K-State relied heavily on freshman point guard David Castillo and junior-college transfer Mobi Ikegwuruka during a narrow loss against Texas Tech earlier this week. Tang sent a message in the process: He is ready to build for the future with young players who display maximum effort when they are on the court.

As the Kansas Jayhawks gear up to face in-state rival Kansas State in Saturday’s Sunflower Showdown, Wildcats head coach Jerome Tang didn’t hold back on his respect for the Jayhawks’ defensive intensity.

On a four-game losing streak and no road wins in a year, Jerome Tang remains upbeat ahead of K-State's Sunflower Showdown game at Kansas this weekend.

The Wildcats are projected as a No. 3 seed in the latest women’s basketball Bracketology from ESPN. That feels right. But K-State does have some favorable metrics. Those could help the Wildcats climb up to the No. 2 line. They rank No. 5 nationally in the NET and at Bart Torvik.