Kansas State leading scorer Jacob Pullen's two worst shooting performances this season have come in games away from home.
The senior guard would probably like to avoid another such performance when the fifth-ranked Wildcats open a two-game trip.
Pullen will play in front of a hometown crowd for perhaps the only time in his career when the Wildcats take on Loyola of Chicago on Saturday.
Shooting struggles are nothing new for Pullen, who has connected at a 40.3 percent rate during his three-plus seasons in Manhattan.
The senior, though, had one of his worst shooting performances (1 of 12) in an 82-68 loss to top-ranked Duke on Nov. 23 in Kansas City. He was also 2 of 11 in a 63-58 win at Washington State on Dec. 3, but bounced back Monday night to make nine of 15 shots in an 89-55 rout of visiting Alcorn State.
Before his 24-point performance, Pullen was shooting just under 40 percent for the season and 36 percent (28 of 78) in seven games against Division I teams.
Pullen, who starred at Proviso East High School in Maywood, Ill., was 3 of 11 in last season's opener at home against the Ramblers (8-2) but finished with 15 points in a 92-54 victory. Senior forward Curtis Kelly led Kansas State (8-1) with a career-high 22.
Pullen is expected to have hundreds of family and friends in attendance for the Wildcats' attempt to earn their first win at Loyola in five tries. Kansas State, though, hasn't played there since Dec. 19, 1999.
This time, the Wildcats will be the second top five team to play at the Gentile Center and first since No. 2 Michigan State took a 103-71 victory Dec. 9, 2000.
Kansas State coach Frank Martin, though, isn't too excited about the matchup.
"We didn't pick a real good time to go play them in their gym," he said. "It's probably the best team they've had there in a long time. It's the same group of guys we played against last year, and they're a year older and a year better."
Loyola hasn't won a matchup over a top five opponent since knocking off No. 4 Illinois on Dec. 22, 1984, and hasn't prevailed in four home games against ranked opponents since moving to its current building before the 1996-97 season.
The Ramblers have won six of eight home games this season and 12 in a row there over non-conference teams. However, they had also suffered consecutive Horizon League losses at home before Wednesday night's 78-50 victory over Southern Illinois-Edwardsville.
Freshman guard Gabe Kindred had a team-best 17 points in his first collegiate start after scoring a combined seven in his previous five games.
Leading scorer and senior guard Geoff McCammon (12.7 ppg) has started just two games this season and is among a group of five players averaging at least 9.8 points for Loyola.
McCammon had one point in last season's loss to the Wildcats, while senior guard Terrance Hill was one of two players in double figures with 10.
With Pullen's help, Kansas State will try to win its 14th consecutive game in December and even its series with Loyola.
Your Privacy Choices | Closed Captioning 
