The RoundHouse | 12/18/2025 6:18:00 AM

By Paul Suellentrop
 
Full speed ahead is Dre Kindell's usual mode. He did not need much coaching to correct a passive start to Wednesday's game.
 
"Dre was deferring," Mills said. "I told him, 'They know you're attempting to pass.'"
 
Kindell, a junior guard, quickly returned to his best asset – quicks deployed fearlessly – to help Wichita State defeat Wofford 84-73 at Koch Arena. Kindell scored 19 points, making 5 of 6 shots and 8 of 9 free throws, in 22 minutes off the bench.
 
"Dre is a blur," guard Kenyon Giles said.
 
The Shockers (7-5) never trailed and led by as many as 14 points. But the Terriers (7-5) refused to let the Shockers run away. Kindell, with nine first-half points and 10 in the second, stepped up revive an offense in need.
 
"We leveled up when Dre came into the game," Mills said. "We were passive. He gave us a spark."

Kindell started his scoring with a three-point play early in the game. He made his only three and turned it into a four-point play later in the first half. In the second half, he played determined, driving basketball and forced the Terriers to foul him in the lane. He made 4 of 5 foul shots in the second half and added two assists.
 
"My coaches and teammates were telling me I passed too much," Kindell said. "I was trying to create for myself and create for others."
 
Kindell, a transfer from Barton Community College, scored back-to-back baskets to give WSU a 47-40 lead early in the second half to stop a Wofford run. His steal and layup stopped a 5-0 Wofford run to put the Shockers up 57-49. In the final two minutes, he made all four of his free throws to help WSU put the game away.
 
 

Dre with the pick-6 💥@DreKindell | ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/oNZ7uy3w9O

— Wichita State Men's Basketball (@GoShockersMBB) December 18, 2025

 
 
Point guards need to get the ball to teammates. They also need to be a threat to score, or the offense bogs down. Kindell, after his chat with Mills, turned into a threat the Terriers could not handle.
 
"It was his aggressiveness that gave us a spark," Mills said. "Other than that first possession, he did a great job of maintaining paint touches and playing with force. If you're not a scorer as a point guard, and you're not going in to score, then people just fan out because they understand there's predictability there."
 
The Shockers made 10 of 13 foul shots in the first half. Then they faded at the line through much of the second half, forcing the crowd to relive Saturday's disaster at the line in the loss to DePaul. Kindell and center Will Berg, how made 9 of 10 free throws, got fouled at the right times late in the game to keep the scoreboard moving.
 
Giles and Michael Gray Jr., pitched in with long three-pointers to extend a six-point lead to 73-62. Gray added a three-point play for a 78-67 lead.
 
Wofford made the Shockers work, but Mills judged his team's response to the disappointment of losing to DePaul acceptable. Sunday night's video review, he said, featured plenty of accountability. The Shockers, Giles said, got in extra shooting practice this week. Kindell, Mills said, practiced on his own Wednesday at 8:30 a.m.
 
"You have to look in the mirror," Mills said. "Sunday's film session was a lot of guys owning up to the fact that we have to be better."
 
 

3-point play for #3@DreKindell | ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/0Tk5AaiuOk

— Wichita State Men's Basketball (@GoShockersMBB) December 18, 2025

 
 
Paul Suellentrop writes about Wichita State athletics for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
 
Season tickets are on sale now, and season ticket renewals are available as well. To purchase, visit GoShockers.com/Tickets, dial 316-978-FANS (3267) or stop by the Shocker Ticket Office, located inside Charles Koch Arena, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.