Posted on Sat, Nov. 07, 2009

It's an exhibition game, and even fans need to warm up their lungs. Wichita State plays Newman tonight in a men's basketball game that doesn't matter, except for the people to whom it matters a great deal.

"At the mall, or Wal-Mart, we walk around in our Newman sweats and (people) will say 'Aw, Wichita State is going to beat you all,' " Newman senior Jaray Mathews said.

That is the way tonight's game will almost certainly play out. The result is secondary to both schools. Newman, an NCAA Division II school, is thrilled to get the opportunity to play on the city's biggest basketball stage. WSU is ready for another tune-up before the regular-season starts on Nov. 15.

"They were very anxious to do this," WSU coach Gregg Marshall said. "If I were Newman, it would be a big game for me as well. I understand that."

Newman coach Mark Potter and athletic director Vic Trilli lobbied hard for this meeting with Marshall and WSU athletic director Eric Sexton. They made phone calls. They mentioned it at golf tournaments. They pitched playing the game to open Intrust Bank Arena.

"Probably, Coach Marshall got tired of hearing about it," Potter said. "We were persistent."

Newman held its first basketball media day this week. The school is trying to upgrade its profile and its way of doing business as an NCAA member. When Newman made the move, beginning in 2006, from NAIA to NCAA, games like this one provided incentive. Newman played at least one NCAA Division I school during Potter's playing days in the early 1980s.

Tonight's is the school's first exhibition against a Division I opponent. Jets fans snapped up about 350 tickets and will hold a pre-game party at Eck Stadium's All-American Club.

The WSU game is the first of two exhibitions for Newman against Division I foes. The Jets will play at North Texas — where Trilli was the men's coach from 1997 to 2001 — on Wednesday.

"It gives people in our community a chance to see Newman University a little differently," Trilli said. "It gives us a chance to live that life for a week, just playing those two games."

Newman earns $6,000 for the men's game and $2,500 for the women's game. The money is nice, but secondary to the experience.

"My goal is to see how we compete against a very athletic team," Newman women's coach Tracy Anderson said. "I want to see where our heart is, if we're going to approach the challenge head on."

Potter appreciates that Marshall is taking on all the risk. The Shockers should win. Playing close is a victory for Newman. The Jets went 15-12 last season and finished fifth in the Heartland Conference. They lost leading scorer Ryan Bradley (a former Shocker) and return three starters.

"It's not easy sometimes when you have another institution in the same city to give the go-ahead," Potter said. "I get it. He's giving us an opportunity to get Newman University's name out there a little more. In more ways than one, we're really grateful."

Along with 350 Newman fans, 9,000 or more Shocker fans will visit Koch Arena tonight. For the Jets, it will be the biggest crowd to watch them play basketball.

"We have nothing to lose, so we're excited about it," Mathews said.

"I feel honored to get this opportunity to play against Wichita State," junior Chip Steven said. "We're a small school and we get to play one of the most elite teams in Kansas."

The kind words and camaraderie are for pre- and post-game. For 40 minutes, both teams have work to do. Marshall wants to play all 15 Shockers.

"We don't want to go over there and embarrass ourselves," Potter said. "Doing well — I don't know what means. It means we go in there and compete at the highest level we can compete at. Wichita State's going to be a huge handful for us."

Tuesday, NCAA Division II Le Moyne upset Syracuse 82-79 in a city battle. Both coaches are aware of that score. Neither is predicting a similar outcome. Marshall experienced that at Winthrop when he lost to a nearby Division II school.

"It was the NBA Finals for them," he said. "I want to play everyone. I want to get better as a basketball team. The last thing is, win. Once you get in the environment, you want to win the game."

Check Paul Suellentrop's Shocker blog at blogs.kansas.com/shockwaves. Reach him at 316-269-6760 or psuellentrop@wichitaeagle.com.