Helped by a huge first half and Angel Rodriguez’s team-high 17 points, Kansas State cruised to an 83-58 victory over Southern Illinois Thursday in the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii.

With the win, the Wildcats (8-1) will advance to play UTEP in the semifinal round. The Salukis, meanwhile, will take on Clemson in the consolation bracket.

Kansas State closed the first half with a 13-4 run to take a 48-29 lead at the break. The Wildcats made 13-of-21 (62 percent) attempts and had their highest first-half scoring output of the season.

Rodriguez, a freshman guard, had 11 of his points in the first half, as did Rodney McGruder, who finished with 13 points and six rebounds. Jamar Samuels added 14 points — including 10 from the free-throw line — for the Wildcats, who improved to 3-0 all time at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Coming in, Southern Illinois (3-6) hadn’t allowed a team to score more than 64 points in any of its previous eight games. Kansas State eclipsed that mark with 9:16 left, when Rodriguez buried a 3-pointer that gave the Wildcats a 66-45 lead.

Justin Bocot had a team-high 11 points for the Salukis, who suffered their worst loss of the season. Jeff Early added nine and Dantiel Daniels finished with seven.

The Wildcats committed 20 turnovers, which led to a couple of outbursts from coach Frank Martin, who became animated at times. Martin could be heard loud and clear in the mostly empty arena.

Jordan Henriquez finished with 10 points and eight rebounds for Kansas State.