MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State had five players score in double-figures and shot 50-percent from the floor as they topped the Columbia men's basketball team, 81-71, in the Lions opening game of the CBE Hall of Fame Classic.
Luke Petrasek led the way with 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting and chipped in eight rebounds off the bench. Isaac Cohen pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds.
After starting the game 1-of-15 from 3-point range, Columbia (1-1) used a trio of triples to trim a 12-point deficit down to 64-61 with 5:45 on the clock. However, the Lions committed turnovers on four of their next five possessions, all leading to points to give the Wildcats (2-0) a 73-61 cushion with 2:37 to play to put the game away.
The Wildcats started the game shooting 8-of-11 from the floor to race out to an early 21-12 lead with 11:57 remaining in the first half. Columbia opted to switch to a 1-3-1 defense to get back into the game.
Petrasek was the catalyst during a 9-0 run, highlighted by a nifty no-look feed from Grant Mullins, which led to a slam, and cut the deficit to 33-29 with 3:55 left in the first half. The teams traded buckets for the remainder of the period as Kansas State took a 40-35 lead into the locker room.
The Wildcats' Justin Edwards scored eight of his team-high 19 points in the first 2:44 of the second half to put his team back in front by 12. From there, Columbia's offense settled in, but Kansas State had an answer each time.
Trailing 64-52 with 7:43 to go, Maodo Lo buried a three from the top of the key to spark the 9-0 run before Kansas State settled things down to preserve the win.
The Lions return to action Friday, Nov. 20 at Northwestern in their second game of the CBE Hall of Fame Classic. Game time is slated for 8 p.m. ET and can be seen on ESPN3 and the Watch ESPN app. Jerry Recco and Sal Licata will also bring you the action on the Ivy League Digital Network.
NOTES: Alex Rosenberg finished with 16 points and moved into sole possession of 20th place on Columbia's all-time scoring list (1,046)… Lo is still four shy of the Lions' career 3-point field goal mark… After blocking 10 shots against Kean on Friday, Columbia registered just one rejection (Petrasek)… The Lions are now 2-5 all-time against teams currently in the Big 12.
