Oklahoma State @ Kansas State preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 22, 2017 ) Oklahoma State 80, Kansas State 68

Kansas State and Oklahoma State began the week in a five-way tie for fifth place in the ultra-competitive Big 12 Conference with 1-2 records. The two teams will try to get back to .500 in conference play when they meet Wednesday night at Bramlage Coliseum in Manhattan, Kan.

Bruce Weber’s Wildcats, who have dropped back-to-back games to No. 2 West Virginia (77-69) and at No. 8 Texas Tech (74-58), will try and rebound without starting point guard Kamau Stokes. The 5-10 junior, who is third on the team in scoring (13.4 points per game) and ranks seventh in the Big 12 in assists (4.6), left Saturday’s loss to the Red Raiders with a foot injury. No timetable was given for Stokes’ return, but Weber is hopeful it won’t be season-ending. “I’m incredibly disappointed for Kamau and his family,” Weber said in a statement. “He has worked extremely hard to become one of the top guards in the Big 12. I know that he will come back from this setback and become an even better player.” TV: 8 p.m. ET, ESPNews

ABOUT OKLAHOMA STATE (11-4, 1-2 Big 12): The Cowboys snapped a two-game losing streak with a 96-87 victory at Iowa State, overcoming an eight-point deficit in the final 3:34 to force overtime on guards Kendall Smith’s runner with five seconds left. “Wow. Talk about effort and fight and competitive spirit,” coach Mike Boynton said of his squad which closed out overtime on a 17-4 run. “I’m extremely proud of our guys for finding a way to keep standing in there. We got knocked in the chin a few times but kept throwing punches back.” Senior swingman Jeffrey Carroll had 24 points in the win and leads the team in scoring (15.9) while junior guard Tavarius Shine (11.8) and Smith (11.1), a grad transfer from Cal State Northridge who began his career at UNLV, also are averaging in double figures. ABOUT KANSAS STATE (11-4, 1-2): Redshirt freshman Cartier Diarra, who sat out last season due to a torn ACL, came off the bench and replaced Stokes and scored 11 points, connecting on 2-of-3 3-pointers, and had two assists and three turnovers in 30 minutes of action. “It was tough playing without Kamau,” junior guard Barry Brown, who leads the team in scoring (15.5), told the Wichita Eagle. “He is dynamite, a threat and one of our key guys. … But adversity strikes, we have got to keep playing.” Junior forward Dean Wade is second on the team in scoring (14.9) and leads the team in rebounding (6.7) while sophomore forward Xavier Sneed (11.4) also is averaging in double figures.

TIP-INS 1. The 6-10 Wade is averaging 21.7 points in Big 12 play while shooting 69.4 percent from the floor, including 6-of-9 from 3-point range. 2. Carroll, a preseason All-Big 12 pick, has scored 20 or more points in a game 19 times in his career including three of the last six games. 3. Kansas State leads the series 79-53 but the two teams have split their two regular-season Big 12 games each of the last five seasons with the road team winning both matchups last season.

PREDICTION: Kansas State 84, Oklahoma State 80