Instant Takeaways: No. 12 Kansas State takes down No. 9 TCU 59-50

First Half Rock Fight

An absolute rock fight in the first half broke out between Kansas State and TCU. After four minutes of play it was just 4-0 Kansas State. The end of the first quarter score was just 8-8. Both teams were struggling to get anything going offensively.

Shooting was still not great in the second quarter. Again after three minutes just three points total were scored in the second quarter. The Horned Frogs ended up winning the quarter 17-11 after finishing the second period on a 7-0 run in the final 1:44 of the half. In the first half, the biggest difference maker was TCU’s ability to hit the three ball. The Horned Frogs hit four of their nine attempts from distance in the first half. However, K-State was just one for seven.

Another key difference was Kansas State’s inability to convert in the lane. K-State was 3-for-11 in the paint in the first half whereas TCU was 4-for-5.

Ball Pressure

Wednesday night was as much pressure on the ball Kansas State has shown all season. The Horned Frogs guards were frustrated by the pressure and K-State picking them up full court. TCU finished with 11 first-half turnovers after coming into the Wednesday averaging 12 for an entire game.

The ball pressure even kept up on nonguards as well. Sedona Prince had four turnovers in the first half due to double teams and Kansas State guards being disruptive. Zyanna Walker and Jaelyn Glynn were playing great defense on the perimeter. TCU finished the game with 17 turnovers and K-State had 12 steals leading to 15 points off turnovers.

Kansas State Difference Maker

Glenn was a big difference-maker tonight. She was pesky on defense and provided an offensive spark in the third quarter when K-State really needed it. The senior guard was making incredibly tough shots around the basket and hit timely shots from deep. She has always been a glue player in her career, but she continues to make strides and steps this season. Glenn ended with 14 points on six-for-seven shooting. She also added four rebounds, two assists and four steals.

Fourth Quarter Runs

After getting up 43-35 at the end of the third quarter, the Wildcats struggled offensively to begin the fourth quarter. TCU scored the first nine points of the fourth quarter to take the lead 44-43. Kansas State could not get an easy look and the offense looked a lot like the first quarter. K-State was also unable to get easy looks due to playing poor defense. The best Wildcat offense was getting out in transition and Kansas State could not get out in transition at the beginning of the fourth quarter.

K-State’s defense ramped back up later in the fourth and the Wildcats were able to get easy baskets. Serena Sundell came up huge in the fourth quarter in isolation in the post. The senior guard had one of the best games of the season in the win over TCU. She ended with 27 points, six rebounds and four assists.