Hottest team in American: Wichita State extends winning streak with road FAU win
The Wichita State men’s basketball team is officially the hottest team in the American Athletic Conference.
The Shockers extended their winning streak to five games while ending Florida Atlantic’s 5-game winning streak in a 75-68 win at Baldwin Arena in Boca Raton on Thursday.
WSU improved to 16-10 overall and 6-7 in conference play, which eclipses the team’s totals from last season. After building its winning streak against bottom-half AAC teams, WSU has since knocked off nationally ranked Memphis and FAU, another top-half team.
And after sitting in the cellar of the conference standings just weeks ago, WSU is a half-game out of sixth place.
Xavier Bell scored a game-high 24 points on 8-of-19 shooting, while Bijan Cortes scored a career-high for a second straight game with 16 points to go along with seven assists. WSU shot 49% from the field and held FAU to 42% shooting at the other end.
Here are three takeaways from the game:
1. Big-shot Bijan comes through again for Shockers
One game after playing the best game of his collegiate career, WSU senior point guard Bijan Cortes followed it up with another dandy.
After scoring a career-high 13 points to lead an upset win over Memphis last game, Cortes upped his career-best with 16 points to go along with seven assists and five turnovers in 35 minutes against Florida Atlantic.
And just like he did against Memphis, when he drilled a go-ahead 3 in overtime, Cortes came through with more clutch shots from the outside on Thursday. After FAU rallied to tie the game at 55 with 7:29 left in the second half, Cortes connected on back-to-back 3-pointers to help put WSU back in front.
Another key 3 came in the final 90 seconds when Corey Washington, who had played sparingly due to foul trouble, drilled a step-back, contested 3 in the corner to give WSU a 68-62 lead with 1:27 left.
After FAU’s Ken Evans Jr. drilled a 3-pointer of his own, WSU answered back with an Xavier Bell floater off the glass for a 70-65 lead with 34 seconds left. The Owls rushed into a 3-pointer that missed and WSU secured the victory with a rebound and free throws by Cortes and Bell at the other end.
2. Familiar formula continues to work for Wichita State
WSU has turned around its season with the same formula: deliberate offense, dominate the glass and defend.
When WSU managed to keep Thursday’s contest in the half court, it excelled. But when the Shockers would turn the ball over or take an ill-advised shot, they struggled to defend the Owls in transition.
WSU played some of its finest basketball of the season at times to open up a 14-point lead in the first half and then an 11-point lead early in the second half. But the Shockers also reverted back to their old ways at times with sloppy turnovers and poor shot selection.
That allowed FAU to rally from a double-digit deficit to briefly take the lead in the second half. But in the end, WSU’s foundation was strong enough to withstand the runs and prevail with a road victory.
WSU cashed in 11 offensive rebounds for 13 second-chance points and won the rebounding battle, 37-28, to help make up for 12 turnovers that led to 16 points for the Owls.
3. Shockers seize early control with lengthy run
The best way to quiet a rowdy crowd on the road? Keep the home team off the scoreboard.
That’s exactly what WSU did for 6-plus minutes late in the first half, as the Shockers strung together eighth consecutive defensive stops to fuel a 15-0 run that allowed the team to open up a 32-18 advantage.
Ronnie DeGray III was the star of the show with exemplary play at both ends of the court. He spearheaded a defense that held FAU down to 34% shooting in the first half and added two blocks and a steal, while he grabbed four offensive rebounds and finished the first 20 minutes with nine points and seven rebounds.
As the defensive stops piled up, WSU continued to extend its lead with the help of DeGray. Two straight offensive rebounds by the senior forward led to a pair of free throws for Bijan Cortes, then another o-board gave him two free throws of his own. After Harlond Beverly added two straight floaters in the paint, DeGray capped the 15-0 run with a 3-pointer — just his seventh of the season.
FAU managed to chip away at the deficit with an 8-0 run of its own in the final three minutes, but WSU ended the half with a sly out-of-bounds set from Paul Mills that produced an opening for a Beverly back-door cut for a dunk and 36-28 halftime advantage.
WSU senior point guard Justin Hill appeared for the first time in five games, but was forced to exit the game after appearing to re-aggravate his toe injury. Hill scored two points in a 4-minute stint.
Upcoming schedule for Shocker basketball
vs. Tulane, 1 p.m. (ESPN+) on Sunday, Feb. 23
vs. UAB, 8 p.m. (ESPNU) on Thursday, Feb. 27
at North Texas, 8 p.m. (ESPN2) on Monday, March 3
at Rice, 7 p.m. (ESPN+) on Thursday, March 6
vs. Tulsa, 1 p.m. (ESPN+) on Sunday, March 9
American Athletic Conference basketball standings
11-2, Memphis (21-5)
10-3, North Texas (19-6)
10-3, UAB (17-9)
9-4 Tulane (15-11)
8-5, Florida Atlantic (15-11)
7-7, East Carolina (15-12)
6-7, Wichita State (16-10)
6-8, Temple (14-13)
6-8, South Florida (13-14)
5-9, Tulsa (11-16)
4-10, UTSA (10-16)
3-11, Rice (12-15)
3-11, Charlotte (10-17)
This story was originally published February 20, 2025 at 10:07 PM.
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