Kansas State basketball shares optimistic outlook after magical 2022-23 season
NEW YORK — As Kansas State's players made their way to the locker room following a disappointing Elite Eight loss to Florida Atlantic on Saturday, Jerome Tang stood by the door and told each of them to keep their heads up.
The message, and the one he delivered to the Wildcats behind closed door, had less to do with the disappointing end to an NCAA Tournament run that left them three points shy of reaching the Final Four and more about looking forward to what lies ahead.
"This is the third time I've lost in the Elite Eight, and you can sit around and mope and cry about it, or you can really think about the love and the joy that you've had throughout the season," Tang said. "And winners keep their heads up. They don't drop their heads.
"So our guys were not going to walk off the floor with their heads down. Tough things are going to happen in our life, and we don't get to wallow in it. We've got to keep moving forward. This is more of a lesson for them of becoming men that it is about basketball."
Well, it also is a little bit about basketball.
Kansas State prepares for changing of the guard
The 79-76 loss to FAU closed the book on Tang's magical first season as a college head coach and also on the careers of six Wildcat seniors. It also served as a changing of the guard for those eight players expected to return — five active and three redshirts — and three incoming freshmen.
Related: Three takeaways from Kansas State basketball's 79-76 Elite Eight loss to Florida Atlantic
The Wildcats bid farewell to three starters — point guard Markquis Nowell, forward Keyontae Johnson and guard Desi Sills — who combined to average 44 of the team's 76 points per game. Also gone are key contributors Abayomi Iyiola and Tykei Greene.
In all, K-State loses 64% of its scoring, 51% of the rebounds and 77% of the assists from a 26-10 team that was picked last in the Big 12 and somehow finished third in the league and earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
"I thought we set a standard with the hard work we put in," said Johnson, the Florida transfer who missed nearly two years with a medical issue but returned to average 17.4 points and a team-best 6.8 rebounds a game. "We wanted to set a standard for the next group of guys, making the NCAA Tournament the goal and just try to carry it on.
"I thought we did a great job at it, and we never gave up and tried to fight through adversity during hard times, and I feel like that made us well connected."
Tang, who inherited just two players — Nowell and junior forward Ismael Massoud — from last year's team, quickly built the Wildcats into a cohesive unit that went on to defy all expectations.
More: Markquis Nowell and Keyontae Johnson leave Kansas State basketball with lasting legacy
Massoud, who announced Wednesday on social media that he is transferring for his final season of eligibility, said this year's success should still serve the returning Wildcats well going forward. So should the disappointment of coming so close.
"Experience is not something that can be put into words," he said. "You just have to go through it, and for this team, everyone that's going to come back, they're going to feel this feeling for a long time.
"It's two ways you can take it. You can make it bring you down or let it add to the fire. So hopefully everyone does that and just remembers this moment and turns it into a positive."
Kansas State basketball returns talented group of players
Massoud, who hit big shots down the stretch in NCAA victories over Kentucky and Michigan State, averaged 5.4 points and made 41.8% of his 3-point attempts this season. But now he will complete his career elsewhere. The Wildcats do return two starters in 6-foot-10 forward Nae'Qwan Tomlin and guard Cam Carter, plus forward David N'Guessan, a starter for much of the season.
The multitalented Tomlin averaged 10.4 points and 5.9 rebounds, Carter 6.5 points and N'Guessan 6.4 points and 3.5 rebounds.
"I learned a lot from (the seniors) and I feel like we're ready to (take a step forward) next year," Carter said.
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Tang also redshirted three members of this year's 13-man roster — forward Taj Manning, 6-10 LSU transfer center Jerrell Colbert and guard Anthony Thomas — and signed three highly regarded freshmen in guards Dai Ames and R.J. Jones, plus forward Macaleab Rich.
"I've got a group of guys that we redshirted this year, and so next year will be their second year in the program," Tang said. "And then the third year in the program, they're going to be able to help us win.
"My job next year is to make sure in the second year of the program that I help them see the big picture and they're willing to come back and be there in the third year."
Nowell, who averaged 17.6 points, 8.3 assists and 2.6 steals in a remarkable senior season, expressed confidence in Wildcats' future success.
"We have a younger group of guys that we have in our locker room, and the standard is hard to win," Nowell said. "Winning isn't easy.
"To see that we made a deep tournament run with that young core group, I'm just excited to see where they'll come in the years ahead."
Arne Green is based in Salina and covers Kansas State University sports for the Gannett network. He can be reached at agreen@gannett.com or on Twitter at @arnegreen.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: K-State basketball sees bright future in Jerome Tang's second season
