FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Barry Brown had 16 points to lead four Kansas State players in double figures and the 18th-ranked Wildcats beat TCU 64-52 on Monday night to maintain a share of the Big 12 lead with one game remaining in the regular season.
Kansas State (23-7, 13-4 Big 12) went ahead to stay with a tiebreaking 13-4 run to end the first half, then scored the first 10 points after halftime.
Kamau Stokes added 15 points for the Wildcats, who remained tied with No. 8 Texas Tech (25-5, 13-4) atop the Big 12 standings. The Red Raiders, who won by 15 at slumping TCU on Saturday, finished a 70-51 home win over Texas only minutes after the K-State game ended.
Kevin Samuel had 17 points and seven rebounds to lead TCU (18-12, 6-11), while RJ Nembhard scored 12 points.
After TCU’s Desmond Bane made a second-chance 3-pointer with 4:47 left in the first half to tie the game at 23, the Wildcats started their game-turning run.
Dean Wade, who scored all of his nine points before halftime, assisted on a 3-pointer by Stokes before the 6-foot-10 senior who was the preseason All-Big 12 player of the year had a steal. Wade and Brown then traded passes down the court before Wade slammed the ball home.
Stokes hit a 3 that beat the shot clock just before halftime for a 36-27 lead at the break.
K-State led by as many as 21 points before TCU reeled off 10 points in a row, a streak that finally ended when Mike McGuirl stopped underneath and passed out to Makol Mawien for a 13-foot jumper in the lane.
Xavier Sneed had 11 points and Mawien 10.
BIG PICTURE
Kansas St.: The Wildcats have a chance to win their second Big 12 title. They were co-champions in 2012-13, coach Bruce Weber’s first season, when they shared the title with Kansas — the 14-time defending champion that won the last five titles outright. K-State started 0-2 in the Big 12 when Wade was out with a foot injury, but is 13-2 in conference play since.
TCU: The Horned Frogs lost for the sixth time in seven games, a stretch that has taken them to the NCAA Tournament bubble. Before that, they seemed to be well on their way to their second consecutive NCAA Tournament after ending a two-decade drought last year.
SENIOR NIGHT
TCU seniors Alex Robinson and JD Miller were recognized before the game. Robinson, who is from Fort Worth but played his first college season for Texas A&M, is TCU’s career assist leader at 628. Miller has played in all 133 games since he got on campus, three short of Brandon Parrish’s school record of 136.
UP NEXT
Kansas State wraps up the regular season Saturday at home against Oklahoma, on senior day for starters Wade, Brown and Stokes.
TCU plays its regular-season finale Saturday at Texas, another NCAA Tournament bubble team.