Shocker takeaways from Saturday’s exhibition game

Frankamp shows off aggressive moves – Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall praised Conner Frankamp in the offseason for a renewed confidence and aggression and those traits transferred over to the exhibition opener.

Frankamp made all five of his shots inside the arc – his only two misses were three-pointers – and scored 10 points, all in the first half. Frankamp finished with three lay-ups, including two aggressive drives where he didn’t even look for a jump shot and took it to the rim.

“That’s the one thing I’ve been working on in practice is being aggressive and getting my confidence back like I used to have,” Frankamp said. “I feel like it’s going really well.”

Already a sharpshooter, Frankamp becomes an even more lethal offensive weapon if he can continue making defenses pay for overplaying him on the perimeter.

“He’s really loosened up and starting to play like Conner Frankamp can,” Marshall said. “He’s been doing that all fall and he’s been really, really aggressive and confident and good.”

Frankamp’s most aggressive moment came when he drove down the lane and cocked the ball back on his take-off as if he was going for a dunk. Instead, he switched the ball between hands mid-air and finished with a scoop lay-up.

“I told him he should have dunked that one,” Shaquille Morris joked with Frankamp during the postgame press conference.

“I did have an idea of dunking, I’m not really sure why I didn’t,” Frankamp said. “I should have dunked it, I think.”

Crowd on its feet for 13 minutes – It’s a Koch Arena tradition to stand and clap at the start of each half until the opponent scores a field goal.

Wichita State fans, at least some of them, were on their feet for more than 13 minutes in the second half, as Henderson State missed its first 15 shots of the half.

“I saw some people sit down because they were tired of standing up,” Shaquille Morris said. “Shocker fans, I know ya’ll better than that. Just stay up until we give up a bucket.”

Henderson State shot 26.9 percent in the second half and finished shooting 29.3 percent for the game. The Reddies finished with 53 points on 75 possessions.

Wichita State fans sarcastically cheered when Tanner Hamilton’s jumper ended the drought for Henderson State with 6:53 remaining in the game.

“I didn’t really notice it until they scored and the crowd starting cheering for them,” Frankamp said.

Wichita State makes its first nine shots – The game started with nine straight makes for Wichita State, and the Shockers led 17-3 by the first media timeout with 15:44 remaining.

Morris canned a 17-foot jumper, delivered an entry pass that led Darral Willis to the rim for an easy lay-in, then stroked in a three-pointer – all in the game’s opening two minutes. Willis also made a three-pointer during the rally.

“Shocker season is back, that’s what I was thinking,” Morris said. “It was great to see Conner Frankamp start getting to the hole and laying it in and having that confidence and me actually stepping out and hitting a little three. We’re getting back into it.”

Wichita State’s offense was unrelenting in the first 13 minutes, as it scored on all but four possessions and built a 43-12 lead.

The starters combined for 59 points in an efficient outing, as all five finished the game with a plus-minus score of at least plus-22. Morris led all scorers with 16 points and added six rebounds, while Willis had 14 points and seven rebounds.

Rashard Kelly added 10 points, four rebounds, and three assists off the bench.

Marshall didn’t have anything to gripe about in the first half, but when the second half devolved into a sloppy performance he immediately mentioned the team’s 18 turnovers after the game.

“We’ve got to make better decisions with the ball,” Marshall said. “Thank goodness that was an exhibition game. It was a win, but I’m not very happy with how we played in the second half.”

The debut of Wichita’s Samajae Haynes-Jones – Hutchinson Community College transfer Samajae Haynes-Jones earned the start in the backcourt with Frankamp and delivered an impressive first-half performance.

Wichita State’s offense was scoring nearly every time with Haynes-Jones initiating the offense in the first half, as he finished the game with 11 points, three rebounds, and four assists in 20 minutes.

“I wasn’t really nervous, I was just trying to go out there and enjoy the moment,” Haynes-Jones said.

Marshall’s only complaint of Haynes-Jones’ debut – other than a five-second call in the second half, a turnover that brought Marshall to his knees in frustration – had nothing to do with his play.

“I’ve got a rule: if you can’t keep your shoe on, then you’ve got to come out immediately,” Marshall said. “It really bothers me when people don’t tie their shoes tight and they come loose during a possession and then you’re playing 4-on-5 until there’s a stoppage.

“I remember back in the day you couldn’t get my Chuck Taylor Converses off me unless you amputated my foot. They were on there. Now guys wear shoes like slippers.”

Austin Reaves shaking off the rust – It’s been a difficult offseason for sophomore guard Austin Reaves, who had to recover from shoulder surgery. Right after he was cleared from the surgery, Reaves came down with mononucleosis. While fighting his illness, Reaves developed a sore tendon in his foot.

He hasn’t been able to practice consistently in the last month and it showed in his 21 minutes off the bench. Reaves scored four points, including a three-pointer, and added two rebounds and three assists, but Marshall was perturbed by his three turnovers.

“His passing was just horrendous,” Marshall said. “Last year I praised him because I thought he was a really good passer. But he’s been out so much this fall, he’s not game speed yet. Everybody else is game speed and he’s not. Those passes were telegraphed, they were lazy, and they were just not good.”

Landry Shamet injury update – Marshall said earlier in the week that “the goal” for Shamet was to play 5-10 minutes in one of Wichita State’s two exhibition games.

Shamet, who is recovering from offseason foot surgery to repair a stress fracture, did not suit up for Saturday’s exhibition. Marshall said after the game that Shamet has developed ankle soreness in his limited time practicing this week.

“Just from being immobile for so long trying to come back now,” Marshall said. “It’s not the foot, it’s the ankle that’s sore now. He’s got to get that thing right and (come back) when he’s comfortable.”

C.J. Keyser a surprise sit – Reserve guard C.J. Keyser was in street clothes for Saturday’s exhibition.

Wichita State released a statement before the game, stating that Keyser “has personal issues that need to be resolved before he can participate.”

His status for the Nov. 10 season-opener against UMKC is unclear.

Shaky start for the freshmen – Freshman Rod Brown and Asbjorn Midtgaard both had flashes of positive moments, but their debut on Saturday was largely an opportunity to learn from their mistakes.

Marshall was his most animated in the second half when Brown missed a defensive assignment and the coach screamed Brown’s first name across the court before subbing him off the floor.

Marshall could only shake his head when Midtgaard missed a dunk in the final seconds of the second half. The 7-footer from Denmark scored two points and grabbed four rebounds, but had five turnovers in 14 minutes.

After Midtgaard missed the dunk, he was visibly frustrated with himself. Morris, a senior, made sure to meet the freshman immediately following the buzzer.

“I just didn’t want him to get his head down because he’s a great player and he’s still getting better every day,” Morris said. “Every day I’m pushing him, working him. I just told him to hold his head up.”

This story was originally published November 4, 2017 at 9:16 PM with the headline "Shocker takeaways from Saturday’s exhibition game."