KCTV 5Kansas State rolls past Texas A&M 64-53

By DAVE SKRETTA
AP Sports Writer

MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) -- Will Spradling had a career high 19 points, Angel Rodriguez scored all 13 of his points in the second half and Kansas State rallied for a 64-53 victory over Texas A&M on Saturday.

The backcourt duo provided just enough offense to bail out the Wildcats (16-6, 5-5 Big 12), who were awful from the field in the first half. Spradling had four 3-pointers and Rodriguez added four assists as Kansas State avoided a third consecutive loss.

The Wildcats improved to 21-3 in February over the past three-plus seasons, including a 12-1 mark at Bramlage Coliseum, which is fast becoming one of the league's most difficult venues.

Elston Turner scored 18 and Naji Hibbert had 14 for the Aggies (12-10, 3-7), who will head off to the SEC having lost all nine games they've played on the road against the Wildcats.

The teams meet again in College Station later this month.

Texas A&M was forced to play again without Dash Harris and Khris Middleton. Harris missed his third game with a foot injury while Middleton was out for the fourth time with a knee injury.

The first half was played at the pace of a broken-down jalopy.

It was 4-4 at the first media timeout. Texas A&M then embarked on a 12-2 run, fueled as much by Kansas State's inept offense as the Aggies' propensity for defense. Wildcat coach Frank Martin appeared downright forlorn sitting on the bench, never budging until he called for a timeout.

By that point, the Aggies led 16-6 with 12:03 left.

Kansas State got a good chunk of the deficit back coming out of the timeout. Thomas Gipson scored and was fouled, and even though he missed the free throw, the Wildcats got the offensive rebound.  Spradling knocked down a 3 and was fouled, this time converting the and-one.

The six-point trip trimmed the lead in half. Spradling knocked down another 3 later to get within 19-17, and a dunk by Gipson off a feed from Rodney McGruder made it 25-24 at halftime.

The Big 12's top scoring defense finally cracked in the second half.

Gipson's answered a 3-pointer by Turner with a basket of his own, starting an 11-0 run for the Wildcats that turned the complexion of the game.

McGruder knocked down a 3 from the corner for his first field goal, giving Kansas State the lead. Martavious Irving added a short jumper for his first points moments later, and by the time Adrian Diaz made a pair of free throws, the Wildcats' lead had grown to 41-34.

Martin was anything but dour by then, motioning for the fans to get on their feet.

They happily obliged as Rodriguez scored eight straight for Kansas State. On one series, the freshman followed his own missed 3 with a scooping layup, and then hit an off-balance jumper and was fouled, converting the free throw to give the Wildcats a 52-40 lead.

Turner led the Aggies on one last run, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers and scoring 10 points in a span of a couple minutes. But Daniel Alexander missed a pair of free throws for Texas A&M, and Kansas State coaxed the game to the finish.

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