The RoundHouse | 12/15/2017 5:08:00 PM

By Paul Suellentrop
 
When Wichita State moved its home-court advantage to Intrust Bank Arena in 2010, it wanted to help scheduling and boost recruiting by showing off an NBA-style arena and sellout crowds.
 
Those goals are in hand and building toward another mark with Saturday's ESPN2 game vs. Oklahoma (3 p.m.).
 
The annual downtown December date should grab the attention of the basketball-watching nation with what might be the most attractive game of the day. It matches the third-ranked Shockers (8-1) vs. Oklahoma (7-1), No. 24 in the USA Today coaches poll, and guard Trae Young, perhaps the nation's top freshman. WIchita State sophomore guard Landry Shamet is coming off a career-high 30-point performance at Oklahoma State and the TV spotlight will fall on the Young-Shamet confrontations.
 
Wichita State played No. 25 Utah in 2015 and a Sweet 16-bound Tennessee in 2013. Last season, Oklahoma State guard Juwan Evans put on a show on his way to the NBA. The contest with the Sooners offers a combination of team and star power that none of the previous seven downtown games match.
 
It is a game of contrasting styles, but you should be used to that by now. The Sooners ranked fifth nationally in tempo and possession length (13.9 seconds) and play with a green light on shooting, especially for Young.
 
The Shockers are used to playing strong offensive teams and teams that rarely let the shot clock run down and love to shoot three-pointers. Oklahoma is Wichita State's third non-conference opponent to rank in the top 100 nationally for tempo and the seventh to rank in the top 100 for frequency of three-point shots.
 
"You have to take good shots, and you can't turn it over," Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall said. "They are going to get some transition (points). They are an elite transition team."
 
OU is the third Shocker opponent (joining Notre Dame and Marquette) to rank in the Pomeroy top 25 for offensive efficiency and effective field goal percentage.
 
The Sooners give the ball to Young, a McDonald's All-American from Norman, and let him create. He averages 28.8 points, tops nationally, and 8.75 assists. He makes 47.9 percent of his shots and 37.7 percent of his three-pointers. Ken Pomeroy ranks him first in the website's Player of the Year ranking, which combines offensive and defensive statistics.
 
Former Sooner star Wayman Tisdale recorded such a memorable freshman season (1982-83) that the United States Basketball Writers Association named its Freshman of the Year award in his honor. Young is threatening Tisdale's numbers.
 
"He is a dynamic talent," Marshall said. "I saw him in high school, saw him in AAU. I knew we couldn't recruit him, but I really loved his energy, how hard he played and his passion."
 
Young enjoys the freedom to shoot from far beyond the three-point arc. The Sooners won't slow down and want to lure the Shockers into a fast-paced game. Where Oklahoma is willing to live with quick shots, even if guarded, the Shockers are more concerned with turning good shots into great shots.
 
"They shoot it within the first 13 seconds of the shot clock," Shocker guard Austin Reaves said. "They're going to take tough shots, and they're probably going to make shots. We can't show negative emotions when they make shots. We've got to go on to the next play." 
 
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.