Tomlin scores 26, K-State holds off Radford 73-65
Kansas State forward Nae'Qwan Tomlin, right, shoots under pressure from Radford forward Ibu Yamazaki (54) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022, in Manhattan, Kan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Nae’Qwan Tomlin scored 26 points and grabbed nine rebounds, Keyontae Johnson added 16 points and seven rebounds and Kansas State held off Radford 73-65 on Wednesday for its fifth straight win.
Tomlin scored six points during an 11-0 run as Kansas State took the first double-digit lead of the game at 45-35 with 14:22 remaining. Johnson’s highlight was an alley-oop dunk, off Markquis Nowell’s lob from midcourt, to made it 69-52.
Kansas State was ahead by 17 points with 4:04 left before Radford scored 13 of the next 15 to get within 71-65. Johnson sealed it with two free throws at 20.4.
Nowell finished with 10 points and 11 assists and Desi Sills also scored 10 for Kansas State (11-1), which has won 11 non-conference games for the first time since 2017-18. K-State is off its best start since opening the 2016-17 season with a 12-1 record.
Tomlin, who entered averaging 10.4 points per game, was 11 of 18 from the field and Johnson, a Florida transfer, reached 1,000 career points.
Kenyon Giles scored 20 points and DaQuan Smith added 12 for Radford (6-7).
Kansas State opens Big 12 play against West Virginia on Dec. 31.
