Final: K-State 98, Mississippi State 77

The Kansas State Wildcats blew out the Mississippi State Bulldogs, 98-77, Thursday evening in the first round of the Hall of Fame Classic at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City.

K-State (5-0) trailed by four early in the contest, and the Bulldogs (2-2) stayed within arm’s reach until 8:46 remained in the contest, when a pair of free throws brought them within 71-64. But an 11-0 K-State run over the next 2:30 of game time extended the margin to 82-64 and all but sealed the victory for the Cats.

MANHATTAN, KS – NOVEMBER 04: Guard PJ Haggerty #4 of the Kansas State Wildcats goes to the basket against forward Domas Kauzonas #16 of the UNC Greensboro Spartans in the first half at Bramlage Coliseum on November 4, 2025 in Manhattan, Kansas. (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images)

When Abdi Bahir made an absurd three-point bucket from three steps beyond the left arc (on a fastbreak, no less) with 3:13 to go, pushing the margin to 91-68, Coach Tang began clearing the bench. If you “math” it out, K-State ran off a 27-13 finish over the final 8 minutes plus. No tension this time. A comfortable blowout.

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PJ Haggerty dominated. The Memphis transfer poured in 37 points on 13-21 shooting, including 4-7 from beyond the arc. He also had 7 rebounds and 8 assists, with only one turnover. Had Tang not declared mercy—and had PJ not suffered a bout of hamstring cramps—a triple-double might have been in play.

Nate Johnson added 12 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Bashir scored 12 and collected 4 rebounds of his own. Khamari McGriff scored 8 on 4-4 shooting.

K-State only committed 8 turnovers while forcing 14. The Wildcats outscored Mississippi State 17-4 off turnovers in the game and out-rebounded the bigger Bulldogs 38-34. The Cats also scored 42 points in the paint to Mississippi State’s 30.

Mississippi States point guard Josh Hubbard scored 23, including 8-9 from the free throw line, and looked unstoppable at times. In what was billed as a matchup of two of the best point…

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Publish date : 2025-11-21 05:42:00

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