Wichita State turns attention to chasing Illinois State after road loss

Wichita State sprinted to the past three Missouri Valley Conference basketball titles by starting 9-0 or better and leading the chase.

This season will be different.

The Shockers are out of first place in the Missouri Valley Conference for the first time since the end of the 2013 season, when they finished second. Illinois State defeated the Shockers 76-62 on Saturday at Redbird Arena.

WSU (15-4, 5-1 MVC) does have time on its side.

The 18-game MVC season is capable of pulling down leaders and elevating surprise teams.

In 2013, WSU lost its final two regular season-games to boot away a Valley title. In 2006, the Shockers started 2-2 in the MVC and benefited when other teams stumbled in mid-Febuary.

“It’s too early to worry about that,” WSU forward Markis McDuffie said. “We’ve got 12 more games. They finally got first place. Let’s see how they handle that. Let’s see how we recover from this loss.“

Illinois State (14-4, 6-0) is in first place in the Valley alone for the first time since the 1997-98 season, also its last MVC title and NCAA Tournament appearance.

“You’re hunted now, and that’s not really a place our guys are used to,” Redbirds coach Dan Muller said. “The challenge now is just: Huge win, everyone’s telling them how great they are. It’s kind of new territory for some of these guys.”

Muller said he’s aware of the dangers of the prosperity, not concerned. His team, with a core of four experienced starters, is mature and focused. Saturday’s win certainly showed those attributes.

The Redbirds, fueled by a rangy 2-3 zone defense and three-point shooting, closed the game on a 20-9 run after WSU rallied within three points. In the final seconds, students chanted “We’re No. 1” and nobody else in the Valley, other than Koch Arena fans, chanted that with any conviction since Creighton in 2013.

“We will need to figure out how to score the ball and hold them under 76 points,” WSU coach Gregg Marshall said. “That doesn’t travel very well.”

Darral Willis and Landry Shamet both scored 14 points for WSU. The Shockers shot 35 percent from the field and made 7 of 21 three-pointers. They grabbed 17 offensive rebounds, but scored only 15 second-chance points.

MiKyle McIntosh led Illinois State with 20 points on 7-of-9 shooting. The Redbirds made 10 of 22 threes and shot 54.2 percent for the game, a season-high by a WSU opponent. In the second half, they made 13 of 21 shots to answer every Wichita State rally.

With 12 games remaining in the MVC schedule, nobody conceded the title to Illinois State. The Redbirds seemed mindful of the challenges awaiting.

“It feels good, but we’ve just got to keep playing our basketball and knowing it starts on the defensive end,” Illinois State forward Deontae Hawkins said.

Saturday’s loss gave the Shockers much to think about. They struggled against Illinois State’s zone defense, finding intermittent success getting the ball into the lane, but nothing consistent. It changed the momentum of the game in the first half, one in which Willis scored 10 points and the other four starters went 0 for 9 and scored four points.

“Our zone was active,” Muller said. “There’s some games our zone is really, really good and some of those games have been against Wichita State.”

WSU’s defense, plagued by breakdowns and poor reactions, surrendered way too many open shots.

Redbirds guard Paris Lee controlled the pace most of the night and handed out six assists. WSU failed to keep him out of the lane, which opened up three-pointers and cutting teammates.

“No matter if he’s shooting well or not, he’s still going to keep his mind in the game and still help his teammates” McDuffie said.

The Shockers are an excellent offensive team. It needs to learn how to turn up the defense when shots aren’t falling.

“Fifty-four percent shooting, that’s terrible,” Shamet said. “We didn’t defend at all. You can’t rely on offense in the Valley. Everybody knows you.”

Some of WSU’s defensive decisions mystified Marshall and the mistakes came at crucial times. Illinois State’s Keyshawn Evans got loose late in the first half for two three-pointers. Phil Fayne snuck behind the defense late in the game for a dunk. In other situations, Lee penetrated and drew the defense before finding an open teammates.

“We would just leave guys,” Marshall said. “And they would find a soft spot and knock it down.”

Illinois State’s height and quickness frustrated the Shockers in both their man and zone defenses. Eight first-half turnovers, many of them caused by weak passes or dribbling into traffic, helped bury the Shockers under a nine-point deficit. The Redbirds surrendered few easy shots, blocking eight and altering many others.

“A couple of them, it seemed like they didn’t even have to jump,” Marshall said. “They blocked them with their elbow.”

Wichita State can ponder its problems until the Feb. 4 rematch. A third meeting in the MVC Tournament seems likely.

This story was originally published January 15, 2017 at 3:41 PM with the headline "Wichita State turns attention to chasing Illinois State after road loss."