WICHITA – Wichita State snapped its four-game losing streak with a 63-60 win over Tulane in the American Athletic Conference opener Saturday afternoon in Charles Koch Arena.
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"We have a resilient team," head coach
Terry Nooner said. "They fight, they play hard, and they're never out of a game. When we get an extended amount of time to practice, we showcase well, so I'm happy they were able to show all the hard work they've been putting in in practice to our fans."
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In a game with 15 lead changes, the Shockers (5-8, 1-0 AAC) outlasted the Green Wave (7-5, 0-1 AAC) as
Tre'Zure Jobe led the scoring with 21 points and tallied a career-high eight assists, playing all 40 minutes.
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"Tre'Zure was huge," Nooner said. "This is what we expect from her. This is really her typical game. She has high expectations for herself, too, and this is how she expects to play and wants to play every single game, so it's good for her to come back home and let the people see what she's all about as a player."
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Wichita State held the Green Wave, a team which averages .337 from three, to just 4-for-21 (.019) from behind the arc, while the Shockers shot 7-for-21 to tie for the most made three pointers this season.
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The Green Wave won the battle of the boards, 40-35, marking the first time this season the Shockers have won a game in which they were out-rebounded.
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Tulane led 17-14 after the first quarter, but the Shockers won the next three quarters to finish on top.
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"This is the first game we put a complete 40 minutes together," Jobe said. "I'm really proud of the girls for sticking it out and not giving up and finishing out the win."
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The game was close from wire to wire with the biggest lead for either team being the Shockers' five-point lead in the fourth quarter.
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Jobe scored the Shockers' last eight points in the fourth quarter, hitting six free throws down the stretch to regain the lead.
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Up 61-60 with 28 seconds left, Jobe forced a turnover, picking Kyren Whittington's pocket and getting fouled on the other end. She hit one of two free throws, leaving the door open for the Green Wave with 24.5 seconds left.
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After a Tulane timeout to advance the ball, the Shocker defense applied pressure, and a bad pass that
Jeniah Thompson fell on gave the Shockers the ball back in a jumpball situation.
Jobe was fouled and found herself at the line again, hitting her first free throw to go up 63-60 as the second went in and out, and the Green Wave called another timeout with 2.8 seconds left on the clock.
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Tulane wasn't able to get a shot up as time expired, and the Shockers came away with its first win since Dec. 1.
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Ambah Kowcun played her most minutes since the season opener against Oklahoma, shooting 2-for-3 from three and tallying eight points for the Shockers.
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Daniela Abies led the team in rebounding for the eighth time this season with nine and scored seven points.
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Salese Blow and
Sierra Morrow also scored eight and seven points, respectively.
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Carla Budane scored her first points of the season in just her second appearance with two points in three minutes in the second quarter.
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Kyren Whittington led Tulane with 17 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
The Shockers head to the Lone Star State for road battles against Rice (6-5, 0-0 AAC) and UTSA (4-8, 0-1 AAC) on Jan. 3 and 6.