K-State wins Paradise Jam 3rd-place game 80-64 over Longwood Lancers

The Kansas State Wildcats ended their trip to the U.S. Virgin Islands on a high note, bouncing back from their semifinal loss with an 80-64 win over the Longwood Lancers in the third-place game of the Paradise Jam tournament.

K-State wasn’t able to truly pull away until late, but a big offensive night as a team and a breakout performance from prized transfer portal acquisition Coleman Hawkins propelled the Wildcats to victory.

“Words can’t express how proud I am,” Kansas State coach Jerome Tang said. “You saw a team that was more connected today than they were yesterday.”

Hawkins, a senior forward who transferred in from Illinois this offseason, had his best game with the Wildcats on Monday afternoon. He went 7-of-10 from the floor for 19 points, also collecting 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season and the seventh of his career.

He was one of four Wildcats to score in double figures against Longwood. Junior guard Brendan Hausen continued his hot streak from earlier in the tournament, going 3-of-4 from three-point range on his way to 16 points. Junior guard Dug McDaniel scored 11 off the bench, and senior wing David N’Guessan added 10 points.

As a team, K-State shot 58.9% from the field and 55% from beyond the arc in the win, although it only attempted five free throws (and made three) for the entire game.

Turnovers were an issue for Tang’s group as well, although Longwood wasn’t able t0 make Kansas State pay for them. The Wildcats turned it over 18 times in the win, but that those turned into just five Lancers points.

K-State will be back in action on Sunday, Dec. 1, when it returns to Manhattan to host the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions. That game is set for a 1:00 tipoff.

For more coverage of the Kansas State Wildcats, check out 580 Sports Talk weekday afternoons from 3-6 on 580 WIBW.