Game Notes: Wichita State (PDF) | Illinois State (PDF)

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ILLINOIS STATE (18-12, 12-5 MVC) at rv/rv WICHITA STATE (22-7, 15-2 MVC)
Saturday, Feb. 27, 2016  | 1:05 p.m. CT
Wichita, Kan./ Charles Koch Arena

Telecast --
On Air: ESPN2
Announcers: Rich Hollenberg & Mark Adams
Streaming: ESPN3/WatchESPN (Link)

Radio --
On Air: KEYN 103.7 FM
Online: goshockers.com/watch
Announcers: Mike Kennedy & Dave Dahl

 Live Stats -- 
StatBroadcast (Link)

Social Media ---
Twitter: @GoShockers, @GoShockersLive
Facebook: facebook.com/WichitaStateUniversityAthletics
Instagram: instagram.com/goshockers
Exposure: goshockers.exposure.co
 

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Scene Setter // Its third-consecutive MVC title already in hand, Wichita State (22-7, 15-2 MVC) looks to send Ron Baker, Anton Grady, Fred VanVleet, Bush Wamukota and Evan Wessel out with a Senior Day win against Illinois State (18-12, 12-5 MVC), 1 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2. All five will be honored at the conclusion of the game.
 
The Series // The Redbirds have taken the last two meetings - Feb. 6 in Normal and last March in the semifinals of the MVC Tournament. Prior to that, WSU had won seven in a row in the series. ILS hasn't won in Wichita since pulling out a 49-46 decision on Jan 1, 2008.The Shockers are 11-1 against the Redbirds since Koch Arena's 2003 renovation and have won 13 of the last 14 overall in Wichita.
 
Sweep Stakes // ILS is looking to become just the third team in the last seven seasons to sweep a regular season series from the Shockers. Missouri State (2010-11) and Evansville (2012-13) are the only others. In that same time frame, WSU has produced 44 two-game sweeps.
 
Arch Madness Scenarios // WSU is locked in as the No. 1 seed for the third year in a row and will tip at 12:05 p.m. CT next Friday in St. Louis. The game can be seen on MVC-TV affiliates, including Fox Sports Kansas City. The Shockers will face the winner of Thursday's play-in game between  ninth-seeded Bradley and whichever teams draw the No. 8 seed (Loyola, Missouri St. or Indiana St.)... ILS and Evansville are fighting for the No. 2 seed. Both are 12-5, but the Aces have a leg up in the RPI tiebreaker.
 
Bouncing Back // The Feb. 6 loss at ILS and a Feb. 13 home setback against UNI may have been just the wakeup call that the Shockers needed. They've won four-straight since the UNI loss by an average of 29.0 points. Ten different Shockers combined to produce 37 steals (9.3 per game), leading to a +38 turnover margin (+9.5).
 
20-20 Vision // 20 of WSU's 22 wins are by double-digits and 15 have come by 20+. The lineup of VanVleet-Baker-Wessel-Brown-Morris is 20-3.
 
Another Sweet 16  // WSU is looking to reach 16-2 or  better in MVC play for the fourth time in five years.
 
Senior Moments  // WSU is 8-1 on Senior Day under Marshall. Its only loss came in 2013 when - needing a win to claim a share of the MVC title - the Shockers instead fell 59-56 to Evansville... In 2011, senior Aaron Ellis scored on a putback at the buzzer to beat Creighton, 67-65... A 2014 win over Missouri State capped a 31-0 regular season and 18-0 MVC finish... Last year's 74-60 triumph over  No. 10 UNI included a visit from ESPN's College GameDay.
 
62 --- Career MVC wins for VanVleet - tied with three others (including Tekele Cotton) for the most since World War II. A Saturday victory would set the modern conference record and close him out with a final mark of 63-9 (.875).
 
 113 --- Games in which Baker and VanVleet have shared the floor in four seasons. The Shockers are 101-12 (.894) with both players in the lineup.
 
 1,225 --- Combined Charles Koch Arena points scored by Baker (618) and VanVleet (607).
 
 1,300 --- WSU boasts the nation's only trio of 1,300-point scorers in seniors Baker (1,551), VanVleet (1,356), & Anton Grady (1,343). Baker ranks 10th on WSU's career scoring list and VanVleet is 15th.
 
20-20 Visions //
 
4 --- Consecutive Shocker wins by 20+ points
 
5 --- Number of times in school hisory that it's happened (others came in 2013-14, 2009-10, 1981-82 and 1953-54). Only the 2013-14 undefeated Shockers were able to extend the run to five. They beat Drake (+29), Bradley (+20), Missouri State (+23), Evansville (+22) and Missouri State (+25) consecutively near the end of the year, with the last two coming in the MVC Tournament.
 
15 --- WSU wins by 20+ points - a new program record, besting previous mark of 12 shared by Ralph Miller's 1953-54 team (led by junior Cleo Littleton) and the 1980-81 Elite Eight Shockers (led by Antoine Carr and Cliff Levingston).
 
11 --- 20+ point wins by the Shockers in MVC play - also a program best. In fact, it's more than WSU has had in any two seasons combined. The 2014-15 team won six by 20+ to set the old standard.
 
WSU 20+ Point Wins, By Season
2015-16 – 15
1980-81 – 12
1953-54 – 12
2011-12 – 11
2014-15 – 10
2013-14 --10
 
Good at Greedy  // WSU now leads the nation in turnover margin (+5.8). The Shockers have finished with double-digit margins in six different games this year, including Sunday's win over Indiana State in which they committed just four turnovers and forced 14.
 
Shaq Packed  // When he's on the floor, Shaquille Morris has been the Shockers most productive scorer. His 18.2 points per-40 minutes is the highest of any WSU regular, ahead of Baker (18.0), Grady (17.6) and VanVleet (17.4). As he's improved his conditioning and cut down on fouls, Morris' court time has increased. For the year, he's averaging 15.2 minutes per game but has exceeded that mark in 9 of the last 12 contests.
 
Getting Defensive  // The Shockers rank second nationally in scoring defense (59.4 points) and ninth in field goal percentage defense (.385). They've taken it up a notch in the last two months. Since Jan. 1, they lead the nation in both categories (56.5 points allowed, .358 opponent shooting percentage).
 
That 70's No-Show  // No Shocker opponent has topped 70 points in regulation since Nov. 29 when Iowa scored 84... Northern Iowa is the last MVC team to reach 70, hitting that number on the nose in its Jan. 31, 2015 win in Cedar Falls (70-54)... The last MVC team to go north of 70 was Loyola, which fell 88-74 to the Shockers at Gentile Arena on Feb. 19, 2014... The last road team to reach 70 at Charles Koch Arena was Davidson (Dec. 29, 2014, 81-70 WSU)...  No MVC road teams has scored 70 in Wichita since Evansville dropped an 86-74 decision to the Shockers on Jan. 25, 2012.