Wichita State faces Vanderbilt in First Four game Tuesday in Dayton (+videos)

Wichita State’s week of anxious waiting turned into relief on Sunday. The Shockers will play Vanderbilt on Tuesday in Dayton, Ohio, in the First Four, making their fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.

The 11th-seeded Shockers reacted like the veterans of NCAA play that they are after watching the selection show in the Champions Club at Koch Arena. They checked their phones for text messages and started thinking about winning a game.

“Everybody knows it’s been a long week of not knowing,” senior guard Fred VanVleet said. “We all felt good about it, but you never know. Everybody’s mood was they just didn’t care about where, when or how, Tell us we’re in there and we’ll show up and play anybody.”

Tuesday’s winner advances to play No. 6-seed Arizona in Providence, R.I. on Thursday in the South Region, which moves to Louisville, Ky., for the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games. WSU coach Gregg Marshall calculated the Shockers as a No. 10 seed, perhaps higher, holding his piece of paper with tournament resumes of various teams.

“I was very confident,” he said. “I had my trusty sheet. I had 23 spots, 13 of them were going to get in. We were the fourth team to get in.”

Vanderbilt (19-13) lost Thursday in the SEC Tournament and endured the same kind of nervous period as the Shockers. Their inclusion in the First Four means they were among the final four at-large teams judged worthy of one of the 36 available spots. The Shockers (24-8) lost in the MissourI Valley Conference Tournament semifinals to set off a furious round of worrying, dissecting and calculating. In the end, the Shockers grabbed an at-large berth for the fourth time under Marshall.

Sunday’s announcement came early in CBS’ two-hour selection show, which gave the Shockers more time to pack for Monday’s flight and prepare for Tuesday’s opponent. The Shockers are scheduled for late-afternoon media sessions and practice.

“Quick turnaround,” WSU senior Evan Wessel said.

“I think it kind of gives us a head start, though,” senior Ron Baker said “Get a game under our belt, hopefully get a win and hop on a jet and go to the next location. It will be like an NBA schedule.”

The Commodores will enjoy a height advantage with Luke Kornet (7-foot-1) and Damian Jones (7-0) both excellent shot-blockers. Kornet, a junior, averages 3.04 blocks a game tor rank fourth nationally. Jones, projected as a first-round pick by nbadraft.net, blocks 1.6 a game. That paint presence helps Vanderbilt rank seventh nationally in shooting defense (allowing opponents to make 38.6 percent of their shots) and third defending three-pointers (29.2).

Sophomore guard Wade Baldwin leads Vanderbilt with an average of 14.3 points and his 41 of 99 from three-point range (41.4 percent). Jones averages 14 points and 6.9 rebounds.

More money — The bad news about a First Four spot is that the tournament experience can end before the experience really begins.

Dayton losers will be home before many fans finish their bracket pool.

The good news is that the First Four represents a chance to fatten up the checkbook for schools and conferences. Each First Four win counts as an NCAA unit, just like another tournament victory. Each unit is worth around $1.7 million, funds that are divided among the MVC, other MVC members and the school that earns the unit.

Getting in the habit — WSU added to its school-record streak of appearances with its 13th NCAA bid overall. Only twice before this stretch – 1964 and 1965 and 1987 and 1988 – did WSU make consecutive appearances.

WSU is the first MVC school to make five straight appearances since Southern Illinois made six from 2002-07. Two others own streaks of five.

Marshall is the 11th NCAA Division I coach to take two schools to five or more tournaments with seven at Winthrop.

Pack up the basketballs — Northern Iowa is a No. 11 seed and will play Texas on Friday in Oklahoma City in the West Region. WSU’s at-large inclusion gave the MVC two bids for the fourth time in five seasons.

The NIT shut out the MVC for the first time since 2002.

Evansville, which went 25-9, will not play in any of the lesser post-season tournaments. Southern Illinois announced last week that it would not accept a bid to the CBI, CIT, tournaments which MVC teams populated in past seasons, or the new Vegas 16 Tournament.

Illinois State, according to the Pantagraph, turned down CBI and CIT spots and was waiting on a decision from the Vegas 16, a 16-team tournament held at Mandalay Bay Events Center. CBS Sports Network, which started a contract with the MVC this season, will televise the tournament.

This story was originally published March 13, 2016 at 5:04 PM with the headline "Wichita State faces Vanderbilt in First Four game Tuesday in Dayton (+videos)."