The 6-10/235 Beasley has been tearing it up this preseason, putting up some of the best stats in the nation with an impressive 25.8 ppg and 14.8 rpg average coming into the contest with the Bears.

However, with Huggins departure to alma mater West Virginia, the Wildcats have gotten off to a slower start than they’d like at 5-3, with losses to George Mason, Notre Dame and a close 80-77 loss to 17th ranked Oregon.

While their record’s not bad, the five wins have come at the expense of Sacramento State, Pittsburg State, Western Illinois, Central Florida and Rider –not exactly a who’s who of strong programs, with only their season opener vs. Sac State. by any convincing margin.

In addition to Beasley, the nation’s top rated power forward out of high school, the Wildcats signed two other Top 50 recruits in the nation’s #2 small forward in 6-6/220 Bill Walker (11.3 ppg/6.2 rpg), a very strong player with a penchant to throw down big dunks along with nation’s #11 small forward in wingman Dominique Sutton, who failed to qualify.

Walker was in the Class of ’07 but graduated early and came in and played right away in KSU’s regular season in January last year, seeing action in 6 games before being sidelined for the remainder of the season with a knee injury, retaining his first season of eligibility.

New Wildcat Head Coach Frank Martin was able to hold together their class after Huggins’ disappointing departure in April as he moved up to the head slot from last season’s assistant role.

Besides Beasley’s all-around dominance, the Wildcats are getting 12.1 points from frosh point guard Jacob Pullen and 8.9 points from backcourt mate Blake Young.

Small forward Andre Gilbert, a junior jc transfer has really come on strong as well, throwing down 22 points including 4 of 6 from beyond the arc vs. Rider then coming back with 16 in their overtime loss to the Ducks along with 4 rebounds and 4 assists.

Despite their talent, the Wildcats can be streaky and fairly undisciplined on both ends of the court and are still coming into their own as a team.

Count their last opponent’s Head Coach Mike Brey of Notre Dame as a fan of KSU’s talent.

“They’re very good and they’re young,” said Brey. “By mid-January, I think they’re going to really be in gear because they’re extremely talented.”

After doing an admirable job defending their opponent’s top scorers coming into their showdown at Bramlage Coliseum, Beasley will pose their biggest threat yet in the Bears’ young season.

Outrebounding their opponents by over 10 rebounds per game, the Bears will be facing an excellent rebounding team in their own right in KSU as the Wildcats have also established a strong edge on the boards, with a 7.2 positive margin, not to mention holding opponents to just 40.4 percent from the field.

If their strong preseason play holds form in Manhattan, expect the Bears to keep their undefeated record intact against the Wildcats on Sunday. However, with Beasley in the paint, anyone expecting another 30 point romp like last season’s demolition of KSU will likely be disappointed.

With a tough Pac 10 season around the corner in a few weeks, the matchup against KSU is exactly the type of win the Bears need to notch to build their postseason portfolio.

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