I so want to believe Wes Miller. When he said in a Mike Gundy-esque postgame interview Tuesday night that the Bearcats “are coming,” I so want to believe that. I miss going into the month of March knowing the Bearcats are going to be in the NCAA Tournament and thinking about things like seeding, avoiding the dreaded trip out west for the first weekend and wondering who the Bearcats are going to play in the first round.
You know who Wes Milller reminds me of? Zac Taylor. I’ve seen and heard many comments that suggest Wes Miller is out of touch, doesn’t see the same things many fans and media question about the team and he still hasn’t solidified himself as one of the upper-half head coaches in the Big 12. The talent and wins are there, no doubt. Look at the recruits he’s landed, look at the transfers he’s gotten and look at some of the games this program has won in his first three seasons. It’s just like Zac Taylor, in his first three seasons, drafting Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase- remember when I wrote that FOX 19’s Joe Danneman said Jizzle James is Ja’Marr Chase in a basketball uniform- and the Bengals winning some games that made you believe big things were ahead.
Even though the Bearcats have lost five of six and, to many fans, it feels like the season is over with no hope of earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, there is still hope. Get off the mat and win a home game against a team currently on the bubble in Kansas State, and you never know what that can lead to. And for anyone who tells me Wes Miller isn’t built for this time of season, look at Iowa State head coach T.J. Otzelberger. He only spent two seasons at UNLV before being hired by the Cyclones and has them on the verge of a third straight NCAA Tournament berth. This is the month of March, and anything can happen. With that, here are my players to watch on Kansas State Saturday night.
1. #2 Tylor Perry, 5’11”, 180 lbs., 5th-Yr. Sr., G, Fort Coffee, Oklahoma, North Texas Transfer
15.6 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 36.1 FG%, 32.8 3-PT FG%, 91.1 FT%, 130 ast.-74 TO, 36 stl, 36.8 mpg
Perry has had a solid college basketball career, and this year he eclipsed the 2,000-point mark in scoring. He has 21 games in double figures this season including nine 20-point games. In two seasons at North Texas, Perry led the Mean Green to 57 wins including the 2023 NIT Championship. Perry was the star on those teams, winning C-USA Player of the Year and the NIT Most Outstanding Player in 2023 and C-USA Sixth Man of the Year in 2022. He led the Mean Green in scoring in both seasons with the program and scored in double figures in 57 of 67 games. He has 17 games with five or more assists this season and Perry is also a durable player, with eight games playing 40 or more minutes this season.
2. #5 Cam Carter, 6’3″, 195 lbs., Jr., G, Donaldsonville, Louisiana, Mississippi State Transfer
15.2 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 40% FG, 30.4 3-PT FG%, 84.4 FT%, 78 ast.-83 TO, 18 blk, 41 stl, 36.1 mpg
A rising second-year player on the Wildcats and one of Jerome Tang’s first signings as a transfer commit, Carter has earned a solid place within the Wildcats rotation. After starting all 18 Big 12 games in his first season with Kansas State, Carter has started every game this season and has only five games where he hasn’t scored in double figures. The only area of concern with him is the turnover department, with six of his last 10 games resulting in four turnovers. But Carter has fit right in, playing a key role in the Wildcats run to the Elite 8 last year.
