Wildcats escape with win

A win's a win, and Kansas State coach Deb Patterson will gladly take Wednesday's 37-33 victory over Missouri.

No, it wasn't pretty, and at times, it was far from being entertaining.

But the Wildcats were able to overcome their worst shooting performance of the season to grab a needed victory and stay relevant in the Big 12.

With the win, the Wildcats improved to 12-11 overall and 4-5 in the conference.

"This is a win I am really excited about," Patterson said. "I know it wasn't a win that on the offensive side of the floor, would have pleased a lot of people. It was a grind-out game."

It indeed was a slow grind on offense for both the Wildcats and the Tigers, as the 70 combined points was the lowest point total in KSU women's history. The point total broke the previous record low, which was set in 1997 when K-State lost to Kansas, 51-38.

Only two players in the contest registered double figures in points, as Christine Flores of Missouri had a game-high 11 points, and K-State freshman Taelor Karr had a team-high 10 points.

K-State tallied just a 16-10 lead at the 3:02 mark in the first half on a layup by junior Shalin Spani, and it was clear as the first half came to a close, that points would be at a premium.

The Wildcats led 16-13 at halftime and shot just 26 percent in the opening half on 6-of-23 from the field, while missing on all three attempts from behind the arc.

"At some point, it was just find a way to stay ahead and make enough defensive plays and board the ball and don't give in," Patterson said. "Don't give in just because things aren't going your way on the offensive end in terms of making shots."

In the second half, the Wildcats did just that, focusing on their defensive effort and refusing to give in as Karr buried two critical shots late in the second half. With the Wildcats trailing 29-28 and less than four minutes remaining in the game, the guard hit a 10-foot jumper from the left side of the key to give the lead back to K-State.

On the next possession, following a missed jumper by Missouri's Toy Richbow, senior Kari Kincaid pushed the ball quickly up the other end of the court, passed it off to Karr deep on the left side. Karr paused, stepped back and nailed a 3-pointer to put the Wildcats up by four.

"I really didn't do anything special." Karr said.

It sure felt special though. Her 3 marked the first back-to-back baskets the Wildcats connected on the entire night, and it came in the midst of the their attempt to finally pull away from the Tigers.

"I believe in Taelor's ability to do that," Patterson said. "It's not an easy thing to do for everyone in a game like we just competed in, to keep a level of confidence and keep a level of focus when things on the offensive end are just so difficult."

Kincaid followed Karr's basket by connecting on a jumper from the right side as the shot clock expired, pushing the Wildcats' lead back to four after Missouri made a pair of free throws at the other end.

KSU held on to the slim lead down the stretch as Missouri threw up a two-point attempt inside the final four seconds, when the Tigers trailed by three.

The Tigers finished the game shooting just 24 percent on 13-of-54 shooting and 1-of-13 from behind the arc.

"I think we really need to take from this game the accountability that we brought," senior forward Ashley Sweat said. "Maybe not from the offensive end tonight, but for the most part, we did get some good shots. On the defensive side, we were very accountable and that is huge for us."

The Wildcats will hit the road for a two-game road trip in Texas beginning with a 7 p.m. matchup against Texas A&M on Saturday.

Photo- Rob Mikiniski