Markquis Nowell has social media buzzing following historic Sweet 16 performance

Kansas State‘s do-it-all point guard put on a clinic Thursday night in the Wildcats’ memorable 98-93 win over Michigan State in a Sweet 16 thriller at Madison Square Garden.

Nowell, who was born and raised in New York City, dished out 19 assists in the overtime victory, which broke an NCAA Tournament record that dated back to 1987. The senior guard made one brilliant pass after another, carving up a Michigan State defense that had held its first two NCAA Tournament opponents to an average of 61 points per game.

Nowell added 20 points and five steals, including a brilliant final play, where he stole the ball from Tyson Walker and drove for a game-clinching layup as the final buzzer sounded.

Nowell’s unforgettable performance had social media buzzing with the likes of Patrick Mahomes and Kevin Durant showing love for the Wildcats star guard.

The Chiefs Super Bowl-winning QB appeared to be watching the game and responded to a tweet in reference to Nowell hurting his ankle early in the second half. The tweet suggested someone call Mahomes and find out what he did to his ankle at halftime of a divisional round playoff matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

“He’s got it!” Mahomes quote tweeted. “I believe”

Durant was quick to show his appreciation of Nowell’s historic performance.

Perhaps the most impressive part about Nowell’s game is that he was consistently the smallest player on the floor Thursday. But the 5-foot-8, 160-pound guard wasn’t going to let his size slow him down.

“You don’t determine somebodies destiny by their height,” Nowell told media members ahead of Thursday’s Sweet 16 game. “You determine it by their heart and their passion. Your heart is the biggest thing. I live by that.”

Another talented guard who was known for his height – or lack there of – also chimed in on Twitter to show some love.

Two-time NBA All-Star Isaiah Thomas, who was also considered an undersized guard, standing at 5-foot-9, got in on the action as well. The former Washington Huskies standout shared some encouraging words to Nowell, adding “keep doing your thing killa.”

The shout-outs didn’t stop there, as former All-American and two-time NBA All-Star Trae Young took notice as well.

And yes, even a former Michigan State Spartan legend made sure to give Nowell credit, despite the fact his historic effort came against his alma mater.

Nowell and the Wildcats will advance to play the winner of Thursday night’s Tennessee–Florida Atlantic game in the Elite Eight.

Read more: