‘He’s going to be a great one’: Wichita State’s Kenny Pohto blossoms in Tulsa win
Kenny Pohto had a confession to make.
“I’m kind of soft,” Pohto admitted, before catching himself.
“I’ve been kind of soft, but I’m trying to work on that. The coaches tell me every day to be more aggressive, so I’m trying to be more aggressive in games.”
Such is life for a 19-year-old true freshman trying to play the most physical position right away in the American Athletic Conference, but the work-in-progress scored eight critical points in his best performance to date since conference play began in the Wichita State men’s basketball team’s 58-48 win over Tulsa at Koch Arena late Tuesday.
Pohto, a 6-foot-11 center, needed just 13 minutes to help flip the game for the Shockers, as he made some of the game’s biggest plays, including two offensive rebound put-backs and a pivotal charge, and was on the floor for all of WSU’s scoring during a dominant 21-4 stretch in the second half when WSU put the game away.
“It seemed like when he was in the game, a lot of (good) stuff happened,” WSU coach Isaac Brown said.
Sweden is where Pohto grew up learning how to play basketball, which has blessed him the European vision, feel for the game and shooting ability that has made him an intriguing weapon for WSU’s offense as a pick-and-pop center right away. Two years at Sunrise Academy gave him a taste, but the physicality required to survive in the AAC isn’t something you can prepare for until you’ve experienced it, especially for a finesse player.
It’s the primary reason why his minutes have been limited lately, but Pohto made a strong case for an increased load after displaying the aggression the WSU coaching staff has desperately wanted to see from him.
“He’s getting better and better every day,” Brown said. “He’s a hard-working kid that’s got toughness. He comes to practice every day and he practices through pain. He’s going to be a great one.”
Coaches have tried to drill it in Pohto’s head to play like he’s the tallest player on the court because oftentimes that’s true.
A perfect example of this came late in the second half when Pohto grabbed an offensive rebound and his first instinct was to turn and look for an open shooter on the perimeter. After a split-second of looking, it was as if Brown’s words echoed in his head and Pohto suddenly realized he was the tallest player on the floor, turned and easily laid the ball back in over Tulsa’s out-matched defense.
Pohto was key in WSU’s second-half rebounding advantage, as the team grabbed 10 offensive rebounds and boarded out at a 78% clip on the defensive end after halftime.
“I’ve been trying to crash the glass more,” Pohto said. “Everybody knows I can shoot the ball, so I’ve been trying to work more inside and trying to crash the glass more.”
“The rebounding killed us,” Tulsa coach Frank Haith said. “They had 10 second-chance points. We out-rebounded them in the first half, then they killed us the second half.”
Pohto has quickly developed a knack for offensive rebounds, a result of his size and natural instincts chasing balls off the rim. He’s grabbed 13.4% of available rebounds, which is a top-60 national mark and would be the highest offensive rebounding rate posted by a Shocker since Rashard Kelly in the 2017-18 season.
Even better, Pohto has finished 10 of his 12 offensive rebound put-back attempts this season, per Synergy, including two against Tulsa on Tuesday. On a team that ranks among the worst in the country at 2-point shooting, Pohto is the outlier with a 64.7% success rate inside the arc.
“He’s pretty much unguardable,” said WSU wing Ricky Council IV, who scored on an assist from Pohto in the game. “I tell him all the time. He’s got to realize that.”
What’s encouraging for WSU is that Pohto has still found a way to make an impact even with his three-point shot not falling as often as the team believes will be possible moving forward. Pohto made one of his two pick-and-pop attempts beyond the arc against Tulsa and is shooting 30.6% on 36 three-point attempts this season.
The style is a perfect compliment to starter Morris Udeze, an undersized, back-to-basket center. When Pohto subs in for Udeze, the pieces on the chessboard change and defenses alter how they defend ball screens with the threat of a pick-and-pop instead of a pick-and-roll.
“Kenny brings a different look to our team,” WSU junior Dexter Dennis said. “Obviously Mo is more inside, so when you bring him in, it’s hard for other teams to switch up ball-screen coverages. He’s a threat from the three-point line and him getting those put-backs just added to the guys off the bench being productive. We needed all of that tonight.”
Pohto allows WSU to gain an advantage almost every time he sets a ball screen; the next step in his evolution is starting to cash in more frequently on those advantages.
Right now defenses are too comfortable switching all screens with Pohto on the floor; some are even brazen enough to leave their point guard on Pohto and gamble he can’t or won’t take advantage inside. The more performances like the one on Tuesday, where Pohto used his size advantage to crash the glass and make teams pay with second-chance points, the more likely defenses will have to play him straight up.
And playing Pohto straight up almost concedes a handful of wide-open three-pointers on pick-and-pops throughout the game. If he can become the 40% three-point shooter the team believes he can be, Pohto very well could be a match-up nightmare at the center position for years to come in the American.
Games like the one against Tulsa on Tuesday are just a glimpse of what could be in the future.
“He’s one of the best shooters on the team,” Council said. “He’s gonna be dangerous. Once he gets more inside and starts finishing like he was tonight, it’s going to be crazy.”
This story was originally published February 2, 2022 at 5:20 AM.
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