MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Cam Carter scored 15 of his 23 points in the second half to help Kansas State pull away and beat West Virginia 81-67 on Tuesday night.
Kansas State (12-3, 2-0 Big 12), which snapped a four-game losing streak against West Virginia in Morgantown, has won nine of its last 10 games. West Virginia (5-10, 0-2) has lost three straight and five of its last six.
K-State trailed 42-40 at halftime, but Carter scored seven points and Arthur Kaluma made a pair of 3s during a 17-5 run to open the second half to give the Wildcats a 57-47 lead. Kaluma’s 3-pointer from deep during the opening surge gave the Wildcats a 48-45 advantage, and the Wildcats led the rest of the way.
West Virginia pulled within 59-54 with 7:46 remaining, but Carter scored the next four points from the free-throw line to spark a 10-0 surge and the Mountaineers didn’t get closer.
Carter was 6 of 14 from the floor and made all 10 of his free throws. He has scored in double figures in 13 of 15 games. Kaluma, a junior transfer from Creighton, scored 17 points with four 3-pointers. David N’Guessan also scored 17 points for the Wildcats and Will McNair Jr. chipped in 12.
RaeQuan Battle scored 21 points to lead West Virginia, but he was scoreless in the final 18 minutes. Kerr Kriisa and Noah Farrakhan added 11 points apiece.
Battle scored 12 of West Virginia’s first 19 points before his teammates started helping out. The Mountaineers overcame a seven-point deficit to go ahead at halftime. Battle had 18 points in the first half and Kriisa chipped in eight.
Battle has made playing well against Kansas State a habit. In last season’s NCAA Tournament, Battle was playing for Montana State when he scored 27 points against the Wildcats.
The last Wildcat win in Morgantown was a 65-51 victory on Feb. 18, 2019.
Kansas State plays at Texas Tech on Saturday.
West Virginia hosts No. 25 Texas on Saturday.
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