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Morris Udeze

Shockers Ready for Tall Task vs. USF Frontcourt

12/21/2020 12:35:00 PM

WICHITA STATE (3-2, 1-0) at USF (5-2, 1-0)
TUESDAY, DEC. 22, 2020 | 6:01 P.M. CT (7:01 P.M. ET)
TAMPA, FLA. / YUENGLING CENTER
TV: ESPN+
RADIO: KEYN 103.7 FM (GoShockers.com/Listen)
SERIES: WSU leads 3-1
LAST: Feb. 20, 2020 in Wichita (WSU, 65-55)
 
 
#WATCHUS:
The game will air on ESPN+ with Jim Louk and Neil Solondz) on the call. ESPN+ subscribers can stream live and on demand via the ESPN App. 
WSU will play at least seven more times on ESPN+ during the regular season. Subscriptions for the ESPN+ app are $5.99 monthly or $49.99 annually and can be packaged with Hulu and Disney+ streaming services.
 
SHOCKER RADIO:
Listen live on KEYN 103.7 FM and online at GoShockers.com/Listen with Mike Kennedy (pbp) and Bob Hull (analyst). Kennedy is in his 41st season as Voice of the Shockers and will call his 1,264th-consecutive game (excluding exhibitions). Pregame coverage begins one hour prior to tipoff.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA:
For all the latest updates, in game and throughout the week, follow @GoShockers and @GoShockersMBB on Twitter and Instagram.
 
 
OPENING TIPS:
  • Wichita State treks to Tampa on Tuesday to face the USF Bulls in an American Athletic Conference matchup.
  • The Yuengling Center will welcome fans for the first time this season (approximately 1,200).
  • The winner takes a 2-0 AAC record into the break.
  • WSU is looking to reach that mark for the third time in four seasons since joining The American.
  • USF is in search of its first 2-0 league start since 2001-02 when the Bulls were members of Conference USA.
  • The Shockers rode strong first-half performances to a pair of wins last week. They led by 14 at the break in Tuesday's 69-65 road victory at Tulsa and by 16 in Friday's 73-57 win over Emporia State.
  • Freshman guard Ricky Council IV put up 13 points and eight rebounds in each of the two games to carve out a spot on this week's AAC Honor Roll.
  • Junior forward Morris Udeze was a perfect 8-for-8 last week. Seven of those makes came against ESU en route to a career-high 18 points.
  • WSU's 25 offensive rebounds against ESU were most by a Shocker team since Dec. 30, 1999.
  • USF has won four-straight and is coming off of a 74-71 road win at Cincinnati last Wednesday.
  • The Bulls were picked fifth in the AAC race -- two spots ahead of the Shockers. 
  • WSU is 3-1 all-time against USF with all four meetings taking place in the AAC era. WSU swept the series last year (56-44 at USF; 65-55 in Wichita). In Tampa, Dexter Dennis and Tyson Etienne combined for seven threes in what was otherwise a defensive struggle.
  • WSU is 16-12 in AAC road games since joining and is one of just three schools with a winning mark in that four-year span (Cincinnati is 19-8 and Houston 17-10).
  • The Shockers have won 12 of their last 17 in enemy territory going back to February, 2019.
  • Etienne is the Shockers' leading scorer through five games (15.4 ppg). He's averaging 2.8 threes-per-game and has twice made the AAC's weekly honor roll.
  • Alterique Gilbert -- a graduate transfer from UConn -- is averaging 12.8 points and a team-high 3.8 assists. He posted six steals in two games last week.
  • Six others are scoring between 4.6 and 8.8 points.
  • Despite three new point guards and limited practice time, WSU ranks among the national leaders in fewest turnovers (20th, 10.4 as of Sunday). Those three guards (Gilbert, Craig Porter and Trevin Wade) have combined for 30 assists and only 11 turnovers.
 
 
TRENDING:
  • Isaac Brown will try to do something no first-year Shocker head coach has done in nearly 50 years -- win his first two true road games. In December, 1971, Harry Miller opened his tenure with victories at Nebraska (74-61) and Colorado (70-55) before falling at K-State.
  • Tyson Etienne ranks among the American leaders in scoring (8th, 15.4), three-pointers (5th, 2.8) and free throw percentage (5th, .864).
  • Etienne has committed just three turnovers in 143 minutes this year. KenPom rates him 36th nationally in turnover rate.
  • Ricky Council IV's 6.3 rebounds-per-game is the league's second-highest freshman average behind Memphis Moussa Cisse. 
  • Only a handful of Shocker freshman (most recently Jamie Arnold in 1992-93) have averaged that many boards and none were listed as guards. The closest comp is current WSU junior guard Dexter Dennis who averaged 5.3-per-game as a freshman.
 

NO MO MISSES:
In the win over Emporia State, Morris Udeze became just the 11th player in Shocker history to shoot 7-for-7 or better from the field, and the first in more than 15 years. All seven makes came from inside the charge arc, including a pair of dunks.
Udeze's 18 points was a new career-high, topping his 15-point night against Gardner-Webb last year.

All-Time // Shockers Shooting 7-for-7 or Better:
Antoine Carr – 13/13 vs. Abilene Christian (11/28/1980)
Lanny Van Eman – 11/11 vs. Nebraska (12/4/1961)
Michael Wiggins – 10/10 vs. Drake (1/11/1993)
Jamie Thompson – 9/9 vs. Michigan (12/8/1965)
Jamar Howard – 9/9 vs. Drake (1/26/2005)
Jamie Arnold – 8/8 vs. Kansas St. (1/12/1994)
P.J. Couisnard – 8/8 vs. UMES (12/17/2006)
Morris Udeze – 7/7 vs. Emporia St. (12/18/2020)
Ben Garner – 7/7 vs. Ball St. (2/27/1973)
Dwayne Praylow – 7/7 vs. Missouri St. (12/15/1988)
Paul Guffrovich – 7/7 vs. Missouri St. (12/5/1989)
Chad Elstun – 7/7 vs. UNI (2/11/1993)

Udeze's 18 points came in just 13 minutes, 44 seconds of playing tine. Since 2000, Shockers have gone for 18+ points on roughly 400 occasions. Udeze's is one of the three most-efficient (1.31 points-per-minute).
 
Since 2000-01 // Points-Per-Minute // Minimum 18 Points: 
1.43 -- Jaime Echenique – 19 points in 13:19 vs.  Oral Roberts (12/19/2018)
1.311 -- Morris Udeze – 18 points in 13:44 vs. Emporia St. (12/18/2020)
1.306 -- Markis McDuffie – 25 points in 19:08 vs. Oral Roberts (12/19/2018)
1.22 -- Ben Smith – 18 points in 22 minutes vs. Chicago St. (12/14/2011)
1.21 -- Cleanthony Early – 19 points in 23 minutes vs. Cal Poly (3/21/2014)
 
 
DON'T NEED TO SHOOT WELL TO HAVE A SHOT:
The Shockers have been out-shot from the field in all five games but are still having moderate success scoring the ball due to some other key factors:
Offensive Rebounding: The Shockers average an AAC-best 15.6-per-game, helped in part by the 25 they grabbed against ESU on Friday.
Limiting Turnovers: WSU's 10.4-per-game ranks among the top-20 nationally. KenPom (which accounts only for games against Division I opponents) rates the Shockers 11th-best nationally with just 14 turnovers-per-100-possessions.
Avoiding Blocked Shots: Foes have blocked just 10 through the first five games. KenPom data has WSU at No. 21 nationally in block percentage (just 3.9-per-100-shots).
 

MO SHOULDERING MORE:
WSU's most-experienced big man, Morris Udeze has started all five contests so far and is in line for a much larger role as a junior. A shoulder injury cut short Udeze's freshman season and -- two years later -- he is just now feeling 100%. He has scored in double-figures in three of the first five games this year, matching his total from the last two years combined. Udeze shot just 46% at the foul line as an underclassman (32-of-69) but spent the off-season drilling on free throws. That work has paid off. He's converted 80% of his freebies in 2020-21 (12-of-15).
 
 
FURTHER DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE:
Udeze's turnaround at the foul line has been remarkable, which begs the question. What is the biggest free throw improvement in Shocker history? Henry Carr made just 43% of his freebies in his first three seasons (1983-86), including 36% as a junior. New head coach Eddie Fogler worked with Carr on a new technique heading into his senior, yielding some surprising results. Carr made 128-of-212 tries during the 1986-87 campaign (a respectable 60.4%) and helped the Shockers to an NCAA tournament bid.
 
 
SCOUTING USF:
  • USF took a leap forward in 2019 with 24 wins and the CBI title but backslid to 14 win in 2020, due in no small part to a preseason knee injury suffered by reigning AAC freshman of the year Alexis Yetna.
  • Yetna (preseason second team all-conference) is back, joined by five of last year's top-six scorers, and the Bulls (5-2 and riding a four-game winning streak) seem ready to make up for lost time.
  • Yetna supplied a double-double (16 points, 11 rebounds) to lead the Bulls to a 74-71 win at Cincinnati in their conference opener last Wednesday. He's averaging a team-best 7.1 rebounds along with 11.6 points.
  • Jamir Chaplin was the hero in last Sunday's 58-56 win over Wofford, scoring the go-ahead basket with 19 seconds to play. It was coach Brian Gregory's 300th.
  • David Collins is one of the AAC's most-exerienced guards and leads the team in points (13.0), assists (3.7) and steals (11). He needs just 16 more free throw makes to match UCF's B.J. Taylor (456) atop the conference's all-time list.
  • USF is shooting a healthy 36% from three and holding opponents to just 28%.
  • Complementing Yetna are a pair of 7-foot centers in Michael Durr (9.1 ppg, 6.4 rpg) and Texas Tech transfer Russel Tchewa (2.9 ppg, 2.0 rpg).
  • 6-6 senior wing Justin Brown (9.4 ppg) has appeared in over 100 games with 67 career starts.
 
 
MATCHUP MASHUP:  
  • Over the past three seasons the Shockers have won a nation-best 17 times when shooting 40% or less from the field, most recently Friday vs. ESU (37%).
  • Notably, Houston is second on that list (14), Cincinnati is fifth (11) and USF is tied for sixth (10).
  • The Shockers scored 93 points and shot 62.7% from the field in their first-ever meeting with USF in 2017-18, but it's been tough sledding ever since. Over the last  three meetings, the Shockers have shot a combined 33.3%, including 25.8% from three. The Bulls have hit 32.4% from the field, including 22.6% from distance.
  • USF has size in spades with an AAC-best average roster height of 6-foot-5.25-inches. KenPom's effective height rankings (average roster height weighted by minutes played), lists the Bulls 30th nationally. Cincinnati is an AAC-best 13th. WSU is 273rd (still ahead of Tulane and Houston).
  • David Collins and Justin Brown are the only players from either side who have logged time in all four games between WSU and USF. They were freshmen in '17-18.
  • WSU does have a player who has faced USF four times -- UConn grad transfer Alterique Gilbert is averaging 8.5 points against the Bulls. He had eight assists in his most recent visit to the Yuengling Center (Jan. 4, 2020).
  • Both sides have a Frenchman. WSU redshirt freshman Josaphat Bilau is from La Roche-sur-Yon and USF's Alexis Yetna hails from Paris.
  • WSU sophomore Tyson Etienne and USF Sophomore Russell Tchewa spent the 2018-19 school year together at Putnam Science Academy in Connecticut.
 
 
PAST MEETINGS WITH USF:
 
Jan. 7, 2018 | Wichita | #9 WSU 95, USF 57
WSU shot a season-best 62.7% from the field, thanks to a 12-of-20 performance from three-point range, to won the first-ever meeting between the programs...  The Shockers tallied 28 assists (on 37 baskets)... Defensively, WSU blocked eight shots and turned 18 USF turnovers into 32 points. The Bulls shot just 36.4%... WSU led 51-20 at the break after hitting 75% from the field (21-of-28)... Eight Shockers finished with eight-or-more points, led by Shaquille Morris' 15 points in 18 minutes... Zach Brown was a perfect 5-for-5 from field, including 3-of-3 from deep, to finish with 13 points... Markis McDuffie (12 points) went 4-of-5 from three and cleared a team-high six rebounds... Rashard Kelly became the sixth in school history to participate in 100 career wins.
 
Jan. 22, 2019 | Tampa | USF 54, WSU 41
WSU squandered a gritty defensive effort at USF...  The Shockers forced 18 turnovers and held the host Bulls to 30% from the field but committeed 20 turnovers of their own and hit just 28.3%. They were 2-of-18 from three and made just 9-of-22 free throw attempts... 41 points marked WSU's lowest output in more than 21 years... Markis McDuffie scored 11 points but no other Shocker reached double-figures... David Collins paced USF with 13 points and Laquincy Rideau added 11 points, nine rebounds, five assists and four steals... WSU trailed 30-15 at halftime after shooting 22.7% and missing all eight three-point tries... The Shockers scored 21 of their 41 points over the final 11:30. An 11-0 run pulled them to within 37-31 at the 7:16-mark, and two free throws sliced the margin to 42-37, with 4:48 left. USF answered with consecutive treys from Alexis Yeta and Collins to bump the lead back to 11.
 
Jan. 21, 2020 | Tampa | WSU 56, USF 43
Defense and timely shooting from Tyson Etienne and Dexter Dennis helped WSU snap a two-game skid and improve to 16-3... Etienne (team-high 13 points) hit three first-half triples – the last ahead of the halftime buzzer to send the Shockers into the break up 25-23... Dennis made three of his four treys after halftime. The first sparked an 9-0 run that put WSU up for good... USF pulled to within a point, 36-35, with 13:52 to play but made just one more basket the rest of the night. The Bulls missed 11 of their last 12 attempts to finish at an even 30%... Dennis' third and fourth treys of the night keyed a 10-0 Shocker run. The last made it a 46-35 game with 8:00 to go, and USF never again threatened... The Bulls' 43-points was the worst for a WSU foe since the '16-17 opener against South Carolina State (85-39)... The Shockers shot just 36.5% but out-rebounded the Bulls 36-29 and outscored them 5-0 on second chances... USF's pressure defense managed just three steals. WSU won the turnover battle, 13-11.
 
Feb. 20, 2020 | Wichita | WSU 65, USF 55
Jaime Echenique finished with 20 points helped WSU reach the 20-win mark. The 6-10 senior hit 12-of-14 free throws to go with nine rebounds, four blocks and two steals... Tyson Etienne added 12 points...  Dexter Dennis tallied three of WSU's nine steals... Laquincy Rideau paced USF with 14 points, six rebounds and three steals.... The Shockers opened 13-of-45 (.289) from the field but nailed six of their last nine shots. USF rallied to tie it at 45 with 6:29 remaining, but WSU answered with a 7-0 run. The Shockers scored 20 points over the final six minutes, helped by 11 free throws... The Shockers won despite shooting 35.2%. They held the visitors to 36.2%, outscored them 21-12 at the line and forced 15 turnovers while committing only 11.
 
 
A SHOCKER WIN WOULD...
... make them 4-2 with three-straight wins.
... be their ninth 2-0 conference start in 11 seasons.
... give them a 4-1 series lead over USF (2-1 in Tampa)
... make them 17-12 in AAC road games since joining.
... be their 13th road kill in 18 tries since Feb. 2020.
... make them 89-28 on the road since the start of the 2010-11 campaign.
 
A SHOCKER LOSS WOULD...
... make them 3-3 (1-1 AAC).
... leave them at .500-or-worse through six games for only the fourth time in 18 years. Notably, each of the three previous teams bounced back to reach some sort of postseason play: 2018-19 (3-3), 2015-16 (2-4), 2008-09 (3-3).
... drop them to 3-2 vs. USF (1-2 in Tampa).
... be less good than a win.
 
 
UP NEXT:
The Shockers play their conference home opener Wednesday, Dec. 30 against ECU (6 p.m. CT, ESPN+) then head back out on the road Jan. 2 at Ole Miss and Jan. 6 at Houston.
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