How AJ McGinnis can boost Wichita State’s offense with his 3-point shooting

It’s been a slow start to the season for Wichita State sharpshooter AJ McGinnis, but that hasn’t altered his routine.

He prepared the way he always has before his season-high 14 points scored in a 78-54 win over Alcorn State on Wednesday and has done so again in preparation for Saturday’s 6 p.m. opponent in East Tennessee State at Koch Arena.

But after starting the season just 4 of 16 beyond the arc, the 6-foot-3 senior did admit it felt good to see a season-high four 3-pointers fall against Alcorn State.

“It definitely gives me a lot of confidence just to see the ball go through the net like that,” McGinnis said. “(Shooting) is a confidence thing. Making shots is all about having the best confidence in the gym, so it was definitely a great confidence booster.”

The Shockers certainly hope it was a get-right game for McGinnis, who was recruited to WSU as a shooter who could stretch defenses after knocking down 77 3-pointers at a 39.7% clip last season at Lipscomb.

WSU hasn’t been a good outside-shooting team for the last six seasons and this year is not off to a promising start. The Shockers currently rank No. 306 in the country with their 28.7% accuracy on 3s, and digging even further into the numbers presents more troubling numbers. In a film study conducted by The Eagle, WSU has made just 26.1% (12 of 46) of its open catch-and-shoot 3s since the season-opening game at Western Kentucky, which would rank No. 355 nationally on such shots, per Synergy.

It’s obvious, as WSU head coach Paul Mills says, 3-point shooting is not going to be the team’s “bread and butter,” but if McGinnis can become a consistent shooting threat, his impact can go beyond his individual stats. It’s a simple concept: the more shots he makes, the more defenses have to respect him and the more driving lanes will open up for what is WSU’s bread and butter.

“It opens up the floor for the rest of us,” WSU junior Corey Washington said. “We have some people who can get to the basket and finish really well, but you have to have those guys who can knock down those shots like AJ It really spreads the floor.”

What is encouraging about a potential turnaround is that McGinnis had a steady track record in his last year at Lipscomb, where he ended the season with 18 straight games with multiple 3-pointers and finished the season with multiple 3s in 26 of 32 games.

Mills was pleased to see McGinnis snap out of his shooting funk and drill 4 of 8 shots from distance. But Mills but noted he has challenged McGinnis to become a more well-rounded player, which might explain why McGinnis hovered on the fringe of the rotation (11.5 minutes per game) in the four games prior to Alcorn State.

“You’ve got to be more than just a shot-maker,” Mills said. “You’ve got to be a basketball player. There are other things you’ve got to do in the game other than just shoot. Sometimes shot faking and getting to the paint. We call it P-squared when we get to the paint to pass, so being able to get paint touches out of P-squared opportunities. But for the most part, I was happy he put the shots up that he did without hesitancy.”

While Wednesday’s game was never much in doubt, Saturday’s game in the Roundhouse is expected to be much more competitive if the Shockers want their first 8-1 start since 2019. Defensive rebounding has been a major sore spot for WSU recently and East Tennessee (6-3) promises to test the Shockers in that regard, as the Buccaneers grab 39% of their own misses and rank No. 13 nationally in that category.

One of ETSU’s best players is a former Shocker, as Jaden Seymour, a 6-foot-8 forward who appeared in six games for WSU during the Covid-altered 2020-21 season, averages 16.7 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. The engine of the offense is point guard Quimari Peterson, who averages 18.3 points and 4.2 assists per game, while the team added through the transfer portal former North Texas starter John Buggs III and a legitimate 7-footer in Davion Bradford, who began his career at Kansas State.

East Tennessee State vs. Wichita State basketball preview

Records: ETSU 6-3, WSU 7-1

When: 6 p.m. Saturday

Where: Koch Arena (10,506), Wichita

How to watch: ESPN+ (Shane Dennis with Bob Hull)

Radio: KEYN, 103.7-FM (Mike Kennedy with Dave Dahl)

Series history: First meeting

Betting line: WSU favored by 7 points, -345 on moneyline and over-under set at 145.5 points by Draft Kings

KenPom says: WSU 76, ETSU 69

Projected starting lineups

East Tennessee State Buccaneers (6-3)

Coach: Brooks Savage, second season, 25-19

Wichita State Shockers (7-1)

Coach: Paul Mills, second season, 22-20

Taylor Eldridge

The Wichita Eagle

316-268-6270

Wichita State athletics beat reporter. Bringing you closer to the Shockers you love and inside the sports you love to watch.