Wichita State’s basketball game postponed indefinitely
Wichita State basketball coach Gregg Marshall watched the snow-covered Sun Bowl on Saturday and his weather instincts kicked in.
His concern was justified.
Monday’s game against New Mexico State is postponed indefinitely, according to WSU, and the prospects of playing it later this season seem unlikely. After the storm spoiled their plans to fly commercially on Sunday, the Aggies were unable to find a chartered flight from El Paso, Texas to Wichita on Monday.
WSU, in a news release, said it will notify season-ticket holders when a decision is made.
With prospects for Tuesday not looking any better, the schools decided to postpone the game after hoping to play Tuesday. WSU interim director of athletics Darron Boatright said New Mexico State tried three charter companies and got the NCAA involved to help locate a plane.
Earlier Monday, Aggies athletic director Mario Moccia said he was working with WSU and conference commissioners to get his team to Wichita.
“We are continuing to work with the Wichita State administration to identify potential dates to reschedule the game,” Moccia said in a news release. “It is one of our signature non-conference games for this season and an important game for our program. We are grateful to Wichita State for their understanding and cooperation on this issue.”
If the game can’t be played Tuesday, Marshall said it would be difficult to fit it in the remaining schedule which is loaded with 18 Missouri Valley Conference games. WSU’s conference schedule begins Thursday and ends Feb. 27.
Winter Storm Goliath hit New Mexico hard over the weekend, with three feet of snow in some parts of the state. The storm closed highways and forced the governor to declare a state of emergency.
“Very bad weather,” Marshall said. “I saw this storm coming and I was hoping they would be able to get out before and they didn’t.”
The Shockers (6-5) practiced on Monday afternoon instead of preparing for a game with a light workout. Marshall said the change in schedule wasn’t a big deal. WSU opens Missouri Valley Conference play at 1 p.m. Thursday against Drake at Koch Arena and then travels to Bradley on Sunday.
“More time to practice,” Marshall said. “(Practices) have been pretty good, mostly really good, although one was just OK.”
New Mexico State play Arizona Christian at home on Wednesday night, followed by a game at Cal-Irvine on Saturday.
New Mexico State is located in Las Cruces, about 45 minutes from El Paso. The Aggies planned to fly on Sunday before weather canceled commercial flights.
“They’ve been really good to work with,” Boatright said. “When flights are canceled, there’s not much they can do.”
The game is important to WSU, which needs NCAA Division I victories to boost its 6-5 record. WSU is 5-5 against NCAA Division I opponents.
WSU is paying the Aggies $125,000 to play at Koch Arena, in large part because they are a team that usually wins 20-plus games and compiles a helpful power ranking (RPI). Last season, New Mexico State, coached by Marvin Menzies, received a $75,000 guarantee to play at WSU. The contract includes a penalty of $50,000 if a team cancels or fails to appear.
“Marvin (Menzies) tried to call me and I tried to call him back,” Marshall said. “Basically, his message was they were doing everything they could. They’ve got a big check waiting for them if they get here. If they don’t, they don’t.”
In the past four seasons, the Aggies finished No. 107 or better in the RPI rankings. They played in the past four NCAA Tournaments after winning the WAC Tournament.
“They’re a team that we strategically put on our schedule to help our resume in March,” Boatright said.
In 2007, snow and ice in Wichita delayed the start of a game against UAB about an hour at Koch Arena. Wichita State radio broadcaster Mike Kennedy, who has called Shockers games since 1980, said he couldn’t recall another basketball game delayed for an entire day by weather.
Wamukota on hold — After Tuesday’s practice, Marshall said he had not made a decision on lifting the suspension of center Bush Wamukota.
Wamukota, a senior, did not play in last week’s game against Nevada because of an academic issue. Marshall said the problem did not affect Wamukota’s eligibility for the second semester.
This story was originally published December 28, 2015 at 11:09 AM with the headline "Wichita State’s basketball game postponed indefinitely."