Wichita State vs. Northeastern State (Oklahoma) Game Thread

[wusphlash]

4) Maybe just me, but I really enjoyed last nights atmosphere considering it was an exhibition game... there seemed to be way fewer 'time-out' promotions and much more 'time-out' 'pump up the crowd' music.

Not the boobs I was looking for WstateU.

[1972Shocker]

Taylor Eldridge: Five observations (with videos) from watching the film on WSU’s exhibition victory

1. GRANT SHERFIELD AND TYSON ETIENNE HAVE ALREADY RAISED WSU’S CEILING

2. WHAT TO DO WITH THE TANTALIZING POTENTIAL OF JOSAPHAT BILAU?

3. WSU IMPROVED ITS EFFORT IN THE SECOND HALF

4. WSU STILL WORKING ON A FAMILIAR DEFENSIVE PROBLEM

5. THE RETURNERS SHOW OFF THEIR SUMMER WORK

[Bluzrover]

How refreshing is it to see our guards penetrate? And finish? Good grief, I've been waiting a few years for that. Hope it's not a flash in the pan.
There was an awful lot of hoopla surrounding TE, and I don't want to take any of that away, but damn, Sherfield was just spectacular last night. Plus, the dude looks like he's built to play in the NBA right now as well.
We've got two solid options at the 1. When was the last time we saw that?
Speaking of...I'm thinking of two serious Redshirt contenders. If Noah is having as much trouble with his foot and it keeps him on the bench for much longer, he might be candidate number uno. Based on 3G's comments after the game regarding Josaphat's health ("he came to us that way"), the big guy could be candidate dos. We need to break up one of these large classes or we're going to be back to 2018.
Am I the only one that was bummed we couldn't keep the Riverhawks at a 40+ point difference?

[1979Shocker]

Last year's recruits (DD, ES, JaB, IBPC) shot 2-12 from 3-pt range.
This year's recruits (GS, TW, TE, JoB) shot 8-17 from 3-pt range.
Scrubs were 0-2.

[The Mad Hatter]

I was interested to see how last night's game compared to recent exhibition games, so I put together this chart of our exhibition games from the past 5 years (I used the first of two exhibitions for the 1 year that we had multiple):

	2019 v. NE State	2018 v. Catawba	2017 v. Henderson St.	2016 v. Augusta	2015 v. Hawaii Pacific
Score	92-57	75-64	90-53	73-67	91-57
FG%	48.6%	43.5%	58.3%	50.9%	50.0%
3FG%	32.3%	21.7%	35.7%	35.3%	38.9%
FT%	76.9%	61.5%	71.4%	59.1%	83.9%
FT Attempts	13	26	21	22	31
Opp FG%	34.8%	40.4%	29.3%	40.0%	34.5%
Opp 3FG%	25.0%	20.0%	17.6%	40.0%	25.9%
Opp FT%	33.3%	62.5%	76.2%	70.8%	50.0%
Opp FT Attempts	6	24	21	24	24
Rebound Margin	+12	+3	+21	+11	+14
Assists	24	10	20	18	15
Turnovers	8	15	18	15	14
Assist/TO Ratio	3:1	0.7:1	1.1:1	1.2:1	1.1:1

Statistically, it certainly represents what our eyes seemed to tell us, i.e. that it was a return to form compared to last year. Thee things that stand out to me or are worth remembering:

1. The refs appeared to call this game much less tightly than most of our exhibitions, so having the 2nd best FT% and lowest opponent FT% of the last 5 years didn't make too much impact, because little was determined at the line relatively speaking.
2. The assist and turnover numbers are striking. Even accounting for the other games having more scoring at the line contributing to lower assist numbers, the turnover rate and assist to turnover ratios are impressive and very encouraging.
3. Hard to know exactly how to compare 3FG% with the new line, but I'll take a 10.6% improvement over last year's exhibition.

[im4wsu]

I was really really pleased with the remarkable reduction in Grant’s aimless dribbling on the perimeter. He showed great instincts in getting the offense started

[Shockm]

I was really really pleased with the remarkable reduction in Grant’s aimless dribbling on the perimeter. He showed great instincts in getting the offense started

Grant did a nice job of running the offense. It may have been easier because NEO State didn’t know our offense while his WSU opponents did.

[pie n eye]

-I’m trying not to get too hyped. What I’ve seen so far, albeit in a scrimmage and vs an overmatched opponent, has me very excited for this season.

-At this point the collective b-ball IQ, athleticism, and skill of this group is better than any team Marshall’s had before.

-Sherfield and Etienne are the real deal. Both can handle, shoot, pass, and have the poise of upper classmen. Even better, both have the strength, athleticism, and desire to play nasty defense. Adding those guys to Burton, who looks improved on offense and Stevenson makes the guard position a strength of the team.

-I’m already a huge Trey Wade fan. He’s shown ability to shoot, drive to the hoop, and post up. Maybe he’s a bit undersized but he has plenty of athleticism and I love his maturity. And he can pass. In both the scrimmage and exhibition I’ve seen him draw a defender with a patient pump fake then dish to a teammate for an open look. Again, I just love the collective IQ and maturity of this team to make what look like simple plays but really requires an innate “basketball feel” that we haven’t always seen in years past.

-Bilau. Wow. I understand the desire to redshirt him but I just don’t see how you could. He has the potential to be a freaking nightmare on defense and the boards. He might not have corralled many but I came away from the scrimmage impressed by how hard he pursued the ball on rebounds. He was almost always right there with a chance to grab it. In the exhibition that turned into results. I swear he had like 4 boards in 30 seconds of game time. His size and agility on defense could be a game changer as I think he can legit guard 1-5 ala Draymond Green (except he’s taller). Any offense is a plus and he showed a shot and good vision out of the post on an assist to Tyson.

-Gordon. Rashard 2.0? Another guy with a great motor, a ton of athleticism who looks like he can finish around the rim. Can he shoot a 3?

-There’s no reason for this team not to be dominant on defense and the boards.

-Get Echinique back by Cancun and we could legit win the tournament.

[FadedCrown]

-I’m trying not to get too hyped. What I’ve seen so far, albeit in a scrimmage and vs an overmatched opponent, has me very excited for this season.

-At this point the collective b-ball IQ, athleticism, and skill of this group is better than any team Marshall’s had before.

-Sherfield and Etienne are the real deal. Both can handle, shoot, pass, and have the poise of upper classmen. Even better, both have the strength, athleticism, and desire to play nasty defense. Adding those guys to Burton, who looks improved on offense and Stevenson makes the guard position a strength of the team.

-I’m already a huge Trey Wade fan. He’s shown ability to shoot, drive to the hoop, and post up. Maybe he’s a bit undersized but he has plenty of athleticism and I love his maturity. And he can pass. In both the scrimmage and exhibition I’ve seen him draw a defender with a patient pump fake then dish to a teammate for an open look. Again, I just love the collective IQ and maturity of this team to make what look like simple plays but really requires an innate “basketball feel” that we haven’t always seen in years past.

-Bilau. Wow. I understand the desire to redshirt him but I just don’t see how you could. He has the potential to be a freaking nightmare on defense and the boards. He might not have corralled many but I came away from the scrimmage impressed by how hard he pursued the ball on rebounds. He was almost always right there with a chance to grab it. In the exhibition that turned into results. I swear he had like 4 boards in 30 seconds of game time. His size and agility on defense could be a game changer as I think he can legit guard 1-5 ala Draymond Green (except he’s taller). Any offense is a plus and he showed a shot and good vision out of the post on an assist to Tyson.

-Gordon. Rashard 2.0? Another guy with a great motor, a ton of athleticism who looks like he can finish around the rim. Can he shoot a 3?

-There’s no reason for this team not to be dominant on defense and the boards.

-Get Echinique back by Cancun and we could legit win the tournament.

Didn't we say the same thing about Midtgaard as we are Bilau? We should have redshirted Midtgaard.

[Stickboy46]

Didn't we say the same thing about Midtgaard as we are Bilau? We should have redshirted Midtgaard.

Someone said AM had great agility? Or could guard 1-5?

They were definitely drunk

[pie n eye]

Didn't we say the same thing about Midtgaard as we are Bilau? We should have redshirted Midtgaard.

I’m a Midtgaard fan but I don’t believe the two can be compared in any way. I also don’t see how a Midtgaard red shirt would have benefited anyone.

[wufan]

-Gordon. Rashard 2.0? Another guy with a great motor, a ton of athleticism who looks like he can finish around the rim. Can he shoot a 3?

Gordon has been a little lost in the shuffle due to the early success of the other newcomers. He’s athletic, bouncy, and high energy. He also has ball handling skills and he’s, he can shoot the three. If he adds some strength, he will quickly surpass Rashard.

[top20shock]

Didn't we say the same thing about Midtgaard as we are Bilau? We should have redshirted Midtgaard.

You can’t compare the two guys ... Asbjorn just isn’t intense or aggressive enough at times and his BBIQ is average. What he has going for him is a body made for a 10 year NBA career and Coach Marshall.

[WstateU]

You can’t compare the two guys ... Asbjorn just isn’t intense or aggressive enough at times and his BBIQ is average. What he has going for him is a body made for a 10 year NBA career and Coach Marshall.

Guess his back-up plan could be to join another Shocker in the WWF; he'd have to get meaner...

[wsushox1]

You can’t compare the two guys ... Asbjorn just isn’t intense or aggressive enough at times and his BBIQ is average. What he has going for him is a body made for a 10 year NBA career and Coach Marshall.

Even his body would not work in today's NBA. Maybe 10 years ago, but not today.