Box Score | Postgame Quotes | Postgame Notes

OMAHA, Neb. – Five Shockers scored in double-figures to lead No. 7 seed Wichita State to a 78-65 win over the No. 2 seed Kansas Jayhawks on Sunday evening in the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament at the CenturyLink Center.

Wichita State will now travel to Cleveland to face off with the No. 3 seed Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the Sweet 16 on Thursday, March 26, with a time to be named later. The Shockers advance to the Sweet 16 for sixth time in school history.

Tekele Cotton paced Wichita State with a team-high 19 points to go with three assists and two rebounds on 7-of-12 shooting from the field. Fred VanVleet finished with 17 points, six assists and six rebounds. Rounding out the double-digit scorers for WSU were Ron Baker and Evan Wessel with 12 each and Darius Carter with eight of his 10 points in the second half.

Wessel came out like a man on a mission as he scored all 12 of his points from 3-point range to go along with a team-high nine rebounds.

Kansas was led by Perry Ellis and Devonte' Graham who each scored 17 points. Frank Mason added 16 points and six rebounds. Landen Lucas pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds, while Ellis added eight.

WSU scored 49 points in the second half on 59.3 percent shooting, while scoring just 29 points in the first half. For the game, the Shockers shot 49 percent (25-of-51) from the field. KU was just 20-for-57 from the field for 35.1 percent.

After making only 3-of-12 3-pointers vs. Indiana in the Second Round, the Shockers drained 10-of-20 shot from beyond the arc in the game. KU finished just 6-of-21 (28.6 percent) from 3.

Right out of the gate, WSU used a 7-0 run early in the second half to open a double-digit lead, 41-30. During the run, Evan Wessel knocked down his second 3-pointer and VanVleet and Baker converted on consecutive layups.

The Shockers then took their largest lead to that point, 49-36, off back-to-back 3-pointers from Wessel and Cotton.

Both teams would trade 3-pointers midway through the second half, but KU could get no closer than eight points the rest of the game. Every time KU looked like it was going to make a run, the Shockers answered right back with a 3-pointer or score inside.

When KU entered desperation mode in the final minutes of the game, the Jayhawks couldn't get a basket when they needed one, which led to the Shockers extending their lead to as many as 16.

Trailing 24-16 with 4:15 left in the first half, Wichita State used a 13-2 run as the two teams went to the locker room. The Shockers got 3-pointers from Baker and VanVleet and a big and-1 from Cotton right before the break.

Baker and VanVleet each led the Shockers with eight points in the half, while Evan Wessel pulled down a team-best five boards.

Mason led KU with nine points, while Ellis scored eight. Lucas grabbed a game-high nine rebounds in the first half.

Neither team shot particularly well in the half, as WSU connected on 9-of-24 field goal attempts for 37.5 percent and KU on 9-of-28 for 32.1 percent. The Shockers did shoot well from long range by connecting on 5-of-11 attempts (45.5 percent).

The Jayhawks led by as many as eight points in the first half, before trailing at the break, 29-26, a lead the Shockers would not relinquish.

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