Shocker report: Alabama 64, No. 20 Wichita State 60

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The Wichita State-Alabama basketball rivalry continued in its fifth city over the past six seasons, not to mention its second country/territory. The unlikely connection added another facet last spring when the Tide made a serious pitch to hire WSU coach Gregg Marshall.

He declined, after complimenting Alabama on its pursuit. The Tide hired former NBA coach and player Avery Johnson.

“We talked a little bit about that before the game,” Johnson said. “He was very kind to me. They talked to Gregg a little bit, after he decided to stay, about me. So I owe him a great deal of gratitude. I’m thrilled to be the basketball coach at the University of Alabama.”

WSU won three of the five recent meetings, which started with a win in the 2011 NIT title game in New York. The Shockers also won regular-season games at Alabama (2013) and Koch Arena (2014). The Tide defeated WSU in the 2011 Puerto Rico Tip-Off.

Slipping away

The Shockers went ahead 8-7 with 13:31 to play in the first half and held an edge until 1:21 remained. They led 21-16 and couldn’t get a stop. They led 24-18 and gave up a three-pointer.

The Tide, feeble in the half-court, got its running game working late in the half. They beat WSU down court and drew fouls to stop the momentum.

“We fouled them too much at the end of the first half,” Marshall said. “We’ve just got to make shots. Make shots and not foul them so much.”

The Tide put WSU into the one-and-one with 11:59 to play in the first half and the double-bonus with 7:47 remaining. But Alabama ended the half outscoring WSU 12-7 at the line. The Tide didn’t reach one-and-one until 3:14 remained and went 9 of 11 to finish the half.

Update the scouting report

Johnson, who played point guard from 1988-2004 in the NBA, knows better than most how Fred VanVleet’s injury weakens the Shockers. He was worried when he watched VanVleet shooting and dribbling in pregame.

“We saw him out there warming up a little bit before the game, so my heart started beating faster,” Johnson said. “He’s a terrific player. Obviously, he would make a difference.”

Neither Southern California, which defeated WSU on Thursday, nor Alabama will give up any satisfaction in the victory because of VanVleet’s injury. Both coaches see the games as important moments for their team. USC’s Andy Enfield and Johnson are trying to build successful programs at schools with limited recent success.

“First time we’ve beaten a ranked opponent, non-conference, since 2001,” Johnson said. “This is what you call a team victory.”

Fans of all colors

Dayton fans — and its pep band — took over the HP Field House. Shockers fans, around 800 of them, Xavier and Iowa fans also showed up in strong numbers.

The result was a tournament-record of 4,871 for Thursday’s night session featuring Dayton-Iowa and Notre Dame-Monmouth. The day’s attendance of 9,500 is also a best for its 10-year run.

Shocker fans were also in town for the previous mark, 4,658 and 8,584 for a day in 2008.

That 2008 tournament drew a total of 24,267 fans. WSU lost to Michigan State and Georgetown and defeated Siena that season.

Worth noting

WSU freshman Ty Taylor handed out six assists without a turnover. Entering the game, Taylor had three assists and six turnovers … WSU outscored Alabama 17-6 off turnovers, 15-8 on offensive rebounds and 28-19 off the bench … The series is tied 4-all … WSU freshman Markis McDuffie is averaging 14 points in the tournament, making 10 of 18 shots and 5 of 7 threes. In WSU’s first three games, he missed all five of his shots and scored five points at the foul line.

▪  No. 23 Xavier 87, Southern California 77 — Xavier led 54-27 at halftime after making 6 of 13 three-pointers.

Trevon Bluiett led Xavier (6-0) with 16 points and Edmond Sumner added 13. The Musketeers made 22 of 29 free throws and out-rebounded the Trojans 43-30. Nikola Jovanovic and Julian Jacobs both scored 15 for USC (5-1).

▪  Notre Dame 68, Iowa 62 — V.J. Beachem scored 16 points for the Irish (4-1), who held Iowa to 37.9-percent shooting.

Beachem made 4 of 9 threes. Demetrius Jackson added 12 points and Zach Auguste grabbed 11 rebounds.

Iowa (3-2) missed 18 of 24 threes and shot only nine free throws. Jarrod Uthoff led the Hawkeyes with 20 points. Adam Woodbury made 7 of 9 shots to score 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Iowa’s bench scored three points.

▪  Dayton 73, Monmouth 70 — Scoochie Smith scored 19 points for the Flyers (6-0), who led by 16 points in the second half and had to hold off a rally.

Monmouth (3-3) made 7 of 13 three-pointers in the second half and cut the lead to 68-67 with 1:52 to play. Justin Robinson scored 28 points for the Hawks.

Paul Suellentrop

This story was originally published November 27, 2015 at 8:24 PM with the headline "Shocker report: Alabama 64, No. 20 Wichita State 60."