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Kansas State sneaks past Washington State

Dec 4, 2010 - 6:59 AM Pullman, WA (Sports Network) - Curtis Kelly and Rodney McGruder each scored 15 points, and No. 5 Kansas State took everything it could handle from Washington State before pulling out a tough 63-58 victory at Beasley Coliseum.

McGruder made 5-of-7 from three-point range and grabbed eight rebounds, as did Jamar Samuels, who added 12 points for the Wildcats (7-1), winners of three straight since falling to top-ranked Duke.

Jacob Pullen was just 2-for-11 from the field and had nearly as many turnovers (six) as points (eight) but made several clutch free throws down the stretch to seal Kansas State's first road win over a Pac-10 opponent in 30 years.

Klay Thompson finished with 16 points to lead the Cougars (5-1), who fell to 1-74 all-time against top-five opponents.

Despite the poor mark against highly-regarded opposition, Washington State battled back from a 10-point deficit and took a brief lead to the delight of the home crowd.

Marcus Capers' tip-in got the Cougars within 50-47 with just over six minutes to play, and after the teams traded three-pointers, neither team scored until Reggie Moore's deep deuce made it 53-52 with 3:16 to go.

Will Spradling missed at the other end, and DeAngelo Casto put in an easy layup off a nice pass from Moore for a 54-53 advantage, the Wildcats' first lead since early in the first half.

Samuels tied it with a 1-for-2 effort at the foul line with 2:15 showing, and Pullen picked Moore's pocket to start a fast break that Kelly finished with a go-ahead layup.

The Cougars missed two threes with their turn, and Pullen missed a jumper from the foul line but corralled his own rebound with a minute to play.

Coming out of a timeout, the Wildcats went inside to Samuels, who got a contested shot in the lane to fall with 32.4 seconds left for a 58-54 lead.

Casto made it a one-possession game again with a quick bucket, and it came down to free throws for Kansas State, which had made just 5-of-13 from the stripe to that point.

Spradling calmly sank two with 16.3 seconds to go, and the Wildcats gave up a conceded dunk to Thompson shortly thereafter.

Pullen showed why he was named a preseason first team All-American, hitting two freebies with 9.1 seconds left prior to Thompson missing a three at the other end, essentially ending the upset bid.

Midway through the first half, Kansas State broke open a 14-14 tie behind a 9-0 run, which Freddy Asprilla capped with a jumper.

The Wildcats went over eight minutes without a field goal and wound up hitting 29.2 percent of their shots in the first half. Nevertheless, they were still within striking distance at the intermission, 30-22.

Game Notes

The game was part of the Big 12/Pac-10 Hardwood Series...The Wildcats had lost nine straight in Pac-10 venues, last winning in Arizona on December 6, 1980... Pullen had averaged 16 points per game coming in...Moore scored 10 for Washington State, which got nine points apiece from Capers and Casto...The Cougars also struggled from the foul line, making just 13-of-23.