Kansas State basketball

Visit ESPN for the game recap of the Florida Atlantic Owls vs. Kansas State Wildcats NCAAM basketball game on March 25, 2023.

[Ismael Massoud](http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/4431761/ismael-massoud) outside the 3-point line —- and never got it back. [Vladislav Goldin](http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/4700818/vladislav-goldin) had 14 points and 13 rebounds, and [Michael Forrest](http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/4397485/michael-forrest) made four clutch free throws in the final 20 seconds for the Owls, who held steady as the Wildcats made one last push. FAU didn't even have a basketball program until the late 1980s and has only been in Division I for the last 30 years. They were picked fifth in the C-USA preseason coaches' poll. But first: a trip to Texas. “I maximized everything I had inside of me to see these guys happy.” And they closed out hard to him, and he didn’t get his shot off.” In the Sweet 16, Nowell set the NCAA Tournament record with 19 assists in an overtime win against Michigan State. [Cam Carter](http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/4898380/cam-carter) made a 3 from the wing with 22.8 seconds left to cut FAU’s lead to 75-74 and Kansas State sent Forrest to the line with 17.9 seconds left. [@MrNewYorkCityy on Twitter](https://twitter.com/MrNewYorkCityy) — was incredible again at Madison Square Garden, with 30 points, 12 assists and five steals. 9 to get that far since seeding began in 1979. 9 seed to reach the Final Four since Wichita State in 2013.

The No. 3 seed Kansas State Wildcats will try and cruise past an electric No. 9 seed Florida Atlantic Owls team in the first Elite 8 clash of the 2023 NCAA ...

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WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) - Note: This blog will be your one-stop shop for updates before, during and after the Elite 8 men's basketball game between Kansas ...

As has been the case in many games, FAU used a balanced offense to defeat Tenneseee on Thursday, with three double-figure scorers. Nowell is warming up with the Wildcats and there appear to be no limits on the K-State headliner. Those rankings are even better when adjusted analytically for opponents and strength of schedule, as the Owls rate 26th in offensive efficiency and 29th in defensive efficiency according to After all, the Wildcats are trying to reach the Final Four for the first time since 1964. Since that Nowell three-point play, FAU hasn’t committed a turnover and is on a 10-2 run for its biggest lead of the game. The FAU big man might just be too big for the Cats to effectively guard. FAU wasn’t taking good care of the basketball out of the first TV timeout, and K-State built a 16-12 lead after a three-point play by Markquis Nowell, Mr. K-State has made 14 of 30 shots and 4 of 10 threes; FAU is 15-28 and 4 for 11. He’ll rally his teammates and carry the Cats to the Final Four. Though he had two missed free throws and his third foul in the opening minutes of the second half, Keyontae Johnson made two quick baskets. On the bench in foul trouble for much of the game, he’s probably the freshest of any player on the court. Bryan Greenlee was fouled by Tomlin on a three-point attempt, so FAU gets three free throws for a chance to extend the lead.

One year has passed since Jerome Tang proclaimed, "It's a great day to be Wildcat!" and said that he didn't arrive at Kansas State to "rebuild"

"From what I saw (Thursday) just by watching the game in person, they've got a floor general as a point guard who can get everyone involved, and is obviously like a freak athlete and very aggressive. "They won 34 games and that doesn't happen by accident. They're tough and together, as connected of a team as there is in the country. We never envisioned this, but we knew we had a special group if we cleaned up a few things and we'd have a chance to win a lot more games." He was at Texas Tech and he's every bit of 7-foot-1 and he's strong and physical and can catch and finish, and he protects the rim. "(Goldin) is a Big 12 center. 8-seed Memphis (66-65) and 16-seed Fairleigh Dickinson (78-70) before mounting a comeback victory over the Volunteers. "If you just took the names off the front of the jerseys and lined them up against anybody in America, you'd say they're a high-major team," Tang said. proclaimed, "It's a great day to be Wildcat!" "I don't know if I can fully process all of that," said Tang, a finalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year award. Prior to this season, the Owls had never won a NCAA Tournament game.

Kansas State basketball finishes its first year under head coach Jerome Tang with a close loss in the Elite Eight against the Florida Atlantic Owls.

Guard Aliyah Martin also helped contribute to the owl’s success with 17 points and four rebounds. K-State came out in the second half with a more balanced offense and defense. With foul trouble, FAU was able to get to the free-throw line and extend thelead.

SportsLine's model revealed its college basketball picks for Florida Atlantic Owls vs. Kansas State Wildcats in the Elite Eight round of March Madness 2023.

FAU](https://www.sportsline.com/college-basketball/game-forecast/NCAAB_20230325_FAU@KSTATE/) and revealed its coveted picks and predictions for the NCAA Tournament 2023. You can [head to SportsLine to see the picks](https://www.sportsline.com/insiders/2023-ncaa-tournament-florida-atlantic-vs-kansas-state-game-line-odds-advanced-college-basketball-model-releases-pick-for-elite-eight-matchup/#ttag=03242023_agg_cbssports_picks_basketball_ncaa_model_KansasStateFAUCBB). [Markquis Nowell](/college-basketball/players/3041079/markquis-nowell/) is one of the biggest stories of the 2023 NCAA Tournament. Here are several [college basketball odds](https://www.sportsline.com/college-basketball/odds) and trends for FAU vs. FAU is excellent on the defensive glass, securing 74.5% of missed shots from opponents, and the Owls are No. Florida Atlantic is known for its explosive and efficient offense, ranking in the top 15 of the country in scoring well over 1.12 points per possession. Florida Atlantic held Tennessee to 33% shooting and 6-23 from 3-point range in the Sweet 16 victory, boosting its own defensive efficiency to 94.9 points allowed per 100 possessions for the season. [NCAA Tournament](/college-basketball/ncaa-tournament/) 83-54 on all-top rated [college basketball picks](https://www.sportsline.com/college-basketball/picks/) this season, returning more than $1,500 for $100 players. Jerome Tang leads Kansas State to a 26-9 record this season after victories over [Kentucky](https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/UK/kentucky-wildcats/) and Michigan State in the last two rounds. Before locking in any Kansas State vs. 9 seed [Florida Atlantic Owls](https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/teams/FAU/florida-atlantic-owls/) at Madison Square Garden. In the first of two regional finals during the night, the No.

One year has passed since Jerome Tang proclaimed, "It's a great day to be Wildcat!" and said that he didn't arrive at Kansas State to "rebuild"

"From what I saw (Thursday) just by watching the game in person, they've got a floor general as a point guard who can get everyone involved, and is obviously like a freak athlete and very aggressive. "They won 34 games and that doesn't happen by accident. They're tough and together, as connected of a team as there is in the country. We never envisioned this, but we knew we had a special group if we cleaned up a few things and we'd have a chance to win a lot more games." He was at Texas Tech and he's every bit of 7-foot-1 and he's strong and physical and can catch and finish, and he protects the rim. "(Goldin) is a Big 12 center. 8-seed Memphis (66-65) and 16-seed Fairleigh Dickinson (78-70) before mounting a comeback victory over the Volunteers. "If you just took the names off the front of the jerseys and lined them up against anybody in America, you'd say they're a high-major team," Tang said. proclaimed, "It's a great day to be Wildcat!" "I don't know if I can fully process all of that," said Tang, a finalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year award. Prior to this season, the Owls had never won a NCAA Tournament game.

The Elite Eight again proved to be too steep a hurdle for Kansas State to overcome, and another step on Cinderella journey for Florida Atlantic.

"I tried to get Ish a shot because the right wing is where he makes most of his threes at," Nowell said. "It's just part of the game." Kansas State twice trimmed FAU's lead to a single point in the closing seconds, only to have Forrest answer with two free throws on both occasions. When K-State's Johnson picked up his second foul on a charge with 12:01 left in the first half, Tang elected to sit him the rest of the half. "And so he happened to fall into that 10% who picks up his fifth foul." But it was two near the end of the game that derailed a frantic K-State comeback and ultimately secured the victory. "That was the key," K-State guard Desi Sills said. "They were tough," Tang said of the Owls. Florida Atlantic's season rebounding average might have raised some red flags for a Kansas State team that for much of the year struggled on the boards. "I'm just blessed and grateful," he said. "How great it was to live life (with them)." 3 seed K-State, which just a few months ago was picked to finish last in the Big 12, beat perennial powers Kentucky and Michigan State to reach the East Region championship game.

Jonesboro, Arkansas native Desi Sills found motivation in family, mother to play role on Kansas State basketball team Elite 8 season.

“He wants to make life better for his mother and his siblings and you can see how hard he worked to show that you can make it out of Jonesboro and become anything, you can get a degree and go out in the world and become whatever you want to be. “At the end of the day, whatever team I’m on, if I got a big role, a little role, I’m going to be the best player in that role that I can be,” Sills said. “Nobody ever thought I would be here, but I’m here,” Sills said. He had a Zoom meeting with assistant coach Rodney Perry to walk through offensive sets and terminology. “Obviously we had Markquis and Keyontae, but Desi brought a different kind of energy and was the heart and soul of this team,” K-State senior Ish Massoud said. He didn’t arrive on campus until less than two weeks before the start of the season in late October because he still needed to complete classwork to be eligible as a graduate transfer at K-State. Although he stands just 6-foot-1, Sills played with a tenacity on the defensive end that allowed K-State to pull off its switch-everything scheme. He credited his mother for teaching him the importance of working with a team and focusing on winning together, rather than excelling on his own. Growing up without much, Sills said he acted out as a child but felt empowered with a basketball in his hands. “I used to be a bad little boy, but I switched up my whole world and fell in love with the game of basketball. When he stepped on the court, any worries and concerns from his life faded. You’re going to fall over one day, but you got to pick yourself back up and keep pedaling.”

Tang stopped by the FAU locker room to personally offer his congratulations and encouragement ahead of the Final Four.

I want to give FAU and Coach a lot of credit. "In the midst of probably one of the toughest things that I've experienced with these guys, if we can't be grateful in these times, then all the love and joy that we talk about is fraud," Tang said in his postgame press conference. Just proud of ya'll and going to be rooting for you." Amid the sting of defeat, K-State coach Jerome Tang stopped by to congratulate FAU and implore the Owls to keep progressing as the program's historic [NCAA Tournament](/college-basketball/ncaa-tournament/) run continues to the Final Four. Ya'll are the toughest son of a guns we played all year long. 3 seed Kansas State](https://www.cbssports.com/) in the Elite Eight on Saturday, the Owls received an unlikely visitor in their locker room.

Michael Forrest made clutch free throws to keep the game away from Kansas State and keep Florida Atlantic basketball in the NCAA Tournament.

They're going to have a special bond forever, but this group would have had a special bond forever if we would have gotten knocked out in the conference tournament,” May said. Part of the identity that this team relishes is for everybody to contribute. However, he recalls moments when he knew the team this season was special. “So hats off, Coach [Jim] Crutchfield, national champion and someone that gave us, once again, more confidence in ourselves.” The game will take place Saturday, April 1. “It's a lot of excitement. They’ve won the rebound battle in every game this national tournament. “We've been in too many of them. [Few picked FAU basketball to reach Final Four. They’re the first No. Couldn't be more proud of a group who did it really together every single day.” “You're always relying on faith that you believe it's going to happen, but you never really know.

Kansas State basketball finishes its first year under head coach Jerome Tang with a close loss in the Elite Eight against the Florida Atlantic Owls.

Guard Aliyah Martin also helped contribute to the owl’s success with 17 points and four rebounds. With foul trouble, FAU was able to get to the free-throw line and extend thelead.K-State came out in the second half with a more balanced offense and defense. The Wildcats ended the game with 30 points off of turnovers.