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Martin, Harris lead Kansas State in upset over Texas

Feb 4, 2007 - 3:52 AM AUSTIN, Texas (Ticker) -- Freshman sensation Kevin Durant was magnificent again for Texas, but he couldn't match the lights-out shooting of Cartier Martin and Lance Harris.

Martin and Harris combined for 46 points, including 12 3-pointers, to lead Kansas State to a 73-72 upset over the No. 23 Longhorns in a Big-12 Conference shootout.

Martin's seventh 3-pointer of the game with 43 seconds remaining snapped a 68-68 tie and capped an 8-2 run for Kansas State (17-6, 6-2 Big-12). He nailed two free throws with 14 seconds left to extend the lead to 73-70 before Texas' Justin Mason missed a 3-pointer in the final seconds.

"I was feeling good today," Martin said. "I felt like I could make them at any time. I had the opportunity. They were playing off me a little bit, so I just rose up and shot the ball. We were surprised they stayed in the 2-3 zone as long as they did, especially when Lance (Harris) started shooting as well as he did in the first half."

Durant scored 32 points on 13-of-21 shooting for the Longhorns (16-6, 6-2), who shot 45 percent (26-of-58). It was Durant's third consecutive 30-plus point performance.

"We should have won that game," Durant said. "We're going to need to bounce back and get ready for A&M. We'll have to execute the game plan and play hard and hopefully we will get the win."

Harris and Martin were a combined 12-of-20 from the arc and David Hoskins added 13 points for the Wildcats, who shot 40 percent (27-of-67), including 14-of-27 from the arc.

"Lance made some big shots in the first half, Cartier made some big shots in the second half, and I think David Hoskins made us some big shots down the stretch," Kansas State coach Bob Huggins said. "They played a lot of 2-3 zone which helped us get shots, and even when they played man, they were running guys into the paint to take all the easy baskets away, so we were kind of forced to shoot that many threes."

A 6-5 senior, Harris netted four 3-pointers in the first half but the Longhorns held a 38-33 advantage at the break.

"I was shooting in a rhythm, stepping and making shots, when nobody was really making shots in the first half, so I had to kind of carry our team on my back," Martin said. "After seeing my first and second shots go down, you feel like you can just make any shot you are given, and it was nice to break out of my shooting slump."

Texas suffered its first home loss of the season, snapping a 22-game home winning streak. It also stopped a 12-game home winning streak in the Big 12.

"When we had to make a defensive play down the stretch, we didn't get a stop," Longhorns coach Rich Barnes said. "They got what they wanted pretty much. In the second half, they obviously had a great day shooting the ball. I don't think the threes beat us, their best shooter made those shots and they weren't all open."