Wichita State Shockers continue to roll in first season in AAC
By Eric Hogan
The Wichita State Shockers have had a nice start to their tenure in the American Athletic Conference. The Shockers are 4-0 on the season.
The final score of Wichita State‘s 92-82 against California says very little about how this game went, aside from the fact that WSU got a much needed win from a non-conference opponent on a neutral court. Simply put, Cal gave WSU everything they could handle for about 37 minutes on Monday afternoon.
Give tons of credit to Cal, who played hard and fast, and kept the Shox potent offense at bay for most of the game. The pesky Golden Bear press make the Shox uncomfortable throughout the game, and their zone defense caused Wichita State to shoot just 6-25 from behind the three point stripe.
Meanwhile, on the offensive side, Golden Bear Don Coleman was nearly unstoppable dropping 35 on the Shox. Watching Coleman, it was impossible not to think of Kemba Walker and what UConn did to the Shox in the same tournament just a few short years ago. Justice Sueing & Darius McNeill added 20 & 16 respectively to round out most of the scoring for the Bears.
Cal still maintained a 17 point lead with just 13:47 remaining when the Shockers began chipping away. Conner Frankamp hit a three pointer to knock the lead down to 14 and it would prove to be the only points Frankamp scored all game. Rauno Nurger then stepped up and scored 7 points in just over two minutes to get the team within 10 and the comeback was on.
For the Shox, the offense again revolved around Landry Shamet & Shaq Morris. Shamet, considered one of the top point guards in the country, went 8-10 from the field & 4-4 from behind the arch. Shamet also knocked down 3 out of 4 free throws to put up a total of 23 points. Congrats to Shamet who now holds the all-time Wichita State record for consecutive games with a made three pointer!
Shaq Morris scored 19 of his 25 points in the second half, taking full advantage of the two Cal big men fouling out with about 5 1/2 minutes left in the game. In fact, Shaq’s dominance in the paint was the main catalyst that put Cal away in the second half, pulling 7 boards and throwing down 3 blocks.
Zach Brown’s 4 steals and 32 minutes led the team, but more importantly his containment of guards Don Coleman & Darius McNeill was a big reason Cal didn’t walk away from this one with a win. Cal’s top three offensive players all played for at least 36 minutes, which says a lot about the depth of the Cal bench. It also means that Brown & Rashard Kelly would have their hands full with their defensive assignments. Kelly also had a nice game, leading the Shox with 10 rebounds, seven of them on the offensive end.
Darral Willis was mostly a non-factor, playing just 14 minutes and picking up 5 rebounds while scoring 3 of his 5 points from the free throw line. Rauno Nurger picked up where Willis left off, going 5-6 from the field and picking up 5 offensive boards. Austin Reaves stepped up with some great hustle plays, diving into the scorer’s table on a loose ball, and picking up 7 rebounds and providing 4 assists.
Overall the Shockers passed their first real test of the season, and came away a better team thanks to Cal’s incredible effort. Cal has some outstanding individual players, but you can’t say enough about the poise and composure Gregg Marshall’s team showed. Their understanding of the big picture was apparent throughout the game, as their patient approach to winning proved to be the right approach yet again.
They continued to pound the ball in down low, creating foul trouble for the Golden Bears. Once they were able to get Cal’s defensive big men out of the game, it was a different contest all together. Lanes began to open up & Shaq & company took over the game. The Shox outscored Cal 32-10 in the paint during the second half, while also scoring 22 points off of turnovers.
The Shockers continue their impressive campaign this season defeating Marquette 80-66. Wichita State will earn more respect this year being in the AAC instead of the Missouri Valley Conference and they’re showing that they deserve respect.
Next up for the Shockers are the Savannah State Tigers. The two will play November 28th.