Game time: Nov. 4, 8:00 p.m. EST

Where: Bramlage Coliseum, Manhattan, KS

TV: ESPN+

VITALS: Kansas State kicks off its highly anticipated season Tuesday night. The program has gotten its most hype in years after acquiring P.J. Haggerty, Abdi Bashir Jr., and Nate Johnson. They also grabbed international talent with forwards Andrej Kostic and Elias Rapieque. It's an entirely new look from last season, which has catapulted the team into new expectations.

Betting line: K-State (-16.5)

O/U: 142.5

PROJECTED STARTERS

WILDCATS

G P.J. Haggerty: 21.7 PTS, 5.8 REB, 3.7 AST

G Abdi Bashir Jr.: 20.1 PTS, 2.6 REB, 2.2 AST

G Nate Johnson: 14.0 PTS, 4.9 REB, 3.4 AST

F Mobi Ikegwuruka: 2.1 PTS, 2.4 REB, 0.1 AST

F Khamari McGriff: 11.5 PTS, 4.0 REB, 0.7 AST

QUOTABLE: “They've always played tremendous defense, had a great effective field goal percentage, and force you to take tough twos. [UNCG coach Mike Jones] has iced on the side and had dropped ball screen coverage in the middle with really physical rebounders. On offense, they run really good stuff and get the ball to three sides, multiple ball screen actions that you have to guard. They really use the shot clock to make you work and take very efficient shots in what they want to do," K-State coach Jerome Tang said in his pregame interview on Monday afternoon.

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ESPN DROPS INTERESTING KANSAS STATE BOWL GAME PREDICTION

When Kansas State began the season, conference title aspirations and postseason berths flooded nearly every sports outlet.

Those expectations were flushed out around the third week of the season. The Wildcats gradually fell from grace, starting with the first loss of the season against Iowa State. After that, it was a spiral that shifted Kansas State from a playoff sleeper to a potentially three-win team.

Still, the Wildcats can end off a relatively underwhelming year on a positive note with a solid record and a bowl appearance. ESPN dropped its bowl predictions for the non-playoff contenders, pinning Kansas State against Kennesaw State in the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl. This would take place in Independence Stadium (Shreveport, Louisiana) on Dec. 30 at 2 p.m.

Kennesaw State is currently 6-2 and No. 1 in the Conference USA. The team is already Bowl-bound after its victory over UTEP. They are led by quarterbacks Dexter Williams II and Amari Odom, who have combined for 16 total touchdowns as dual-threat options.

While Kansas State is projected to sail smoothly against Colorado and Oklahoma State, they have to keep focus. A loss to either one will make the No. 17 Utah matchup that much more critical and could knock them out of bowl eligibility.