MANHATTAN — Angel Rodriguez scored 19 points and Will Spradling added 14 as Kansas State defeated Lamar 79-55 in a Preseason NIT game on Monday night.
The game got out of hand early as the Wildcats (2-0) took a 43-15 lead into halftime after dominating the paint and capitalizing on 14 first-half turnovers by the Cardinals.
Donley Minor scored 17 points and Rhon Mitchell 15 for Lamar (0-1).
The Wildcats owned the boards at both ends in the first half, limiting Lamar to five offensive rebounds. The Cardinals had just four second-chance points and were outscored 18-6 in the paint during the first 20 minutes.
Kansas State opened the game with a 15-0 run as Rodriguez and Spradling each drained 3-pointers. Lamar committed six turnovers in the first eight minutes.
In the second half, Rodriguez sparked the Kansas State offense, just as he did after halftime in the season opener against North Dakota on Friday. He finished 6 of 14 from the field and 4 of 6 from beyond the arc.
The Cardinals scored eight straight and cut the deficit to 65-45 with about seven minutes to play. Rodriguez responded with a layup and back-to-back 3-pointers.
The Cardinals found their offensive rhythm after halftime. Minor hit a trio of 3-pointers as he and Stan Brown combined for 22 points in eight minutes — seven more points than the entire team scored in the first half.
Spradling was 4 of 6 from 3-point range.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Non-conference
Monday
At Manhattan
Bramlage Coliseum
Kansas State 79, Lamar 55
LAMAR (0-1)
Acosta 1-2 0-0 2, Wilson 0-4 0-1 0, Brown 5-11 1-2 11, Blanks 2-8 0-0 4, Minor 5-8 3-3 17, Minton 1-2 0-0 2, Hancock 0-0 0-0 0, Webb 0-1 1-2 1, Mitchell 6-8 2-2 15, Ebomwonyi 1-3 1-3 3, Norman 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-47 8-13 55.
KANSAS STATE (2-0)
Williams 4-5 0-0 8, Henriquez 2-4 1-4 5, Rodriguez 6-14 3-4 19, McGruder 4-9 0-0 9, Spradling 4-6 2-2 14, Southwell 1-6 0-0 2, Irving 3-8 0-0 8, Lawrence 0-4 2-2 2, Diaz 2-4 0-0 4, Schultz 0-2 0-0 0, Gipson 1-7 1-2 3, Orris 0-0 0-2 0, Johnson 2-3 1-3 5. Totals 29-72 10-19 79.
Halftime — Kansas State 43-15. Three-point goals — Lamar 5-9 (Minor 4-5, Mitchell 1-1, Minton 0-1, Blanks 0-2), Kansas State 11-26 (Spradling 4-6, Rodriguez 4-6, Irving 2-6, McGruder 1-4, Lawrence 0-1, Schultz 0-1, Southwell 0-2). Rebounds — Lamar 37 (Mitchell 6), Kansas State 40 (Henriquez, Johnson 8). Assists — Lamar 13 (Minton 5), Kansas State 20 (Rodriguez, Williams 4). Total Fouls — Lamar 17, Kansas State 17.
