Looking back at Oklahoma State, ahead to Baylor

Pardon the cliche, but Kansas State's cakewalk over Oklahoma State last night at the Sprint Center was exactly what the doctor ordered.

The two-game lapse the Wildcats experienced at the end of the regular season is history. K-State bounced back in a big way, and played one of its best games of the season. Maybe even THE best.

Jamar Samuels was in a zone, Denis Clemente made fabulous reads all night long and Dominique Sutton was a difference maker.

Heading into tonight's Big 12 Tournament semifinal game against Baylor, that's the way K-State wants to be playing. A win will move it a step closer to wrapping up a first-round NCAA Tournament trip to Oklahoma City and give it a shot at winning a trophy Saturday.

But before we look ahead to what should be an exciting affair against the Bears, let's look back to last night's blowout victory.

Emptying the notebook:
-- Jamar Samuels said the three-pointer he sank at the end of the first half was his first ever buzzer-beater. Even in high school he says he never made one.

-- Dominique Sutton was positively giddy about the chances of beating Baylor tonight and facing Kansas in the Big 12 Tournament championship game. "That's the rematch we want," he said enthusiastically.

-- Wally Judge was the first man on off the bench. Even Samuels had to wait behind him.

-- James Anderson scored 27 points, but the Big 12 Player of the Year did zero damage in the first half. It wasn't until K-State pulled ahead by 33 points and put in a load of reserves that he started scoring in bunches.

-- Samuels and Clemente both recorded double-doubles, but Curtis Kelly and Dominique Sutton were close to doing the same. Anytime you have four players approaching double-digit stats in two categories, you know you're playing strong.

-- Martavious Irving got the chance to run the offense for several minutes on Thursday. He looked half-way decent, too.

Player of the game: Jamar Samuels turned in the performance of the Big 12 Tournament. The sophomore forward had 21 points and nine rebounds at halftime, and did everything from draining three-pointers to banging inside. Had he played more than 27 minutes, his numbers could have been epic.

Play of the game: Late in the first half, K-State forced Oklahoma State into a desperation three-pointer to beat the shot clock. After guarding hard for the entire possession, the Wildcats weren't going to let up at that point and put several hands in the face of Oklahoma State's Roger Franklin as he tossed up a Hail Mary. The shot was so bad it sailed over the backboard and into the crowd. If you could capture K-State's defensive effort in a snapshot, that would be it.

Do this again: It's pretty obvious that when K-State has something to prove, it plays better. On Thursday it had something to prove and blew the Cowboys out of the water. The Wildcats need to keep that mindset heading forward.

Try to avoid: Nothing really. But after his phenomenal first half, Samuels spent the first eight minutes of the second half on the bench. Frank Martin kept him out of the game, because Samuels wasn't needed and he wanted to give him a rest. In terms of the big picture, the strategy was sound. It would have been nice to see Samuels keep going with his hot hand, though.

Bottom line: K-State is back playing its best basketball. No doubt about it.

Looking ahead to Baylor: We are yet to witness a truly entertaining game at the Big 12 Tournament, but this showdown could break that streak.

When the Widcats and Bears met in Waco, Texas earlier this season, K-State won an exciting affair 76-74.

It wasn't until Jacob Pullen was curiously fouled on K-State's final possession and hit two clutch free throws that the Wildcats clinched the game.

Pullen and Clemente played very well on that night, combining for 42 points, and Curtis Kelly challenged Baylor's bigs throughout the game.

For Baylor, Tweety Carter led the way with 23 points, but nobody else got on track offensively. The Bears only shot 40 percent from the field.

K-State will need to rely on its defense and guards again tonight in order to win. Ekpe Udoh is the league's best shot blocker along with Cole Aldrich, and the Wildcats will need to shoot over him. Samuels could help in that matchup if he makes another three-pointer or two.

Both teams have won 25 games, and both have overachieved this season. But K-State will have the crowd advantage, and more motivation.

Expect a narrow Wildcats victory.