Bob Lutz: Cotton, Baker, VanVleet have made the NCAA Tournament their home (VIDEO)

OMAHA — Dave Stallworth played in one NCAA Tournament. Ditto for Xavier McDaniel, Antoine Carr and Cliff Levingston.

Cleo Littleton never got to an NCAA Tournament.

Those five players, among the greatest of all Shockers, have their jerseys hanging from the rafters at Koch Arena. But their NCAA Tournament histories are brief.

Stallworth did lead the Shockers to within a game of the Final Four in 1964 before a loss to Kansas State.

Carr and Levingston were the mainstays on Wichita State’s 1981 team that reached the Elite Eight.

The Shockers were beaten in the opening round by Georgia in McDaniel’s lone NCAA game, though.

That’s why you cherish moments like this, because they don’t come along that often at a school like Wichita State.

Unless you’re Tekele Cotton, who will be playing in his fourth NCAA Tournament and ninth tournament game Friday afternoon when the Shockers go against Indiana at the CenturyLink Center.

Or Ron Baker, who will be playing in his third tournament, same as teammate Fred VanVleet. They’re juniors with time to build on their impressive resumes.

Cotton, Baker and VanVleet are a perfect 10 for 10 in NCAA Tournament appearances. That’s 100 percent and nobody, not Lew Alcindor or Bill Walton, did better than 100 percent.

“You’re just thankful to be here,” Baker said. “And you try to make the most out of the opportunity you’re given.”

VanVleet and Baker helped the Shockers get to a Final Four in their first NCAA Tournament. That’s starting at the top. Cotton was a sophomore that season, a year after Wichita State lost to VCU in its 2012 NCAA opener.

“This is special, it’s a blessing for us,” VanVleet said. “Obviously, the first time for me was being a bit star-struck and trying to soak up the moment as much as possible. Last year (the Shockers lost to Kentucky in the third round) ended shorter than we would like and this year we’re trying to stay focused and enjoy this experience.”

How much postseason experience means can be debated. The Shockers, after all, didn’t have many guys who had been in the NCAAs two seasons ago when they got on a roll and made it to Atlanta and the Final Four.

“I just witnessed UAB, who probably has zero NCAA Tournament experience … beat Iowa State that has tons of NCAA experience,” Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall said. “So once the ball is tossed, I don’t think it means that much at all. It’s just another basketball game.”

Still, isn’t it better to know what to expect? The Shockers’ experience in the tournament has to mean something, right?

Baker, a redshirt freshman on that team, remembers getting on the team bus the day after the Shockers knocked off No. 1-seed Gonzaga in the third round.

It took that long, he said, for the win to sink in.

“The feeling you have after winning such a big game is incredible,” Baker said. “Then we beat Ohio State in Los Angeles the day after my birthday to get to the Final Four. Those are the times you remember most.”

Cotton said the biggest NCAA Tournament thrill he’s had is playing in Atlanta in the Final Four, just 20 miles south of where he grew up in Marietta, Ga.

“Playing back home was big,” Cotton said. “The very first time (in 2012) I didn’t play as much and I was just trying to observe and learn from all of our older guys. We didn’t come out victorious, but we had a game to win and that’s what we focused on. It’s the same thing three years later, except I’ve been here a few more times.”

Wichita State played in consecutive NCAA Tournaments in 1964 and 1965 and again in 1987 and 1988. The 1965 team made it to the Final Four, but neither the ’87 nor ’88 teams won a tournament game.

McDaniel, an All-American, led the country in scoring (27.2) and rebounding (14.8) in 1984-85, but how many of those points and rebounds do you imagine the X-Man would trade for some NCAA success?

Littleton, Wichita State’s career scoring leader with 2,164 points, didn’t score one of them in the NCAA Tournament.

How about Warren Jabali, then Armstrong, never playing in this tournament?

Yet it’s an embarrassment of riches for Cotton, VanVleet and Baker, three players whose mark on the Shockers’ program will last an eternity.

“For me, this tournament is something to look forward to each and every year,” Baker said. “This is the highlight. Everyone is watching, it’s all over the media, it’s a big-time thing. And we’re thankful to be here.”

Again.

This story was originally published March 19, 2015 at 7:29 PM with the headline "Bob Lutz: Cotton, Baker, VanVleet have made the NCAA Tournament their home (VIDEO)."