Rider Finished in Sixth Place in the Old Spice Classic
MAAC Sports
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) -- Andre Gilbert scored 22 and Jacob Pullen added 19 points and five assists as Kansas State (No. 20 ESPN/USA Today, No. 18 AP) held off Rider 82-69 Sunday in the Old Spice Classic.
Three people were ejected in the game's last minute -- K-State forward Bill Walker, Rider coach Tommy Dempsey and Broncs leading scorer Jason Thompson.
Dempsey was screaming at officials with 43 seconds left, several feet onto the court. Walker and Thompson got tossed 14 seconds later with their own beef.
The Wildcats' Michael Beasley had 13 points and 10 rebounds -- his sixth double-double in as many games, but well short of the 30-plus points he had been scoring. Walker added 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Jason Thompson led Rider (3-3) with 23 points. Young brother Ryan Thompson added 21 points and 12 rebounds.
K-State (5-1) led by as many as 17, but Rider pulled within 71-64 after Ryan Thompson made his second straight driving layup. He hit a third drive with 3:31 left to make it a five-point game, but the Broncs went the last 3:31 without a field goal.
Walker hit two foul shots to ice the game at 80-68 after Dempsey's technical, and before the K-State freshman forward got tossed.
Rider fell behind from the start, failing to score its first bucket until 3:16 into the first half. The Broncs made it 40-30 at halftime after Ryan Thompson banked in a runner.