WICHITA STATE (1-9) vs LOYOLA MARYMOUNT (4-3)
Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025 | 2:30 p.m.
Wichita, Kan. | Charles Koch Arena
TV: ESPN+
Radio: GoShockers.com/Listen with Pat Strathman
 
 
OPENING TIPS
Wichita State looks to snap a nine-game losing streak Saturday against Loyola Marymount in The Roundhouse
The Shockers and the Lions meet for just the third time in program history with Wichita State winning both meetings, including one a season ago under Terry Nooner's leadership in Los Angeles.
The Shockers are coming off a 52-56 heartbreaker loss to Maryland Eastern Shore last Friday in Charles Koch Arena.
Jaila Harding is leading the Shockers in scoring with 12.3 points per game, while Abby Cater is chipping in 8.7 per game.
Harding is one of the best three-point shooters in the nation, ranking 22^nd in made threes with 29 and leading the conference with 2.9 per game.
Jaida McDonald and Maimouna Sissoko lead Wichita State on the boards with 4.9 and 4.8 rebounds per game, respectively.
The Shockers rank fourth in the American Conference in field goal percentage defense, holding opponents to 39.1 percent shooting.
Wichita State is averaging 9.1 steals per game, recording 21 in its win over Lincoln, good for fifth in the American.
Taya Davis ranks fourth in the conference in total assists with 37 and seventh in assists per game, averaging 3.7.
Abby Cater ranks fifth in the conference in total steals with 20, averaging 2.0 per game.
 
STREAKS & TRENDS
All but two wins in the Terry Nooner era have come when holding opponents to less than 70 points, including nine of the 10 wins last season.
Ninety percent of Terry Nooner's wins have come when outrebounding the opponent.
Harding has finished in double figures in eight of the first 10 games.
Harding has hit two or more threes in eight of the first 10 games and at least one in 10-straight.
Taya Davis has dished two or more assists in six of the first 10 games.
Jaida McDonald has grabbed five or more rebounds in seven of the first 10 games, leading the team in rebounding four times.
A Shocker has yet to finish with double figure rebounds this season.
Wichita State opponents have attempted 67 more free throws and made 48 more free throws than the Shockers this season.
The Shockers have been outrebounded in the last five-straight games. They were +19 on the boards in their win over Lincoln.
 
THE SHOCKS, IN SHORT
The Shockers return just 9.6 percent of their scoring from last season but bring an abundance of experience to the court with eight graduate students on the roster, tying ULM for the most graduate players on a Division I roster this season.
With only one underclassman on the roster, the Shockers are 93 percent upperclassmen, the second-highest percentage of upperclassmen in the NCAA (DI), and they bring 44 seasons of combined collegiate basketball experience.
Wichita State returns Bre'Yon White, the Shockers' second leading rebounder from last season, who grabbed 154 boards, averaging 4.8 per game  but lost its top four scorers.
For the third-straight season, Nooner has brought a Wichita native home for their final season of collegiate basketball – Tre'Zure Jobe in 2023-24, Taylor Jameson in 2024-25, and now Jaila Harding, who shot 35.7 percent from behind the arc both of her last two seasons at New Mexico State.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Wichita State led for more than 27 minutes, but a cold-shooting fourth quarter proved costly as the Shockers fell, 56-52, to Maryland Eastern Shore on Friday evening in Charles Koch Arena. The Shockers controlled the opening half behind efficient scoring and a strong defensive presence, taking a 34-29 lead into the locker room after shooting 50 percent and forcing 10 turnovers across the first two quarters. Bre'Yon White provided an early spark off the bench, pouring in eight first-half points on 4-of-5 shooting. Wichita State held off the Hawks through the third quarter, using baskets from Diamond Richardson and Jaida McDonald to stay in front, 45-44, heading into the final frame. Richardson finished with a team-high and Division I career-high 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting to go with three made free throws, while McDonald delivered another steady all-around effort with six points, five rebounds and three assists. UMES flipped the momentum in the fourth, holding the Shockers without a field goal for more than five minutes. The Hawks shot 55.6 percent in the final frame and were guided by Brianna Barnes' 11 points and Lainey Allen's 12-point, 10-rebound double-double performance. Ashanti Lynch nearly had a double-double of her own, chipping in 10 points and nine rebounds. Wichita State clawed within two in the final minute, but the Hawks' defense held firm as the Shockers were limited to just seven points in the fourth quarter.
 
SERIES VS. LOYOLA MARYMOUNT
The teams meet for just the third time in program history with the Shockers leading the series 2-0. This is their first meeting in Charles Koch Arena.
 
LAST MEETING
Wichita State claimed its first road win of the 2024-25 season with a 68-56 win over Loyola Marymount on Dec. 15, 2024 in Gersten Pavilion. The Shockers led by as many as 25 in a wire-to-wire win over LMU, shooting 45.8 percent from the field and ending the Lions' six-game win streak. Three Shockers finished in double figures as Jayla Murray and Salese Blow each scored 14, and Princess Anderson put up 11, shooting 3-for-3 from behind the arc. Murray also grabbed six rebounds and dished out four assists, and Blow had four rebounds, four assists and zero turnovers. Aicha Ndour led the Shockers on the glass with seven rebounds, and Ornella Niankan tallied nine points, shooting 7-for-8 from the line,  with six rebounds and four assists. The Shockers protected the ball well, committing just eight turnovers, a season low, and recording 16 assists. Wichita State played great defense, holding LMU's leading scorer this season, Naudia Evans, who averaged 15.6 points entering the game, to nine points, and held the Lions to a season-low 56 points. Seven different Shockers scored early on their way to the team's highest scoring first quarter of the season, giving Wichita State a 22-13 lead after one. Loyola Marymount cut the Shockers' lead to five in the second quarter before Wichita State went on a 13-2 run to end the quarter, as the Lions were unable to make a field goal for the last 6:14 of the period. Wichita State opened the second half with back-to-back Murray jumpers to spark an 8-0 run and take a 25-point lead. The Lions chipped away, hitting five of their six three pointers in the second half and going on a 12-2 run to come within nine late in the fourth quarter, but it was too little, too late as Niankan hit free throws down the stretch to seal the win for the Shockers.
 
SCOUTING THE LIONS
Led by fifth-year head coach Aarika Hughes, Loyola Marymount is 4-3, coming off a 63-58 home win over Utah State last Friday. The Lions lead the WCC in free throw attempts per game (19.86) and made free throws per game (13.00) and rank second in scoring defense (57.7) and turnovers per game (16.1). Two Lions are averaging double figures, led by Maya Hernandez with 15.1 points per game and Jess Lawson with 13.6 per game. Lawson is also the team's leading rebounder with 7.6 per game. Andjela Matic ranks third in the nation in minutes per game, leading the WCC with 37.09. Hernandez ranks third in the WCC in field goal percentage (51.7 percent) and free throws (33), white Lawson ranks third in the WCC in steals per game with 2.14. LMU was picked ninth of 12 teams in the WCC Preseason Poll. Hernandez was named to the WCC Preseason Team.
 
THE MAIN DISH
Taya Davis is described as a true pass-first point guard, leading the Shockers in assists with 3.7 per game. Through nine games, Davis ranks fourth in the conference in total assists with 37.
 
TREY-LA HARDING
Jaila Harding is the best shooter on Wichita State's roster, shooting 36.7 percent from beyond the arc. The graduate transfer and Wichita native leads the conference in threes per game with 2.9, hitting five three different times against Lincoln, Western Kentucky and UC Irvine. Her 29 total threes this season are on track to land her on Wichita State's all-time top-10 list. The record is held by Courtney Sims at 73, while the No. 10 mark is 47, performed by Carla Bremaud and Tisharria Huggins.
 
C.A.R.E. PILLARS
Coach Nooner emphasizes the value of team culture, recruiting student-athletes who fit in with the team's core values of character, accountability, respect and effort.
 
INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
Wichita State's roster features four foreign players, two from France, Sophie Benharouga and Fiona Diomande, one from Mali, Maimouna Sissoko, and one from Cameroon, Bella Belong.
 
THEY HAVE HISTORY
Two newcomers reconnect with former coaches as Taya Davis played for current Wichita State assistant coach Antwain Scales from 2022-23 in his final season as head coach at Garden City CC, and Sophie Benharouga played for current director of operations and assistant coach Uyen Tran from 2022-23 while she was an assistant coach at Morehead State.
 
UP NEXT
The Shockers continue their homestand on Tuesday, Dec. 16 against Oral Roberts at 11:00 a.m. on Kids Day in Charles Koch Arena.