Jerome Tang trends after Kansas State loss: ‘I’m not disappointed at all’ originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
“I’m not disappointed at all.
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In the aftermath of a 95–61 blowout loss to No. 8 Iowa State, that was the sentence Jerome Tang chose to stand on as Kansas State slipped to two games under .500 as February is underway. No hedging. No qualifiers. Just a clear rejection of the framing.
The scoreboard left little room for interpretation. Iowa State was faster, stronger, and sharper. Tang didn’t argue that. “They’re just better than we are right now,” he said, repeatedly crediting the Cyclones. What he refused to do was let the moment fracture his locker room.
“This is not a message for the fans,” Tang said. “This is a message for my players.”
That posture carried through the entire press conference. When asked about disappointment, he pushed back. When pressed to expand, he declined. “No, I don’t want to expand on it.” When the conversation drifted toward broader program questions, he deferred. “At the end of the season we’ll talk about that.”
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Still, Tang didn’t hide from accountability. With program legends in attendance, he turned the disappointment inward. “I’m more disappointed in me as a as a coach and the game plan for the first half than I am for the players for their execution,” he said.
The message remained consistent. Protect the players. Own the rest.
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Asked whether the group remains bought in, Tang was brief but firm. “They’re still trying. Yes. Yes, they are.”
There was definitely an edge in the room, but it wasn’t reckless. It was protective. Tang wasn’t denying results or pretending the season has gone to plan. He was drawing a boundary around how his team would be discussed publicly.This is the kind of press conference that gets remembered quietly.
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Defiance doesn’t guarantee anything. But at 10–12 this late in the season, it draws a clear picture. Tang isn’t hedging. He’s standing with his guys and betting that belief still matters.
