Shocker report Shocker report (Feb. 9)

Saturday’s box score

Wichita St. 79,

Missouri St. 50

Percentages: FG .314, FT .857. 3-Point Goals: 6-19, .316 (M. Marshall 3-6, Downing 1-1, B. Marshall 1-2, Scheer 1-5, Thurman 0-1, Williams 0-2, Simpson 0-2). Team Rebounds: 5. Blocked Shots: 0. Turnovers: 10 (Thurman 3, Pickens 2, Williams 2, Kirk, M. Marshall, Scheer). Steals: 1 (Scheer). Technical Fouls: None.

Percentages: FG .492, FT .600. 3-Point Goals: 9-20, .450 (Armstead 2-2, Cotton 2-3, Wiggins 2-6, Early 1-3, Van Vleet 1-3, Williams 1-3). Team Rebounds: 3. Blocked Shots: 4 (Lufile 2, Wiggins, Orukpe). Turnovers: 8 (Van Vleet 2, Orukpe 2, White, Wiggins, Cotton, Hall). Steals: 8 (Van Vleet 3, Williams 2, Early 2, Orukpe). Technical Fouls: Early.

Att.–10,506. Officials–John Higgins, Bo Boroski, David Stevens.

Talking with the stars

Xavier McDaniel and Antoine Carr wanted to talk to the Shockers. How can you turn those guys down?

WSU coach Gregg Marshall gladly let them give the team a few words before the game. Players usually listen to guys with NBA experience.

They told the Shockers to get mean, something X and Antoine would know all about.

“That’s actually exactly what they said — to play angry and play like we’ve got to protect our house,” WSU junior Cleanthony Early said.

Cleo Littleton and Dave Stallworth also attended the game as part of WSU’s homecoming ceremonies. Former Shockers Mike Denny and Aubrey Sherrod joined McDaniel and Carr in the locker room before the game.

“Our guys, they may look menacing and they may look tough,” Marshall said. “They’re the nicest guys in the world off the court. They haven’t gotten angry enough at what’s gone on. Without taking it overboard, and doing something silly, maybe that’s the point that needed to be made.”

Littleton, Stallworth, Carr and McDaniel are four of the five Shockers with their jerseys hanging from the rafters of Koch Arena.

New look, old players

Marshall packed his starting lineup with as much experience as possible. When things go bad, a team must lean on its seniors, or things are beyond repair.

Seniors Carl Hall, Ehimen Orukpe, Demetric Williams and Malcolm Armstead started, as did sophomore Tekele Cotton. Orukpe and Cotton returned to the starting lineup after coming off the bench in Tuesday’s loss at Southern Illinois.

“We’ve got more responsibility,” Orukpe said. “We’ve got to make it a success. (Marshall) keeps telling us it’s on all the seniors and you don’t want to go out like this.”

He took junior transfers Early and Nick Wiggins out of the lineup from the previous game. Early came off the bench for the first time since Nov. 21 against Iowa.

Conflicting call

Missouri Valley Conference commissioner Doug Elgin said that the conference disciplined referee Rick Randall for his performance in the Tuesday’s WSU game at Southern Illinois, following a “thorough review”.

Randall called goaltending on Orukpe in the final seconds of the game, giving SIU a 64-62 lead in a game it won by that score.

“As is customary in all matters involving league officiating personnel, the specifics of these actions have been handled internally,” Elgin wrote in an e-mail.

Worth noting

Marshall improved to 129-66 at WSU, passing Mark Turgeon (2000-07) for third place on the school’s career victories list. Gene Smithson (1978-86) is in second with 155 wins.… Missouri State freshman Gavin Thurman, from Heights, scored four points on 1-of-9 shooting. He scored a career-high 21 points in the first meeting.… Cotton is 6 of 11 from three-point range in his past four games after starting the season 3 of 23.… Marshall improved to 10-4 against MSU and the Shockers took the series lead 31-30. WSU is the only MVC team Bears coach Paul Lusk has not defeated in his 31 conference games.

— Paul Suellentrop