Five things to like for Wichita State basketball coming out of blowout win over Newman
Here are five things to know coming out of Wichita State’s 81-43 victory over Newman at Koch Arena on Wednesday.
1. Isaiah Poor Bear-Chandler leads surge in bench scoring
Since being out-scored 38-5 in bench points in a loss to Oklahoma State on Dec. 12, WSU’s bench has averaged 34.3 points per game in its next four games — all wins.
A big part of that resurgence has been 6-foot-9 junior Isaiah Poor Bear-Chandler, who scored 10 points at Tulsa and scored a season-high 11 points on 4 of 5 shooting in 13 minutes off the bench on Wednesday against Newman.
Poor Bear-Chandler, who is shooting 60.9% from the field this season, has been productive in limited minutes this season in his reserve role behind starter Morris Udeze.
“I think when he sees the ball go in, it gives him more and more confidence and that’s like most players in college basketball,” WSU interim coach Isaac Brown said. “He’s been playing really well for us. He’s always showed signs of that in practice. A guy that can score it with both hands on the low block. A guy that can make a stationary three. A guy who can rebound.
“When Isaiah is playing like that, it helps our team tremendously and gives us more depth at the (center) position.”
2. Clarence Jackson has surprised with play-making ability
One of the possessions that stood out the most Wednesday occurred midway through the second half, when WSU sophomore Clarence Jackson pulled down a rebound, led the fast break, dribbled around a defender and then dished a no-look pass to Trey Wade for an easy slam dunk.
The rebound and energy from Jackson, a 6-foot-7 junior-college transfer, is not a surprise, but the no-look pass was. Brown said that part of Jackson’s game has been a pleasant surprise to the Shockers.
“I didn’t see a lot of play-making when I recruited him,” Brown said. “I saw a guy that gave maximum effort, a guy that can hit a stationary three, a guy that can rebound. But when he got here this summer, you could tell he really worked on his game. He had improved his ball-handling and he had improved his passing and he’s doing a great job of that for us right now.”
Jackson has been one of WSU’s top newcomers and the team’s spark off the bench, as he is averaging 6.9 points and 5.7 rebounds. On Wednesday, he added seven points and eight rebounds in 14 minutes.
He plays with so much aggression that sometimes it can lead him astray, but more times than not it produces extraordinary hustle plays that can lift his team. Like the highlight-reel block he volleyball spiked off the side of the backboard in the first half of Wednesday’s game.
Plays like that make him a valuable piece for the Shockers. Although he only has three assists on the season, Jackson has proven he has the ability to throw a nifty pass from time to time. WSU will likely leave the heavy-lifting on creating off the dribble to the guards, but when Jackson does make a play off the dribble it can boost WSU’s spirits even more.
3. The Wade brothers connect for the first time
Trey and Trevin Wade have played together at the high school and junior-college level, so they’ve had plenty of times assisting the other for baskets.
But it was still a special moment late in the first half when Trevin Wade, a junior guard, came up with a steal and passed ahead to Trey Wade, a senior forward, that led to a fast-break layup. It was the first time the brothers had connected on the floor at the Division I level.
“It’s a dream come true, man,” Trevin Wade said. “We’ve been waiting on this all of our lives. To do it on the highest level in college basketball is great. We did it at every other level, so it’s a stepping stone.”
After playing in a key role in WSU’s season-opening win over Oral Roberts, Trevin Wade reemerged with a career-high eight points and three steals for the Shockers Wednesday. Trey Wade came off the bench for the first time this season and delivered a steady performance that included four points, six rebounds and four assists.
“He goes hard every day,” Brown said. “He goes up against Alterique Gilbert in practice and he gives complete effort every day picking guys up 94 feet. He’s our third point guard right now, but we can count on him. He’s one of those guys that brings it every day and at any given moment he might get his name called.”
Trevin Wade nearly had the highlight of the night on a fast break late in the first half. Freshman Chaunce Jenkins threw him an underhanded scoop pass in transition that the 5-foot-11 Wade nearly flushed in cleanly. He still made the basket, but promised afterward that he will have a highlight-reel dunk in his time with the Shockers.
“I can go get them, I just have to get my feet under me,” Wade said. “Get my feet warm. Ya’ll going to see. It’s coming.”
4. Freshman Chaunce Jenkins shows flashes of potential
After missing all three of his shots in 13 minutes of action against Emporia State, freshman guard Chaunce Jenkins was ready for his second shot in action for the Shockers.
The 6-foot-4 smooth-shooting guard showed flashes of what WSU saw in recruiting him. He scored six points and added two assists in a career-high 19 minutes.
“I’m excited about him,” Brown said. “He practices hard every day and he guards our leading scorer, Tyson Etienne, and that’s going to make him become a better player. He’s going up against one of the better players in our league every day in practice, so he can only get better and better from that. We keep telling him to learn the system and be ready when your time comes and he played some excellent minutes for us tonight.”
Jenkins scored his first Division I basket midway through the first half, when Craig Porter threw a pass ahead to him in transition that sprang the freshman for an easy dunk on the fast break.
“I couldn’t have done it without my teammate,” Jenkins said. “It was a great pass from Craig, so that one felt good.”
It has been a difficult transition to the Division I level for Jenkins, who was forced to miss two weeks of practices and games to start the season due to COVID-19 contact tracing. While quarantined, Jenkins said he tried to learn WSU’s playbook through Zoom calls with Brown and the other WSU coaches.
To stay in shape, he did push-ups in his room and made sure he was eating healthy.
“I just tried to be the best teammate possible for my teammates and help them and do everything I could to make sure they were playing at their full potential,” Jenkins said.
WSU has plenty of guard depth this season, so there’s little pressure on Jenkins to produce. But the Shockers feel like they have a potential dynamite threat on offense in Jenkins, who they envision being a top scorer down the road.
5. Josaphat Bilau will return Saturday
The one player missing for the Shockers Wednesday was 6-foot-10 redshirt freshman Josaphat Bilau. The France native once again experienced swelling in his knee following practice and was held out as a precaution.
Brown said he expects Bilau, who scored four points and added two assists in WSU’s road overtime win at South Florida, to be available Saturday against Mississippi.
“His knee swelled up on him (Tuesday) and we felt like it was best for him to sit out,” Brown said. “We know we will need him at Ole Miss and Houston, so we wanted him to ice that knee and get some rest. Hopefully he can practice (Thursday) and help us on Saturday in Oxford.”
This story was originally published December 30, 2020 at 9:37 PM.
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