Montana State men battle Kansas State but fall short in 2nd straight NCAA Tournament

"Really proud of our team. Not only for this game, but the season that they had," MSU head coach Danny Sprinkle said in his postgame press conference. "We just kept battling back and battling back and battling back. We couldn't get over that hump tonight."

Last year in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in San Diego, 14th-seeded MSU tipped off in the morning against third-seeded Texas Tech. The Bobcats trailed 10-2 less than three minutes into the first half, and eight points was as close as their deficit got the rest of the way. They trailed 52-25 at halftime in a game they went on to lose 97-62.

The Bobcats didn't just play a little better in the first half of Friday's game, which tipped off around 10 p.m. Eastern Time. They competed with the Wildcats throughout the first 20 minutes.

MSU started big man Great Osobor, the Big Sky reserve of the year, in place of usual starter Tyler Patterson. Sprinkle thought pairing the 6-foot-8 sophomore with 6-foot-9 starter Jubrile Belo would help his team match up better with Kansas State's size (height- and weight-wise).

"You've got somebody like Keyontae Johnson at the 3, and he is bigger than a lot of 4s," Sprinkle said of Kansas State's 6-6 All-American, who finished Friday's game with 18 points and eight rebounds. "We wanted to match up with them size-wise. We wanted to try to establish the paint."

MSU took leads of 8-7 and 12-10, the latter of which came on a four-point play from RaeQuan Battle, who finished the first half with a game-high 13 points. That was the Bobcats' final lead of the half, but they answered every small Kansas State run.

When the Wildcats built their largest lead of the half (34-25 with 52 seconds left), Sprinkle called timeout. His team responded with the final three points of the half — Darius Brown II on an and-one (he missed the free throw) and Robert Ford III on split free throws following a steal.

"Judging by the two years, last year and this year, it's been a big difference. The first five minutes was a big difference. We were there," Battle said. "I'm just super proud of my team and being able to flip the script from last year to this year."

Battle sat the final 6 minutes, 18 seconds of the first half after committing his second foul, and Belo sat the final 4:35. Yet Kansas State only outscored MSU 6-5 in those final 4 1/2 minutes of the half.

After trading blows to start the second half, Kansas State went on a 13-4 run to build a 13-point lead with about 11 minutes left. MSU still forced some turnovers but also coughed it up several times, and it fell below the 40% field goal percentage mark for the game.

The Bobcats struggled from 3 all season, making about 6 of 18 shots (33.8%) from deep per game entering Friday. Sprinkle expected his team to break out from long range entering the postseason, and MSU did have a couple above average showings (6 of 10 against in the Big Sky title game and 6 of 16 in the quarterfinals). But prolific efficiency never arrived. The Bobcats shot 6 of 21 (28.6%) from 3 in Friday's game.

A 3 from Brown at the 2:47 mark put MSU within eight points, but Kansas State answered with an 8-0 run, punctuated by thunderous dunks from Nae'Qwan Tomlin and Desi Sills.

The Bobcats and Wildcats saw 14th-seeded Kennesaw State nearly beat third-seeded Xavier in the day's first game at the Greensboro Coliseum. A couple hours before their game, Farleigh Dickinson became the second No. 16 seed in NCAA Tournament history to defeat a No. 1 with its stunner over Purdue.

"We never are going to take for granted winning. It's just so hard to do," said Kansas State coach Jerome Tang. "As you look across the Tournament, you see the upsets. So we're just super thankful that we get to be together for another day."

The Bobcats recovered from their cold stretch at the start of the second half and finished shooting 46.3% from the field, but Kansas State shot a scorching 58.3%. The Wildcats outscored MSU 48-30 on points in the paint.

"It's the big emphasis, getting to the paint," said Kansas State point guard Markquis Nowell, who scored 17 points and dished out a career-high 14 assists. "When you get to the paint, it draws so much attention, and we have dynamic players, dynamic guards that can get to the paint and create for each other. You just saw it today. When we play together and for each other, we're a really good team."

The Bobcats did get to the foul line more than Kansas State (17 to 12), but they made just 52.9% of them.

Battle led all players with 27 points (9 of 17 from the field, 3 of 5 from 3).

"I love to attack the defense, making sure I find the open gaps and making sure I can get to the hoop and find an open 3," Battle said. "I always trust what our game plan is from the coaches and go from there, and then I'll take what they give me."

Brown added 12 points (5 of 12, 2 of 7), nine assists and six turnovers. Brown is in his first season with MSU after transferring from Cal State Northridge.

"I went to their game in San Diego last year, and it felt way different being on the court than what I saw from the stands last year," he said. "It was a great experience that I'll remember for the rest of my life."

Osobor had 11 points (5 of 6 on field goals), seven rebounds, three blocks and two steals. He displayed a level of energy of fearlessness that matched Battle's.

"All the little things that entail a great player, that go into being a great player, he has it in him," Sprinkle said of Osobor. "He has to continue to develop his habits, but really excited about his future. He has continued to get better. He is a lot better than he was last year. His body has changed in the weight room. I think after another six months of really taking it serious, he has a chance to be as good as he wants to be."

In his final game as a Bobcat, Belo finished with five points and two rebounds. Good ball denial from Kansas State held the senior from England to four attempts each from field and the line. Belo is a four-time All-Big Sky player who earned league MVP and defensive player of the year honors in 2021-22.

"He has been the cornerstone of our program," Sprinkle said, adding, "It's going to be really hard to coach a game without him. He has been there since day one with me. Eventually guys move on, which is sad, but I'm excited for his next stage in life too as a professional and then whatever he decides to do in the workplace. He is going to be a tremendous success."

Belo and fellow senior starter Caleb Fuller won't be easy players to lose, but MSU has good reasons to believe it can return to March Madness next year. Unlike last year, MSU looked like it belonged on college basketball's biggest stage throughout Friday's game. Another season with Battle, Brown, Osobor and several other key players could give finally the Bobcats that elusive win on NCAA Tournament trip No. 6.

"We want to eventually knock these teams off, and in order to do that, you have to be physical. You have to be able to play physical for 40 minutes, not 30," Sprinkle said, adding, "Going forward, it gives our guys a lot of confidence playing Kansas State, one of the top teams in the country, pretty much down to the wire."