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AMES, Iowa — For 40 minutes, Kansas State basketball and Iowa State battled tooth-and-nail on Wednesday night in an intense and physical Big 12 game at Hilton Coliseum.
And yet, after Iowa State pulled away in the closing minutes for a 78-67 victory over the Wildcats, it was a somewhat heated discussion between K-State coach Jerome Tang and Cyclone counterpart T.J. Otzelberger in the postgame handshake line that everyone was talking about after it was all said and done.
What was said between the two coaches remains a mystery as neither one would shed light on the specifics, instead downplaying the exchange.
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“Nothing happened,” said Tang, who was shown on video pointing toward the Wildcat bench, apparently referring to an incident that had him upset during a timeout in the second half, when he also appeared to call attention to someone in the stands behind him. “We talked about a situation that took place during the game, and he said he would check into it, and I told him thank you.
“I love T.J. Great job. What an unbelievable environment out there. He does a great job. His team is tough, they play together, they’re fun to watch — not fun to play against. I have all the respect in the world for him, what he does with his program, and I appreciate him hearing men out, and he said he would check into it.”
Otzelberger also shrugged off the significance of what took place.
“It was certainly a hard-fought game on both ends,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of respect for their program, and I think there’s a there’s a point in time where things are said between coaches that need to stay that way, so that’s where we’re going to keep it.
“But in a hard-fought game on both sides, a lot of respect for what they did, and just fortunate to come out with a win.”
It appeared for more than a half that Iowa State was headed for a blowout victory, leading 41-29 at halftime and stretching it to a 14-point advantage in the opening minute of the second period. But K-State, fueled by defensive intensity and a barrage of 3-point baskets, clawed back to tie it on five different occasions.
Unfortunately for the Wildcats, they squandered several opportunities to go in front and never led in a game where 47 total fouls — 27 on K-State, 20 on Iowa State — and a combined 32 turnovers made it difficult for both teams to establish a rhythm.
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In fact, Iowa State was in the double bonus with more than 7 1/2 minutes left in the second half after K-State picked up its 10th foul.
“Our second-half defense was pretty good, and I thought our first-shot defense in the second half was really good for the most part,” Tang said. “I thought we did decent job on the glass.
“It’s just impossible to defend the free throw line. And so, that’s what makes it difficult.”
Iowa State struggled from the free-throw line early in the second half, hitting just 10 of 17 attempts, but that all changed in the final two minutes, when the Cyclones pulled away by knocking down nine of their last 10.
K-State last tied the game at 61-61 when David N’Guessan was credited with a basket on a goaltending call with 4:52 left. The Wildcats then got a stop and had a chance to go in front, but Tylor Perry missed a 3-pointer
Iowa State scored the next five points on a Hason Ward dunk and Curtis Jones 3-pointer to go in front to stay. The Wildcats missed four of five free throws during the stretch. The backbreaker came with 2:01 on the clock when Tang disagreed with a foul call against N’Guessan and was whistled for a technical that led to three Milan Momcilovic foul shots to open a seven-point cushion.
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“I wasn’t trying to get a tech. I didn’t say anything,” Tang said. “I just thought it was a bad call and I waved my arm.
“With the intensity of that game and that moment, I would think that we would all be given a little grace in that moment, right, and let the players decide it on the floor. So that was my fault because I waved my arm. I’ll make sure I don’t wave my arm the next time.”
As for the incident behind K-State’s bench in the second half that raised Tang’s ire, he was ready to move on.
“You saw what you saw, but I’m not going to talk about it,” he said. “T.J. and I will figure that part of it out.”
With the loss, K-State fell to 14-5 overall and into a second-place tie in the Big 12 at 4-2, a half-game behind Texas Tech. Iowa State improved to 15-4 and 4-2 in the league.
Things don’t get easier for K-State, which now goes on the road for another stiff test with an 11 a.m. game Saturday at Houston.
Arne Green is based in Salina and covers Kansas State University sports for the Gannett network. He can be reached at agreen@gannett.com or on Twitter at @arnegreen.
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