Austin Reaves’ mother on son’s historic performance: ‘I was shaking’

Dressed in her custom-made black No. 12 Reaves shirt, Nicole Wilkett’s stomach turned every time her son, Austin Reaves, rose to deliver another three-pointer.

“I was shaking,” said Wilkett, who was an all-conference basketball player for Arkansas State from 1990-92. “I think I was more nervous watching him play than I ever was when I played.”

While Wilkett was shaking, Reaves made Koch Arena shake on Sunday by making his first seven three-pointers – the most in a half in WSU history – to help No. 17 Wichita State defeat Tulsa 90-71. Reaves scored a career-high 23 points with his mother in attendance, perched in her usual spot midway up Section 123.

It had been since Austin was in high school at Cedar Ridge in Arkansas, where he once scored 73 points and poured in 56 or more four times, the last time she had seen him shoot like that.

“Usually when he makes his first one, he gets on a roll and he’s going to make some,” Wilkett said. “I’ve been wanting him to come out with a little more aggression, which I’ve always preached to him. When he gets going like that, he’s fun to watch.”

Reaves made his first three-pointer 12 seconds after checking in, a simple catch-and-shoot three from the left wing. He made his second on a wide-open look off a Rashard Kelly offensive rebound kick-out, then drilled his third 40 seconds later, again on the left wing.

“He was on a heater,” WSU coach Gregg Marshall said. “We’ve seen it in practice, but never in a game. That was great to see.”

Reaves knew he was feeling it when he dribbled into a three-pointer, his fourth, to cut Tulsa’s lead to 21-20 with 10:05 remaining in the first half. After the game, Reaves deflected the credit to his teammates and pointed out six of his seven three-pointers came via assist.

“My teammates just found me in transition and found me in the offense and I’ve got to give all of the credit to them,” Reaves said. “If it wasn’t for them, it wouldn’t have happened.”

By the time Reaves made it to No. 6 and No. 7, the fans at Koch Arena were delirious every time he touched the ball. Reaves launched his sixth make on the left wing in rhythm, so it didn’t matter that Tulsa’s defender had a hand in his face – it was a swish.

Less than 40 seconds later, Tulsa lost Reaves in the left corner in transition and he buried it for his seventh straight make. For a player who is typically reserved, Reaves screamed and was instantly mobbed by teammates rushing the court after Tulsa’s coach Frank Haith called for a timeout to regroup.

“After you hit six in a row, the basket gets a little bit bigger,” Reaves said. “I honestly couldn’t explain it. It’s just one of those adrenaline rushes that you get.”

“I didn’t even want to rebound,” WSU big man Shaquille Morris said. “I just wanted to get back (on defense).”

“That’s what Austin Reaves does,” WSU senior Rashard Kelly added. “I’m an everyday glue guy; he’s an everyday shooter.”

The hot streak eventually wore off – Reaves missed a rushed corner shot to end the first half, then missed all three of his second-half attempts.

But for Reaves, he was just happy his shooting could help his team and excite WSU’s fans.

“I’m blessed to play on a team like this with a group of guys that are so close and love each other like we do,” Reaves said.

“The atmosphere was amazing tonight. The fans don’t get enough credit. They deserve more and we appreciate them a lot.”

This story was originally published January 29, 2018 at 9:40 AM with the headline "Austin Reaves’ mother on son’s historic performance: ‘I was shaking’."