Newcomers face bright lights, loud voices at Shocker Madness

Wichita State’s annual Shocker Madness on Thursday will give fans a chance to check out the men’s and women’s basketball teams. Here are some things to expect.

▪  Your first look.

Get there early to study the roster and pay attention during introductions.

Wichita State’s men’s team has 18 players on the roster, eight of whom haven’t played a game for the Shockers. Most prominently, that list includes forward Anton Grady, a senior transfer from Cleveland State who is eligible immediately, and sophomore guard Conner Frankamp, a transfer from Kansas who practiced with WSU second semester last season and is eligible for games Dec. 12.

WSU’s women’s team lost five starters. There are 10 Shockers, seven of whom are waiting to play their first game. Transfer guard Diamond Lockhart, from Texas Tech, practiced with the team last season. Forward Rangie Bessard, a transfer from Minnesota, joined the Shockers for the second semester last season and will be eligible for the second semester.

Women’s coach Jody Adams named Lockhart, Bessard and junior Jalessa Chapel captain.

“This group is a very close group off the court and I do believe that we are growing together as fast as I have ever seen a group grow together,” Adams said Monday at media day.

▪  Who are all those new guys?

Marshall likes his freshman class, and that might not be a strong enough description. People who watch this group play regularly say the talent is better than any freshman group of his tenure.

“They know how to compete,” Marshall said. “All four of them came in the door very competitive, not having to be told what it takes to play here or at this level. They’ve all had that focus of ‘I know what it takes to play basketball and I want to be successful.’ ”

While they still need to make good on that potential, the early indications are good for guards Landry Shamet, Ty Taylor, wing Markis McDuffie and forward Eric Hamilton.

“We all have that edge to be great,” Taylor said. “We think we belong, even though we’re young. We think we can play with anybody else in the country.”

▪  Tick, tick, tick.

Fans will get their first look at the 30-second clock for the men’s scrimmage, dropped five seconds from previous seasons. The adjustment varies from player to player. Sophomore Rauno Nurger grew up playing with a 24-second clock in Europe. Taylor played with a 35-second clock in prep school, something freshmen who came to WSU from high school didn’t do.

“In practice, it seemed to shock us a little bit here and there,” senior guard Ron Baker said. “Five seconds is quite a bit of time. It’s kind of weird to come down the court and set your offense with 20 seconds on the court instead of 25.”

▪  Injury list.

The Shockers will practice Thursday afternoon before Shocker Madness, so it wouldn’t be surprising for a player battling injury to sit out or play limited minutes during the scrimmage. Senior center Bush Wamukota is dealing with a sore back and his availability will be determined by Thursday’s practice. Senior guard Fred VanVleet sat out recent practices with a mild sprain in his right ankle.

▪  Shooting and dunking.

Participants in the three-point shooting contest are Peyton Allen, Baker, VanVleet, Frankamp, Marija Pacar, TaQuandra Mike, Jyar Francis and Bessard.

The dunkers are Zach Brown, Rashard Kelly, McDuffie, Hamilton, Shamet and Taylor.

▪  Past dunk contest winners.

Darius Carter won the dunk contest the past two seasons, most memorably palming one basketball in each hand and dunking both. In 2012, Cleanthony Early won with a between-the-legs dunk. The event didn’t have a contest in 2011 or 2010. David Kyles won in 2009 and 2008. In 2009, he jumped over an electric blue Suzuki motorcycle on his way to the basket.

▪  Who can suit up.

Frankamp and Allen, a transfer from Texas A&M who will not play this season, can participate in Shocker Madness. So can Bessard. The NCAA considers it a practice session.

They are not allowed to play in closed scrimmages or exhibition games, because they are not allowed to participate against what the NCAA considers outside competition.

Other newcomers can play in the exhibition game without losing their opportunity to redshirt.

This story was originally published October 21, 2015 at 3:54 PM with the headline "Newcomers face bright lights, loud voices at Shocker Madness."