McGruder, held to four points on a 1-of-9 performance in Saturday's loss to Gonzaga, went 12-of-17 from the floor. Thomas Gipson added 14 points and 12 rebounds for his first double-double of the season for the Wildcats (8-2).

Ray Penn hit 6 of 8 3-pointers and finished with 24 points for the Tigers (1-10), who have lost eight straight.

McGruder scored seven points during a 16-3 run early in the second half that pushed Kansas State's lead to 53-38 with 11:48 left. Penn hit three 3-pointers later in a 2:17 span and Lawrence Johnson-Danner added another to cut the lead to 72-66 with 1:14 left.

The Tigers hit six first-half 3-pointers to keep the game tight but the Wildcats closed the first half on an 11-6 run for a 35-31 halftime lead.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The Wildcats have won 27 consecutive non-conference home games in the month of December. ... The Tigers went 13-of-28 from the 3-point line (46.4 percent). ... Kansas State will turn it attention to its third top 15 opponent when it faces Florida in Kansas City on Saturday.