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For a team that received almost zero national exposure in the beginning of the season, once Wichita State hit the Top-25, they became overnight sensations.
The Shockers will be put to the test Saturday morning against Davidson in North Carolina in ESPN's Bracketbuster game. Tip off set for 11am central time.
The importance of the Bracketbuster games is to give teams with good RPI's a chance to matchup with other midmajor teams on a national stage. WSU's RPI is 31 while Davidson's is twice that at 62. Oral Roberts, in Tulsa, is a 42, the team some Shocker fans wanted instead of Davidson. But the Wildcats boast a win over #5 Kansas on a neutral floor earlier this season.
After trouncing Missouri State Wednesday night, Bears head coach essentially called the Shockers the total package, complimenting their length and shooting ability. Over the past three games, Wichita State had averaged almost 78 points a game, shooting 55 percent average from the floor.
And finally, the Shockers have a sizable advantage in the paint in Garrett Stutz. The 7-foot senior was hit or miss in the first half of the season and especially in their only home loss of the season to Creighton. Stutz has come out of his shell and is beginning to dominate games with furious dunks and, occassionally, three point baskets. He was 4-4 from beyond the arc against Missouri State. ________________________________________________________________________________________
Right now, K-State is not headed in the right direction. After Kansas muscled past the Wildcats in the Sunflower Showdown, K-State has now lost two in a row and dipped below .500 in the Big 12 Standings.
Worse yet, they aren't even receiving votes in this weeks latest Associated Press or Coaches Top-25 Poll. They dropped out at the end of January.
K-State continues to struggle in finding a go-to-guy with the ball. Rodney McGruder looked the part early on with great efforts against Missouri and a near win over Baylor but lately, no one is scoring the ball easily for Frank Martin's crew.
And he seems as perplexed as everyone right now that K-State is struggling to score well. Will Spradling has come out of his slump from the beginning of the month but he only had 10 against Kansas and Jamar Samuels had a great game but he is inconsistent, as is Angel Rodriguez. Samuels 20 points against the Jayhawks was his first double digit effort in the last four games.
The Wildcats have five games left to make a strong run before the Big 12 Tournament. It will not be easy this weekend against #9 Baylor. The Bears are 14-2 at home this season. They have one of the longest starting rotations in the country and were unbeaten before a loss to Kansas in Lawrence.
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Elijah Johnson said Kansas has all the pieces in the puzzle, they just have to put it together before it's too late.
The Jayhawks have one of the best starting rotations in the country and two of the best big men in the nation in Jeff Withey and Thomas Robinson. The play of one of them has been a surprise this season and the other, not at all. Robinson was the teams' sixth man last season and in 2012 has emerged as the most dynamic power forward in the Big 12. He went from a pure dunker and layup player to a player with range and touch, nice thing for 6'10" 260 pound junior.
Robinson thought he would have to play the center position at the beginning of the season but as Withey has steadily improved, it's ridiculous to pull him from the game. The redshirt junior from San Diego has gone from struggling to get into games to being viewed by some as a NBA pick in the draft. He has been the biggest surprise of the season for KU.
The 'hawks will no doubt be looking ahead on the schedule at next Saturday when they host Missouri but for now, they will have to play through Texas Tech and Texas A&M, two of the worst teams in the Big 12. The Red Raiders, Saturday's opponent has just one win in conference - over Oklahoma 65-47 - will not pose a threat to KU.
Some pundits have the Jayhawks as a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament. Wins this week and next and that will be no problem for KU.
