KU survives early scare from Howard, moves on in NCAA Tournament
16 March 2023
GREENSBORO, N.C. (KSNW) — Fans of the Kansas State University (K-State) men’s basketball team have traveled far and wide to watch the Wildcats play in the NCAA Tournament Friday night.
The team practiced Thursday afternoon at Greensboro Coliseum ahead of their first game in the tournament against the Montana State Bobcats.
Fans attended the practice, rallying for the big game tomorrow that could bring the team from a round of 64 to a round of 32.
K-State alumna Emily Read, who now lives in North Carolina, says she is beyond excited that her favorite team is playing just down the road from where she now lives.
“Oh yeah, I have a lot of purple clothes, and underneath is purple too. I also have my K-State bag. It’s great. It’s like 29 miles away, and it beats driving to Manhattan,” Read said.
Mark Thalman, a K-State fan from Washington D.C., made the trip with his family to catch tomorrow’s game.
“I was so delighted to see K-State was going to play in Greensboro, and as soon as I found out, I was making the trip,” Thalman said. “We drove five hours this morning, and K-State is going to bring it home. I feel like K-State plays with incredible spirit, incredible passion, they’re a fun team to watch, and just knowing where they came from, they play with joy, I feel like. It’s just an amazing experience for the players and everyone in Kansas.”
A group of friends, including Carlie Scheer, Jenna Nichols and Stephanie Nichols, got together to make the trip to see the ‘Cats.
“It’s super cool, but it’s cool to see them and sit this close for practice. We’re happy to be here. Watching the other games is fun too, and now they’re out here practicing,” the girls said. “We were going to go to Des Moines or Denver if they got chosen to go there, and then we said, ‘what the heck, let’s go to Greensboro.'”
Watch K-State play Montana State at 8:40 p.m. on Friday, March 17, on CBS.