Box Score WICHITA, Kan.- The Wichita State men's basketball team moved to 5-2 on the season with a 77-68 win over Maryland Baltimore County (6-2) Tuesday night inside Charles Koch Arena.

“I was fearful of this game all week,” said head coach Gregg Marshall. “I was glad we won. We made the plays we needed to and it led to a win. I think UMBC is a team that can play in the post-season if they stay healthy.”

Freshman J.T. Durley led five Shockers in double-figures with a career-high 17 points in 19 minutes. P.J. Couisnard finished with 14 points and three assists while Matt Braeuer had 13 points, four assists and three steals. Gal Mekel and Ramon Clemente rounded out the scoring for WSU with 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Brian Hodges paced the Retrievers with 25 points. Jay Greene went 5-of-8 from behind the arc on his way to 20 points, 15 of which came in the second half.

UMBC got off to a hot start, scoring on its first four possessions to grab an early 9-2 lead. WSU responded with a 17-2 run, capped by Couisnard's old-fashioned three-point play, and took a 19-11 lead with 11:58 to go in the half.

The Retrievers fought back, and tied the game at 23 on a jumper by Greene with 8:09 to play. A Braeuer three-pointer sparked a 10-0 WSU run over the next four minutes. The Shockers extended the lead in the last two minutes of the half, capped by a Durley three-pointer with one second on the clock to give WSU a 43-28 halftime lead.

Couisnard opened the second half with a three-pointer before the two teams traded buckets for the first six minutes of the half as WSU held a 57-39 lead with 14:09 to play. UMBC started to claw its way back into the game with free throws and three-pointers.

The Retrievers cut the lead to 65-59 with 5:33 remaining after Hodges was fouled while shooting a 3-pointer. He knocked down all three free-throws as UMBC was in striking distance.

That's when the Shocker defense tightened, as Braeuer and Thomasson combined to draw three charging fouls on Hodges. The Retrievers held WSU without a field goal in the last five minutes, but aided the Shockers by committing fouls and giving away trips to the free-throw line.

WSU closed out the win by hitting 10 free-throws down the stretch, and holding UMBC to rushed shots and deep three-pointers.

The Shockers finished the game shooting 53 percent from the field, including 60 percent in the second half. WSU also won the battle of the boards, 33-23, led by nine from Clemente.
“This was a good win for us,” Couisnard said. “Coach had been talking all week about how good they were, so I'm glad we could come out and beat them.”

WSU will be back in action Fri., Dec. 7, as the Shockers play host to undefeated Texas-Arlington. The Mavericks will come to Charles Koch Arena sporting an 7-0 record, the best start in school history. Tip-off is at 7:05 p.m.