 16-seed.
Both teams appeared flustered by the big stage for much of the game, turning the ball over a combined 35 times. But K-State did more with the extra opportunities than UMBC did with theirs.
Barry Brown led the Wildcats in scoring with 18 points, while Makol Mawien added 11. But it was Sneed’s clutch jumper as the shot clock expired with 1:11 left that gave the Wildcats a two-possession lead.
Sneed also threw down a massive dunk to push the lead to six with three minutes left.
UMBC, asked for an encore performance to one of the biggest upsets in college basketball history, played great defense against K-State’s guards but never found much rhythm on the other end. The Retrievers’ star, Jairus Lyles, scored just 12 points after putting up 28 on Virginia two nights ago.
K-State fell in an early 7-0 hole, but managed to lead by five at halftime thanks to strong interior play by Mawien. For a third straight game, Dean Wade did not play.
The feisty Retrievers showed no hangover from their stunning upset and played hard until the final whistle, never allowing K-State to lead by more than seven points. Lyles hit a three-pointer to bring his team within 38-37 at the six-minute mark.
But Bruce Weber’s team finished the game on a 12-6 run to reach the program’s 17th Sweet Sixteen appearance.
K-State will face No. 5 Kentucky on Thursday in Atlanta. Game time and TV information have not yet been released.
