Kansas State basketball loses to Nebraska in Hall of Fame Classic
Kansas State beat reporter Wyatt Wheeler breaks down the Wildcats’ one-point loss to Nebraska in a thriller on Nov. 21 in Kansas City
MANHATTAN — Kansas State basketball will go from playing one Big Ten opponent to another, this time visiting Indiana for the Wildcats’ first true road game of the season
The Wildcats and Hoosiers will play on Tuesday, Nov. 25, at 7 p.m. in Bloomington, Indiana. The game will be televised on FS1.
K-State (5-1) is coming off its first loss of the season, falling 86-85 to Nebraska in the Hall of Fame Classic championship game. The Cornhuskers made a free throw in the final seconds to hold off the Wildcats’ 15-point comeback.
Indiana (5-0) is ranked No. 25 in the Nov. 17 USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll. The Hoosiers are in their first season under coach Darian DeVries.
Darian DeVries is in his first season leading Indiana basketball
DeVries isn’t a stranger to K-State, as he coached against the Wildcats once last year in Manhattan when leading West Virginia. He stayed in Morgantown for one year before leaving for what is considered one of the sport’s premier jobs. K-State won the game 73-60, while the Mountaineers finished the season 19-13 overall and 10-10 in the Big 12.
DeVries’ time at Drake helped him land the job, having led the Bulldogs to three NCAA Tournament appearances in six years. He has a 174-68 coaching record after serving as an assistant at Creighton from 2001-18.
PJ Haggerty leads the nation in scoring
Haggerty has looked every bit the All-American that the Wildcats thought they were getting when they landed him. He’s coming off back-to-back 30-plus point performances, and he currently leads Division I in scoring, averaging 28 points through six games.
His effortless scoring isn’t the only thing that’s stood out this season, as he’s starting to develop into an all-around point guard. He’s averaging 6.3 assists, when he entered the season with 10 six-assist games across 72 career games. He already has four such games this season.
Tucker DeVries is Indiana’s player to watch
DeVries, the 6-foot-7 guard and son of the head coach, has been considered an NBA prospect across his career, but he’s struggled to stay healthy. He played in eight games last season at West Virginia, but is already finding a groove for the Hoosiers.
The two-time Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year is averaging 19.2 points, shooting 47% from the field and 46.5% from 3-point range and making four per game.
Indiana is among nation’s best in assist/turnover ratio
The Hoosiers are sharing the ball and racking up assists at a high rate. They’re 11th in the country in total assists, dishing out 20.8 a game, and rank third in assist/turnover ratio. Indiana is turning the ball over 8.8 times per contest, ranking 13th in Division I.
Conor Enright, a transfer from DePaul whom DeVries had at Drake, is among the ball-handlers to watch. Lamar Wilkerson, a two-time All-Conference USA transfer from Sam Houston, is averaging 17 points and has been a 44.4% shooter from deep.
Kansas State could be the best team Indiana’s seen so far
Indiana’s early-season schedule hasn’t been the most impressive, aside from a neutral-court win over Marquette, which the Hoosiers crushed 100-77 on Nov. 9. The Golden Eagles are off to a 4-3 start, playing a challenging schedule in the season’s early weeks.
Indiana has yet to play a true road game. Its win over Marquette was played at the United Center in Chicago.
Wyatt D. Wheeler covers Kansas State athletics for the USA TODAY Network and Topeka Capital-Journal. You can follow him on X at @WyattWheeler_, contact him at 417-371-6987 or email him at wwheeler@usatodayco.com