The RoundHouse | 1/4/2024 11:41:00 AM

By Paul Suellentrop
 
Wichita State enters a new-look American Athletic Conference as one of the veterans, for what's that is worth.
 
Six schools join the conference this season. There are eight holdover schools, including Wichita State, and three of those coaches are in their first season and three more in their second. Among the six newcomers, all from Conference USA, two coaches are in their first season.
 
That is a lot of new as teams begin the 18-game unbalanced conference schedule.
 
The Shockers (8-5) open their seventh season in the American against newcomer North Texas (7-5) and first-year head coach Ross Hodge at 8 p.m. tonight (Thursday) on ESPN2.
 
Even with the departure of heavyweight Houston and Cincinnati, the AAC is set up for multiple teams with NCAA Tournament resumes. The additions from CUSA include 2023 Final Four Florida Atlantic, NIT champion North Texas and NIT runner-up UAB.
 
No. 17 Florida Atlantic (No. 22 in the NCAA's NET ranking) and No. 15 Memphis (No. 41 NET) are both in good shape to earn NCAA bids. Both own strong wins (FAU over Texas A&M and Arizona; Memphis over Texas A&M, Clemson, Virginia and others). While the Owls took two mystifying losses (Bryant and Florida Gulf Coast), the Tigers are 11-2 with losses to Villanova and Mississippi).
 
SMU (No. 43) and North Texas (No. 90) are also in the top 100 of the NET, with Tulane (No. 103) and Wichita State (No. 112) not far behind.
 
For all that change, the demands of conference play are familiar. The pace quickens with multiple games most weeks. WSU will play eight times in January, including a stretch of four games in 10 days.
 
"After playing one game a week for the last four, you jump into conference," Wichita State coach Paul Mills said. "Then you've got another quick at noon Sunday vs. Temple. We're ready to get started."
 
According to warrennolan.com, WSU's non-conference strength of schedule ranks No. 53 nationally, behind FAU (No. 14), No. 10 Memphis and No. 51 Charlotte.
 
"You grow through these experiences," Mills said. "I think your players understand where you need to be in order to be competitive."
 
Tests against No. 2 Kansas, Kansas State and Missouri, Mills hopes, will pay off in January and February. In a 86-67 loss to Kansas, Mills watched a 14-all tie turn into a 38-24 KU lead. The Jayhawks, he said, knew their plan and never deviated. The Shockers struggled to match that focus and purpose.
 
"Because of those moments, you get to answer some questions," he said. "I thought there was an intentionality by (Kansas), and I think that's what we have to do. There has to be more intentionality about what we're trying to do out of a specific possession. I can tell you what the answer isn't – and it's not quick shots and it's not hurry and try to answer."
 
Mills wants to see the Shockers move the ball and bodies more crisply in transition to get better shots.
 
"It doesn't mean shooting the ball in the first four seconds," he said. "What it does is that there has to be ball movement and player movement within the first 10 and that doesn't happen by walking it up. We don't need to be as organized to in order to score. There has to be more flow from our guys."
 
North Texas is a tough team to move quickly against. The Mean Green rank No. 360 nationally in tempo and No. 332 in average possession length, according to kenpom.com. In 2021, North Texas came to Koch Arena and ground away at the Shockers in a 62-52 win with Hodge as assistant to current Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland. North Texas held the Shockers to 36-percent shooting and outscored them 16-8 at the foul line.
 
Paul Suellentrop writes about Wichita State athletics for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.