K-State defeated #19 Baylor 97-95 in their second overtime game in Big 12 play to improve to 3-0 in Big 12 play.

The Cats raced out to a quick 10-4 start much like they did in Austin against the Longhorns on Tuesday night. Senior forward Keyontae Johnson started off hot scoring eight points in the first 4:40 of the game.

Senior guard Markquis Nowell stayed white-hot with some absurd shots including a three-pointer from the logo and a left-handed bank shot with the shot clock expiring.

K-State had no answer for Baylor forward Flo Thamba in the first half, however, as he and freshman guard Keyonte George kept the Bears in the game.

The game would be tied 47-47 at the half with K-State shooting 60% from the floor and 50% from beyond the arc.

Nowell was able to get his double-double out of the way early in the second half and now has nine games with ten or more points and assists.

The Cats held on to a two-possession lead for the first 15 minutes of the second half. Baylor was able to close the gap, though, with transition buckets before the under-four timeout.

With 1:16 left on an inbound play, Nowell found Johnson underneath the basket wide open to go back up by three.

Baylor forward Jalen Bridges made a three with 20 seconds left to tie the game 86-86. With 12.9 seconds left, Nowell couldn’t hit a runner from six feet out and Johnson was unable to make the putback which sent the game into overtime.

The Cats played from behind for almost all of the extra period. Towards the end of regulation and in overtime, K-State couldn’t go up for rebounds without fouling. K-State junior forward Nae’Qwan Tomlin fouled out in the extra period. Baylor went 5-for-6 on free throws in the extra frame.

However, Nowell was fouled from beyond the arc with 1:45 left and trailing by three points. He would bury all of his free throws to tie the game 91-91.

Senior forward Ismael Massoud, who transferred from Wake Forest and has seen a substantial reduction in playing time this season, was the hero knocking down a three-pointer with 31.6 seconds left to go up 96-95.

Baylor would get the final possession and senior guard Adam Flagler lost the ball out of bounds with 6.2 seconds left. Nowell received the inbound pass with 5.3 seconds left and would split the free throws with the miss coming on the second try. On the miss, Baylor would throw up a prayer at the buzzer for the win, but it was no good.

Nowell is amid one of the best offensive stretches in K-State history. He is the second person in DI history to have at least 59 points, 19 assists, 10 steals and 52% field goal percentage in two games (prior to Saturday’s contest) with the other being Steph Curry when he was at Davidson.

He added another 32 points in Waco. He ended up with 14 assists as well. He shot 8-for-16 in total, including 4-for-7 from deep and 12-for-13 from the free-throw line.

Johnson would finish with 24 points shooting 11-for-17 from the floor and nine rebounds. Massoud would have a season-high 14 points going 3-for-4 with all his attempts from beyond the arc.

The Wildcats are starting to be seen at the national scope. They have now won three consecutive wins against Top 25 opponents with two of them coming in overtime. Their 3-0 start in conference play is the first since 2013.

Their 14-1 overall record is their best 15-game stretch since the 1958-59 team when they went to the Final Four.

K-State will likely not only be ranked but be a top 15 team before their date with Oklahoma State on Tuesday night.