The RoundHouse | 2/29/2020 10:15:00 AM
One last time out of the tunnel and around the arena.
Seniors always start a countdown in their final days of competition – last home practice, last introduction, last road trip – in whatever order it comes. For three Wichita State women's basketball seniors, Saturday's game against Cincinnati (2 p.m. ESPN3) is their final time for those familiar routines at Koch Arena.
"I'm going to be really sad leaving this team," senior guard
Ashley Reid said. "I had a lot of fun on this team, more fun than on any other team."
The arena, the teammates, the fans, the coaches. From the last run out of the tunnel to the last lap around the seats to slap hands and hug fans, the seniors will try to savor their moment.
"What's going to stick with me the most is after the game, win or lose, we are giving the fans high fives around the roundhouse," senior forward
Raven Prince said. "Special people. They will stop and wait on us just to give us particular hugs. That's what I'm going to miss."
Guard
Maya Brewer started thinking about the senior game two weeks ago.
"It's a really special game day, because I feel like it's a day that we cherish, our last home game, last shoot-around, last everything at home," she said.
Prince, Reid and Brewer all came to Wichita State as transfers from junior college. Prince redshirted in 2017-18, coach
Keitha Adams' first season. Reid and Brewer joined her last season to give the Shockers an infusion of experience in Adams' second season, after the departure of a large senior class.
"We had eight seniors (in 2017-18), so we had to recruit and put a new team together," Adams said. "We were trying to get our team started and get going."
They are leaving Wichita State in better shape after helping new additions adjust to college. They will see their work continue on as sophomores such as
Carla Bremaud and
Seraphine Bastin and freshmen such as
DJ McCarty continue on.
"It's getting better, year by year," Reid said. "This year, we had more chemistry. They're just going to keep on improving."
With two regular-season games remaining, Wichita State (15-12, 7-7 American Athletic Conference) can finish with a winning record for the first time since the 2015 team went 29-5. It can match the 2018 team which debuted in the American and went 9-7 in conference play.
The final two regular-season games pit the Shockers against two of the three teams tied for second in the American – Cincinnati (18-9, 9-5) and UCF (17-9, 9-5) on Monday. The Shockers are in a three-way tie for fifth with Temple and Tulane.
The seniors filled different roles in building the Shockers. They all recognized their importance as experienced leaders.
"I think it all started in the spring, us building the chemistry with the whole team," Brewer said. "The freshmen, coming in, we welcomed them with open arms. We just meshed. It was easy for us play with each other, be with each other."
Some of that happened behind the scenes and some of it on the court, regardless of playing time.
"We have to come into practice as role models," Reid said. "I come into practice with a lot of energy, get everybody pumped up. We have to do our job in practice so we can do better in games."
Prince, from Oklahoma City and Butler Community College, started 20 games as a junior and all 27 this season. She scored a career-high 16 points in an 88-83 win over Oklahoma in November.
"Raven's been a really good defender," Adams said. "Talking out there, communicating on the floor. She's been a hard worker and competitive."
Injuries slowed Reid, from Wichita Falls, Texas and New Mexico Junior College, last season. Healthy this season, she took a leadership role in the summer and devoted hours to improving her shooting. Her example and voice made a difference.
She started six games this season and is shooting 42.9 percent from three-point range, up from 20.9 percent as a junior. In an 85-75 win at Temple, she hit 5 of 7 three-pointers to help Wichita State make a school-record 15 in early February.
Brewer, from Kansas City and State Fair (Mo.) Community College, started three games as a junior and four this season. She gives the Shockers a scoring spark off the bench, demonstrated by her 13 points at Houston, a career-high 19 at Temple and 15 at Tulane.
At Tulane, she scored 11 of her points in the second half and made a three-pointer with 22 seconds to play gave the Shockers the lead in a 69-68 win. At Temple, she made 5 of 6 threes.
"She's hit some big shots here in the month of February," Adams said. "She definitely showed that when she gets that hot hand and gets in the zone that she can score."
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
