‘Who I do it for’: WSU’s Jaron Pierre puts on a show for family in New Orleans homecoming
Before the start of Sunday’s game at Tulane, Wichita State sophomore Jaron Pierre looked up into the stands at Fogelman Arena.
Behind one basket, he saw more than two dozen friends and family with his face printed on t-shirts, signs and posters. Behind the other basket, he saw his mother, his brother and even more family members.
The New Orleans native was back home.
“I saw all of the people who I really do it for,” Pierre said. “That just fired me up.”
Playing 15 minutes away from where he was a star high school player at St. Augustine, Pierre knew Sunday had all of the makings of being special. He just had to hold up his end of the bargain.
A true showman by nature, Pierre delivered the most entertaining show of the year, scoring 28 points — the most he’s had with the Shockers — to lead Wichita State to its best win of the season, an 83-76 road win at Tulane, which entered second in the American Athletic Conference standings.
Talk about a successful homecoming.
“This one meant a lot for me,” said Pierre, who was one off his career-high scoring mark. “It was definitely very special to be able to do it in front of my family. That felt great.”
Watching from the stands, Lorraine Thomas, his mother, knew a special performance was underway when Pierre’s first shot of the game, in the first minute, was a pure swish from beyond the arc on the left wing.
“I was trying to get him to get 30” said Thomas, laughing. “I’ve had 30 in my head all day.”
Pierre’s shooting ability has come in flashes this season, but he has struggled with consistency in his first year with the Shockers. He entered averaging 9.7 points, third-most on the season, but his 3-point accuracy had dipped to 26.9%.
Sunday’s version of Pierre was him at his best: smooth, confident and decisive. He finished 9-for-17 from the field, a season-best in points (28), field goal made (9), 3-pointers made (5), free throws made (5) and assists (4).
When Tulane rallied, WSU always had the answer — most of the time it was from Pierre.
“You could just tell he was comfortable out there,” said Calvin Taylor, his brother. “I’ve been watching him play since he was younger and we’ve played together for years, so I could tell he was super locked in for this one. I think he saw all of his friends and family in the crowd and that made the game easier for him.”
Pierre did the majority of his damage early in the shot clock, as seven of his nine baskets came in the first eight seconds of a WSU possession. He excelled running in transition and finding the open spots on the court, either around the baskets for layups or spotting up around the arc.
Six of his nine baskets were assisted by WSU senior point guard Craig Porter, who doled out a career-high 10 assists and became just the sixth player in program history to notch a triple-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
“We’re all really excited for him,” Porter said of Pierre. “He had all of his friends and family here, so that’s big for him and his confidence at this time of the season. I’m just really proud of him and how he played today.”
It reminded head coach Isaac Brown of the last time WSU brought a Louisiana native back to his home state: in 2019 when freshman Dexter Dennis, who is from Baker, hit the game-winning 3-pointer — his only basket of the game — in the final second of a 82-79 win over the Green Wave.
That game also featured a large contingent of family members who made the short drive to see Dennis play. But this time, it was a New Orleans native and Pierre delivered his best performance of the season.
“It’s always exciting for guys to be able to come home and play in front of their family,” Brown said. “He had an excellent game and played the right way. I’m so excited for him and his future.”
Adding fuel to the fire for Pierre was the fact that Tulane was one of the schools recruiting him when he entered the transfer portal from Southern Miss last spring. According to Pierre, Tulane lost interest.
“I chose Wichita State and that’s how it went down,” Pierre said. “I’m glad it did work out that way.”
Pierre was all smiles when he emerged from the locker room and spent every second of the next 30 minutes talking to, hugging and taking pictures with family.
Taylor, his brother, said it felt like one big family reunion.
“We’ve seen family we haven’t seen in years at the game today,” Taylor said. “Everybody supports Jaron, man. Everyone loves what he’s doing in Wichita. He’s got a good support system around him.”
When the last picture was snapped and the last hug was given, Pierre finally had an opportunity to soak it all in from the experience.
He wasn’t sure what he was more exhausted from, the 39 minutes he had just played in the game or trying to make sure he got to speak to everyone who came out to support him — he estimated there were more than 100 there on Sunday.
He wished there was more time. He was back with his people, absorbing the adulation and flashing his electric smile to faces he hadn’t seen in months or sometimes years. But WSU had a plane ride home to catch and Pierre was the last one whisked away onto the team bus.
Asked to summarize it all up, Pierre was practically beaming before boarding the bus.
“Man,” he said, taking one look back at the crowd, “that felt great.”
This story was originally published February 27, 2023 at 6:40 AM.
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