KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Has there ever been a college basketball team that feeds off the sideline histrionics of its coach more than Kansas State?
Arms flapping. Pacing. Shouting. Louder. Louder.
And that scowl, with a piercing glare that could make potted plants wilt.
“That’s one reason why we play with so much intensity,” senior guard Denis Clemente said during the Big 12 Tournament. “You know if he could, Frank would be out there fighting with us.”
That’s Frank Martin, named the conference coach of the year after guiding the 26-7 Wildcats to their most victories in school history and the No. 2 seed in the West Regional. Martin doesn’t mind that his players call him by his first name. In fact, he likes it. Everybody had better be in this together, said Martin, who, with his no-nonsense resolve, could have moonlighted as a character in “The Sopranos.”
Just beware of “that look.” When Martin raises his eyebrows and shows the whites of his eyes, it’s time to buckle down or run for cover.
“When Frank gives that look, I tell the guys to not even look over there,” said all-Big 12 guard Jacob Pullen, a junior from the Chicago area and the team’s top scorer (18.9 average). “That’s the best thing. Don’t look. We know what he means. We know what we have to do.”
That’s just it. Kansas State players always seem to know what to do in every situation. Yes, they’re still in the shadow of Kansas, the NCAA Tournament’s top overall seed. But coaches throughout the Big 12 have warned for weeks that teams won’t want to draw the Wildcats.
Fans in other parts of the country may be unaware that Pullen and Clemente (16.2 points, 4.2 assists, second-team all-Big 12) make up one of the most lethal backcourts in the nation. All they did against Baylor in the Big 12 Tournament was combine for 50 points, with Pullen getting 26.
Also, 6-foot-7 sophomore forward Jamar Samuels recorded a double-double in the Big 12 Tournament (27 points and 10 rebounds vs. Oklahoma State). Although just 6-5, Wildcats junior forward Dominique Sutton skied over a Baylor front line that goes 7-feet, 6-10, 6-10 and grabbed 14 rebounds in the semifinal victory.
“I’ve said it all along, they’re the type of team that can make it to the Final Four,” said Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford, whose Cowboys were bounced 83-64 by Kansas State in the Big 12 quarterfinals. “They’ve got great, high-level athletes. They’ve got a lot of good players. They are very well-coached.”
That last part has come as a surprise to some. Martin had never been a head coach at the college level when he was elevated from assistant coach on April 6, 2007 — one day after Bob Huggins’ one-and-done departure for West Virginia, his alma mater. Media wondered why Kansas State made such a hasty move and whether salvaging a recruiting class was worth taking a chance on such an inexperienced coach.
Martin, who turns 44 on March 23, has proven the naysayers wrong. Not only did the program survive the losses of Huggins and current NBA players Michael Beasley and Bill Walker, it has reached new heights.
The players, Martin said, deserve all the credit.
“They coach me now; I don’t coach them,” Martin said of Clemente and Pullen. “They tell me what to do and they tell me to shut up sometimes, which is the best thing that ever happened.”
Martin is exaggerating, but that shows how must trust he has in this team. It has experience and moxie, bounce and savvy. The Wildcats must be a nightmare to game-plan against because the frontcourt players are interchangeable and, with their athleticism, each of them can rise up and become a star for a day.
This team will press and trap at one end of the court, and run and dunk at the other. Martin isn’t afraid to substitute, and Kansas State’s depth can wear down an opponent. The Wildcats will scratch and claw and sometimes make it an ugly game, with the intent of forcing the opponent from its comfort zone.
“We can do a lot of different things and get it done in a lot of different ways,” Sutton said.
Just like their coach’s antics on the bench.
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
