Cardiac ‘Cats Rally Again in Overtime to Top West Virginia
MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State’s amazing streak in overtime games continued Monday night, as the Wildcats won their 12th consecutive overtime game, including their Division I record seventh this season, with a 94-90 comeback win over a scrappy West Virginia team before 8,813 fans at Bramlage Coliseum.
The 7 overtime wins are now the Division I single-season record, snapping a tie of 6 with Wake Forest (1983-84), Chattanooga (1988-89) and Lafayette (2007-08). The current 12-game overtime winning streak is the second-longest nationally behind Florida State, which has won 14 in a row dating to 2018.
K-State (17-11, 7-8 Big 12) received a standout performance from senior Tylor Perry, who scored 9 of his season-high 29 points in overtime in helping lift the Wildcats to consecutive wins for the first time in more than month and keeping their NCAA Tournament hopes alive.
Perry tied the game at 79-all with a pair of free throws with 15.4 seconds left in regulation then gave K-State the lead for good at 82-80 with his season-tying sixth 3-pointer with just under 4 minutes remaining in overtime. He added a layup with 50 seconds left then made 4 consecutive free throws to push the Wildcats ahead 93-90 with 8 seconds left. After a defensive rebound off a miss by senior RaeQuan Battle, junior Cam Carter finished off the night with a free throw with 4 seconds left.
Perry, who perhaps had his most efficient night as a Wildcat, scored his 29 points on just 12 shots, finishing 7-of-12 from the field, including 6-of-11 from 3-point range, to go with a 9-of-10 effort from the free throws. He also added a game-tying 6 assists and 4 rebounds in nearly 42 minutes of action. It was his 28th career 20-point game, including his team-leading ninth this season.
Perry was joined in double figures by Carter, who finished with a near double-double with 19 points and 8 rebounds, as well as junior Arthur Kaluma and senior Will McNair Jr., who each added 13 points. Senior David N’Guessan, playing against his teammate on the Dutch National Team Jesse Edwards, also nearly had a double-double with a game-high 10 rebounds and 8 points.
West Virginia (9-19, 4-11 Big 12) was led by the sharpshooter Battle, who scored 24 of his team-high 28 points in the second half and overtime. Battle was one of two 20-point scorers for the Mountaineers, along with fellow senior Kerr Kriisa who added 25 points and a game-tying 6 assists. Senior Patrick Suemnick was the only other player in double figures with 10 points.
Battle has played his best against the Wildcats, dropping 27 points in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament while playing for Montana State then had 21 in the first matchup in Morgantown.
After watching a 25-point lead evaporate in the final 13:30 of regulation, K-State willed itself to overtime with some clutch shooting and stellar defense in the final minute. Trailing 79-75 with 1:02 to play, the Wildcats got a layup from McNair and 2 free throws from Perry to tie the game at 79-all with 15.4 seconds. The Mountaineers had one last chance, but Kriisa’s jumper missed as buzzer sounded.
K-State seemingly had the game in control after a strong offensive start to the game, as the Wildcats led 63-38 after Carter knocked down a 3-pointer with 13:39 to play. The team led 48-26 at the half behind 50 percent (17-of-34) shooting, including 57.9 percent (11-of-19) from 3-point range.
However, Battle and Kriisa wouldn’t let West Virginia go away that easily, as the tandem combined for 36 points in the second half, in guiding the team to an improbably 39-11 run that gave the Mountaineers a 77-74 lead after a Kriisa 3-pointer with 2:13 to play.
The near collapse overshadowed another strong offensive performance by the Wildcats, which broke their Big 12 season-high for scoring for the second straight game with 94 points behind a 3-point barrage that saw them connect on 15-of-31 attempts, including 11-of-19 in the first half.
The 15 made 3-point field goals tie for the third-most in school history and are the second-most in a Big 12 game and the most since hitting 16 at Oklahoma State on Feb. 2, 2019. Perry led the way with 6 makes, while freshman Dai Dai Ames tied a season-high with 3 triples.
K-State connected on 45.8 percent (27-of-59) from the field, including 48.4 percent (15-of-31) from 3-point range, and made 71.4 percent (25-of-35) of its attempts from the free throw line. However, after shooting 50 percent in the first half, the Wildcats managed to make just 33.3 percent (7-of-21) in the second half, including 27.3 percent (3-of-11) from 3-point range.
In the overtime period, K-State hit on 75 percent (3-of-4) from the field, including making its only 3-point attempt, and shot 80 percent (8-of-10) from the free throw line.
West Virginia finished the night at 39 percent (30-of-77) from the field, including 39.4 percent (13-of-33) from 3-point range, while making 65.4 percent (17-of-26) from the line. In contrast to the Wildcats, the Mountaineers made 50 percent (17-of-34) of their field goals in the second half, including 69.2 percent (9-of-13) from the 3-point line, compared to 33.3 percent (11-of-33) in the first half.
With the win, K-State sweeps the season series from West Virginia for the first time since 2019. The Mountaineers still lead the all-time series, 16-12.
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