Thomas Gipson Speaks Out; Kansas State Responds With Upset Over No. 8 Kansas

Feb 23, 2015; Manhattan, KS, USA; Kansas State Wildcats players celebrate on the scorers table following a 70-63 win against the Kansas Jayhawks at Fred Bramlage Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Scott Sewell-USA TODAY Sports

The Kansas State Wildcats entered their Big Monday matchup with the No. 8 Kansas Jayhawks dragging through a stretch of seven losses in eight games.

This has created some frustrations in the locker room, as expected, and K-State’s Thomas Gipson expressed his displeasure with his team’s effort to the Topeka Capital-Journal after the Wildcat’s 69-42 loss to Baylor Saturday, telling reporters her was “mad,” and described his team’s effort as “too laid-back.”

More from NBA

A frustrated Gipson went on to predict Kansas State would get blown out yet again against the Jayhawks, projecting they would match their previous loss’s deficit of 27 points.

“We’ll probably lose by 27, who knows? We just have to come out and play hard,” Gipson told the Topeka Capital-Journal.

“Nobody is on the same page. That’s what happens when you’re not on the same page, you get distant from each other and you don’t play as a team and you get beat by 27.”

But Kansas State didn’t get beat by 27. Rather, the Wildcats responded to what appeared to be Gipson’s version of challenging his team to step up and play with some aggression with a 70-63 upset over the nation’s eighth-ranked Jayhawks.

Kansas State, led by the career-high scoring effort of Nigel Johnson’s 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting put themselves in a position to steal a much-needed win from the very beginning. A sluggish start from Kansas led to a 31-30 Wildcat lead at the break.

After eventually gaining back the momentum and building up an eight-point advantage in the second half, Kansas hit a draught that ultimately cost them the game, where they converted only two field goals in the final 10:11 of the game.

Meanwhile, Johnson, Gipson and Nino Williams were all finding ways to score and one basket after another led to the Wildcats holding on to secure their biggest win of the season.

Kansas State’s upset over No. 8 Kansas – which became the Jayhawks’ second loss in as many road games – led to a raucous student section storming the court and making some headlines of their own when Kansas head coach Bill Self who was nearly bombarded by the rush of K-State fans.

“I wasn’t nervous for me, but there were several students that hit our players — not saying with fists, but you storm the court, you run in, you bump people,” Se;f said.

Jayhawks forward Jamari Traylor was among the players Self referred to as being hit by the court-storming crowd.

I wish Jamari had slugged him RT Right side of the screen, absolutely unreal RT @Aruszczyk: @AndyJ0seph pic.twitter.com/0a1Rt3l7lx””
— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) February 24, 2015

Unfortunately for Kansas State, the events surrounding the Kansas coach and team being rushed during the court storming will be seen as a blemish that will likely garner more attention than the positives from Kansas State’s huge upset.

Something to also keep in mind is the slight possibility of the Wildcats’ upset over Kansas being one that could serve as a springboard to a potential bubble appearance. Their victory over the Jayhawks is good for their second win over a ranked opponent in four games.

If K-State could pull off yet another upset Saturday at home against No. 12 Iowa State and finish strong to conclude the season against the struggling Longhorns, a quality win in the Big 12 tournament could give Kansas State an impressive enough resume to see into the Big Dance.

Next: College Basketball Rankings: Top 25 Teams In America

More from Hoops Habit