Dec. 29, 2007
Final Stats
Manhattan KS - Freshman forwards Bill Walker and Michael Beasley scored 27 and 21 points, respectively, to lead powerful Kansas St. of the Big 12 Conference to a 101-59 victory over Wagner in front of a loud, raucous crowd 11,402 at Bramlage Coliseum.
With the loss, the Seahawks fall to 8-4 on the season while the Wildcats improve to 9-3. Wagner, which is 1-0 in NEC play, finished the non-conference portion of its schedule with a 7-4 record, which ties for the most number of single-season non-conference wins in school history.
Junior guard Joey Mundweiler (Olathe, KS/ Oathe East) scored a team-high 20 points, including four three-pointers, while playing in front of a host of friends and family members as the Kansas St. campus is located just two hours from his hometown. Senior center Durell Vinson recorded his sixth double-double of the season and 20th of his career, tallying 13 points while grabbing 10 rebounds.
Senior guard Mark Porter (Atlantic City. NJ/ St. Augustine Prep) wound up with eight points and a team-high five assists while junior swingman Justin Drummond (Baltimore, MD/ McDonogh) added seven points. Freshman center Clifton Spiller (Absecon, NJ/ Holy Spirit) pulled down a career-high five rebounds while seeing a career-high 14 minutes of action.
Both Wildcat freshmen sensations recorded double-doubles as Walker and Beasley hauled in 10 rebounds apiece.
Just three minutes into the contest, the Seahawks lost the services of forward James Ulrich (Mt. Laurel, NJ/ Camden Catholic) as the senior re-aggravated a knee injury he suffered in the preseason three minutes. Ulrich's knee will be evaluated when the team returns to practice.
Kansas St. opened the game with a 10-0 run before junior swingman Jamal Smith (Baltimore. MD/ Towson Catholic) got the Seahawks on the board with a jumper at the 16:56 mark of the first half. The Wildcats then embarked on a 23-7 sport to increase the lead to 33-9 with 6:37 left to play in the opening half.
Wagner was undone by 15 first half turnovers that led to 18 Kansas St. points as the Wildcats built a 46-21 halftime lead. Wagner was also plagued by foul trouble in the opening half as four Seahawks were charged with three personal fouls apiece in Smith, Porter, Drummond and Lewchean Radford (Newport News, VA/ Heritage).
The teams traded baskets for the first two minutes of the second half. A tip-in by Vinson once again cut the deficit to 25 at 50-25 with 18:05 left in the game, which marked the closest Wagner would get the rest of the way.
Kansas St. shot 49% from the game while Wagner was held to 31% shooting. The Wildcats out-rebounded the Seahawks 53-43. Wagner wound up with 23 turnovers while shooting just 5-of-23 from beyond the arc. The Wildcats attempted 32 free throws (making 23) while the Seahawks attempted just 14 free throws, making eight.
Wagner now plays 17 consecutive NEC games, beginning with a home contest on Thursday vs. Central Connecticut State. Tip-off for the Seahawk-Blue Devil game is set for 7:00 pm.
