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Cats blow out Southern Illinois
College basketball
spt ap Wildcats
Kansas State forward Jamar Samuels is fouled by Southern Illinois guard Diamond Taylor in an NCAA basketball game on Thursday afternoon. - photo by The Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) — Freshman Angel Rodriguez came off the bench and scored a season-high 17 points, including five 3-pointers, as Kansas State cruised to an 83-58 win over Southern Illinois in the opening round of the Diamond Head Classic on Thursday.
Jamar Samuels added 14 points and five rebounds while Rodney McGruder had 13 points and six boards for the Wildcats (8-1), who won their third straight and overcame 19 turnovers by dominating the paint while playing an effective inside-out game.
Kansas State moves on to face UTEP in Friday’s semifinal round. The Miners (5-5) defeated Clemson 61-48 behind Michael Perez’s career-high 25 points.
Behind Samuels and the 6-foot-11 Jordan Henriquez, the Wildcats controlled the inside with a 44-31 rebounding edge and a 30-14 advantage on points in the paint. Henriquez had 10 points, eight rebounds and two blocks.
Rodriguez, coming off a 13-point performance against Alabama, was sharp. He was 5 of 6 from 3-point range and hit a 3-pointer to put the Wildcats up 40-25, capping a 9-2 run that began with an alley-oop dunk by Henriquez off a baseline drive and dish by Rodriguez.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

Thursday

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Kansas State 83, S. Illinois 58
KANSAS ST. (8-1)
     Henriquez 4-6 2-2 10, Gipson 2-5 3-6 7, Irving 0-2 0-0 0, McGruder 4-7 3-4 13, Spradling 2-2 0-0 5, Southwell 0-1 0-0 0, Ojeleye 0-1 0-0 0, Williams 0-0 0-0 0, Lawrence 0-0 0-0 0, Rodriguez 5-7 2-2 17, Watson 0-2 0-0 0, Diaz 4-4 1-2 9, Jones 2-7 3-4 8, Samuels 2-2 10-12 14, Rohleder 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-46 24-32 83.
S. ILLINOIS (3-6)
     Seck 2-5 1-1 5, Drinkard 1-3 2-3 4, Goff 0-0 1-2 1, Swan 1-3 1-2 3, Taylor 1-3 2-4 5, Brown-Surles 1-10 0-0 2, Bryer 0-1 0-0 0, Lindsay 1-7 2-4 5, Daniels 2-2 3-4 7, Early 3-9 3-7 10, Bocot 4-12 0-0 10, Whitt 1-3 2-2 4, Setty 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 18-61 17-29 58.
     Halftime — Kansas St. 48-29. Three- point goals — Kansas St. 9-14 (Rodriguez 5-6, McGruder 2-4, Spradling 1-1, Jones 1-2, Irving 0-1), S. Illinois 5-22 (Bocot 2-5, Early 1-1, Taylor 1-3, Lindsay 1-4, Whitt 0-1, Swan 0-1, Brown-Surles 0-7). Rebounds — Kansas St. 44 (Henriquez 8), S. Illinois 31 (Seck 5). Assists — Kansas St. 14 (Jones 4), S. Illinois 7 (Brown-Surles 3). Total fouls — Kansas St. 25, S. Illinois 25. A — 6,751.