Kansas State PG Markquis Nowell says Tyler Ulis is "like a big brother to me"

The Big Blue Nation is no stranger to watching an undersized point guard humiliate the competition.

Former Wildcat Tyler Ulis solidified himself as a Kentucky legend during his run as John Calipari’s floor general, particularly in the 2015-16 season — you know, the one where Ulis, who is generously listed at 5-foot-8, embarrassed the entire Southeastern Conference as he picked up every major award the league could offer. That was in addition to his First-Team All-American selection and Bob Cousy Award recognition as the nation’s top point guard.

Tyler Ulis defined what it meant to be an undersized college basketball point guard. He showed that if you’re skilled enough and have the necessary, do-whatever-it-takes desire to be great, you can be great. Now, he’s taking those invaluable traits and helping share the wealth as a graduate assistant on the current staff. Ulis is a bug in the ear of starting point guard Cason Wallace and the injured Sahvir Wheeler, the latter also having to rely on his creativity as an undersized lead guard in the SEC.

While it might be a while before another Tyler Ulis-type ever suits in the college basketball world, there’s one currently out there who is about as close as you can get. Kansas State’s 5-foot-7 point guard, Markquis Nowell, has turned heads this season as the little guy who can straight-up embarrass dudes.

A fifth-year senior for the Wildcats, Nowell began his college career at Arkansas-Little Rock, where he spent three seasons as a 30-plus minute-per-game player. He transferred to Kansas State ahead of the 2021-22 season and didn’t skip a beat, quickly settling in as one of the Big 12’s top on-ball defenders despite his small frame. But this season he upped his game to a different level — not quite Ulis-like, but damn close.

In the 2022-23 season for Kansas State, Nowell averaged 16.8 points, 7.8 assists, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.4 steals in 36.5 minutes per game for the Wildcats, which earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament. He shot 35 percent from long range on 6.5 attempts per outing and 88.5 percent from the free throw line. Not only was he tabbed to the All-Big 12 First Team, but he was also named the Conference Defensive Player of the Year, as well. Sound familiar?

Nowell is a self-described gritty, hard-nosed hooper from New York City. He mirrors Ulis in more ways than none. So it shouldn’t come as a shock to learn that Nowell is already well-aware of everything Ulis did during his time at Kentucky and in the years since.

“Tyler Ulis, before I even knew he was playing at Kentucky, I studied him,” Nowell said on Saturday. “I watched him in his college days on what gained him success. So just his defense and just his play-making ability I watched and studied over the course of the years and tried to implement that into my game.

“It’s just so crazy to see that he is now on the sideline, a GA at Kentucky, and it feels like a full-circle moment because just a few years ago I was asking him tips on what I could do to become a better player, and he helped me. He is much like a big brother to me.”

On Sunday afternoon, when Kentucky takes on Kansas State in the NCAA Tournament Round of 32, Nowell will have a chance to show his big brother what he’s learned. Kentucky has yet to face a point guard of Nowell’s make-up all season long. Having Ulis roam on the sidelines should help, but he can only do so much from afar. This will be a challenge unlike anything Kentucky has tackled.

“I don’t think we really have seen that throughout the season,” UK freshman Chris Livingston said of Nowell on Saturday. “Except probably one time we played South Carolina. The point guard for South Carolina, Meechie Johnson, shot a few deep shots. But I think the point guard for Kansas State’s range might be a little further out, so I don’t think we’ve really seen that before.”

“Some of the film that we watched today, I mean, (Nowell) shot a deep one. No rim. Straight in there,” Fellow freshman, Cason Wallace, added. “So seeing him shoot deep like that and get downhill, facilitating for his teammates, like, you know, not everybody can have skill like that.”