Dec. 17, 2006
Box Score
MANHATTAN, Kan. - Kansas State went on a 12-0 run midway through the first half and held Kennesaw State to just 19 points in the first stanza as the Wildcats downed the Owls, 82-54, in the first round of the Findlay Las Vegas Holiday Classic on Sunday afternoon at Bramlage Coliseum.
The Owls (2-7) struggled to find the bottom the basket early the game as they missed their first 12 of 13 shots. Ronell Wooten hit a 3-pointer with 17:23 left in the first half, and then Kennesaw State went almost 10 minutes without another field goal until Zach Berry's mid-court steal and driving lay-up with 7:55 remaining to bring the score to 34-7.
The Owls finished the first 20 minutes shooting just 22.6 percent as they went into halftime trailing 55-19.
After regrouping during the break, Kennesaw State shot the ball much better in the second half. The Owls out-scored Kansas State 35-27 after knocking down 46 percent of their shots in the second stanza. It was too little, too late, however for the Owls faithful as the Wildcats easily won their third game in a row.
The game also marked the debut of Bill Walker, one of Kansas State's highly talented freshmen, who became eligible on Saturday. The Ohio native finished with 15 points and four rebounds in 22 minutes of play, thrilling the more than 8,500 in attendance.
Kansas State had three players finish in double figures as all 17 players on the Wildcats bench saw action. David Hoskins led the team with 17 points, while Walker and Cartier Martin finished with 15 and 12 respectively.
The Owls were paced by Wooten with nine points, all coming on three-pointers. Andre Morgan, Brent Ragsdale and Jon-Michael Nickerson all finished with eight points apiece. Berry finished with a season-high six points.
Kennesaw State will now travel to No. 8 Wichita State on Tuesday night to face the Shockers in the second round of the Las Vegas Holiday Classic. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. eastern standard time.
