Presented with the chance to get out of the grueling Big 12 for a Saturday matchup against Mississippi, one of the SEC’s weakest teams, K-State shot poorly, refused to rebound, and did not defend well enough in a 67-56 loss in Oxford. The Cats shot 30.2% (19-63) from the floor and were out-rebounded 43-33.
Nijel Pack was a bright spot, scoring 18 and tossing 7 assists. But after scoring 9 of K-State’s first 11, he disappeared for too long, and nobody else stepped up to fill the void. Mark Smith carried the Cats from a double-digit lead to get them within 6 early in the second half.