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Wichita State Shockers: Sunflower State Showdown

By Leigh Oleszczak

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The Wichita State Shockers were able to punch their ticket to the round of 32 when they defeated the Indiana Hoosiers on Friday. The Shockers won the game by a score of 81-76 and set up a highly anticipated match up for Sunday afternoon.

That’s right. The Wichita State Shockers will face the second seed Kansas Jayhawks on Sunday afternoon in Omaha, Nebraska. The seventh seed Shockers haven’t faced Kansas since 1993, and fans of both schools are very much looking forward to this game.

Wichita State may come from a lesser known conference in the Missouri Valley Conference, but they’ve been fun to watch in the NCAA Tournament over the past few years. Two years ago, the Shockers made it all the way to the final four before losing to the eventual champions of Louisville.

This is a different Wichita State squad though, one who’s used to having success in the NCAA Tournament and there’s no way that they’ll crumble to Kansas like they did 22 years ago at Allen Fieldhouse.

Last season, everyone knew who the Shockers were when they went undefeated during the regular season. Sadly though, Wichita State exited the tournament at the round of 32 when they were knocked off by the Kentucky Wildcats. Fans were disappointed to see WSU eliminated as early as they were last year since they had a number one seed and had worked so hard to get to that point.

This year is a new story though.

Wichita State lost a few games during the course of the regular season, but there’s no doubt that they’re still just as good of a team as they were in the 2013-2014 season. Ron Baker and Fred Van Vleet both returned and are having incredible seasons. In fact, Van Vleet had 27 points in Friday’s big win over the Hoosiers, tying a career high.

Now the 1993 match up between these two teams was an embarrassing one for Wichita State. The Shockers lost to the Jayhawks by a score of 103-54. I’m not even kidding.

This is a different Wichita State squad though, one who’s used to having success in the NCAA Tournament and there’s no way that they’ll crumble to Kansas like they did 22 years ago at Allen Fieldhouse.

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    • Kansas is also used to having success in the tournament. The Jayhawks won the National Championship in 2008 and made it to the final game again in 2012, losing to Kentucky that year. While some feel this year’s Kansas squad isn’t as impressive as season’s past, they’re still the Kansas Jayhawks, led by one of the best coaches in college basketball in Bill Self.

    In other words, don’t count out the Jayhawks. They’re a two seed for a reason and are going to be hungry to prove that they’re the better college basketball team in the state of Kansas.

    Wichita State will have their work cut out for them, but the Shockers can definitely win this game. One of the main things the team needs to improve on is their three point shots and with free throws. If the Shockers can improve on both of those, there’s no reason they can’t pull off the “upset” here.

    Next: How Deep Of A Run Can KU Make?

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