Well…here we are.
Fans had been clamoring for a change, but it was not expected to happen quite so soon. Regardless, the call has been answered and whether or not you agree with how it happened, it has: Jerome Tang has officially been removed as head coach of your Kansas State men’s basketball team.
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Matt Driscoll, longtime head coach at North Florida who joined the staff this pas offseason as associate head coach, has taken on the interim role and will attempt to navigate the final six regular season games and at least one game in Kansas City at the Big 12 Tournament before this disaster of a season is finally over.
Don’t expect a stark change. Driscoll was supposedly already running the K-State offense, and replacing Tang won’t replace the players or instantly change the defensive and rebounding skill and effort. There are some things baked into this current squad that are just not going to change overnight.
So tonight, your 10-15, 1-11 Wildcats face off against a Baylor squad that has wildly underperformed this year, enter this game at just 13-12 overall and 3-9 in Big 12 play and are headed for Scott Drew’s worst season in Waco in 20 years. But a National Championship head coach is usually given much grace, especially one coming off 13-straight post-season appearances.
Despite Tang’s firing, Drew will still be facing off against a former assistant, as Driscoll first joined Drew at Valparaiso before joining the new staff at Baylor, assisting there until taking the head job at North Florida in 2009. He may not be as intimately familiar with Drew as Tang was, but it may be enough to help Driscoll a bit of an edge on Drew and the Bears.
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It will be interesting to see how the TangDriscollCats respond to the change, and to having really nothing to play for but pride down the stretch.
We’ve got an 8:05pm CT tipoff from Bramlage Coliseum, and you can catch the action on ESPN2, and streaming on WatchESPN.com, with Mark Neely (play-by-play) and Miles Simon (analyst) on the call.
If you don’t have ESPN2, or can’t access the stream, the game can be heard across portions of the 28-station K-State Sports Network with Wyatt Thompson (play-by-play) and Stan Weber (analyst) calling the action. The game will also be available online at K-Statesports.com and via the Varsity Network app, as well as on satellite radio at Sirius/XM Ch. 139/199. Live stats are also available at k-statesports.com, and social media updates (@KStateMBB) will also be a part of the coverage.
Go Cats!