Cam Carter scored a career-high 25 points as Kansas State easily defeated South Dakota State 91-68 on Monday night in Manhattan, Kan.
It was the first time this season that Kansas State (2-1) was not led in scoring by Tylor Perry. He had 22, including 16 in the second half. RJ Jones added 14 points and Will McNair Jr. added 10.
Charlie Easley led South Dakota State (1-2) with 21 points, one shy of his career high. Luke Appel, who attempted three 3-pointers last season, hit three Monday night and finished with 16 points. Zeke Mayo was held to just 11 after scoring 28 in each of his first two games.
K-State, which finished 14 of 25 from 3-point range, followed a hot-shooting first half with an even better second half. The Wildcats hit 9-of-15 shots in the first 8:30 of the second half, including 5 of 7 from 3-point range. Perry was 3-of-4 (all from long range) during that stretch.
The Wildcats stretched the lead to 20 points (71-51) midway through the second half.
K-State started with some hot shooting from beyond the arc. The Cats hit three 3-pointers in a stretch of 1:40 to take a four-point lead and turn it into a 12-point cushion at 18-6. Defense was the key, as they held the Jackrabbits to just 3-of-16 from the field in the first 8:23.
The Jackrabbits got back into it by getting hot from the field. They hit 6 of 8, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range. But the Wildcats were sizzling as well, and the margin was 29-22 with 7:03 left. The Wildcats used a 9-0 run to open up its largest lead of the half at 38-24, before South Dakota State scored the final five points of the half.
Carter, who tied his career high with 17 points in the last game, had 15 in the first half. Mayo and Easley led the Jackrabbits with nine points each before the break. Easley also had six steals in the first half.
–Field Level Media