The RoundHouse | 7/21/2022 4:28:00 PM
The Basketball Tournament is that rare combination of competition that is serious without too much stress. Meaningful, but not burdened by high stakes and history that drain joy from the proceedings.
For the AfterShocks,
Markis McDuffie is the man in charge of joyful basketball this weekend in TBT. They are all here to enjoy the tournament, the Shockers reunion and playing in front of fans in Koch Arena again. McDuffie gladly takes on the role of music man, hype man and dance leader.
"Markis is the person who loves positivity," teammate
Rashard Kelly said. "He wants to celebrate. He wants to win. He wants the fans to be able to interact with him while he celebrates. He just loves life."
The AfterShocks open TBT play against
We Are D3 at 8 p.m. Friday (ESPNU) at Koch Arena. The winner of that games plays at 7 p.m. Saturday against either Air Raiders (Texas Tech alums) or B1 Ballers.
On Thursday before AfterShocks practice, he greeted
Todd Fagan, Wichita State assistant director of sports medicine, with a big smile and yelling "T-O-D-D." McDuffie bounced around the court before practice hugging friends and laughing. Teammates told stories about McDuffie's love for fun, his music and his dance moves.
"That's just Markis – his energy, his laugh, his dancing," teammate Clevin Hannah said. "It gets everybody going. It keeps everybody in a good mood."
McDuffie, a 6-foot-8 forward who played for Wichita State from 2015-19, co-starred in the post-game celebrations last summer in TBT. He danced and led the team to move its placard on the bracket display after a win over the Blue Crew (Creighton alums) and again after a win over Team Challenge ALS.
"I enjoyed everybody doing it with me, connecting with me," McDuffie said. "They know that's my personality."
McDuffie shared ownership of the celebrations with guard
Conner Frankamp. Against Blue Crew, McDuffie's steal led to Frankamp's game-winning layup. Against Team Challenge ALS, Frankamp's three-pointer won it. He celebrated madly after both, which McDuffie immensely enjoyed.
"We try to get
Conner Frankamp to draw it out," he said. "That's the biggest thing. He showed a lot of emotion last year, more than we've ever seen. I'll take that."
Coach
Zach Bush laughed about a goofy McDuffie story in which he forgot that Bush was at team dinner in Dayton last year. When assembling his roster for this summer, Bush knew with whom to start.
"He's the first guy I call for TBT because I know he's going to be in," Bush said. "He doesn't even ask who's playing. He's in."
That personality carried McDuffie through his career at Wichita State. He earned Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year honors in 2016 and All-MVC honors in 2017. He helped the Shockers move to the American Athletic Conference and earned second-team All-AAC honors in 2019 by averaging 18.2 points and 5.0 rebounds.
Coaches and teammates loved his spirit. As a senior, his good attitude and leadership helped the Shockers save a difficult season and finish with a trip to New York for the NIT semifinals.
McDuffie played last season in Italy for Napoli Basket and has a contract for a team in the France Champions League, a step up for his career, he said. He enjoyed experiencing new environments and cultures in Europe. He developed an affection for cannoli, an Italian pastry.
"Every year, it's moving up," McDuffie said. "Making more money, I'll tell you straight like that. That's the goal. Basketball's not a long, long career, so you want to try to make the best of it."
Summer is a time to rest up and spend time with friends and family for professional basketball players. TBT is part of that for McDuffie – a fun way to play some serious basketball.
"We've got some money to chase," he said. "So, we know we've got to go out here and be focused. To be back with the guys I played with, battled with for years, there's nothing better than that."
For AfterShocks fans, nothing is better than watching McDuffie lead the team to the Koch Arena tunnel, dancing and smiling, to update the bracket and give himself another game to play.
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
