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RH: Dennis Carries Wichita State in Second Half

Rh Torres vs Alabama

The RoundHouse | 11/18/2018 4:00:00 PM

 
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Wichita State coaches identified Dexter Dennis as a mature freshman who could contribute quickly early in off-season workouts. On Sunday, he met those expectations with a superb second half in a 90-86 loss to Alabama in the fifth-place game of the Charleston Classic. 
 
Dennis, a 6-foot-5 guard, scored a season-high 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting, 15 of those in the second half. He made all five of his shots in the second half, 4 of 5 fouls shots, and grabbed five rebounds. 
 
He entered the game averaging 6.3 points on 35-percent shooting. Dennis got himself going by hustling and driving and, as is often the case, it unlocked scoring chances. He played 27 minutes and avoided foul trouble, an important factor for one of Wichita State's top defenders.
 
Dennis should be a prime scoring option behind senior Markis McDuffie. On Sunday, he showed he can do that against strong competition.
 
Wichita State now has a lot of practice time in between games and coaches will use those sessions to grow into more of a two-way team. The Shockers alternate between lockdown defensive units that struggle to score and zippy offensive units that give up too many easy baskets. 
 
Cutting down on fouls would be a big help. Alabama needed to be almost perfect (31 of 33) from the line to win Sunday. The fact the Tide shot 33 foul shots is a problem and continues a trend for the Shockers. They were outscored by nine at the line, pushing their season deficit to 30. It is hard to win while taking a consistent loss at the foul line. The Shockers can change that both with better defense and, as they did on Sunday, more drives to the basket and offensive rebounds. 
 
When the Shockers allow 90 points, you can count on a lot of defensive work in practice, especially on close-outs, on-ball defense and reading and reacting to ball screens. 
 
The Shockers feel like a deeper team than a week ago. We continue to see roles develop, even if for flashes instead of long stretches.
 
Guard Ricky Torres handed out five assists (no turnovers) and earned his minutes by getting his teammates shots and moving the basketball. He ran the pick and roll with Jamie Echenique early in the game after others missed opportunities to feed the post. Torres can help the Shockers with that unselfish play. His shooting hasn't been an asset yet, but he helped Sunday in other ways.
 
Echenique played 20 minutes and is showing better understanding of how to play defense without fouling. He is using his height and getting good position more often, which can help avoid fouls. We've seen freshman Morris Udeze contribute, most notably with 10 points vs. Providence, and the potential for depth at post is there.

It might be January or February before Wichita State gets six, seven, eight Shockers playing well on the same night consistently. It might even be next season. After this week, the potential seems closer.
 
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
 
 
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Players Mentioned

Markis McDuffie

#1 Markis McDuffie

F
6' 8"
Senior
Ricky Torres

#3 Ricky Torres

G
6' 2"
Junior
Morris Udeze

#12 Morris Udeze

F/C
6' 8"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Markis McDuffie

#1 Markis McDuffie

6' 8"
Senior
F
Ricky Torres

#3 Ricky Torres

6' 2"
Junior
G
Morris Udeze

#12 Morris Udeze

6' 8"
Freshman
F/C