Wichita State @ Drake - Game & Pre-Game Thread

[RoyalShock]

Drake played almost flawless defense in the 2nd half. They were keeping our ball-handlers in front and rarely let Stutz or Hall get good positioning. Drake can't play much better than that and it took them 3 OTs to beat us at home. These types of games are going to happen. The guys need to go into Springfield on a mission and get the Bears running downhill.

[shoxlax]

Well.... on to the next game. Gotta keep winning. NCAA is just dying to eliminate as many Valley teams as possible.

The Valley is just dying to eliminate as many Valley teams as possible.

[shox1989]

Game. Set. Match.

Looks like we're back on the NCAA Bubble.

Not yet. The UNLV win gives us one bad loss. This was it. We can only lose to CU here on out without having to worry about being on the bubble.

And actually this loss isn't all that bad, it was on the road to a team with a rpi of 94. Top 100 losses aren't that bad as long as there aren't too many.

BTW- Warren Nolan has our rpi at 30 after the loss. So our rpi didn't take a bad hit either. Murry State's rpi is 32. So our match up with them still makes the most sense for the BB.

[shockar25]

Not to pile on Kyles, because he's helped us plenty this year (not so much tonight), but when coach said he really doesn't shoot well when he's guarded (on the last coach's show) he wasn't kidding! If anyone doubted how much we'll miss GS and Toure next year, the 2nd and 3rd overtimes should spell it out perfectly. They'll be HUGE. Ben Smith to a smaller degree too.

[SB Shock]

The Valley is just dying to eliminate as many Valley teams as possible.

WSU will never get breaks (in any sport). We are like the Oakland Raiders

[ShockerPrez]

I dont think this is a bad loss. By our standards of past seasons, anyway.

[shockar25]

Every loss hurts, but no reason to panic about the bubble--yet. They just need to re-focus and move on.

[shoxlax]

Anyone hear HCGM after the game? I missed it.

[shox1989]

I dont think this is a bad loss. By our standards of past seasons, anyway.

I think you are right. This isn't nearly as bad as losing to a 200+ SIU at home. But I just hope the selection committee thinks the same way. They should, but who knows.

[ABC]

Marshall was somber and blamed the loss on missing plays. He said he could think of 20 plays off the top of his head that WSU missed. And missed shots.

He also said something about negative karma coming from Shockernet.

[shox1989]

Rayvonte Rice pretty much sodomized our guards in the first and second OT periods. That was some intelligent play- he knew he couldn't hit the ocean from the field, but he also recognized that the refs were consistently calling ticky tack fouls on drives all game. Our guards didn't recognize this, ever.

I hope playing Garrett for such an ungodly amount of time doesn't aggravate his back.

I am glad we don't play MSU until Wednesday. Hopefully after playing 47 minutes tonight, he can rest up for a few days and be ready to play against the Bears.

We really need him Wednesday. We really don't want to lose 2 in a row and start feeling the pressure of being on the ncaa bubble again.

[shockar25]

I think you are right. This isn't nearly as bad as losing to a 200+ SIU at home. But I just hope the selection committee thinks the same way. They should, but who knows.

I think everyone's just a bit paranoid, but for good reason. You just never know what the selection committee is thinking.

We still have opportunities though. A ranked CU coming up and (fingers crossed) a ranked MSU for BB. Gotta take care of the rest of our business too, but a win at one of those 2 would really help wipe this out a bit.

[1972Shocker]

I think you are right. This isn't nearly as bad as losing to a 200+ SIU at home. But I just hope the selection committee thinks the same way. They should, but who knows.

Actually, IMO this loss tonight by the Shocks was not as bad as Creigthton only beating Bradley 73-59 at home. Obviously that will have no impact on the RPI or how the committee looks at things. Unfortunately a loss is a loss regardless of how tough it is. We had our chances to win this game and simply failed to cash in when we had the opportunities. Lost opportunities are not an uncommon trait of Shocker teams in recent years.

[shox1989]

I think everyone's just a bit paranoid, but for good reason. You just never know what the selection committee is thinking.

We still have opportunities though. A ranked CU coming up and (fingers crossed) a ranked MSU for BB. Gotta take care of the rest of our business too, but a win at one of those 2 would really help wipe this out a bit.

Since both CU and Murry St are ranked, I think a win AT either place totally wipes out this loss (for ncaa selection purposes). It just makes doing that more important now.

[shoxlax]

To me this game was a carryover of the last seven minutes of the Eville game. Soft defense, stagnant offense, and no sense of urgency that every minute the rest of the season is important.