Missouri didn’t recruit Colorado sensation Alec Burks out of suburban Kansas City, Mo. Neither did Kansas.
Kansas State, however, was all over him.
Burks has said countless times that Colorado and Kansas State were his final choices. He got to know several players on the Wildcats’ roster during his recruiting visit in 2008 and looks forward to CU’s final trip to Kansas State as a conference foe today, a 7 p.m. battle (ESPNU) in Manhattan, Kan.
“Their guys kid me on the court a little bit about not going there, but it’s nothing serious,” the sophomore said. “They knew it was a close decision.
“My momma really liked Kansas State. And it was close to home. It was a tough decision, but I made the best choice for me.”
A bouncy, 6-foot-6 guard who can be a difficult matchup for any opponent, Burks comes off a career game — 36 points Saturday in CU’s victory over then-No. 9 Missouri — and is the Big 12 player of the week.
“Alec took his offensive game to another level,” CU coach Tad Boyle said.
CU (12-4, 1-0 Big 12) may need another huge game from Burks to win at K-State (12-4, 0-1) for the first time in six years. Despite Kansas State’s 76-62 loss Saturday at Oklahoma State, the Wildcats are No. 21 in The Associated Press poll and 20th by the coaches.
With a season average of 20.1 points, Burks ranks second among Big 12 scorers behind Baylor’s LaceDarius Dunn (23.1).
Kansas State coach Frank Martin isn’t surprised by Burks’ accomplishments, which include being named Big 12 freshman of the year last season. Burks averaged 15.5 points in the two games against Kansas State last year.
“I thought he was a big-time player,” Martin recalled of the recruiting process Monday at the Big 12 coaches’ weekly teleconference. “When I watched him play, I thought he had tremendous ball skills and an unbelievable ability to put the ball in the hole in various ways.
“At the time, he was a 6-3 kid. What I didn’t know was he would grow to 6-6.”
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
Notebook
Colorado: Heading to the Pac-12, CU won’t be sorry this trip to Manhattan, Kan., is the last for the Buffs in conference play. CU is 10-54 there, last winning at Bramlage Coliseum in 2005. . . . CU is 3-0 in January for the first time since 1996-97, when the Chauncey Billups-led Buffs reached the NCAA Tournament. . . . CU ranks sixth nationally in scoring (averaging 85.1 points).
Kansas State: The Wildcats are still without starting forward Curtis Kelly, who received a six-game suspension for accepting free clothing. . . . Regarded as one of the Big 12’s deepest teams, K-State got just six points off the bench in Saturday’s 76-62 loss at Oklahoma State.
