Brandon Rechsteiner matched a career high with 26 points while leading Kansas State to an 89-82 win over Creighton on Tuesday in Manhattan, Kan.
Rechsteiner, coming off a 26-point effort against Cal State Northridge on Friday, matched that output in large part due to six 3-pointers. He added five rebounds and four assists.
Rechsteiner hit two 3-pointers during a 16-2 run that gave the Wildcats (2-1) a 71-57 lead with 11:13 to play.
That lead ballooned to 75-60 as Matt Gilhool and Rechsteiner sank layups, the latter with 9:05 remaining.
Creighton (2-1) rallied, aided by a quick five points from newly available Brody Robinson, a transfer from Oakland who gained his eligibility earlier in the day. Robinson completed a 12-0 run with a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to 75-72 with 6:20 left.
Rechsteiner’s sixth trey followed to give Kansas State some breathing room, and the Blue Jays couldn’t get closer than four points the rest of the way.
BJ Davis scored a season-high 25 points to lead Creighton. Wes Enis put up 18, and Robinson chipped in 10.
Kansas State shot 56.6% from the field and 46.7% from 3-point range (14 of 30) but committed 22 turnovers that Creighton converted into 30 points.
Jaden Schutt hadn’t exceeded nine points in either of Kansas State’s first two games but finished with 14 on Tuesday. Isaiah Abraham had 12 points and nine rebounds, and Gilhool added 11 points.
A competitive first half featured eight lead changes, and neither team led by more than four over the game’s first nine minutes.
After Oswin Erhunmwunse scored to give Creighton a 24-18 lead at the 10:15 mark, Kansas State cut the margin to 26-25 on a Rechsteiner 3-pointer. A pair of free throws by Abraham put the Wildcats on top 34-32 with 4:25 left until halftime.
Creighton immediately answered with an Enis trey, and the teams went into the break tied at 40-40.
Davis and Enis had 13 apiece to lead all scorers at the half. Rechsteiner topped Kansas State with 12, and Schutt added 11.