Led by a dominating performance from big man Manny Bates, Butler put all five starters in double figures in taking a 76-64 win over Kansas State Wednesday night at Hinkle Fieldhouse as part of the annual BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle.
 
With the result, Butler improves to 5-3, while handing Kansas State its first loss of the season (6-1).
 
KEY STAT: Bates registered his third double-double and second 20-point game of the season with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Bates went 9-for-11 from the field and made all four of his free throw attempts. He added three blocks after entering the game among the nation's Top 10 in blocks per game.
 
EARLY SURGE: Butler came out of the blocks fast, making nine of their first 12 attempts from the field. A 10-0 run gave Butler an early 25-12 lead with 10:21 remaining in the first half.
 
CLOSING THE DOOR: After Kansas State trimmed a 12-point Butler halftime lead to just five (48-43) with 14:07 remaining in the second half, Butler took a timeout and responded by scoring 17 of the next 19 points to extend the lead to 20 at 65-45. Another run by Kansas State cut the lead to eight with just more than four minutes remaining before Butler rebounded for the final margin.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

• Butler shot 55 percent from the field and went 8-for-20 from three-point range.
• The Bulldogs had 18 assists on 28 made field goals.
• The outing by Bates was matched by a strong evening from Kansas State's Keyontae Johnson, who had 20 points and 12 rebounds. He made all nine of his field goal attempts.
• Chuck Harris went 5-for-8 from the field to score 15 points to go along with six rebounds.
• Eric Hunter Jr. played all 40 minutes and scored 13 points.
• Jayden Taylor scored 12 points, continuing his streak of scoring double figures in every game so far this season.
• Simas Lukosius scored 11 points and added a career-high seven assists.
• Butler's defense limited Kansas State to a 4-for-20 performance from three-point range and only three free throw attempts.

 
OF NOTE:

• This marked the second time this season that Butler put five players in double figures (joining the season-opening win against New Orleans Nov. 7).
• Butler's starters scored 73 of the team's 76 points; the quintet played all but 15 minutes in the game.
• Butler improves to 2-1 in the BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle and 2-0 against Kansas State. The other win over the Wildcats came in the Elite Eight of the 2010 NCAA Tournament.
• Butler has now won 68 of its last 70 non-conference home games.

 
UP NEXT: Butler hosts Tennessee Tech Saturday at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Tip is set for 2 p.m. Tickets are still available for the contest, which will also air on FS1.