No. 3 Kansas State pulled away from No. 24 Virginia Tech in the second half for an impressive 73-57 victory Tuesday in Manhattan, Kan.

The Wildcats (2-0) used a balanced attack and hard-nosed defense to wear down the short-handed Hokies (1-1) in a rare early November Top 25 matchup.

Both teams appear to have the star power and supporting casts to be a factor in March. Kansas State's Jacob Pullen, making the transition to primary ball-handler, had just 13 points and turned it over four times. But Pullen had plenty of help. Four Wildcats scored in double figures, bolstered by Rodney McGruder's 13 points.

Virginia Tech star Malcolm Delaney didn't get nearly as much help from the Hokies' depleted roster that was without three key contributors. Dorenzo Hudson was the only other Hokie to reach double digits. He finished with 12 points.

Early on, Delaney was good enough to keep Tech in the game. He scored 14 of his game-high 22 in the first half, as the Hokies went to the locker room down only one.

But Delaney also turned it over 10 times and couldn't answer Kansas State's second-half push.

The Wildcats weren't at full strength either and played without forward Curtis Kelly for the second straight game. Kelly, an all-conference candidate, was benched by coach Frank Martin for poor practice habits.