‘Won’t last forever’: AfterShocks eye another TBT run, but clock is ticking
Summer basketball at Koch Arena has become a cherished tradition for Wichita State fans.
So has the AfterShocks winning in The Basketball Tournament, often in thrilling fashion.
But as the Wichita State alumni team prepares to host a TBT regional for the sixth time next month, AfterShocks coach Zach Bush admits he doesn’t know how much longer the opportunity for fans to watch beloved former Shockers play together will last.
“This won’t last forever with these guys and their careers,” Bush said. “So I would just tell fans to enjoy this and cherish this because we have no idea how long we’re going to be able to do it. I can’t say if we’re going to do it for four more years. You never know when the end will be, so just enjoy it and remember how much fun it was looking back at the last few summers.”
The AfterShocks are slated to return to Koch Arena for the Wichita regional, played from July 18-22, with a core group of familiar faces in Conner Frankamp, Markis McDuffie, Rashard Kelly and Trey Wade. They open the tournament at 8 p.m. on Friday, July 18 against No Excuses, a squad made up of players from Houston’s pro-am league.
The winner advances to face either Challenge ALS — a team the AfterShocks edged in a 2021 regional final on Frankamp’s Elam Ending three-pointer — or Austin’s Own, a Texas alumni squad, on July 20. The regional championship is set for July 22 at 8 p.m.
Playing in front of the Koch Arena crowd has been “vital” to the team’s TBT success — an 11-4 record with a semifinal and two quarterfinal appearances — and Bush emphasized this summer might be even more meaningful, given the uncertainty of what lies ahead.
“You could have the best team in the world in TBT, but you’re not going to host a regional unless you have the fan support,” Bush said. “We desperately need them to show up because it gives us a huge advantage. If we could play that fourth game at Koch Arena, it would be absolutely huge.”
The AfterShocks are in a race with Kansas and Kansas State’s alumni teams, both playing in the Kansas City regional, to sell 4,000 tickets first. The winner earns the right to potentially host a quarterfinal game at home — if they advance that far. Tickets can be purchased through the TBT website or GoShockers.com.
AfterShocks return to Wichita, but TBT future uncertain
Wichita State fans know what to expect from the alumni players, as Frankamp brings shooting and play-making at guard, McDuffie offers a 6-foot-7 pure scorer, Kelly does a little bit of everything and Wade is another glue guy needed on successful teams.
Frankamp, Kelly and McDuffie have been core players for the alumni team since its first run in 2019. As the trio edges closer to age 30, Bush knows the clock is ticking on how much longer that foundation will remain.
“Those guys are the heart and soul of this,” Bush said. “We wouldn’t do this if it weren’t for them. It’s about the camaraderie and the brotherhood. Those guys love having that nostalgic feeling of playing together on that court on the same team again.”
As for the non-alumni players signed up, all three figure to play minutes in the frontcourt: Chevez Goodwin (USC), Leyton Hammonds (Oklahoma State) and Chad Brown (UCF) are all either 6-foot-8 and 6-foot-9. Goodwin and Brown spent last season playing in Greece’s top league, while Hammonds averaged 10.8 points in France’s top league.
Notably absent this summer are Zach Brown, sidelined by a knee injury, and Grant Sherfield, who had to withdraw after signing a lucrative contract in China. Former Memphis star Jeremiah Martin, a key player from last summer, also won’t return as he’s pursuing another significant contract after a strong showing in Russia.
Bush, who will once again be assisted by J.R. Simon and Garrett Stutz, is looking to finish off the roster with three more players, all guards.
“We could potentially have the best team we’ve had if we finish off the roster with the right pieces,” Bush said. “It’s going to be a really fun style of basketball that fans are going to love this year.”
The original vision for the AfterShocks was to field a roster made up almost entirely of Wichita State alumni. But as expectations to win have increased, so have the difficulties of finding available alumni players — another reason why the AfterShocks’ run might be winding down.
“It’s easy to think, ‘Why don’t they just ask so and so and so and so?’ Believe me, in a perfect world, we would get every guy that we wanted,” Bush said. “But there are a lot of valid reasons for why things don’t always work out with guys. I know fans are frustrated about wanting to see certain guys, but it’s not as simple as us asking and them showing up. It takes a major sacrifice from these guys. They only get two months back home to spend with their loved ones, so it’s a sacrifice.”
This story was originally published June 25, 2025 at 6:04 AM.
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