The steal that gave the Shockers a dramatic road win nearly didn’t happen
As the clock in overtime continued to dwindle, the math screamed that Wichita State’s chances were slipping away.
Then one careless pass, one instinctive reach and one calm finish flipped everything.
Kenyon Giles’ steal and go-ahead layup with 20.5 seconds left capped an improbable 86-85 Wichita State win over South Florida, a road escape that nudged the Shockers to 11-8 overall and 3-3 in American Conference play. It marked their second road win over an expected league contender in the opening weeks of conference play, once again in dramatic fashion.
According to KenPom’s win probability chart, USF’s chances peaked at 82.6% in overtime moments earlier, after Karon Boyd’s runner in the lane bounced away and the Bulls secured the rebound. The shot clock and game clock were nearly synchronized, leaving WSU staring at a must-foul scenario.
“I was just thinking about the math,” Mills said. “There’s 27 on the shot clock, 27 on the game clock. I didn’t want to let it get under 20.”
From the sideline, Mills yelled “Goody,” WSU’s late-game code to foul. But amid the scramble and crowd noise, his voice never reached Giles, who was closest to the ball as USF junior Wes Enis hurried the dribble over half court.
That struck of luck proved decisive.
Instead of wrapping Enis up and sending the 69% free-throw shooter to the line, Giles stayed patient. He sensed hesitation.
After Boyd’s miss, Giles had been the last Shocker across half court, briefly trying, and failing, to sneak up behind Enis for a poke-out. Enis dribbled away to protect the ball, only to undo the caution seconds later.
“I honestly wasn’t even going for a steal,” Giles said. “I didn’t expect him to kind of be lazy with the ball like that. But in a game like that, all it takes is one. It’s all about those second and third efforts. I just didn’t give up.”
As Enis looked to give the ball up, there was no ball fake. Instead, Giles raised his hand in the passing lane and deflected it. Even better for the Shockers, the loose ball bounced free to Giles into a narrow gap between three Bulls.
For South Florida, it was a harsh lesson in situational awareness — one that WSU has already learned this season.
“Dumb play by me at the end of overtime throwing the ball away like that,” Enis said. “We can’t have that. It sucks and it hurts, but you’ve got to learn through it.”
Momentum carried Giles past a trailing defender still crossing midcourt. With WSU trailing by one and Enis sprinting back in pursuit, Giles gathered himself and finished with a poised step-through layup on the right side of the rim.
In one sequence, Wichita State’s win probability swung from roughly 17% to 91%.
On the Shocker bench, disbelief turned into chaos.
“I was looking at coach Mills like, ‘Are we going to foul? What are we going to do?’” point guard Dre Kindell said. “He was like, ‘Yes, foul.’ So I was thinking foul, then I see KG get a hand on it and go get a layup. It was crazy.”
Giles finished with a game-high 22 points, but none carried more weight than the final two. They erased a sequence that had moments earlier felt fatal and rescued a game Wichita State had nearly let slip multiple times.
South Florida still had chances. C.J. Brown drove hard in the final seconds but fell in traffic. Officials ruled a jump ball with 13.3 seconds left, giving the Bulls a baseline out-of-bounds opportunity under the basket.
What followed was another sequence by the Shockers showing their resolve.
Izaiyah Nelson, USF’s star big man, drove baseline and met a wall in the paint. Will Berg, Wichita State’s 7-foot-2 center, held his ground and forced Nelson into an off-balance scoop that never touched the rim. Bodies crashed. Arms reached. Berg emerged with the rebound, effectively sealing the outcome.
“There were a lot of bodies in there crashing,” Mills said. “We stuck our nose in there the whole night and we didn’t shy away from it. I just appreciate the officials … letting it play out the way it did and letting the players decide.”
“That’s what I live for,” Boyd said of the final defensive stand.
For WSU, there was a lesson in Giles’ steal.
About persistence and about the value of second and third efforts. On Sunday, one single sequence turned a near-certain defeat into a defining road win.
“I just didn’t give up on the play,” Giles said. “You don’t know until you try.”
This story was originally published January 18, 2026 at 6:51 PM.
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