Kansas State’s Markquis Nowell set the NCAA men’s tournament record for assists in a single game with 19 in a thrilling 98-93 overtime win over Michigan State in the Sweet 16 on Thursday night.

Nowell tied Mark Wade’s record with his 18th assist in ridiculous fashion on a lob to Keyontae Johnson with less than a minute to go in overtime to give K-State a 94-92 lead.

After a Michigan State free throw cut Kansas State’s lead to one, a deep Nowell 3-point attempt was barely tipped by MSU’s A.J. Hoggard. The ball didn’t hit the rim and bounced out as KSU was able to keep possession with 17 seconds to go.

That set up an Ismael Massoud jumper off a Nowell inbounds pass to break the record and extend Kansas State’s lead to three. Michigan State had one last chance to tie the game but didn’t get a shot off before Nowell came away with the ball and scored at the buzzer.

Nowell scored 20 points and also grabbed five steals in a performance that will go down in NCAA tournament lore. He played hobbled much of the second half after he rolled his right ankle just minutes after halftime.

Nowell had dominated the first half of the game with five points and 10 assists. He played every minute of the first 20 and engineered K-State’s offense to perfection.

Kansas State had a four-point lead when Nowell left the game and Michigan State quickly pulled ahead with him on the sidelines. Nowell ended up only missing less than three minutes of game time before returning at the 13:11 mark of the second half, but when he did, Michigan State had a 54-52 lead.

It was clear that Nowell wasn’t 100% after he got back on the court either. He somehow made an incredible bank-shot 3-pointer as the shot clock was expiring after he re-entered the game and then hopped his way down the court. But then adrenaline had to have taken over as he looked better and better as the game went on.

The best game of the tournament so far

It’s not a stretch to say what transpired Thursday night at Madison Square Garden could end up as the game of the tournament. There were 14 ties and 16 lead changes as the two teams were tied for over nine of the game’s 45 minutes.

Kansas State led by seven with 4:45 to go before Michigan State clawed its way back at the end of the second half. Jaden Akins cut Kansas State’s lead to two with 1:35 to go in regulation before Nowell answered back with a basket of his own.

MSU then got back-to-back baskets from Malik Hall and Tyson Walker in the final minute to push the game to overtime. Nowell drove the ball down the court and had a look at a layup at the buzzer but missed.

The teams then traded the lead in overtime. Michigan State led 92-90 with 1:47 to go before Nae’Qwan Tomlin hit two free throws to tie the game.

Johnson’s dunk then gave Kansas State the lead for good with 52 seconds to go. It happened after Nowell appeared to be in an animated discussion with coach Jerome Tang as to what play to run. Nowell tossed the ball to a cutting Johnson for the open dunk right after the conversation concluded.

The dunk looked very familiar for Kansas State fans too. Johnson secured a home win against Kansas earlier in the season on a similar play.

Kansas State’s remarkable season

The Wildcats are in the Elite Eight for the first time since 2018 with the win to extend a season that has exceeded every preseason expectation.

Kansas State was picked to finish last in the Big 12 in the preseason media poll after combining for just 13 conference wins over the past three seasons under previous coach Bruce Weber. The Wildcats had a new coach in Tang, a former Baylor assistant, and also lost leading scorer Nijel Pack to the transfer portal.

But Nowell stayed for another season after averaging 12.4 points and five assists a game in his first season after transferring from Arkansas-Little Rock. So did Massoud, a player who has emerged as a vital bench piece. Tang added Johnson through the transfer portal along with Desi Sills and Tomlin, and Kansas State was immediately better than expected.

K-State won 11 Big 12 games this season as it finished third in what was indisputably the toughest conference in college basketball as both Johnson and Nowell averaged over 17 points a game.

The Big Ten is totally out of the NCAA tournament

The Big Ten had the most teams in the NCAA tournament of any conference with eight. And all eight of those teams are now out of the tournament following Michigan State’s loss.

The Spartans aren’t the underachievers, however. No. 7 Michigan State took down No. 2 seed Marquette in the second round before giving No. 3 Kansas State everything it could handle on Thursday night. Hoggard had 25 points while Joey Hauser had 18 and Tyson Walker had 16.

Instead, the Big Ten’s tournament disappointment is more a product of Purdue’s shocking upset to Fairleigh Dickinson in the first round of the tournament and the lack of a top-tier team behind the No. 1 seed Boilermakers. Indiana was the only other team to get a top-four seed and the Hoosiers lost in the second round to No. 5 Miami. Maryland, Northwestern and Penn State also lost in the second round while Iowa and Illinois failed to win a game like Purdue.

Originally published March 24, 2023, 2:02 AM