WICHITA, Kan.- Four Shockers reached double figures as the Wichita State men's basketball team defeated Newman University, 80-62, in front of a crowd of 10,353 at Charles Koch Arena Wednesday night.

Garrett Stutz paced WSU with 14 points, shooting a perfect four-for-four from the field and adding seven boards.  Toure' Murry (10 points), Joe Ragland (10 points), and J.T. Durley (10 points) also reached double figures.  The Shockers out rebounded Newman 50 to 28, and were led by Ehimen Orukpe's 11 boards.

Newman was led by Bobby Wesley with 11 points and former Shocker Mason Felter with six rebounds.

The Jets jumped out to an early 7-2 lead, but a dunk from Stutz and a 3-pointer from Graham Hatch gave the Shockers an 11-9 advantage. Another bucket from Stutz gave the Shockers a 13-11 lead with 15:52 left in the first half.

Turnovers early in the first half cut down the Shockers' possessions allowing Newman to keep the game close. After a fast-break layup from Eric Saunders, the Jets took a 16-15 advantage over the Shockers.  Back-to-back free throws from Ben Smith and Aaron Ellis helped the Shockers regain the lead, 18-16.  A Hatch steal and jumper from Durley extended the Shockers lead to 24-19.

The Shockers took their first double-digit lead, 32-22, after a rebound put-back from Stutz and a jumper from Durley at the 1:49 mark in the first half. WSU extended the lead to 36-24 with a Murry steal and layup from Ragland.

Even with 13 first-half turnovers, the Shockers were able to head into halftime with a double digit lead, 37-27.  WSU was led by Stutz with 10 first-half points. Orukpe led the Shockers on the boards with five rebounds at the break.

The Jets were led Wesley with seven points and William Burdette with three first-half rebounds.

Newman came out firing in the second half, immediately cutting the lead to 39-33 with back-to-back baskets from Justin Berry. The Shockers pushed the lead back to 43-33 with a dunk from Stutz and free throws from Demetric Williams.

Seven unanswered points, including a layup and 3-pointer from Ragland, gave WSU a 50-38 lead with 15:52 left in the second half. The Jets were able to cut the lead down to seven, but Ben Smith answered right back with a 3-pointer, extending the Shocker lead to 53-43.

An Orukpe dunk electrified the Charles Koch Arena crowd and gave the Shockers a 55-44 advantage. Consecutive baskets from Orukpe and Ragland extended the Shocker lead, 63-49.

 

A jumper from Ellis and a layup from Kyles gave the Shockers their biggest lead of the game, 71-53, with 6:48 left to play in the second half.  WSU never looked back and continued to build on that lead.

The Shockers open the regular season Tuesday, Nov. 16 at 7:05 p.m. against Texas Southern at Charles Koch Arena.

 

 

-WICHITA-