Kansas basketball wins Sunflower Showdown thriller on road over Kansas State

MANHATTAN — Kansas State men's basketball welcomed Kansas to Bramlage Coliseum on Saturday for the first edition of the Sunflower Showdown during the 2021-22 season.

Each side entered the contest on a winning streak in Big 12 Conference play. The Wildcats came in off of a win on the road at Texas. The Jayhawks came in off of a win on the road at Oklahoma.

Would this be the game that Kansas State ended a five-game losing streak against Kansas? Would Kansas, ranked seventh in the nation in the latest coaches poll, continue to cement itself as a national title contender? How will Jayhawks head coach Bill Self and Wildcats head coach Bruce Weber both feel about how the matchup went postgame?

►RELATED: Kansas basketball vs. Kansas State: 3 things to consider ahead of matchup

►RELATED: What channel is Kansas basketball vs. Kansas State? How to watch KU's game against K-State

Here's what happened, with the latest news first, at Bramlage Coliseum:

FINAL: Kansas 78, Kansas State 75

Kansas State leads 75-74 with 38.4 seconds left in 2nd half against Kansas

This one is coming down right to the wire. A couple free throws from Kansas' Ochai Agbaji made this a two-point game with about 40 seconds left. Kansas State took a timeout to cause this pause.

Kansas State leads 75-69 with 2:59 left in 2nd half against Kansas

Ochai Agbaji is going to the free-throw line for Kansas after this one, so there's a chance this is a four-point game with about three minutes left. But for now, it's a six-point game. Kansas State has been able to maintain its lead despite the Jayhawks' overtures, with a recent bucket from Nijel Pack extending it to a six-point game again after a Kansas basket from David McCormack.

The Jayhawks are 1-for-9 from behind the arc in the second half, while the Wildcats are 3-for-7. For the game, Kansas is 5-for-21 and Kansas State is 10-for-21.

Kansas State leads 65-61 with 6:61 left in 2nd half against Kansas

Kansas State has continued to hold off Kansas from making this a one-possession game, at least to this point in the second half. But it's trending toward the Jayhawks doing just that. Ochai Agbaji, who doesn't seem necessarily 100 percent out there, is up to 20 points to lead Kansas.

Nijel Pack is up to 30 points to lead Kansas State, and is 7-for-9 from the free-throw line, but overall the Wildcats are 11-for-18 from the free-throw line. It's a similar line to the Jayhawks', which is 10-for-18. Neither team has shot it well from the field recently in the second half, or from the free-throw line overall.

Kansas State leads 60-52 with 11:34 left in 2nd half against Kansas

Kansas State made a run to bring its lead back to double-digits, and now Kansas has responded and is back within striking distance. The Wildcats aren’t hitting shots at nearly the rate they were in the first half, or rebounding effectively either. However, there have been multiple opportunities that have been potentially big offensively for Kansas that Bill Self’s squad hasn’t capitalized on.

Nijel Pack is up to 28 points now, though, for Kansas State. He should eclipse 30 by game’s end. Ochai Agbaji leads Kansas with 18 points.

Kansas State leads 55-47 with 15:10 left in 2nd half against Kansas

The Jayhawks are on a 9-0 run over the last three-plus minutes, and trail by just eight points with a bit more than 15 minutes left in this one. This run came after the Wildcats extended their lead to what had been their most significant of the game. It's something that's taken a blowout game off the table, at least for now, and put a thrilling rivalry matchup back into the picture.

Something to watch at this point, is Kansas State has already been called for five fouls. Kansas has been called for two. That means the Jayhawks are that much closer to being able to cut this lead down from the free-throw line for much of the second half.

HALFTIME: Kansas State 50, Kansas 34

Nijel Pack's career high is 26 points, which he scored against Texas A&M on Jan. 30, 2021. His season-high so far this season had been 21, which he scored Jan. 4 against Texas. He already has a new season-high, and is trending toward a career-high.

Also, believe it or not, Kansas State's 59.4-percent mark from the field in the first half isn't the best it's had this season. The Wildcats shot 61.5 percent back in December against Green Bay. However, the 50 points Kansas State has does rank first among first half productions and is three more points than it's scored in the second half in any game this season.

The most points Kansas has allowed in a game so far this season is the 83 that Iona scored against the Jayhawks back in November. Kansas has scored more than 100 points in a game itself, though, so it's not as if the Jayhawks don't have the offensive prowess to make up this deficit if their defense can improve.

Kansas State leads 48-34 with 1:37 left in 1st half against Kansas

The Wildcats are up to their largest lead of the game, and have forced another timeout by the Jayhawks. Right now, Kansas has only made one of its last seven attempts from the field. This final minute and a half will be crucial, when it comes to just how much momentum Kansas State will have before the break.

Kansas State leads 43-32 with 3:25 left in 1st half against Kansas

The Wildcats are controlling this one, and leading by 11 points with a bit more than three minutes left in the first half. Their fans are behind them. They have all the momentum, and have led by as many as 12 points so far in the first half.

If the Jayhawks can start taking better care of the ball, they have a shot. If they can slow down Nijel Pack, they have a shot. But Kansas is in a tough position right now.

Kansas State leads 38-27 with 6:18 left in 1st half against Kansas

Kansas has turned the ball over five times, compared to just one turnover for Kansas State. The Jayhawks have allowed eight points off of turnovers, while the Wildcats have allowed none. It's just one of the multiple ways this game is going right for Kansas State right now, and it isn't for Kansas.

Ochai Agbaji's 13-point performance hasn't been enough for the Jayhawks to keep pace with the Wildcats, who've seen Nijel Pack go for 19 points already. Kansas head coach has gone to freshman forward KJ Adams Jr. off the bench for a period of time, so the Jayhawks can switch 1-through-5 defensively. It'll be interesting to see what lineups Self goes with moving forward to try to get back in this one.

Kansas State leads 31-22 with 9:47 left in 1st half against Kansas

Nijel Pack is up to 16 points already. The Kansas State guard is 6-for-6 from the field and 4-for-4 from behind the arc. He has twice as many points as any other player in the game.

Ochai Agbaji leads Kansas with eight points. He's succeeded in driving into the lane and getting looks that way. He's 4-for-7 from the field, with two of his misses from behind the arc. But the Jayhawks will likely need more than just that to win this one.

Kansas State leads 22-16 with 11:38 left in 1st half against Kansas

Nijel Pack is perfect from behind the arc and leads Kansas State and all scorers with nine points, as the Wildcats lead by six points with about 11 and a half minutes left. Kansas State isn't struggling to find quality looks early in this one. It's a stark contrast to what Kansas is experiencing on the other end of the floor.

However, rebounding still favors the Jayhawks by far early on. If the Wildcats were performing better in this area, considering they've given up seven second-chance points and six offensive rebounds while getting none of their own of either, they'd likely be up double-digit points early.

Kansas State leads 9-7 with 15:55 left in 1st half against Kansas

Kansas State opened the scoring with a 3-pointer from Nijel Pack, and at a break with 15:55 left after a foul lead by two points against Kansas. The Wildcats have been shooting the ball much better than the Jayhawks to start, but have had trouble keeping the visitors from pulling down offensive rebounds. Kanas has five second chance points right now.

The Wildcats have yet to pull down a rebound at this point, while the Jayhawks have seven already. David McCormack leads Kansas with five.

Pack leads Kansas State in scoring with three points, while Dajuan Harris Jr. leads Kansas in scoring with three points as well. Each is 1-for-1 from behind the arc.

It begins

Kansas State won the opening tip, and this one is underway.

Here's who's starting

Bill Self will coach for Kansas

A look at some of Kansas State's fans

What a Kansas State win would mean for the Wildcats

Kansas State is coming off back-to-back victories over ranked opponents after beating No. 19 Texas Tech at home last Saturday, 62-51, and then No. 22 Texas on Tuesday in Austin, 66-65. The Wildcats had not won consecutive games against ranked teams since claiming four in a row between Jan. 12 and Feb. 5, 2019 against No. 20 Iowa State, No. 20 Oklahoma, No. 14 Texas Tech and No. 13 Kansas. However, those wins did not come in consecutive games.

Should the Wildcats upset No. 7 KU today, it would mark the first time ever that they have beaten ranked opponents in three consecutive games.

Jeremy Case speaks on Kansas' pregame show

Case, an assistant coach for the Jayhawks, says Kansas State is playing well right now. He commended how well the Wildcats are playing on both sides of the ball, and highlighted Kansas State guard Mark Smith especially. If Kansas State chooses to use a really small lineup, Case said he hopes they'll be able to take advantage of that with Jayhawks forwards David McCormack and Mitch Lightfoot when Kansas is on offense.

Case said as well that the energy Kansas State's student section brings makes the game more fun. He's looking for the Jayhawks to make the Wildcats bigs beat them, because of how much Kansas State relies upon its guards.

Looks like Kansas won't have Bobby Pettiford available

Christian Braun is the first Kansas player to start warming up

Kansas State players getting some early work in

Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas State vs. Kansas basketball: Sunflower Showdown score, updates