The RoundHouse | 11/23/2019 5:52:00 PM
Erik Stevenson leaned against the wall outside the locker room and admitted to being banged up, sore and tired.
It was worth it after 32 productive minutes in Wichita State's 68-59 win over Oral Roberts on Saturday at Koch Arena.
Stevenson gave the Shockers (5-0) a big afternoon. He handed out a career-high nine assists and grabbed eight rebounds. His defensive work showed up in subtle ways, trapping a ball-handler, playing help defense, hustling for a loose ball. It didn't seem to matter much that he went 3-of-10 from the field.
"Erik pretty much did everything out there," center Asbjorn Midtgaard said. "Even things the fans don't see, the small things, like an extra stunt at the three-point line. Great teammate."
Stevenson's passing did wow the crowd, largely because they created dunks.
Early in the game, he hit Midtgaard rolling to the basket for a dunk. Later, he patiently let the defense settle before driving to the lane and hitting
Jaime Echenique with a bounce pass. Echenique finished the play with a two-handed slam. With 1:37 to play, Steven threw a home run pass over the ORU press to
Dexter Dennis for a breakaway dunk and a 67-57 lead.
"I know what's coming now," Stevenson said. "The game slowed down a lot for me. Last year, it was kind of like deer in the headlights. That was an aspect I had to work on over the summer was decision-making. When to attack. When to dish. When to be patient."
The patience is what stands out. Instead of rushing to make a spectacular play, he is willing to pause and let things develop. Sometimes, the result is spectacular. Other times, it is the right play to make. Late in Saturday's game, he drove to the basket to draw fouls and layups instead of settling for three-pointers.
"Early on, we talked about trusting your teammates," he said. "Knowing these guys are all on scholarship just like I am. They can put the ball in the basket. Taking an extra half-second, maybe, and making the decision. Putting it on the money and letting them put it in the rim for me."
Echenique, a senior center, played 11 important minutes after missing the first four games with a hand injury. Nobody wanted his first action of the season to come next week against South Carolina.
"He wanted to get a little prep and we needed him," Wichita State coach
Gregg Marshall said.
Echenique scored five points and grabbed four rebounds. He blocked two shots. The Shockers will need him in the Cancun Challenge against the size they are likely to face in those two games.
"It's amazing to be back, helping my guys out," Echenique said.
The Shockers gave up advantages they usually don't against the Golden Eagles (2-4). ORU grabbed 13 offensive rebounds and scored 14 second-chance points. They committed nine turnovers, four fewer than Wichita State. And they cut the lead to 58-55 with 4:47 to play. ORU did all that missing two starters.
The Shockers gave ORU plenty of props. Wichita State survived by holding ORU to 21-of-65 shooting (32.3 percent) and 3-of-23 shooting from three-point range (13 percent).
"Defense carries the day," Marshall said. "That's got to be in your back pocket. That's got to be a constant. On nights where the ball doesn't go down, some of your best players don't play particularly well, you can still win."
The Shockers led 46-31 before stalling. ORU cut the lead to three points and the Shockers responded with a 7-1 run – highlighted by Dennis' dunk – to put the game away.
The Shocker sophomores said they are better equipped to handle runs by the opponent this season.
"Last year, we definitely didn't know what to expect. Nervousness kicked in,"
Jamarius Burton said. "We were just hoping we could get the win. This time around, we're all confident in our abilities. Down the stretch, we've got to execute and take great shots."
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
