Shocker report (Jan. 3)

Wichita State pushed its lead to 31 points in the second half and it never dropped below 22.

However, the final 20 minutes weren’t satisfactory for Shockers coach Gregg Marshall. Bradley shot 16 foul shots and out-rebounded WSU 19-12 in the second half. Most bothersome, the Braves grabbed 10 offensive rebounds.

“We kind of got too comfortable,” WSU freshman Markis McDuffie said. “Those guys played much harder. We have to play 40 minutes. We have to finish the game. That’s how we’re going to be a great team.”

Marshall agreed. He coached until the buzzer, yanking players who didn’t box out and screaming for players to get on the floor for loose balls.

“We just couldn’t rebound,” Marshall said. “We’re going to dive on the floor for some loose balls (Monday). We were doing a lot of hunching down and trying to pick them up. We were not the first to the floor. We’ll have a little toughness drill. Figure out who wants to play tough and who wants to play physical and who’s prepared to lay it on the line.”

Rockford AAU coach Doc Cornell wore a hoodie with pictures of Fred VanVleet and Bradley’s Antoine Pittman, both Rockford natives, on it. After the game, more than 50 people waited on the Carver Arena floor to greet VanVleet and Pittman, including TV stations from Rockford.

“It was a proud moment, obviously, for Rockford and Auburn,” VanVleet said. “He has a bright future. I hope he plays really well all year, expect for two games.”

VanVleet, a senior, played his last game at Carver Arena, the site of Rockford Auburn’s third-place finish in the Illinois Class 4A tournament in 2012. He is 9-0 as a starter in Illinois.

Pittman is starting his career as one of 10 freshmen on the Bradley roster.

“It’s real good to see those faces again,” Pittman said. “I watched (WSU) on TV a lot of times before I got to college. I’ve seen what they can do in the NCAA Touranment. When it’s game time, they turn it up and they play hard.”

WSU’s last four wins are all by 17 points or more.… The Shockers made 17 of 28 shots (60.7 percent) in the first half, their season-high for any half. They finished the game at a season-best 55.1 percent, two games after shooting 51.1 percent against Nevada. In the past three games, WSU is 74 of 150 (49.3 percent) from the field.… WSU’s Ron Baker scored seven points, matching his season low.… Marshall picked up his second technical of the season after arguing with referee Bo Boroski about a charging call on VanVleet. He also got a technical in a loss to Iowa in November.… WSU won for the sixth straight time in Peoria, its longest streak in the series.

Paul Suellentrop

This story was originally published January 3, 2016 at 5:36 PM with the headline "Shocker report (Jan. 3)."