KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kamau Stokes was slumped in his chair, his voice shaky and his eyes teary.
Just moments earlier, Kansas State was down 5150 with 10 seconds left in its Big 12 semifinal against West Virginia and looking to make a play to win the game. Stokes took the inbound pass out of a timeout and rolled to his right before the Mountaineers came with a double team and Stokes was forced to pick up his dribble.
Stokes got off a desperate heave to the basket, but it ricocheted away from the basket as the buzzer sounded and West Virginia mobbed the court in celebration.