The RoundHouse | 1/14/2023 6:48:00 PM

 By Paul Suellentrop

Wichita State coach Isaac Brown, after running through all options, asked who wanted to guard Sam Griffin.       
 
Brown said all five of his Shockers raised their hand, which made him feel good about the desire. He went with senior Craig Porter Jr. on Griffin for the game's crucial possession and Porter produced the game's biggest play.
 
"An older guy, who's been through the wars," Brown said. "I felt like he was going to be locked in and going to be able to contest high. He has a tremendous knack for blocking shots."
 
Porter hit all those marks in the possession that led to Wichita State's 73-69 win over Tulsa on Saturday at Koch Arena. With the Shockers down one point, he guarded Griffin – 11 of 16 with 25 points at that moment – for a possession that felt make-or-break.
 
Porter combines jumping ability and a knack for timing to block shots in at a rate few 6-foot-2 guards can match. He added a big one to his resume on Saturday to help the Shockers finish off another big rally.
 
On Sunday, the Shockers trailed USF by 14 points before winning 70-66. Six days later, Wichita State trailed by 16 early in the second half and 69-66 with 1:56 to play before finishing the game with a 7-0 run.
 
Griffin tried to drive to the basket with Porter alongside. When Griffin stopped to shoot a pull-up jumper from just outside the lane, Porter read his intentions and swatted the attempt to teammate James Rojas.
 
"I tried to make him make a decision based on how I was going to guard him," Porter said. "He did exactly what I wanted him to, exactly what I knew he would."
 
 

JP puts us in front!!@JPIERRE5_ x @ESPNPlus

📺 https://t.co/IIheFmjXjN pic.twitter.com/JxtMJX2910

— Wichita State Men's Basketball (@GoShockersMBB) January 14, 2023

 
 
Porter has plenty of experience watching Griffin last season, when he hit the Shockers for 17 points at Koch Arena and 21 in the American Athletic Conference Tournament. WSU held Griffin to three points at Tulsa.
 
On Saturday, Griffin, a junior guard, got rolling early and helped Tulsa (4-12, 0-5 American) build 41-27 halftime lead. In the second half, his teammates faded and Griffin scored 11 of his 25 points to keep Tulsa alive.
 
Everyone knew Griffin would get the ball in the final minutes as the Hurricane attempted to hold onto a game they led for more than 37 minutes.
 
"I just wanted to win," Porter said. "I (guarded) him at the crucial moments when it mattered and I felt like he had his all-time confidence. I know most of his moves, playing against him the last two years. It's taking that initiative and showing these guys when you hunker down and play defense like the Shockers do, you're going to get stops."
 
Porter's block led to a layup by Jaron Pierre Jr., that gave the Shockers (9-8, 2-3) a 70-69 lead with 1:10 to play. The Hurricane wilted against the Shocker defense with two turnovers and did not get off a shot until the final second.
 

Three the old-fashioned way, three the ✨modern✨ way@XavierBell03 rattles off six quick ones and the deficit is back down to five.

📺 https://t.co/IIheFmjXjN pic.twitter.com/5sUwuH5NmJ

— Wichita State Men's Basketball (@GoShockersMBB) January 14, 2023

The Shockers wore down Tulsa with foul shots and tougher defense in the second half. Wichita State made 15 of 17 free throws in the second half, 23 of 26 total. After watching Tulsa get comfortable and make open shots in the first half – 9 of 13 from three-point range – the Shockers dialed up their defense. Tulsa slumped to 11 of 30 from the field and 1 of 9 from three in the second half.
 
"We didn't defend the three-point line," Brown said.
 
The Shockers did many things better in the second half. They limited their turnovers to four. They scored on breaks after Tulsa missed. They scored on inbound plays and – most important – drove to the basket to take advantage of Tulsa's foul trouble.
 
Xavier Bell came off the bench to score 10 points in 15 minutes, all in the second half. Jaykwon Walton scored 19 points and made all seven of his foul shots, including two with nine seconds to play. James Rojas drew six Tulsa fouls, made 5 of 7 free throws and scored 11 points with 10 rebounds and five assists.
 
"Once we realized we were in the bonus – I told everybody to drive to the rim every," Porter said. "They couldn't guard any of us."
 
The Shockers, wearing the 1980's MTXE-era jerseys, defeated Tulsa for the 11^th straight time in Wichita and improved to 10-2 against the Hurricane as AAC opponents.

Paul Suellentrop writes about Wichita State athletics for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.