The RoundHouse | 3/1/2018 4:20:00 PM
By
Paul Suellentrop
No. 11 Wichita State 75, UCF 71 (overtime)
No. 11 Wichita State won a brawl, one filled with physical defense, blocked shots and drama. It did what it needed to do to set up Sunday's showdown with No. 10 Cincinnati with at least a share of the American Athletic Conference title at stake.
The Shockers had just enough offense to slip past the Knights. Center Shaq Morris scored 11 of his 19 points in the second half. While the Knights bothered him more than most with their height, Morris gave the Shockers a scoring threat in the second half. Guard
Conner Frankamp did his part with 16 points, 11 in the second half. His 6-0 run gave the Shockers a 55-51 lead.
It certainly wasn't easy nor pretty. That's what happens in conference play, especially in the rematch.
The Shockers led 64-58 and had the ball. They failed to score on their next four possessions and UCF cut the lead to 64-63, forcing a Shocker timeout. They executed perfectly, with
Landry Shamet patiently driving, as the shot clock ticked away, to find Morris for a layup and a 66-63 lead.
Missed foul shots – four by the Shockers in the final 4:37 – kept the door open for the Knights. Morris missed two with 4:37 to play, although the Shockers rebounded and scored. Morris missed the front end of a one-and-one with 3:17 to play. Then McDuffie missed the front end of a one-and-one with 16.5 seconds to play and the Shockers up 66-63.
Those misses stung when a mad scramble for the ball ended with UCF's A.J. Davis making a guarded three with a second to play to send the game to overtime.
Wichita State trailed 22-11 and it looked as if the Knights turned into another one of those teams that got red-hot against the Shockers.
Then Wichita State, invoking coach
Gregg Marshall's seven reasons for playing a zone defense, switched to a 3-2 zone. The reason? Ineffective man to man. The zone, and throwing some half- and full-court presses at UCF, took the Knights out of their flow and energized the Shockers.
UCF missed nine of its next 10 shots and committed three turnovers – including
Zach Brown's steal-and-dunk to cut the lead to 24-23. The Shockers took a 27-25 lead on a basket by Morris.
Rashard Kelly made his first three-pointer, in eight attempts, this season for a 30-25 lead.
The Shockers led 36-29 at halftime after the Knights missed 12 of their final 13 shots in the half.
Morris scored nine first-half points, battering the Knights in the lane after making an early three. Kelly scored seven points and grabbed seven rebounds, three on the offensive boards.
Wichita State scored 13 first-half points off six UCF turnovers.
Postcard from Orlando
UCF lists its enrollment at 66,000 students. Even a brief tour around the campus demonstrates the ambition and resources of this school, located in Orlando and started in 1968 with an enrollment of 1,948.
The main campus is 1,415 acres and there are 11 other regional campuses in the area. Combine all that with the Florida population and athletic talent and it appears appropriate for UCF to consider itself capable of big things. It has often found itself at the forefront of expansion talk when the Big 12 auditions.
That is largely a football decision and UCF kept itself in that conversation with its 13-0 season and a win over Auburn in the Peach Bowl. Second-year coach Johnny Dawkins is in charge of keeping the basketball team on an upward trajectory after last season's NIT semifinals appearance.
CFE Arena, built in 2007, seats 10,000 and is located in an athletic village that includes soccer and track facilities. A $3.2 million expansion and renovation of the baseball stadium is ongoing. Spectrum Stadium, also built in 2007, is nearby and seats 45,000 for football.
UCF made four NCAA basketball appearances – 1994, 1996, 2004 and 2005 – and is winless.
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
