UCF @ Wichita State Pre-Game Thread

[pinstripers]

Haven't seen a line, guessing 5

[Horn28Clem30]

Opened at UCF -3.5, down to -2.5 already.

[JVShocker]

Ain't nothing to be said 'cept :poster_shocks:

[abdullah_sharif]

central florida isnt a good free throw shooting team and surprisingly theyre not very good at rebounding (ranked 276th in Oreb and 162nd in Dreb). they dont turn the ball over or foul much. hold em to one shot and/or get em to the line to have a shot. i’ll have my tackos “dorado” style from el patron on southwest blvd in kc please.


orlando. 84
wichita. 71

[pinstripers]

Drizzle in ICT, I hear. Wonder if it'll freeze...……….

[WstateU]

Perfect January weather... get your a$$es to the game and bring it.

[ShockerFever]

Haven't seen a line, guessing 5

If you didn’t have me on ignore, you would’ve known about 24 hours ago.

[ShockBand]

Drizzle in ICT, I hear. Wonder if it'll freeze...……….

Temps are supposed to stay above freezing until the wee hours.

[WuShock Reaper]

"College Basketball Best Bets: 'Burn Baby Burn!" - Sports Illustrated

January 16, 2019
By MAX MEYER

https://www.si.com/college-basketball/2019/01/16/college-basketball-odds-picks-auburn-boston-college-illinois-wichita-state

"Three Man Weave and I are back with our four favorite bets from Tuesday's college basketball slate....

UCF AT WICHITA STATE
Meyer's Pick: Wichita State +1.5

Once again, I'm going with young team that has played much better to start games and will be hungry for its first conference win.

Wichita was a team that I thought was overvalued by oddsmakers to start the season, and now the Shockers are currently slightly undervalued. Charles Koch Arena is one of the better home-court atmospheres in the country, and is always a tricky environment for visitors. Wichita State is currently off to an 0-3 start in AAC play, though two of those losses came on the road (an 11-point loss at Memphis and a nine-point loss at Houston in which Wichita led by five at the half). The one home AAC loss Wichita actually should have won, an 85-81 overtime loss to Temple in which the Shockers blew an 11-point lead with about three minutes remaining.

On the other side, UCF is undefeated in conference play, but has played just two road games this entire season—an overtime loss to Missouri and an easy win over UConn. Yet, the Knights have played a much easier schedule than the Shockers (241st to 34th), and I think this young Wichita State team is improving because of how battle-tested it is.

Wichita is led by two seniors in Markis McDuffie and Samajae Haynes-Jones who are averaging a combined 38.7 PPG in conference play. UCF is very strong defensively, and with 7’6” behemoth Tacko Fall anchoring the paint, it’s going to be tough to get good looks near the rim. McDuffie and Haynes-Jones have combined for 16 three-pointers attempted in conference play, and they will need their outside shots to fall early and often to keep the Knights on their toes on defense. Freshman guard Dexter Dennis has emerged as a capable third scorer against AAC foes, averaging double figures over the past three games.

Now, the Shockers have not been victorious in nearly a month (they’ve gone 0-4 since a 21-point win over Oral Roberts on Dec. 19), and they are certainly yearning to get back into the win column. In fact, this is Wichita’s longest losing streak in a decade, which you can bet is grinding Gregg Marshall’s gears. I expect the team to be fired up to start in front of its home crowd and for Marshall’s game-planning mastery to be an advantage early over Johnny Dawkins and UCF. In fact, Wichita’s first-half scoring differential (+4.1, tied for 67th) is much stronger than it’s been in the 2H (-5.1, tied for 315th). It’s always tough to get road wins in college basketball, even for good teams like UCF, and I think this is a spot where we see Wichita land the first punch."

[Kung Wu]

Drizzle in ICT, I hear. Wonder if it'll freeze...……….

It will if we win.

[WstateU]

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[MikeKennedyRulZ]

NM

[ShockerDropOut]

Just picked up tickets on the secondary market and will be there and be LOUD for our Shocks! I can’t wait to see our guys live for the first time this season. I don’t expect a win, but I am hopeful after the way they played in Houston (minus the start of the second half). Bring that energy and UCF is in for a battle. Let’s go SHOCKS!!!!

[pinstripers]

Just got back, cannot see 40 yards on the highway. Brother-in-law lives over there, gave tix to him.

[WstateU]

Let's hope he's loud and proud...

https://media.giphy.com/media/QtOT0sM3TqzWE/giphy.gif

[pinstripers]

he's a socialist, but my wife likes him

[Kung Wu]

lol

[MikeKennedyRulZ]

I want to see more of this from this team...

[1972Shocker]

So are you saying you want to see the Shocks go really small.

[WstateU]

We're going to look small. I'll bet Tacko is salivating thinking about SHJ taking one inside...

https://media.giphy.com/media/xTk9ZY...jY5y/giphy.gif

https://media.giphy.com/media/3oz8xG...rH0c/giphy.gif

[MikeKennedyRulZ]

I want to see the Shox b!tch slap someone like X would.

[1979Shocker]

There is still plenty to be salvaged from this season. A win tonight could go a long way towards lifting the spirits of the players and coaches, who maybe could use little positive reinforcement in the form of a W.

Here’s hoping tonight is the beginning of a little Shocker renaissance.

No clue if it’s possible but I would love to see this team scratch enough wins to qualify for some kind of post season. I don’t care if it’s CBI, CIT, CDMA, OPP, whatever. I think that additional experience could pay off for next year.

Is the team due for another overseas trip this coming summer? That would help for next year.

[pie n eye]

I was wondering that myself recently...

[Stickboy46]

[WuShock16]

Is the team due for another overseas trip this coming summer? That would help for next year.

Once every four years. Went to Canada in summer of 2016, so next one could be in summer of 2020.