[7] WICHITA STATE (15-12, 6-9) vs. [10] TULSA (10-19, 4-14)
First Round | American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Championship
Thursday, Mar. 10, 2022 | No earlier than 2 p.m. CT
Fort Worth, Texas | Dickies Arena
 
TV: ESPNU w/ Kevin Brown & Mark Adams
Radio: KEYN 103.7 FM w/ Mike Kennedy, Dave Dahl & Bob Hull
Tournament Central: TheAmerican.org/MBB
Series: WSU leads 74-62 (2-0 in 2021-22); Last: Mar. 2, 2022 in Tulsa (WSU, 72-62)
 

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OPENING TIPS:

• The No. 7 seed Wichita State Shockers meet the No. 10 seed Tulsa Golden Hurricane in a first-round matchup at the Air Force Reserve American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Championship, Thursday afternoon at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.
• The game will tip off 30 minutes after the competition of the Cincinnati-ECU game (approximately 2:30 p.m. CT) and air nationally on ESPNU.
• The winner advances to Friday's quarterfinal round against No. 2 seed SMU (6 p.m. CT, ESPNU).
• The WSU-Tulsa clash comes just eight days after the last – a 72-62 Shocker victory in Tulsa.
• WSU swept the regular season series and has captured five-straight and 17-of-19 meetings going back to 2003.
• WSU will try to sweep three games from its longtime rival for only the second time in series history. The 1988 Shockers did it three times in a span of 16 days, capped by an MVC quarterfinal win in Peoria, Ill.
• This is the 137th meeting all-time between WSU and Tulsa and the seventh in a postseason setting. The teams split six MVC tournament games between 1984 and 1995, highlighted by Shocker victories in the 1985 and 1987 title games.
• WSU has won six of its last 11 games on the heels of an 0-4 conference start.
• Shocker teams have won at least one game in every conference tournament since 2009 and have advanced to 11-straight semifinal rounds (2010-17 MVC, 2018-19, 21 AAC).
• Third-year guard Tyson Etienne became the Shockers' first two-time All-AAC selection, earning third team honors. He's averaging a team-high 14.9 points and ranks second on the AAC's three-point field goal chart (2.73). Etienne scored his 1,000th career point on Feb. 27 and needs just two more threes to become the fourth player in WSU history with 200 career triples.
• Fourth-year guard Dexter Dennis is 19 points shy of 1,000 and was named AAC Defensive Player of the Year.
• Second-year guard Ricky Council IV (11.7 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.2) is the AAC's Sixth-Man of the Year.
• Fourth-year point guard Craig Porter Jr. ranks among the league's top-10 in assists (3.6), blocks (1.1) and steals (1.6).
• Fourth-year forward Morris Udeze (10.5 ppg) is No. 6 on the AAC rebounding chart (6.1). 

 

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A SHOCKER WIN WOULD….
... Make them 16-12 with three-straight wins.
... Move them into Friday's quarterfinal round against No. 2 SMU (6 p.m. CT, ESPNU).
... Give them at least one victory in 13-straight conference tournaments going back to 2009.
... Make Brown 2-1 in AAC tourney games.
... Be their sixth-straight vs. Tulsa and 18th in 20 tries.
... Make them 10-1 vs. Tulsa in the AAC era.
 
A SHOCKERS LOSS WOULD...
... Eliminate them from the tournament.
... Drop their record to 15-13.
... Be their first one-and-done from a conference tournament since 2008, snapping a string of 12-straight tourneys with at least one victory.
... Be their first to Tulsa since Feb. 1, 2020 and just their third in the last 20 meetings.
... Be less good than a win.
 

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AMERICAN TOURNAMENT ODDS & ENDS:

• This is the seventh year for the AAC tournament. The winner earns the conference's automatic bid to next week's NCAA Men's Basketball Championship.
• Each of the top-five seeds receive first-round byes. The other six teams will compete Thursday for the three remaining quarterfinal spots.
• SMU (2015 & 2017) and Cincinnati (2018 & 2019) are the only schools with multiple titles.
• Cincinnati has made four-straight title game appearances (2017-19, 21).
• The quartet of WSU, Cincinnati, Houston and Memphis have taken part in each of the past three semifinal Saturdays and Cincinnati and Houston have met in each of the last three finals. That can't happen this year with Cincinnati and Houston both in the same quadrant.

American Men's Basketball Championships, Year-by-Year:
2014 -- Memphis (FedExForum) – (2) Louisville def. (4) UConn, 71-61
2015 -- Hartford (XL Center) – (1) SMU def. (6) UConn, 62-54
2016 -- Orlando (Amway Center – (5) UConn def. (6) Memphis, 72-58
2017 -- Hartford (XL Center) – (1) SMU def. Cincinnati, 71-56
2018 -- Orlando (Amway Center) – (1) Cincinnati def. (3) Houston, 56-55
2019 -- Memphis (FedExForum) – (2) Cincinnati def. (1) Houston, 69-57
2020 -- Fort Worth (Dickies Arena) - No tournament (COVID-19)
2021 -- Fort Worth (Dickies Arena) – (2) Houston def. (5) Cincinnati, 91-54
2022 -- Fort Worth (Dickies Arena) --

• No. 1 seeds are 4-3 in semifinals games and 3-1 in the championship.
• Play-in teams are a respectable 6-14 in quarterfinal games. No. 1 seeds are 7-0, No. 2 seeds are 6-1 (the lone loss coming in 2016 when No. 10 Tulane upset No. 7 UCF and No. 2 Houston before bowing to Memphis). No. 3 seeds have the worst luck, losing to the No. 6 seed in five of the seven tournaments, most recently in 2019 when the Shockers upset Temple in the quarterfinal.
• No. 6 seeds are 7-0 in their tournament openers and 11-7 overall. 2018 Houston and 2021 Memphis are the only No. 3's that have won a game in the tournament and both were bounced in the semifinals. By contrast, UConn (2015) and Memphis (2016) both reached the title game as No. 6 seeds.
• No. 5 seeds also have a winning quarterfinal record (4-3 with three-straight wins). Cincinnati reached the title game in 2021 and UConn won the whole thing in 2016.
• UConn is the only No. 4 to reach the title game. The Huskies were runner-up in 2014 but went on to win the national title three weeks later.

 
A DEADLY SEVEN:

• WSU will try to become the first seven seed to reach the semifinal round in the AAC tournament. No. 7's are 3-5 in first round games and 0-3 in quarterfinals.
• This is WSU's fourth time as a No. 7 seed in a conference tournament and first in 13 years. Shocker teams are 1-3 with their lone victory coming in the most-recent go-around over No. 10 seed Missouri State in a 2009 MVC tournament play-in game.
• In 41 conference tournaments, WSU has made 24 semifinal appearances (including this active run of 11-straight). However, all but one semifinal trip has come as a top-4 seed. The 2019 Shockers were the exception, reaching the AAC semis as a No. 6.

 
DICKIES ARENA:

• This is the second official go-around for Dickies Arena as tournament host. It was originally set to host the 2020 AAC tournament, but the event was canceled on the morning of the first round due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Its debut, instead, came in 2021.
• The $540 million facility opened in November, 2019.
• It seats approximately 13,300 for basketball and -- at the time of its construction -- featured North America's largest 360-degree screen: 105 feet across (longer than the width of the court) and 26 feet tall.
• The arena will make its debut as an NCAA tournament host next weekend as part of First & Second Round action.
• On Dec. 6, 2019, USC used a last-second tip-in to defeat TCU, 80-78, in the arena's first-ever basketball game.

 
FORT WORTH NOTING:

• Wichita State's campus is 363 miles away (or a little over five hours by car) from Dickies Arena. Other area schools: SMU (40 miles), Houston (268), Tulsa (310) and Memphis (496).
• WSU has had a handful of Fort Worth natives on its roster over the years, including one of its all-time greats, Nate Bowman. The 6-10 center out of Kirkpatrick High School teamed with Dallas native Dave Stallworth to lead the Shockers to their first NCAA tournament appearance in 1964, Six years later, they joined forces again on the New York Knicks' 1970 NBA Championship squad.
• The Shockers are 1-3 in Fort Worth with a pair of losses at TCU (1949 and 2008) and last year's 1-1 split at the AAC tournament.

 
WICHITA STATE IN CONFERENCE TOURNAMENTS:
WSU has won each its last 12 conference tournament openers and played in 11-straight semifinals.
From 1977 to 2017, WSU competed in 38 Missouri Valley Conference tournaments, going 35-34 with seven finals appearances and four titles (1985, 1987, 2014 and 2017). Notably, the first two came at the expense of Tulsa on its home floor.
This is WSU's fourth go-around in the AAC tournament. The Shockers are 4-3 with three semifinal appearances.
 
2021 – Fort Worth, Texas - No. 1 Seed - 1-1, Semifinals
WSU won the regular season crown but still had work to do on its NCAA tournament resume. The Shockers avoided a quarterfinal-round disaster against No. 8 seed South Florida, overcoming a 12-point deficit in the final 12:00 to win 68-67. Tyson Etienne scored 20 points and Morris Udeze made a game-saving defensive play, drawing a charge in the lane with four seconds to play… WSU's magic ran out the following day in a 60-59 semifinal loss to No. 5 Cincinnati. Alterique Gilbert scored a game-high 14 points but missed a game-winning 30-footer at the buzzer… A tense 27 hours followed, but WSU landed on the right side of the NCAA bubble, earning a trip to the First Four.
 
2020 – Fort Worth, Texas – No. 4 Seed -- Canceled
The Shockers trounced Tulsa in the regular season finale to lock up the No. 4 seed and the final first-round bye. Bracketologists were divided over the Shockers' position on the NCAA bubble but all agreed that WSU would need a win (or possibly two) to make the field. We'll never know. The AAC tournament was called off on the morning of the first round over COVID-19 concerns.
 
2019 – Memphis, Tenn. – No. 6 Seed – 2-1, Semifinals
A young WSU team played its best basketball down the stretch (finishing 10-8 after a 1-6 conference start) and continued that trend in Memphis with two wins as the No. 6 seed and a near upset of No. 2 Cincinnati in the semifinals. After making short work of No. 11 ECU in the first round (73-57), WSU rode the hot hand of Markis McDuffie (34 points) and Dexter Dennis' 19 points and 12 rebounds to an 80-74 win over No. 3 Temple. On semifinal Saturday, the Shockers rallied from a 13-point second half deficit to tie the game at 63, but the 25th-ranked Bearcats added a layup and a free throw in the final 30 seconds to escape, 66-63. The tournament run was enough to land WSU one of the last-remaining NIT spots, and the Shockers made good with road wins over the top-three seeds (Furman, Clemson and Indiana) to reach the NIT semifinals.
 
2018 – Orlando, Fla. – No. 2 Seed – 1-1, Semifinals
The Shockers came within a shot of winning the AAC regular season title and suffered more heartache in their first AAC tournament. Landry Shamet scored 24 points on 6-of-8 three-point shooting to lead an 89-81 quarterfinal win over No. 7 seed Temple, but WSU struggled to contain Houston's Rob Gray (33 points) in the semifinals, losing a 77-74.
 

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THE SHOCKS, IN SHORT:

• Wichita State's American Athletic Conference title defense hasn't gone according to plan, but second-year head coach Isaac Brown's squad has both the talent and the momentum necessary to make a run this weekend in Fort Worth.
• After an 0-4 start to league play, WSU won six of its last 11 game to climb to the No. 7 seed.
• The Shockers are led by two-time all-conference selection Tyson Etienne (14.9 ppg, 2.73 3FGM/game). Last year's co-player of the year settled for third team honors in 2022, but his willingness to play the role of decoy has played a big part in WSU's second-half offensive improvement.
• With AAC Defensive Player of the Year Dexter Dennis locking up opponents' top perimeter threats, the Shockers have been strong defensive squad (No. 45 in KenPom) but struggled to score the ball early in the year. That narrative has slowly shifted over the past few weeks with the emergence of Ricky Council IV and Craig Porter Jr. as consistent scoring weapons.
• The 6-6 Council (AAC Sixth Man of the Year) was the league's highest-scoring reserve at 11.7 points. He's capable of creating his own shots (and knocking them down) from all three levels.
• Porter, a springy 6-2 point guard, is a stat-sheet stuffer who rebounds, distributes and even protects the rim. He leads the team in the rare combo of assists (3.6), blocks (1.1) and steals (1.6).
• Dennis, a 6-5 wing, averages 8.3 points and has regained his shooting stroke over the past month. He ranks seventh on WSU's all-time three-point list and needs just 19 more points to reach 1,000.
• Dennis and forward Morris Udeze are the grizzled veterans (both in their fourth year with the program).
• The 6-8 Udeze is an unorthodox, yet effective post presence, averaging 10.5 points and a team-best 6.1 rebounds. He's a career 56% shooter who uses his strength and quickness to put opponents at a disadvantage.
• Every team needs a glue guy, and 6-7 Abilene Christian transfer Joe Pleasant plays that role for the Shockers at power forward. The son of a former NFL defensive end is a rock-solid defender with a high basketball IQ.
• WSU's bench provides a Swiss Army Knife of skills:
• Udeze platoons with talented true freshman Kenny Pohto at center. The Swede is still filling out his 6-11 frame but runs the floor well and stretches defenses with his three-point shooting ability.
• Point guard Qua Grant (a two-time Division II All-American who led West Texas A&M to a national runner-up finish last spring) is a terror in the open floor, averaging an AAC-best 2.7 steals-per-40-minutes.
• 6-7 sophomore forward Monzy Jackson is the frenetic energy guy, often deployed by Brown when the team needs an emotional lift.
• Second-year guard Chaunce Jenkins adds additional scoring punch as a backup shooting guard.
• Dennis and Council's versatility gives WSU an explosive, four-guard lineup when Pleasant and Jackson sit.

 
ALL GAFFES, NO BREAKS:

• The bounces often went the Shockers' way last season, but this year has been the opposite. Five of WSU's conference games have been within a possession at some point in the final 60 seconds. All five were losses.
• The Shockers have held double-digit leads in five of their 11 losses this year; three of them in AAC play.
• WSU has taken two of the NCAA NET's top-4 teams to overtime this year (No. 2 Arizona and No. 4 Houston).

 
TRENDING:

• Excluding 2020, WSU has played in eight of the last nine NCAA tournaments, the lone exception being 2019 when it advanced to the NIT semifinals. If they're to dance in 2022, the Shockers will need to do something they haven't done all season: win four-straight games.
• The finale against ECU marked the eighth time this season that the Shockers have forced double-digit steals. They had a season-high 15 at Memphis on Feb. 27.
• In conference play, Craig Porter Jr. averaged a league-best 2.14 steals (30 in 14 games). He tied a school record with seven in the Feb. 27 contest at Memphis.
• Five of WSU's 12 non-conference opponents went on to win their league's regular season title: Arizona (PAC-12), North Texas (CUSA West), Jacksonville State (A-SUN West), Norfolk State (MEAC) and Alcorn State (SWAC).
• Second-year Ricky Council IV has always been a scoring threat, but lately he's been stepping up with greater consistency. He's led the scoring in seven of the last 11 games and is averaging 14.5 points over that stretch.
• That 11-game stretch coincides with the end of WSU's COVID-19 pause. The Shockers were 0-4 in conference play on the heels of a Jan. 16 home loss to Cincinnati and had to postpone the next two. A 10-day layoff may have helped refocus the team. WSU is 6-5 since.
• The Shockers forced just three turnovers in the Mar. 2 game at Tulsa -- fewest by a WSU opponent in 17 years (3 at Creighton on 2/1/05).
• Tulsa's 19 rebounds in that game were the fewest by a Shocker opponent since Dec. 22, 2014 when WSU limited Loyola Marymount to 19 in a quarterfinal victory at the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu.
• WSU made 15-of-18 (.833) free throws at Tulsa marking the 10th time in 26 games this year that the Shockers have made at least 80% of their freebies. They're on pace to set a school record for free throw percentage (.749) edging out the 2011-12 squad (.748).
• Tyson Etienne topped 10 points in each of the last 10 regular season games. He's notched 20+ points on seven occasions, and his next 20-point game will be the 20th of his Shocker career.
• Morris Udeze drew 11 Tulsa fouls on Wednesday night. That ties for the most by a Shocker in the three seasons that the NCAA has tracked fouls drawn as a box score statistics.
• Udeze now qualifies for WSU's career field goal percentage list. His .560 would rank second all-time, sandwiched in between a pair of Shocker legends:  Xavier McDaniel (.564) and Antoine Carr (.557).

 
THREES COMPANY:

• Tyson Etienne (198 career threes) and Dexter Dennis (175) are both in the top-10 on WSU's career triples list.
• Etienne needs two more to become just the fourth player in school history with 200.

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. Tyson Etienne (2019-Pr.) -- 198
5. Terrell Benton (1998-02) -- 197
6. Jason Perez (1996-00) -- 196
7. Dexter Dennis (2018-Pr.) -- 175

 
ON THE WAY TO 1K:

• Tyson Etienne became the 48th member of WSU's 1,000-point club on Feb. 27 at Memphis.
• Dexter Dennis needs just 19 more to become No. 49 and would be just the seventh Shocker guard with the combo of 1,000 points and 500 rebounds.

 
SHOCKERS ON THE AAC LEADERBOARDS:

• Tyson Etienne ranks sixth on the AAC scoring chart (14.9 ppg), fifth in minutes (34.4) and third in threes-per-game (2.73). The latter would be the second-highest season average in Shocker history behind the 2.96 he made last year.
• Ricky Council IV was a 63.6% free throw shooter last year as a true freshman (35-of-55). This year he's knocking them down at an 83.8% clip (83-of-99). That percentage is fourth on the league leaderboard (min. 2.5 FTM/game).
• Morris Udeze is sixth on the AAC rebounding chart (6.1). An 11-rebound effort at Memphis on Feb. 27 was his second game this season with double-digit boards and the fourth of his Shocker career.
• Craig Porter Jr. ranks among the league leaders in assist-to-turnover ratio (6th, 1.90), assists (7th, 3.64) and blocks (8th, 1.12) and steals (10th, 1.56).
• Porter would be the first player in The American's nine-year history to rank among the top-10 in both assists and blocks. Cincinnati's Jacob Evans in 2017 (3.1 APG, 13th & 1.0 BPG, 10th) and Memphis' Dedric Lawson in 2016 (3.3 APG, 13th & 2.1 BPG, 4th) came the closest.

 
CRAIG PORTER: RIM PROTECTOR:

• More than 200 Division I players average at least a block-per-game, but the 6-foot-2 Craig Porter Jr. is the shortest of them all.
• Porter has blocked at least one shot in 21 of his 25 games this year, including an active run of six-straight.
• Earlier this year, Porter strung together 11-straight games with at least one block -- longest by a guard in the 42 years that WSU has tracked game totals.

 
TYSON 333333333333333333333333TIENNE:

• Tyson Etienne has connected on at least one triple in 24-straight contests. That's the fifth-longest streak in school history.

WSU All-Time // Consecutive Games w/ 3-Point Field Goal:
40 -- Conner Frankamp (1/1/2017 to 1/28/2018)
29 -- Landry Shamet (12/17/2016 to 11/22/2017)
27 -- Ron Baker (11/18/2014 to 2/22/2015)
25 -- Ron Baker (4/6/2013 to 2/5/2014)
24 -- Tyson Etienne (11/16/2021 to Present)

 

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SCOUTING TULSA:

• Tulsa is in its eighth season under Frank Haith.
• The Golden Hurricane won a share of the 2020 American Athletic Conference title with a 13-5 mark but slid to seventh-place last spring (7-9) and 10th this year (4-14).
• KenPom.com considers the Hurricane one of the 20 unluckiest teams in the nation (339th out of 358), based on a formula that compares expected win total (based on statistics) to actual production.
• Perhaps their luck is beginning to turn. The Hurricane improved to 2-10 in games decided by five points in either direction with Jeriah Horne's buzzer in the regular season finale (1-7 AAC).
• Tulsa has a powerful one-two scoring punch in Horne (a senior forward) and sophomore guard Sam Griffin.
• The 6-7 Horne returned to Tulsa in the off-season after a year at Colorado where he helped the Buffs to an NCAA tournament appearance. He leads the team in scoring (16.2), rebounding (6.8), blocks (20), steals (38) and minutes (33.6) and averages 2.2 threes on 41.4% accuracy.
• The 6-3 Griffin spent the last two seasons at UT Arlington. He's putting up 14.4 points. Griffin takes almost a third (31.8%) of the Tulsa shots when he's on the floor -- tops in the AAC and the 41st-highest percentage nationally.
• Horne and Griffin have combined to hit 124 of the team's 198 three-pointers.
• Opponents have made 36.5% of their threes against the Hurricanes this season. Compare that to 2020, when Tulsa won a share of the AAC title by holding foes to 29.9% from deep.
• Tulsa relies on a zone defense. 39.0% of opponent points come from three-pointers (10th-most nationally).

 
MATCHUP MASHUP:

• Tulsa freshman Sterling Gaston-Chapman is the younger brother of WSU walk-on guard Steele Gaston-Chapman. The duo helped lead Campus High School to an undefeated 2019-20 season. The Colts won their quarterfinal game at the Class 6A tournament (played at WSU's Charles Koch Arena) but the remainder of the event was canceled due to COVID-19.
• Sterling has appeared in 14 games for Tulsa, while older brother Steele elected to redshirt this season.
• Tulsa senior Darien Jackson was teammates with WSU's Joe Pleasant at Blue Valley Northwest High School. In 2017 (Jackson's senior year and Pleasant's junior year), the pair won the Class 6A state title (alsoplayed at WSU's Charles Koch Arena).

 
THE SERIES WITH TULSA:

• Wichita State and Tulsa have squared off 136 times since 1931.  Tulsa is WSU's third-most-played opponent behind Drake (151) and Bradley (142). The teams have met in each of the last 12 seasons going back to 2010.
• The Shockers lead the series, 74-62 and have won 17 of 19. They're 9-1 in the AAC era.
• Isaac Brown is the 15th different head coach to lead the Shockers into battle against Tulsa
• WSU is 11-2 against Frank Haith (coach No. 19 on the Tulsa side, in case you were wondering).
• Tulsa's lone AAC era win came two years ago (Feb. 1, 2020) on an Elijah Joiner buzzer-beater.
• Tulsa has won three of the four neutral court matchups. WSU's lone victory came in the 1988 MVC Tournament. Tulsa picked up a pair of Arch Madness wins in the 1990s and edged the Shockers in the 1958 All-College Tournament in Oklahoma City.

 
MEMORABLE SERIES MOMENTS:

• The Shockers and Golden Hurricane were conference rivals in the Missouri Valley from 1945 to 1996. Following Tulsa's MVC exit, the schools played 14 non-conference games over a 21-year span. WSU's 2017 move to The American reunited the two.
• Though the series dates back over 88 years, the rivalry really heated up in the early 1980s when Gene Smithson's Shocker teams battled Nolan Richardson and Tulsa for MVC supremacy. Three of WSU's all-time great played during the "MTXE" Era (after Smithson's trademark slogan, Mental Toughness eXtra Effort): Cliff Levingston, Antoine Carr and Xavier McDaniel. Tulsa countered with a fearsome full-court press and the likes of Paul Pressey, Mike Anderson and Steve Harris.
• WSU got the last laugh in its final game against Richardson in the MVC tournament championship (Mar. 9, 1985 at the Tulsa Convention Center). McDaniel  (who led the nation in scoring and rebounding that year) scored 34 points on 15-of-19 shooting and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead the Shockers past No. 17 Tulsa, 84-82.
• Despite coaching changes on both sides, the rivalry continued. On Mar. 4, 1987, WSU again stunned top-seeded Tulsa with a 79-74 overtime win in the conference title game. The '87 MVC tournament was the first with a three-point line, and the Shockers took full advantage of the new rule, knocking down 8-of-10 from beyond the arc.
• On Feb. 27, 1988, Joe Griffin's corner three – in the air just before time expired – forced double-overtime where the Shockers claimed a 79-78 victory.
• Tulsa dominated with 13-straight wins between 1993 and 2002, but the series took a dramatic turn following the completion of the Roundhouse Renaissance.
• On Dec. 20, 2003 – the first meeting at the newly renovated CKA – WSU finally stopped the slide, winning 66-58 behind recent Pizza Hut Shocker Sports Hall of Fame inductee Jamar Howard's 23 points. That started a run of seven-straight Shocker victories.
• The series returned in 2010 when Tulsa was guest of honor for the first-ever basketball game at downtown INTRUST Bank Arena (Dec. 21, 2010). Justin Hurtt hit six of Tulsa's 14 threes (both are still arena records), but the Shockers held on for an 82-79 win.

 
2021-22 REGULAR SEASON MEETINGS:
 
Feb. 1, 2022 in Wichita | WSU 58, TLS 48
Ricky Council IV scored all 11 of his points in the second half to help WSU pull away… Tied at 37 with 11:02 to play, the Shockers outscored the Golden Hurricane 21-4 over the next 10 minutes… Sam Griffin scored a game-high 17 points to lead Tulsa, which managed just 18 second-half points and lost for the 10th-straight time in Wichita… WSU shot a season-low 32.2% but held Tulsa to 32.6%, including 26.3% in the second half… The Shockers won the turnover battle, 17-10, and knocked down eight three-pointers to Tulsa's four… Morris Udeze accounted for four of WSU's nine blocks… Tyson Etienne scored all 10 of his points in the first 10 minutes to help WSU build a 21-11 lead.  Griffin keyed a 12-0 Tulsa counterpunch and hit a jumper 4 seconds before halftime to give Tulsa a 30-29 edge… WSU's defense stepped up in the second half. Griffin had just three more points the rest of the way, while Dexter Dennis limited Tulsa leading scorer Jeriah Horne to two points on 1-of-11 shooting… WSU turned to Council in the second half to finally solve Tulsa's zone defense.  The 6-6 guard scored seven of WSU's eight points over a two-minute stretch that pushed a three-point lead to 11 with 6:45 to go…
WSU led by as many as 17 points. Tulsa had managed just 12 points on three field goals before nailing back-to-back threes in the final 34 seconds.
 
Mar. 2, 2022 in Tulsa | WSU 72, TLS 62
WSU out-rebounded Tulsa, 43-19, and picked up its first conference road win in six tries… Tyson Etienne scored a game-high 18 points for the Shockers, who led by three near the midway point of the second half before mounting a 10-0 run… Reserve guard Qua Grant scored the last two baskets in that push. He matched his season-high with 13 points in 18 minutes… Morris Udeze sank all nine of his free throw attempts (a career-high) to finish with 15 points and eight rebounds… Jeriah Horne and Darien Jackson shared high-scoring honors for Tulsa (9-19, 3-13), which committed just three turnovers – all in the second half. The Hurricane shot 41 percent for the game but missed 15 of their 18 three-point attempts… WSU shot a season-best 49.1% from the field and knocked down 15-of-18 free throws… The Shockers shot 56% in the opening half despite playing the final 13 minutes without point guard Craig Porter Jr. (foul trouble). Grant filled in ably with nine first-half points on 4-of-4 shooting, including the final basket in a 9-1 run that sent the Shockers into halftime with a 38-29 cushion.