Shockers make it 6 straight: Wichita State basketball beats Tulane to extend win streak
Less than one month after the Wichita State men’s basketball team was in last place of the American Athletic Conference standings, a 6-game winning streak has revived its season.
The Shockers took down another top team in the conference on Sunday afternoon in a 78-67 win over fourth-place Tulane at Koch Arena. WSU (17-10) improved to 7-7 in AAC play and moved up to sixth place in the conference standings, just two games back of Tulane (15-12, 9-5 AAC) with four games left.
A dominant second half carried the Shockers to victory on Sunday, as they outscored Tulane by 13 points to win their third straight home game and first by double-digits during the streak.
Xavier Bell scored a game-high 23 points, while Corey Washington added 19 points and eight rebounds, Quincy Ballard chipped in 11 points and nine rebounds and Harlond Beverly contributed 10 points, nine rebounds and three assists off the bench. Tulane was led by 18 points from big man Greg Glenn III.
Here are three takeaways from the game:
1. Dominant second half carries Wichita State to victory
After struggling through the first half against Tulane’s matchup zone, WSU made the necessary adjustments and shredded the Green Wave in the second half.
The Shockers shot 66.7% from the field (16 of 24) and 81.3% from the foul line (13 of 16) to pump out 1.49 points per possession, as they recovered from a 2-point halftime deficit to pull away for a comfortable victory.
A 19-5 rally coming out of halftime equipped WSU with a double-digit lead, which was enough of a cushion for the win. Tulane clawed back to within 48-43, but never came closer in the final 12 minutes of the game.
2. Another 20-point scoring explosion for Xavier Bell
Wichita native Xavier Bell notched his seventh 20-point scoring outing of the season with a game-high 23 points to lead the Shockers.
Bell scored 18 of those points in the second half, including eight straight coming out of halftime to put WSU in front for good. The senior also added a left-handed floater and a pair of free throws to contribute 12 points during a 19-5 onslaught WSU used to open up a 48-36 lead.
And when Tulane whittled its deficit down to five midway through the second half, Bell was there again for the Shockers with four straight points to boost their lead.
3. Tulane zone throws Shockers for first-half loop
Ron Hunter has long been considered a master of the matchup zone and he showed why in the first half of Sunday’s game.
The matchup zone operates almost like a man-to-man defense, as Tulane’s clear goal was to plug gaps and send traffic to the paint in an attempt to cut off what WSU does best: score paint points.
After falling behind 8-0 in the first five minutes, the Green Wave slowly began to choke off the lane for the Shockers, which led to the home team settling for a few more 3-pointers than they are accustomed to shooting.
During WSU’s 5-game winning streak, only 24% of the team’s shots have been beyond the arc — one of the lowest rates in the country. But in the first half of Sunday’s game, nearly half (44%) of WSU’s shots were 3-pointers. Many were wide open with no defender in sight, but outside shooting has never been a strength and it showed with a 2-for-14 performance in the first half.
With WSU clanging away from deep, Tulane was able to claw back in the game and eventually take a 31-29 lead into halftime.
Upcoming schedule for Shocker basketball
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
12-2, Memphis (22-5)
11-3, North Texas (20-6)
11-3, UAB (18-9)
9-5 Tulane (15-12)
8-6, Florida Atlantic (15-12)
8-7, East Carolina (16-12)
7-7, Wichita State (17-10)
6-9, Temple (14-14)
6-9, South Florida (13-15)
5-10, Tulsa (11-17)
4-11, UTSA (10-17)
4-11, Rice (13-15)
3-11, Charlotte (10-17)
This story was originally published February 23, 2025 at 2:58 PM.
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