The Wildcats are looking to enjoy another solid year in the Big 8. Coach Tex Winter has implemented his patented offense and has just the right personnel to make it work.  For this offense to be effective you need to have some athletic perimeter players who can move, hit jump shots and post up smaller players.  Winter has all of this and more with a tremendous back court that can match up with just about anybody when they are hitting shots.  The Wildcats are blessed to have not one but two of the best shooters in the country on the wings.  Winter uses a constantly moving offense dubbed the triangle (yes folks they play the triangle in the Octagon of Doom-Bramlage Coliseum for the feint of heart) that rotates his wings around double posts which leads to good matchups for the wings.   Senior Ernie Barrett and Sophomore Rolando Blackman are two of the best wings in the country and complement each other perfectly.  Barrett has more range than the Rocky Mountains and the fans in Manhattan love him.  Black Jack Barrett has been the main guy here with his ability to hit long range bombs and should continue to be but Winter recruits as many guys who can score and defend on the wings as he can so there is competition here.  Blackman has range from outside but nowhere near Barrett’s.  He is a great mid-range player and does everything well.  A terrific defender who uses his 6’6 frame well to guard two’s or three’s and is an unselfish as they get.  He is not afraid to take and make big shots and might be the best all-around player this program has ever had.   Junior Chuckie (s’N Love) Williams is almost as adept as the starters with his offensive game.  He has great range and can flat score but his best attribute is his unselfishness.  When Winter inserted Blackman into the starting lineup last year Williams gladly accepted his role as instant offense off the bench.  He still averaged over ten points a game and had some huge moments in this team’s run to the Big Dance last season.  He should have the same role this year though Winter has tried him as the backup point guard to get this mighty triumvirate on the court at the same time.  Not enough basketballs for that and he has some fine playmakers anyway so Williams will be the sixth man again.  Senior Howie Shannon is in the same boat.  He once teamed with Barrett in the first appearance of the Triangle and played well on both ends.  The problem was that at 6’2 one of those two had to guard the bigger wings ie small forwards the Wildcats played and Shannon kind of left by the wayside especially when Blackman entered the fray.  It was basically him or Barrett and with Barrett’s bombs they were not replacing that stud.  Shannon is a terrific competitor and leader and will get some minutes though they seemed to be getting more limited as the season progressed last year.  Another senior Jeff Webb has barely played for most of his career but gives the team depth and at 6’4 can come off and guard some bigger wings.  Webb is a winner and has quick hands, some might even say he has the hands of a drummer.  Having this kind of talent five deep down at one position shows why the Wildcats are perennial contenders.  This quintet is in line to put up some incredible numbers and there is no doubt Winter’s wings can play with anyone.  Now if they rest of the team can step up to this triangle offense and fill some of the support roles up front that in reality make this whole thing go.  After all as much attention as the scorers get somebody has to set the screens and grab the boards and hit some wide open shots to make this work.  And of course somebody has to get the ball to these wings!

 Speaking of point guard Junior Mike Evans is the incumbent and gives Winter another guy who can hit some long range bombs.  He is a good passer but has more of a scorer first mentality.  He loves to get to the hoop and can shoot.  He is a solid passer and is a good leader and Winter likes the way he hits open shots in his triangle offense.  Evans will start but there are some solid players vying for playing time.    Junior Lon Kruger and Sophomore Steve Henson are tough as nails old school who the flatlanders love.  Neither has much talent but they make up for it with desire and a great understanding of the game.  Kruger maybe the smartest player on the team and can switch over to the two spot if needed and Henson is pure toughness.  Every team needs at least one of these types slamming their hands on the floor at defenders and high fiving everybody in sight.  The opponent’s fans and players hate them but the Wildcats faithful love them.  And the Wildcats have two of them.  If they had a couple of seven footers near as tough and physical as these guys Kansas State might be unbeatable. 

Don’t get me wrong the Wildcats do have some talent up front.  Senior Bob Boozer is a fiery player who can score and rebound and has led the team in both categories the last two years.  He is undersized for this massive conference at only 6 foot 8 and 215 pounds and gets bloodied on the boards.  Still, he was their main threat down low and did come thru time in and time out.  The ‘Bullet’ may not get the hype of some of the other guys in this league but he is a one of a kind competitor and is the best forward in the league that does not play bass guitar.  He like his teammates is adept at coming off screens and popping in 20 footers.  He may not be a true three point threat but he can shoot the jumper, something that seems innate if you land in Manhattan.  On this team Boozer does have to play the four and does a solid job here even if he is giving up quite a bit of girth to some of the behemoths that slumber through the Big 8.  After all Lovelette and Tisdale are not exactly undersized and if K State wants to compete with Kansas and Oklahoma for a league title they must be able to bang with those big dawgs and Boozer has shown he is not one to shy away from contact.  This game will bring it every night and no matter how big the dog is this cat will claw you all night long. 

Winter has a variance of players at the post trying to find someone who can board and defend and score just enough to keep the other team’s honest.  Senior Jack Parr (Here’s Jackie) is the starter and by far has the best all-around game of the players on this roster competing for minutes at center. Parr does have the same problem as Boozer in being undersized though he is a little bigger at six nine.  This is pretty tough banging against Chamberlain and Kurland but he is a good defender and is not afraid to mix it up.  He is also a board man with some offensive skills and will likely eat up the majority of minutes for Winter down low but he is nowhere near the talent the guys he will be guarding.  His block against Chamberlain in the overtime with under ten seconds left won the game for the Wildcats and gave him some huge street cred..  This is the last call for Parr who had been a huge part of the Wildcats success but like all greats they too are eventually replaced.  All Parr asks is this it is not some wet behind the ear kid from Nebraska that finally pushes him out the door.  Senior Willie Murrell gives the team some inside boost off the bench offensively but he is really small (6’6) and has a hard time guarding bigger guys. He is better suited as a three but played mostly behind Boozer and gets the job done.  Murrell is a physical player who goes about 225 and knows how to get his points and boards down low.  Senior Lew Hitch is another option who like his brethren was more of a rebounder and defender than a scorer.  As a matter of fact he barely scores at all except for putbacks but he is a gamer and though he is only 6’8 takes up space and will fight all day in the paint.  Seniors Dick Knostmann and Gene Williams plus juniors David Hall and Steve Mitchell and sophomore Ed Nealy will also be in the mix.  Some of these guys are a bit bigger and give Winter some depth down low.  Mitchell at six ten and goes 250 pounds and has the biggest upside primarily due to his size.  Mitchell has a decent shot at taking over a starting role sometime this year and will most definitely be given every chance especially against some of the bigger boys.  Mitchell is not from Nebraska (he is actually from Oklahoma State) but like Johnny Carson he will have big shoes to fill if he does replace Jack Parr but he has the kind of game this team needs.  His issue will be consistency as Mitchell took a step back last year after a terrific freshman season when it looked like he was the guy in Manhattan.  If he shows more of that this year the job will be his.  Knostmann is a one-time stud who was second on the team in scoring a few years back.  At 6’6 though Knostmann has a hard time hanging with the big boys of this league and has slowly become a role player.  His chance of still playing at all this year is dependent on how quick Winter wants to bring up some of his recruits.  Williams is a banger who will set a mean screen much like sophomore Ed Nealy who got some minutes last year as well and is also in the mix.  Nealy is a smart kid who knows how to throw around his 250 pounds very well and fits the triangle offense extremely well with his ability to screen and pass from the high post.  He is only 6’7 but Nealy can bang with the big boys and don’t be surprised if his minutes increase dramatically in his second season as Winter loves him.  Hall might be the best all-around player in completion but is only 6’7 and only goes about 200 pounds,  It is nice to be svelte but that kind of size is not going to cut it in this league for long at least not playing the post and Hall is not a wing.  As you can see Winter does have options but if he has not figured out a rotation and someone who can play next to Boozer by spring then the Wildcats are destined to finish in the same place they always do.  Just good enough to make the Big Dance and beat the teams they should beat in the Big 8 but nowhere big enough to compete with the monsters of the midway in this league or any other.  Winter realizes this and though he seemed to be behind the eight ball with his recruiting all off season a couple of studs came in late to give this team some thoroughbreds down low.  Cartier Martin and Bill Walker are similar forwards who are more combo than post.  Both have some size (6’7 and 6’6 respectively with each going about 220) but to play early on here are more needed down low.  They are building blocks for the future though both have the talent to contribute this season there are no real openings for them unless something changes in Manhattan.  The oldest player on this year’s roster ironically is a new face.  Sophomore Norris ‘the Sarge’ Coleman was in the Army and dominated and Winter saw him and now this 6’8 chiseled stud will get a shot to show what he has got.  He is a long shot but as you can see the Wildcats are accepting all comers as they try to some gems to compete up front in this ultra-competitive league dominated by glorific front lines.  The real prize, however, might be walking into some big minutes right away.  Michael Beasley is a 6’9 235 pound scoring machine who will get every shot to show he can play right away.   Beasley bounced around to several high schools and was an AAU stud in Maryland but did not sign with anybody until after his senior year.  The Wildcats got incredibly lucky as he showed in the Mickey D’s All-Star game when the late invite Beasley showed he can flat score by pumping in 23 from both inside and out.  For now Beasley will learn behind Boozer but this smooth stroking lefty is too good not to play and to be honest fits with what this team needs right now.  He might not be a monster down low but he is a ‘walking bucket’ and can score in any way you want him to.  He has had some off the court trouble so the Wildcats are taking a risk but since he is the biggest recruit they have had at least since Boozer they are willing and need to take a chance.  You see as good as the coaching has been in Manhattan the recruiting has not kept up and that is why this program has slowly slipped to the brink of being a NIT type program.  That is not what they are used to in Manhattan and getting Beasley not only increases their talent exponentially for as long as he is here (and this kid will most definitely not make it four years) but for once takes the dreaded Jayhawks off the front page on national signing day.  Will Beasley be the savior this program needs?  Well. Let’s see the day he was signed the prognosticators moved the Wildcats up from 5th in the preseason polls to 3rd, leapfrogging the mighty Cowboys and rival Tigers.  There is some juice again in Manhattan!

The Kansas State Wildcats are a solid program who has for many years been contenders for the prize in the tough Big 8 Conference.  This year will be no different.  They have arguably the best perimeter shooters assembled on one team in the Big 8 or perhaps even nationwide.  They fully take advantage of the burgeoning three point rule.  They continue to compete hard in the tough Big 8 though they do not quite have the horses some of the other teams have at their disposal.  Kansas State does not have the big men to compete down low with some of the mammoths that all the Big 8 teams seem to have.   Coach Winter will weave his magical triangle offense through this league and beyond and the Wildcats will get their fair share of wins especially when they are hitting the three but unless they figure out a way to hang down low there is only so far this three dimensional team can go.  Of course with the late news they are bringing in a scoring machine from Maryland some of their questions have been answered but unless that kid grows about three inches before he gets to Manhattan the Wildcats will still be the smallest team in Kansas and for that matter the entire Big 8!