Kansas State Wildcats suffer first Big 12 loss, fall to Texas Tech Red Raiders 60-59

The Kansas State Wildcats saw their four-game winning streak and undefeated start to Big 12 play come to an end on Saturday, losing to the Texas Tech Red Raiders 60-59 on the road.

K-State is now 2-1 in league play while Texas Tech joins the Baylor Bears as the only teams to reach 3-0 through the first two weekends of Big 12 action.

The game ended with some controversy, at least from the Wildcats’ perspective. Down by one, K-State coach Jerome Tang drew up a play to get senior guard Tylor Perry going downhill, expecting him to either make a shot or get fouled. Instead, Perry didn’t hit his final shot and no foul was called.

Tang was displeased with how that play was officiated.

“That probably wasn’t smart on my part seeing as we only shot seven free throws for the whole game, so I’ll do a better job next time,” Tang said.

It was still a big game for Perry, who scored a game-high 16 points on 5-of-15 shooting while dishing out a game-high four assists. This was also a significant game for Perry as he played against his former head coach, Grant McCasland. Perry played for McCasland with the North Texas Mean Green before transferring to K-State, while McCasland is in his first year as Texas Tech’s coach.

Two other Wildcats also cracked double figures in scoring in the losing effort, with junior guard Cam Carter scoring 15 and junior forward Arthur Kaluma tacking on 10. Four Texas Tech played scored 10 or more points, led by 12 from former West Virginia Mountaineers guard Joe Toussaint.

Kansas State will return home to Manhattan for its next tilt when the Wildcats host Baylor on Tuesday night. The 14th-ranked Bears narrowly defeated the Cincinnati Bearcats 62-59 this weekend.

For more on the Kansas State Wildcats’ 60-59 loss to the Texas Tech Red Raiders, check out 580 Sports Talk Monday from 2-6 on 580 WIBW.