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Chaunce Jenkins

Shockers Welcome New and Old Rival, North Texas

12/17/2021 12:55:00 PM

NORTH TEXAS (6-3, 0-0 CUSA) at WICHITA STATE (8-2, 0-0 AAC)
Saturday, Dec. 18, 2021 | 3:02 p.m. CT
Wichita, Kan. | Charles Koch Arena (10,506)
 
Tickets: GoShockers.com/Tickets or 316-978-FANS (3267)
TV: ESPN+ w/ Shane Dennis & Bob Hull
Radio: KEYN 103.7 FM (GoShockers.com/Listen) w/ Mike Kennedy & Dave Dahl
Live Stats: ShockerStats.com
Series: WSU leads 26-11 (16-3 in Wichita) | Last: Dec. 4, 1982 in Wichita (WSU, 78-72)
 
Promotions:                
Wichita's fastest crawlers go bald-head-to-bald-head at WSU's first-ever halftime Baby Race.
Kids can take their picture with "Santa Wu" at a special Holiday photo booth.
 
 
OPENING TIPS:
  • Past and future conference rival North Texas comes to Wichita for a Saturday matinee at Charles Koch Arena.
  • The Shockers and Mean Green were both members of the Missouri Valley from 1957-75. UNT recently accepted in an invitation to join The American.
  • WSU leads the all-time series 26-11 (16-3 in Wichita). This is the first meeting since Dec. 4, 1982 when the Shockers defeated UNT in the McDonald's Shocker Classic title game at then-Levitt Arena.
  • WSU is 3-0 against 2021 NCAA tournament teams (@Mizzou, @Oklahoma St., Norfolk St.) and now takes on a fourth. UNT earned Conference USA's auto bid last year and upset No. 4 seed Purdue in the first round.
  • Matt Braeuer, starting point guard for the 2006 Sweet 16 Shockers, is now an assistant coach at UNT.
  • The Mean Green (6-3 and winners of four-straight) rank sixth nationally in scoring defense, surrendering just 55.4 points-per-game.
  • WSU set season-highs for points (82) and assists (20) in Tuesday's 82-63 win over Alcorn State, led by big men Morris Udeze (15 points, six rebounds) and Kenny Pohto (14 points, eight rebounds, three steals).
  • The Shockers are 5-0 this year at the Roundhouse and have 14-straight going back to last December (tied for the ninth-longest streak in the building's 66 seasons).
  • Going back 10 years to the Fall of 2011, the Shockers are 64-3 in non-conference regular season games at CKA.
  • KenPom rates the Shockers 32nd nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency. 23.3% of opponent possessions end in turnovers (32nd nationally). Foes are shooting just 27.7% from three (29th) and less than 40% overall.
  • WSU has yet to allow more than 70 points in regulation.  The Shockers have held six of their 10 opponents under 60 -- something they did just four times all last year.
  • On Tuesday, Tyson Etienne (team-high 14.8 ppg) became the fastest Shocker to 150 career threes (62 games), breaking Landry Shamet's mark by seven games.
  • Udeze (11.3 ppg, team-high 5.9 rpg) has scored in double-figures in each of the last five contests (a new personal-best) and is averaging 15.6 points on 63% shooting over that span.
  • Craig Porter Jr. has 13 assists with just one turnover over his last two games. He had a career-high seven against Norfolk State.
  • WSU is 6-0 this year when out-rebounding its opponent and 14-0 overall under Isaac Brown.
 
 
LAST TIME OUT:
Dec. 14 at Charles Koch Arena | WSU 82, Alcorn State 63
  • WSU's platoon of centers loomed large.
  • Morris Udeze scored a team-high 15 points and grabbed six rebounds, while freshman Kenny Pohto set new personal-bests with 14 points, eight boards and three steals in 19 minutes off the bench.
  • The Shockers outscored the smaller Braves, 46-16 in the paint and enjoyed a 43-30 rebounding advantage.
  • Oddyst Walker scored 16 to lead Alcorn, which was playing the ninth in a string of 16-consecutive road games to open the season.
  • The Shockers set season-highs for points (82) and assists (20). They shot 46.3 percent from the field.
  • Ricky Council IV added 12 points and go with 11 from Dexter Dennis. Point guard Craig Porter Jr. handed out six assists in 19 turnover-free minutes.
  • Reserves accounted for 40 of the 82 points.
  • Playing in just his 62nd career game, Tyson Etienne became the fastest Shocker to 150 threes – seven games ahead of Landry Shamet's school-record pace.
  • The Shockers put forth their best scoring half of the young season with 44 first-half points on 51.6% shooting. They took a 14-point lead into the locker room.
  • Alcorn hit a series of jumpers and pulled within seven on Walker's three with 13:04 to play, 55-48.
  • WSU answered with a 17-5 run, fueled by second-chances. They grabbed 13 offensive rebounds in the second half and held a 27-17 edge on the glass.
  • WSU's 22-point lead with 2:00 to play was its largest of the year, to date.
 
 
ON THIS DATE: DEC. 18
1961 – Lanny Van Eman's jump shot with three seconds to play gave the host Shockers a 52-51 win over No. 2 Cincinnati at WU Fieldhouse and snapped the defending national champion's 27-game winning streak. The Bearcats had the ball with a one-point lead late when Wichita's Jerry Kittiko drew a charging foul on UC's Larry Shingleton.
1971 – Ron Harris exploded for 45 points and 19 rebounds in a 91-83 win over Southern Illinois. Harris played all 40 minutes and was 16-of-20 from the field and 13-of-15 at the foul line.
 

TRENDING:
  • 6-foot-3 Tekele Cotton dunked 18 times as a senior in 2014-15 – most by a Shocker guard in a single-season.  Ricky Council IV is on pace to shatter that mark with eight through the first 10 games.
  • Morris Udeze needs three more dunks to move into the top-10 on WSU's all-time list. He has 41 currently.
  • It's no coincidence that Udeze's most-effective stretch of the season coincides with a dip in turnovers. The big man committed at least three in each of the first six contests but has totaled just three over the last four games.
  • According to Isaac Brown, Udeze has gotten more comfortable dealing with double teams and is reacting more quickly and decisively on the low block.
  • Speaking of turnovers, the Shockers have won that battle in eight of their 10 contests. Average margin is +2.5.
  • The Dec. 5 loss to K-State wasn't especially easy on the eyes (8 assists vs. 14 turnovers), but it may have served as a wakeup call. In the aftermath, Brown spent a week of practice emphasizing ball movement and execution. The results have been encouraging:
  • The Shockers tallied 38 assists on 56 baskets while committing just 20 turnovers in wins over Norfolk State and Alcorn State. Prior to that, they had ranked among the worst in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio (0.83).
  • Shocker points guard Craig Porter Jr. (13 assists, 1 turnover) and Qua Grant (5 assists, 2 turnovers) have combined for a 6.00-to-1 ratio in the two wins (compared to 1.15 in the first eight games).
  • Good passing unlocked easy baskets. The Shockers totaled 11 dunks and registered two of their three-highest shooting percentages of the young season (.455 vs. NSU and .463 vs. Alcorn).
  • Dexter Dennis scored in double-figures in both contests. He had just two in the first eight games of the season. Likewise, forward Joe Pleasant averaged 7.0 points (up from 2.6).
  • With so many close games, Brown has had limited opportunities to develop his bench, so Tuesday's win over Alcorn proved valuable. The Shockers built a 17-point lead late in the first half, allowing him to find extended minutes for his reserves, most notably Chaunce Jenkins, who had appeared in just 10 minutes over the past month. The second-time freshman clocked 11 on Tuesday and finished with four points and three rebounds. He's appeared in three-straight games, serving primarily as a backup to Tyson Etienne at shooting guard.
  • Saturday is Brown's 33rd game as Shocker head coach. A win would make him the fastest to 25 wins in the program's modern era -- two games ahead of Gary Thompson's 1965 pace.
 

HOME IS WHERE THE HEAT IS:
  • The Shockers are 5-0 at Charles Koch Arena this year.
  • Their five foes have combined to average just 57.5 points on 40.5% shooting. None scored more than 63.
  • The Shockers are shooting just 42.0% at CKA but have  been excellent at the foul line, outscoring opponents 70-45 on 80.5% accuracy (70-of-87).
  • The Shockers have also won the turnover battle in all five contests by an average of 4.6-per-game.
  • WSU has won its last 14 games at Charles Koch Arena. That streak started one year ago exactly (Dec. 18) with a victory over Emporia State.
  • WSU has won 64 of its last 67 non-conference games at CKA going back to the Fall of 2011. Two of those losses came last December (Mizzou and OSU) when crowds were limited by COVID-19 restrictions. The other came against Louisiana Tech in the 2019-20 season opener.
 
 
THREES COMPANY:
  • Dexter Dennis and Tyson Etienne are both rocketing up WSU's all-time three-point field goal list.
  • Dennis (152) needs one more three to match David Kyles for ninth-place.
  • Etienne is just two behind Dennis. On Tuesday night he became the fastest Shocker to 150 (62 games) -- seven games faster than Landry Shamet's record pace from four years ago.

WSU Career Leaders // 3-Point Field Goals Made:
1.Randy Burns (2001-05) – 248
2.Ron Baker (2012-16) – 242
3.Sean Ogirri (2004-07) – 200
4.Terrell Benton (1998-02) – 197
5.Jason Perez (1996-00) – 196
6.Conner Frankamp (2015-18) – 164
7.Markis McDuffie (2015-19) – 160
8.Landry Shamet (2015-18) – 159
9.David Kyles (2008-12) – 153
10.Dexter Dennis (2018-Pr.) – 152
11.Tyson Etienne (2019-Pr.) -- 150

 
 
SCOUTING NORTH TEXAS:
  • The Mean Green won the 2020 Conference USA regular season title (the school's first conference crown in 31 years) but missed out on a potential postseason run due to COVID-19. They made up for it in 2021 by the winning the CUSA tournament title and earning the program's first-ever NCAA tournament victory (78-69 in overtime over No. 4 seed Purdue).
  • Fifth-year head coach Grant McCasland will look to continue that success in 2022, despite the loss of three starters.
  • 6-foot-6 fifth-year senior Thomas Bell is the team's leading scorer (13.2) and rebounder (6.4) and defensive stopper.
  • The other returning starter, 6-2 junior Mardez McBride, is averaging 8.9 points while clocking a team-best 31.9 minutes.
  • 6-5 second-time freshman Rubin Jones (9.3 points in 30.9 minutes) made the CUSA's all-rookie team last year and has stepped into a larger role this year.
  • Starters play the lion's share of the minutes (77%) for UNT, but Coffeyville CC transfer Tylor Perry has been a major weapon off the bench, averaging 12.8 points and 1.7 steals in just over 28 minutes. Perry was the MVP in Coffeyville's run to the NJCAA national title last spring. At UNT, he's been the team's best shooter, connecting on 18 threes with 45% accuracy and 31 of his 34 free throw attempts (.912).
  • The Mean Green are out to a 6-3 start. Two of their losses came on consecutive days to Kansas and Miami at the ESPN Event Invitational in Orlando and the other came at home against Buffalo. Their best win came on the final day in Orlando when they knocked off Drake (NET No. 112). That victory started their current four-game winning streak.
  • This is the first true road game for UNT.
  • The Mean Green rank among the top-10 nationally in scoring defense (55.4, 6th as of Thursday), helped in part by their ability to slow the pace. According to KenPom, UNT ranks 356th out of 358 teams in tempo, at 62.7 possessions-per-game. Only Southern Illinois (61.6) and Virginia (59.6) average fewer. WSU ranks 209th at 67.8 possessions.
  • UNT is 6-0 when holding its opponent under 60 points, compared to 0-3 in all other games. The Mean Green surrendered 69, 71 and 69 points respectively in losses to Buffalo, Kansas and Miami.
  • UNT has blocked just 16 shots in nine games (14th-fewest nationally).
 
MATCHUP MASHUP:
  • UNT was formally accepted as a new member of the American Athletic Conference on Oct. 21, along with Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, Rice, UAB and UTSA. The official start date for those six schools has not yet been announced.
  • WSU isn't the only future AAC foe on the Mean Green schedule. They'll face Tulsa on a neutral floor in Oklahoma City on Dec. 21.
  • The WSU and UNT women also play this weekend (6:30 p.m. Friday in Denton).
  • The Shockers hired former head coach Harry Miller away from North Texas in 1971 after just one season. Miller spent the next seven years in Wichita, highlighted by an MVC title and NCAA tournament in 1976.
  • UNT assistant Matt Braeuer played four seasons for the Shockers (2004-08) and launched his coaching career as a WSU graduate assistant (2008-10). Braeuer was starting point guard on the 2006 Sweet 16 team, which won an MVC title (the school's first in 23 seasons) and ended an 18-year NCAA tournament drought. He currently ranks 14th on the all-time assist chart (308) and is tied for 16th in career three-pointers (130).
 
THE SERIES WITH NORTH TEXAS:
  • WSU leads the all-time series 26-11. This is the first time the schools have met on the hardwood since December, 1982 when the Shockers defeated UNT in the championship game of the McDonald's Shocker Classic.
  • The schools were MVC rivals from 1957 to 1975.
  • The Shockers have won six straight against North Texas in Wichita and are 16-3 all-time.
  • The most-impressive of the three Mean Green wins came in 1963 over a Shocker team that came in ranked No. 8 nationally, 69-67.
  • UNT's last win at the Roundhouse came in the semifinals of the 1982 McDonald's Classic over District Columbia. Robert Lewis' putback at the buzzer gave the Mean Green an exciting 74-73 victory.
  • UNT's last appearance came the following day in the championship game. Zarko Durisic scored a career-high 30 points and the Shockers edged the Mean Green, 78-72.
  • UNT last defeated the Shockers at the Roundhouse in March, 1970. Shocker Radio analyst Dave Dahl was a senior on that WSU team.
  • The Shockers are 10-8 against UNT in Denton but are winless at the Super Pit (est. 1973-Pr.).
  • WSU's last visit actually came during the 1976 NCAA tournament when the Shockers lost to 14th-ranked Michigan, 74-73, on Rickey Green's 20-foot jumper with six seconds to play.
 
OTHER MEMORABLE SERIES MOMENTS:
Feb. 2, 1961 – Gene Wiley recorded the first 20-20 game in Shocker history, finishing with 32 points and 21 rebounds in a 105-58 win.
Mar. 1, 1962 – The Shockers set a new single-game scoring mark in a 110-69 victory. The record held for over two years.
Feb. 6, 1971 – Terry Benton grabbed a school-record 29 rebounds in an 84-81 win at Levitt Arena.
Dec. 4, 1982 – In the most-recent matchup between the schools, Zarko Durisic scored a career-high 30 points and the Shockers edged the Mean Green, 78-72, in the McDonald's Classic title game.
 
###
 
A SHOCKER WIN WOULD….
... Improve their record to 9-2 w/ three-straight wins.         
... Make them 6-0 at CKA with 15-straight wins (tied for the seventh longest in the building's 66 seasons).
... Extend their series lead to 27-11 and make them 17-3 against UNT in Wichita with seven-straight wins.
... Make them 109-10 in non-conference regular season games at CKA since its 2003 renovation (.915).
... Give Isaac Brown his 25th career win (fastest to that milestone in the program's modern era).
 
A SHOCKERS LOSS WOULD...
... Drop them to 8-3.
... Be their first at the Roundhouse since Dec. 12, 2020 (Oklahoma St.) and end a 14-game win streak.
... Be just their 11th non-conference regular season loss at CKA since its 2003 renovation (108-11).
... Narrow WSU's series lead to 26-12.
... Be just the fourth UNT win at the Roundhouse in 20 tries (4-16) and first since 1970.
... Be less good than a win.
 
UP NEXT:
  • The Shockers finish up the non-conference portion of their schedule Wednesday evening against Prairie View A&M (6 p.m. CT, ESPN+).
  • Prairie View is the three-time defending SWAC champion. WSU has won all three series matchups, most recently in 1999.
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