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Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall wishes his team converted one or two more plays in Saturday’s triple-overtime loss at Drake. So does Missouri State coach Paul Lusk.
“We would prefer not play Wichita State coming off a loss,” Lusk said. “Coach (Gene) Keady always used to say, ‘It’s not who you play, but when you play them.’ They’ll be ready to go.”
If, as Keady theorizes, timing is everything, WSU (18-4, 9-2 Missouri Valley Conference) gets a break in tonight’s game. Missouri State center Caleb Patterson is sidelined by a sprained right ankle. His absence robs the Bears (13-10, 6-5) of their second-leading scorer (12.7 points) and a 6-foot-11 obstacle to put in the way of Shocker center Garrett Stutz.
Stutz scored 27 points in 50 minutes in the 93-86 loss to Drake and averaged 22.3 points in his past three games. In those games, he is 25 of 37 (67.5 percent) from the field and 16 of 19 (84.2 percent) from the line.
So it’s not unusual MVC coaches are starting to think about Stutz’s next move, off their scouting reports.
“I think he’s got a future after college,” Lusk said. “When you’re that big and you can move and you’ve got good hands and you can score it over either shoulder, you’ve got a very bright future.”
Both teams are involved in tight races in the conference, but for different stakes. WSU is one game behind first-place Creighton and can’t afford to let the loss to Drake turn into a longer slide. MSU is in a three-way for third with Drake and Illinois State. Evansville lurks one game behind.
The Bears are the defending MVC champs, but they and seven other schools are conceding the title to either No. 13 Creighton or WSU. Lusk has done an admirable job retooling after he replaced coach Cuonzo Martin and lost four starters. Martin and Lusk are both former Purdue assistants, and the Keady and Bruce Weber influences are strong. Lusk knew much about the Bears from talking to Martin last season, and that inside knowledge helped him this season.
In MVC games, the Bears rank third in the shooting defense (allowing opponents to make 41.9 percent) and second against three-pointers (32.1). They are second in turnover margin (plus-1.45) and tied for first in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.3).
“They make it hard to score,” WSU coach Gregg Marshall said. “They don’t turn it over very much.”
WSU is well-equipped to bounce back from a tough loss. The Shockers didn’t lose two games in a row last season. This season, they lost to Alabama and Temple in Puerto Rico and responded by winning eight in a row. They haven’t lost more than two in a row since January 2009.
It takes a good road team to avoid significant slumps, and the Shockers are 6-1 away from home this season and 15-3 the past two.
Lusk, who is trying to rebuild with four starters new to the MVC, knows how that happens.
“No. 1, it’s experience,” he said. “For the most part, all those guys have been through the wars in this league. They understand how to navigate through the Valley, and on the road.”
