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RH: AJ McGinnis
AJ McGinnis

RH: Competition Rises in Second Summer with Paul Mills

8/13/2024 9:53:00 AM

By Paul Suellentrop
 
Ten Shockers own two or more seasons of NCAA Division I experience. The roster totals seven players with NCAA Tournament experience. Eight Shockers own a career-high game of 18 or more points.
 
Wichita State's roster is stocked with experience and people accustomed to playing significant minutes and in significant games. It is also the second summer for eight Shockers under coach Paul Mills. They know how practices operate, and they know the expectations. The adjustment period between coaches and players is in the past for many Shockers.
 
"It's a lot faster-paced," forward Ronnie DeGray III said. "We're competing for minutes. There are more guys here that that's their nature. Really competitive guys."
 
Over summer workouts, which ended in late July, that meant strong competition with evenly matched teams and drills. The backcourt might be the best example, where Mills appears to enjoy plenty of options for ball-handlers and scorers at both guard spots.
 
Xavier Bell returns after playing 30.3 minutes a game and averaging 11.3 points. Point guard Bijan Cortes started the season's final 18 games. Newcomer Justin Hill played in all 37 games and led Georgia with an average of 3.2 assists last season. Freshman point guard Zion Pipkin starts his college career with a strong summer.
 
On the wing, returner Harlond Beverly averaged 15 points over his final six games. Newcomer AJ McGinnis, a transfer from Lipscomb, averaged 13.2 points and made 39.3 percent of his threes last season.
 
"Pretty intense," McGinnis said. "Nobody wants to lose, especially because you have to run if you lose."
 
   

Practices rarely bogged down due to inexperienced athletes who slowed the tempo or presented mismatches. A year ago, the intensity of some practices dropped from a lack of depth and understanding of the new way of doing things.
 
"I didn't walk away from a single day this summer and think that," Mills said. "The separation between (player) 15 and 1 is not as big of a gap, maybe, as it was other teams I've been around."
 
DeGray and Beverly usually played together in scrimmages. They maintain they rarely lost.
 
"All the guys, you can tell they love to play," Beverly said. "Nobody wants to lose. Nobody is OK with losing."
 
Two newcomers made strong impressions with their energy and competitive spirit. Junior forward Corey Washington is a transfer from St. Peter's (N.J.) and one of the Shockers with NCAA Tournament experience.
 
"He does everything," DeGray said. "Rebounds. Shoots, scores. His motor keeps on going."
 
Pipkin, from Houston, quickly earned a reputation as an annoying defender willing to harass dribblers the length of the court. Mills compares him to Jose Alvarado, of the New Orleans Pelicans, known for his quick hands, quick feet and pesky nature on defense.
 
"He's very assertive," Mills said. "He is a water bug offensively - that ball is going to get advanced up the court as quickly as possible. The place where he really made his impact was defensively, simply because he extends it to 94 feet. It's different than a lot of freshmen."
 
Coaches emphasized defensive drills and concepts heavily over the summer. WSU ranked fifth, per Ken Pomeroy's statistics, in defensive efficiency in the American Athletic Conference at 103.6 points per possession, ranking No. 121 nationally. It held opponents to 32.7 percent from three-point range and 48.1 percent inside the arc.
 
"The main focus was that we needed to make sure defensive fundamentals are in place," Mills said. "We were fifth in our conference defensively last year and we need to be better. That's what's going to give us a chance to win."
 
Paul Suellentrop writes about Wichita State athletics for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
 
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