Men's Basketball | 2/16/2025 4:54:00 PM
By
Paul Suellentrop
Bijan Cortes called it his favorite shot from a lifetime of basketball, 323 shot attempts in 91 college games.
If that one remains alone at the end of his career, Cortes will own a great memory, and one Wichita State fans will join him celebrating.
Wichita State knocked off No. 14 Memphis 84-79 in overtime on Sunday at Koch Arena to win its fourth straight game. The 45-minute effort offers the strongest evidence yet that the Shockers are playing a tougher, smarter, grittier type of basketball than in January.
"It's an accumulation of tough plays," forward
Harlond Beverly said. "We outrebounded them by nine. The toughest plays really pay dividends."
The Shockers (15-10, 5-7 American Athletic Conference) made the tough plays on Sunday. They didn't make a whole lot of shots – and then Cortes sank the biggest three-pointer of the game. His shot from the left wing – over Memphis big man Moussa Cisse – gave the Shockers a 78-77 lead with 1:12 to play.
Seemed like a lot of time to go. Beverly disagrees.
"That was a huge shot," he said. "I knew this was our game."
Cortes, a senior point guard, ranked it as the hugest of his career.
"For sure," he said. "Seeing the whole community and everyone that was in Koch showing us the love and giving us that momentum. I really enjoyed that."
Cortes missed the previous two practices due to the flu bug that's running through the team. Sunday at 8 a.m., he got a quick update on new plays and rolled into the starting lineup. The three-pointer was not his only contribution. He expertly ran the ball screens to get into the lane and torment the Tigers. Cortes finished with 13 points, four assists and no turnovers.
"He's not going to be required to practice anymore," coach
Paul Mills said. "Show up on game day, and we'll play you."
The shot delivered WSU's first win over a ranked opponent since defeating No. 6 Houston in 2021. It sent a crowd home happy and with more reason to believe than at any time this season.
"That's a heck of a shot, especially given the length of the on-ball defender," Mills said.
After Cortes' shot, the Shockers needed to continue making tough plays.
Quincy Ballard blocked a shot to preserve the lead.
Corey Washington muscled his way to the basket off a deceptive set for an 80-77 lead. Washington made two foul shots with 19 seconds to play for an 82-79 game.
That forced the Tigers to shoot a three – instead of driving to draw a foul – and a tight contest by Beverly forced an airball by Tyrese Hunter. Two free throws by
Xavier Bell with four seconds remaining sealed the win.
What might get overlooked in the fun of the Washington rebounds, the
Ronnie DeGray III hustle and the Ballard dunks is that the Shockers believed they could win because of the 61-53 loss at Memphis on Jan. 23. That game – which they led 51-49 – showed them the path to beating the Tigers – the AAC's most talented and most expensive team. The Tigers give up open shots. The Tigers thrive on turnovers and foul shooting. The Tigers surrender way too many offensive rebounds.
All effective. The Shockers knew the weaknesses and won those statistics. They won after trailing by eight with 12:05 to play and 71-67 with 38 seconds remaining. Memphis (21-5, 11-2 AAC) led 75-71 after scoring the first four points of overtime.
The Shockers out-rebounded Memphis 54-45, 19-16 on offense. That helped the Shockers to 18 second-chance points and took away a few fast-breaks from the Tigers. The Shockers, after turning ball over 22 times in the first meeting, cut that to eight and starved Memphis of layups, dunks and momentum.
Wichita State outscored Memphis 20-15 at the line. That helped balance out Memphis' edge from the three-point line.
"We were resilient," Mills said. "There is a way that you have to play in order to give yourself a chance night in and night out. I'm happy our guys have done that."
Cortes shot is the big memory from a memorable Sunday at the arena featuring a 1965 Final Four reunion. The Shockers know a lot of work remains to continue rising in the AAC standings. They travel to Florida Atlantic, winners of five straight, on Thursday before two home games.
They proved their February revival is real on Sunday against a certain NCAA Tournament team. They will need to prove its real again many more times. Mills and the Shockers talk like a team that knows how it needs to play.
"Nobody is putting any special value on a win," Mills said. "We need to be process-based. I know the results have not been what we want, but I can tell you what the process has been like every single day."
Paul Suellentrop writes about Wichita State athletics for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
