K-State opened its exhibition season with three straight 3-pointers but couldn’t sustain its early momentum, falling to the University of Missouri, 71-67, at Bramlage Coliseum.
The Wildcats started fast, building a 9-0 lead as Jaden Schutt, Matt Gilhool and Isaiah Abraham each hit a three on consecutive possessions. The early shooting energized the home crowd and gave K-State an immediate advantage over the Tigers.
Mizzou settled in after the opening stretch, cutting into the lead as both teams struggled to establish a consistent offensive rhythm. K-State led 9-5 at the first media timeout, but the game remained scrappy, with turnovers and missed opportunities limiting both offenses.
K-State leaned heavily on outside shooting in the first half, trying to create space against a Mizzou defense that made open looks hard to find. The Wildcats also showed active hands defensively, forcing turnovers and disrupting the Tigers’ possessions.
Inside, K-State found success as well, limiting Mizzou’s opportunities to attack the basket and forcing the Tigers to work for their shots. The Wildcats maintained control through much of the opening half and carried a 32-27 lead into halftime.
Brandon Rechsteiner helped direct the offense in the first half and finished with 11 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Schutt added 12 points on 3-of-7 shooting, including three 3-pointers, and made all three free throws.
Mizzou changed the game’s momentum after halftime. The Tigers opened the second half with a 13-0 run over the first four minutes, turning a 5-point deficit into a lead and forcing K-State to play from behind.
The Wildcats struggled to find open looks as Mizzou tightened its defense. K-State called a timeout to slow the Tigers’ momentum and responded with a 3-pointer, but Mizzou kept pressuring the Wildcats and made scoring difficult.
The second half became increasingly physical, with players from both teams diving for loose balls and battling for possessions. Despite the energy, K-State struggled to regain the offensive rhythm it showed early. Errant passes and missed opportunities prevented the Wildcats from stringing together consistent scoring possessions.
Mizzou also found success on the offensive glass, creating second-chance opportunities that helped the Tigers maintain their advantage. Those extra possessions proved costly for K-State as it tried to close the gap.
Montana Wheeler provided a scoring boost off the bench for the Wildcats, finishing with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting in 17 minutes. Rechsteiner added eight rebounds to lead K-State on the glass, and Schutt contributed four assists. Brock Vice finished with 7 points and two assists, while Abraham scored 9 points and added three assists and two steals.
K-State shot 24-of-61 from the field, 39.3% and made 9-of-34 from the 3-point range. The Wildcats also recorded 17 assists but committed 16 turnovers, limiting their ability to build offensive momentum. K-State made 10-of-11 free throws.
The Wildcats found their rhythm late, picking up the pace and knocking down shots to make the score more competitive. With 2:44 remaining, Mizzou led 63-57, but K-State kept pushing the tempo and chipped away at the deficit.
Cutting the lead to 4 with 45 seconds remaining, the Wildcats had a chance to complete the comeback. Abraham scored on a dunk with five seconds left to bring K-State within 2, 69-67, but Mizzou held on to secure the 4-point victory.
The exhibition marked K-State’s first game under new head coach Casey Alexander, who arrived in Manhattan after leading Belmont to a 26-6 record and a Missouri Valley Conference regular-season championship last season.
Alexander inherits a largely new roster, with sophomore Andrej Kostic as the only returning player from last season. Friday’s matchup gave the Wildcats an early chance to build chemistry and evaluate their new lineup against a Mizzou team coming off a 20-13 season and an NCAA Tournament appearance.
K-State plays its second and final exhibition game at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 26, against Nebraska at the Heartland Events Center in Grand Island, Nebraska.
