Wichita State basketball wants to ‘face problems head on’ to end losing streak
Unfamiliar territory is where the Wichita State men’s basketball team finds itself following a 72-68 loss at South Florida on Sunday.
It’s been more than two decades, 2001 to be exact, since the last time the Shockers have been mired in a seven-game losing streak like the one in which they currently find themselves.
“It’s not usual for us to be in this type of hole,” said Xavier Bell, a WSU guard and Wichita native well-versed in the program’s tradition. “We’ve got to trust ourselves and trust each other and come together as a squad to get through this. Right now is when we need to come together the most and figure out ways we can collectively work together to come out with the win.”
WSU is in the midst of the excruciating part of rebuilding, a process in which first-year head coach Paul Mills has plenty of experience.
He was there in the bunker with Scott Drew when Baylor lost 14 straight games to end the 2004-05 season. He was also there to observe and help Drew turn the Bears into a perennial NCAA tournament contender.
When he was hired by Oral Roberts in 2017, the team lost its first seven games against Division I competition. By the time he left, he had guided the Golden Eagles to the program’s first Sweet 16 appearance and 30-win season.
In building up a program, Mills has lived the every-day process and knows first-hand the work required to make it happen. That process is off to a slower start than fans anticipated, as WSU is alone in last place in the American Athletic Conference with an 0-5 start, but Mills isn’t discouraged.
“I’ve been around situations where you’ve got to get better,” Mills said. “It’s really about just focusing on the next thing in front of you. You just try to go 1-0 and start that one-game winning streak. No matter whether you’re winning seven in a row or losing seven in a row, it’s all about, ‘How do we get better?’ That’s always the focus.”
For this WSU team, it seems to be a low bar to clear to return to its winning ways.
At least 19% of WSU possessions have ended in turnovers in every game during its seven-game losing streak, as the Shockers finished with 14 turnovers on Sunday against USF for a 21% turnover rate.
A sizable chunk of those turnovers have been the unforced variety, as WSU has committed just about every type of turnover possible: traveling violations, stepping out of bounds, losing control of a dribble, poor passing. Each game WSU loses out on too many chances to score simply due to careless mistakes.
At one point on Sunday, WSU had five consecutive turnovers — all completely avoidable — during a span of 10 empty possessions that flipped the game in USF’s favor and helped fuel a 16-0 run.
“We have to face our problems head on,” Bell said. “It starts with a tough film session, an honest film session with ourselves. And then we’ve got to go out there and tighten things up every day in practice. No one is trying to make mistakes, but at the end of the day, they keep happening.”
Lately, the Shockers will piece together 30 or 35 minutes worthy of a victory, but there is always a 5-to-10-minute stretch that proves fatal.
Against Temple, it was an extended 31-8 run by the Owls wrapped between halves. Against Memphis, it was a 41-17 blitz out of halftime. Against Florida Atlantic, it was an extended 33-16 rally the Owls used for a comeback win. Against South Florida, a 16-0 run gave the Bulls the cushion to withstand a late push.
WSU players know it sounds hollow to claim the team is close to winning when it has lost seven straight. Words don’t mean much at this point — wins do.
“It’s frustrating when you lose as many as we have in a row,” leading scorer Colby Rogers said. “But at the end of the day, we have to look at it as a glass half-full and not half-empty. Right now we’re at the bottom, so the only way is up. As bad as that sounds, we have to look at this in a positive manner. We can’t dwell on the negatives because that will keep you in the same place.
“We’ve just got to get back in the gym and keep grinding to figure things out. A lot can change in February and March.”
After an empty road trip to Florida, WSU will return home in search of its first league win. The Shockers host East Carolina on Wednesday at Koch Arena, then SMU in the Roundhouse on Sunday.
Rogers said it’s more important than ever for the team to stay connected.
“We have to realize we’re all in this together,” Rogers said. “We’ve got to lean on each other to get out of this. It’s not going to be a one-man effort or a two-man effort; it’s going to be a 15-man effort. The more we focus on that and the more we focus on doing the next best thing for our teammates, that’s what will help us get out of this.”
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