DENVER _ It takes a special kind of player to leap into the air for a rebound and slam home a one-handed dunk in the same, fluid motion.
It also takes a special kind of player to dominate in the paint with a steady barrage of points, rebounds, blocks and jaw-dropping highlights.
D.J. Johnson did all the above for Kansas State during an 89-70 victory over Colorado State on Saturday at Pepsi Center.
The senior forward finished with 19 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks while also delivering the team's most impressive dunk of the season.
His play helped K-State play arguably its best game of the season. The Wildcats (10-1) had mostly beaten up on sub-par competition before this one, but they showed they could also defeat a team of substance. The Rams (8-3) won at Colorado earlier this season and stayed competitive in losses to Stanford and Wichita State, but they trailed by as many as 23 against the Wildcats.
K-State pulled away behind the strong play of Johnson and its top six players.
Barry Brown had 14 points, Xavier Sneed had 12, Wesley Iwundu had 11 and Dean Wade finished with 10.
Colorado State took an eight-point lead midway through the first half, but K-State dominated from there thanks to a mixture of defense, transition offense and 3-pointers.
Six K-State players made threes, including Austin Budke and Brian Patrick off the bench.
Prentiss Nixon led Colorado State with 30 points, but K-State held the rest of the Ram's roster in check.
That made for a positive ending to a day that began with negative news.
K-State announced before the game that Dante Williams, a 7-foot redshirt freshman, will transfer and that Isaiah Maurice, a 6-foot-10 redshirt freshman, is suspended indefinitely.
Williams missed K-State's last game against Washington State and had not practiced with the team since. He informed Weber of his intentions to leave the team after he completed final exams.
"After discussions with his family, Dante has made the decision to transfer from Kansas State," Weber said in a statement. "He feels like he needs to continue his college career elsewhere and we wish him the best as he moves forward."
Williams, of Arlington, Texas, had seen action in six games, averaging 1.5 points and one rebound in 4.8 minutes.
Maurice traveled with the team to Denver, but did not dress for the game. Weber said he was suspended for violations of departmental policy.
"Our players have expectations and there are consequences when you don't live up to those expectations," said Weber. "Hopefully, Isaiah will learn from this experience and make the necessary progress to rejoin our team."
Maurice had seen action in all 10 games, averaging 2.6 points and 2.5 rebounds in 10.2 minutes.
The Wildcats will next be in action on Wednesday against Gardner-Webb at Bramlage Coliseum.
