Why Jerome Tang was proud of Kansas State fans for staying off the court after KU win

For Jerome Tang, the most satisfying moment of Kansas State’s thrilling 75-70 overtime victory against KU occurred after the game was over on Monday night.

Unlike the other six times that the Wildcats had successfully defeated their rivals inside Bramlage Coliseum, the celebration didn’t spill onto the court. Instead of sprinting onto the floor and partying like their team had just pulled off an unbelievable upset, K-State fans stayed in their seats and let the good times come to them.

Tang zoomed into the student section and began dancing to the tune of “Wabash Cannonball.” Then K-State players joined in.

It was a wild and crazy scene, but it wasn’t pandemonium. No one put the visiting team at risk by storming the court. Things weren’t all that much different than any other home win.

Tang appreciated that. Actually, that’s probably not a strong enough word. He absolutely loved that.

“Two of the proudest moments for me being here,” Tang said, “are when you can beat a nationally ranked team — Baylor was top 10 and Kansas is top 5 — and your fans don’t storm the court. We are building an expectation that these are games that we are going to win and we are going to be that kind of program.”

K-State fans stormed the floor last season when the Wildcats also defeated the Jayhawks at home in overtime. Afterward, Tang grabbed a microphone at midcourt and told the crowd that he hoped they enjoyed the experience, because the Wildcats were going to start winning big games with so much regularity that they would stop feeling the need to celebrate in that particular way.

He clearly hoped that K-State fans would respect his wishes after this victory.

Arena security began asking students in the front row to remain in their seats, rather than storm the court, with a few minutes left in regulation when the Wildcats were closing in on a potential win. Then, in overtime, assistant coach Jareem Dowling spent a timeout pleading with students to stay off the floor with shouts and hand signals.

At first, it didn’t look like their efforts were going to work. Students on the south end of the arena lined up in the aisles in preparation of a court storming and seemed eager to celebrate a win over KU like they always have. But the right mixture of security and understanding students kept the party in the stands.

That is a tradition that Tang badly wants to continue.

“Let’s have an expectation that we’re going to win,” Tang said, “You know, I never see them storm the court at Allen Fieldhouse. I never see them storm the court at Duke and at North Carolina. I don’t believe there’s any reason why, given time and the opportunity, that we can’t build that kind of a program here in Manhattan.”

K-State guard Cam Carter, who scored 19 points and grabbed 11 rebounds against KU, was in total agreement.

“We’re used to winning,” he said. “We’re used to this, and there is going to be a lot more.”

Thing is, K-State has not played like a traditional power that wins all the time lately. The Wildcats (15-8, 5-5 Big 12) entered this week on a four-game losing streak. Their odds of reaching the NCAA Tournament were growing worse with each passing day.

A win like this will give them an opportunity to turn things around and make a push for the postseason in their remaining games. If ever there was a time to celebrate an upset over your rival, this felt like it.

But Tang is clearly rubbing off on his players and his fan base.

They won this game together, and the Wildcats were thrilled to storm the stands for a change.

“There’s nothing like this,” K-State guard Tylor Perry said after scoring 26 points. “The way these fans interact. They were outside at 2 o’clock in the morning. I’ve never seen anything like this in my life. I’m blessed to be in the purple and white and just so thankful they showed up and showed out for us. It’s a blessing to be part of this rivalry. This is one that you will be able to tell your kids about.”