Courtesy: Western Illinois Athletics www.GoLeathernecks.com Matt Lander was the only Leatherneck in double figures as he led all scorers with 20 points in the loss at Kansas State.

MANHATTAN, Kan.  -  Junior guard Matt Lander led all players in scoring for the second-consecutive game with 20 points, as Western Illinois suffered an 82-50 defeat at Big XII Kansas State, Sunday.

“We competed a lot harder than we did the other night (Friday at Arizona State), but they wore us out in the second half,” Western Illinois head coach Jim Molinari said. “I am going to keep cutting down the rotation and see what works for us.”

The Wildcats (2-0) took the lead in the first 12 seconds, but the Fighting Leathernecks (0-2) didn’t back off as Western took a 10-7 lead at the 14:06 mark. Kansas State tied the game for the second time at 10-10 with a jumper and a free throw. A Lander layup pulled the Leathernecks away from the tie, but Kansas State’s Denis Clemente hit a jumper, tying the game at 12-12, and sparking a 9-0 run to break away from the Leathernecks.

The closest Western would come for the remainder of the half was seven points and Kansas State pulled away by as many as 11 heading into the locker room with a 31-20 halftime lead over the Leathernecks.

Kansas State continued the momentum in the second half as it had five players score in double figures, shooting 60 percent (18-of-30) in the half. The Leathernecks made just 8-of-26 (30.8%) from the field in the second half for an overall 28.8 shooting percentage (17-of-59). Western’s three-point range was not as strong as in its last outing, making just three shots from beyond the arc. Lander accounted for two of the three, while David Nurse chipped in one.

The Leatherneck defensive effort held the Wildcats to only 29.4 percent from three-point range, with only one three out of 11 attempts in the first half and four in the second half.

Arsenio Mims led Western’s rebounding with a career-high seven, while Nurse and Quenton Kirby each had five. Western had nine steals, with Mims and Lander accounting for three each.

“I take my hat off to Arsenio Mims,” Molinari said. “He was a walk on and he keeps our team together. He wasn’t as tall as Kansas State’s players, but he fights extremely hard and I can’t say enough about him.”

“This weekend I put my team in a very difficult position,” Molinari continued. “We played one team that is all about defensive awareness and the other team is about overpowering physically. We made progress from last game to tonight and we plan to get better every time we go out. We will work hard and we will continue to improve.”

The Leathernecks return home for a 7 p.m. tipoff against Truman State, Wednesday, Nov. 18 at Waste Management Court at Western Hall.