Wichita State, Flavor of the Week

Fresh off a thrashing of Creighton, Seth Davis in his 20Q segment on twitter today called the Shockers one of his Sweet 16 sleepers. At 22-4, with a RPI of 17 and ranked 9th in KenPom, it seems hardly far-fetched. The best win is at home by 19 over another Sweet 16 Seth Sleeper, UNLV. Of their 4 losses, 3 of them are against top 40 RPI teams having lost at home to Creighton and winning there. Don't be surprised to see them meet each other again in the Arch Madness title game.

Wichita State is very much liked by KenPom, ranked 9th in AdjO and 24th in AdjD. Effective FG% on o is 53.8 (25th) and on d is 45.2% (40th). Overall, they're 20th in scoring and a respectable 76th in scoring d, a healthy 15 point scoring margin. They have a solid turnover % on offense but don't force too many turnovers on d. They make up for that deficiency on defense by only allowing a 26.5% offense rebound %, 11th best in the nation. They are also above average on the offensive boards.

They protect the ball and share the ball pretty well. They're 32 in assist/TO ratio and 49th overall in turnovers per game. They also shoot 75% from the charity stripe, 29th in the land. They get there at a national average, so they don't necessarily draw a lot of fouls per game and actually committ more per game, though it's neglible. They're not prolific from behind the arc, getting slightly less from beyond the arc than most teams but shoot it well enough they have to be respected.

The players to know are three Seniors. Center Garrett Stultz is the leading scorer and rebounder with 14 & 8. Stultz also shoots 82% from the line. Guard Joe Ragland scores 13 pg on a nifty 55.2% shooting and a solid 47% from beyond the arc. G Toure' Murry is another contributor who can get to the line. He played better as a junior but he's still on the floor more than any other player.

Wichita State is coached by Gregg Marshall who took Winthrop to 7 NCAA's out of the Big South in his 9 years there. We know them as the team whose heart was broken by Tennessee in 2006 but upset Notre Dame in 2007. Funny thing about 2006, it was the Shockers who ended up beating Tennessee in the next round to get them their first Sweet 16 since 1981. The Shockers did win the NIT last year, fwiw.

Unlike Creighton, Wichita State isn't one dimensional and probably is the Missouri Valley's best shot at a Sweet 16 run. With a solid coach and seniors in the middle and backcourt, there is no reason why they shouldn't be a trendy pick in a few weeks.

Again, kiss of death. Sorry fan o shocker.