WICHITA STATE (15-10, 5-7) at FLORIDA ATLANTIC (15-10, 8-4)
Thursday, Feb. 20 | 8:00 p.m. CDT
Boca Raton, Fla. | Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena
 
TV: ESPN2 with Matthew Schumacker & Tom Crean
Radio: KEYN 103.7 FM with Mike Kennedy & Bob Hull
 

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OPENING TIPS
• The two hottest teams in the league square off Thursday night in Boca Raton on ESPN2 at 8 p.m. CT.
• Wichita State has won four straight conference games for the first time since March of 2021. After going 1-7 in January, Wichita State has gone 4-0 in February.
• Wichita State had lost 10 straight vs. ranked foes until the Shockers' OT win over #14 Memphis on Sunday. The last ranked win came on Feb. 18, 2021 vs. #6 Houston. Wichita State is 1-2 against Top 25 teams this season.
• Wichita State is coming off back-to-back games with 50+ rebounds. The last time Wichita State had consecutive games of 50+ rebounds was in 2005 (51 vs. Oklahoma Panhandle State; 53 vs. Texas Southern).
• The Shockers are outrebounding their last 4 opponents, 185-125, for an average of +15.0 per game.
• Corey Washington was named the Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week and American Athletic Conference Player of the Week on Feb. 17 after averaging 17.5 PPG, 13.5 RPG and 1.5 BPG.
• Xavier Bell has scored 10 or more in 15 of the last 17 games. Bell is averaging 15.3 points in conference play.
• Quincy Ballard's 8 double-doubles are third most in the American. Seven of those 8 have come in the last 14 games. Ballard's 76.8 effective FG Pct. leads the nation.
• Washington is riding a streak of 14 straight games in double figures after scoring 18 vs. Memphis. He recorded his second straight double-double 7th of the season vs. the Tigers with 18 and 15.
• Harlond Beverly was a standout vs. UTSA, finishing with 15 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.
• Ronnie DeGray III returned to action on Jan. 14 after missing nearly two months with a fractured wrist. He scored all 8 of his points vs. Charlotte in the 2nd half.
• Wichita State has a trio of 1,000-point scorers on the roster. Xavier Bell reached 1,000 career points on Dec. 17 vs. Kansas City and Harlond Beverly made it to 1,000 on Jan. 14 vs. Charlotte. Justin Hill has more than 1,500 career points.
• Ballard ranks 1st in the American in blocks per game (1.96) and ranks 29th nationally. His 47 total blocks also lead the league, while ranking 32nd in the NCAA.
• Ballard moved into 3rd on the Wichita State career blocks list vs. Memphis with 135. He's on pace to break the WSU career record for blocks per game at 1.99.
• Eight student-athletes on Wichita State's roster have NCAA Tournament experience: Quincy Ballard (Florida St.), Xavier Bell (Drexel), Harlond Beverly (Miami), Ronnie DeGray III (Missouri), Justin Hill (Longwood), AJ McGinnis (UNCG), Zane Meeks (San Francisco) and Corey Washington (St. Peter's).

THE SERIES WITH FLORIDA ATLANTIC
• This is just the fourth meeting all-time between Wichita State and Florida Atlantic.
• The last time the two teams met was on Super Bowl Sunday a year ago when Florida Atlantic came out with a 95-82 win in overtime. The Owls outscored the Shockers 21-8 in the extra session behind a 14-2 run in just over 3:00 minutes.
• A back and forth game saw nine ties and 11 lead changes. Neither team led by more than six until overtime when Florida Atlantic pulled away.
Xavier Bell (25) and Colby Rogers (21) combined for 46 points. Vladislav Goldin (20) and Brandon Weatherspoon (19) led the Owls. FAU was nearly perfect at the free throw line, going 20-for-22.
• In the first meeting as members of the American, Florida Atlantic erased an 11-point halftime deficit to win, 86-77, in Boca Raton.
• Florida Atlantic outscored the Shockers, 55-35, in the second half and shot nearly 60% from the field.
• Colby Rogers and Quincy Ballard both scored a team-high 18 points.
• Alijah Martin spearheaded the Owl comeback with a game-high 22 points and 9 rebounds.
• Wichita State won the only other matchup in the 1998-99 season opener back on Nov. 18, 1998 in Henry Levitt Arena, 88-85.
• The Shockers held off the Owls behind a pair of 20-point performances from Maurice Evans and Jason Perez.
• Evans finished with 24 points on 8-of-20 shooting to go with six rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks.
• Perez also added 24 points along with eight rebounds, three assists and two steals.
• Wichita State had no answer for Florida Atlantic's Damon Arnette who recorded a monster double-double with 28 points and 12 rebounds.
• Defense was optional that night as both teams shot better than 50 percent from the field. A good portion of the game was spent at the free throw line. The two teams combined for 54 fouls and 63 free throw attempts. Wichita State was 20-for-31 at the line and FAU, 25-for-32.
• The game also featured 50 turnovers between the two teams.

SCOUTING FLORIDA ATLANTIC
• Led by first year head coach John Jakus, Florida Atlantic enters the matchup at 15-10 and 8-4 in league play - its second year in the American Athletic Conference.
• Jakus brings a championship pedigree built from his time at premier programs as an assistant and director of operations with Baylor and Gonzaga, where he was led by two of the nation's best head coaches in Scott Drew and Mark Few.
• Jakus' 12 seasons at the Division I level has resulted in nine NCAA Tournament appearances, a 2019-2020 campaign in which they were ranked No. 5 in the nation before the season's cancellation, an NIT championship in 2013 and a national title in 2021.
• On Drew's staff for a total of nine seasons, and the associate head coach at Baylor since 2022, Jakus has helped lead the Bears' national resurgence. Highlighted by the program's 2021 National Championship title, Baylor has compiled a 217-86 overall record, a 100-58 mark in Big 12 Conference play, six NCAA Tournament appearances and two Sweet 16 appearances with Jakus on staff.
• A coach with strong international ties, Jakus gained extensive experience as a professional coach in Europe prior to joining the Baylor staff in 2012. He was head coach and assistant general manager of ABA Strumica in Macedonia (2010-11) and also worked with Athletes in Action as volunteer head coach for both NCAA and professional basketball trips and as international basketball head coach and director from 2005 to 2014.
• Florida Atlantic entered its second season in the American Athletic Conference ranked fifth in the preseason coaches poll.
• Sophomore forward Kaleb Glenn leads the team in scoring at 12.8 points per game on 54.8 percent shooting, while coming off the bench in every game this season.
• Junior forward Baba Miller averages 11.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. He is third in the American in blocks per game (1.7), behind Quincy Ballard.
• Redshirt junior forward Tre Carroll has enjoyed a breakout season, putting up 12.2 points and 5.4 rebounds.
• Graduate guard KyKy Tandy adds 9.8 points per game on 41.4 percent shooting from three-point range. He ranks fifth in the American in three-pointers (63).
• Junior guard Leland Walker leads the team in assists with 105, while adding 8.9 points per game.
• Niccolo Moretti is 11th nationally in assist-turnover ratio at 3.24.

CONNECT THE DOTS
• The Baylor connections run deep between the two coaching staffs at Wichita State and Florida Atlantic. Four members of the Owls' staff either played at Baylor or got their coaching start at Baylor.
• Wichita State head coach Paul Mills and Florida Atlantic head coach John Jakus are both branches of the Scott Drew coaching tree. Jakus spent two seasons as a graduate assistant on the staff at Baylor while Mills was an assistant coach (2012-14). Jakus is another in the long line of Drew assistants to join the head coaching ranks (Mills, Tang, McCasland).
• First year assistant coach Aditya Malhotra also got his start as a graduate assistant for the Bears from 2013-15 when Mills and Jakus were on staff. He would spend four seasons in Waco with Mills.
• Also on staff for the Owls is first year assistant coach Isaiah Austin, a former Baylor standout from 2012-14 when both Mills and Jakus were in Waco.

MILESTONE WATCH
• Quincy Ballard is 35 rebounds away from 500 in his collegiate career. He played his 100th career game on Jan. 29 vs. North Texas.
• Xavier Bell needs 2 assists to reach 200 for his career.
• Harlond Beverly is 3 games away from his 150th career game.
• Bijan Cortes is 16 assists away from 250 for his career. He played in his 100th career game on Jan. 18 vs. East Carolina.
• Ronnie DeGray III played his 100th career game on Feb. 9 at South Florida.
• Justin Hill is 7 assists shy of 500 for his career. He needs 3 more games to reach his 150th career game.
• AJ McGinnis is 60 points away from reaching 1,000 for his career.

WASHINGTON EARNS AAC, NATIONAL HONORS
• Following a pair of double-doubles and wins over UTSA and #14 Memphis, Corey Washington was one of five DI student-athletes to earn Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week on Feb. 18. He was joined by Auburn's Denver Jones, Eastern Michigan's Jalen Terry, Wisconsin's John Tonje and Texas Tech's JT Toppin.
• Washington opened the week as the American Athletic Conference Player of the Week on Feb. 17. Washington averaged 17.5 points, 13.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in the two games. He was the first Shocker to earn American POW honors since Dexter Dennis on March 8, 2021.

STREAK SNAPPED
• With Wichita State's win over #14 Memphis on Feb. 16, the Shockers snapped a 10-game losing streak vs. ranked opponents. Prior to the win, Wichita State's last victory over a Top 25 team came nearly four years ago on the day against #6 Houston on Feb. 18, 2021.
• Wichita State is now 1-6 against ranked teams under head coach Paul Mills. They are 40-47 against ranked teams at home all time, snapping a four-game losing streak.

GLASS CLEANERS
• During Wichita State's four-game win streak, the battle of the boards has been dominated by the Black and Yellow. Wichita State is averaging 46.3 rebounds per game, while its opponents are only grabbing 31.3 for an average of +15.0 per game. In total, Wichita State has 185 total rebounds compared to just 125  by its last four opponents (+60).
• Over the last two games Wichita State has had back-to-back games of 50+ rebounds. The Shockers had 54 against #14 Memphis and 50 against UTSA. The last time Wichita State posted consecutive games with 50+ rebounds was 2005 when the Shockers had 51 vs. Oklahoma Panhandle State on Nov. 18 and 53 vs. Texas Southern on Nov. 20.
• In Wichita State's win at South Florida on Feb. 9, the Shockers were a then season-best +20 (42-22) in rebound margin. The last time a Wichita State team outrebounded a Division I opponent by 20 or more was March 2, 2022 at Tulsa (+24). One game later Wichita State bested that mark by outrebounding UTSA by 21 (50-29). The 50 rebounds were a then season high until besting it in the very next game against Memphis with 54.
• The last time a Wichita State team had back-to-back games of a rebounding margin of +20 was Nov. 10, 2017 vs. UMKC (+28) and Nov. 13, 2017 vs. College of Charleston (+20).
• The 22 total rebounds are also the fewest Wichita State has allowed since that 2022 game at Tulsa when the Golden Hurricane finished with only 19 total rebounds.

TWO FOR THE ROAD
• Wichita State is coming off back-to-back road wins at Charlotte (Feb. 4) and South Florida (Feb. 9), the first time under Paul Mills Wichita State has won two straight conference road games. The last time Wichita State won consecutive conference games on the road was in 2023 on Feb. 16 and Feb. 26 at Temple and Tulane.

IT STARTS WITH DEFENSE
• Through 25 games Wichita State has allowed five opponents to score 88 or more points, which is the most since 1982-83. The Shockers are 0-5 this season when they allow 88+.
• The Shockers allowed 88+ points in each of the first three conference games. The last time Wichita State allowed three straight conference opponents to score 88+ was in 1978-79.
• During Wichita State's 1-7 start to begin conference play they were allowing 75.9 points per game and opponents were shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from beyond the arc. However, the defense looks to have turned a corner. Over the last four games Wichita State is giving up just 67.8 points on 40.4 percent shooting and 27.4 percent from three-point range. The Shockers are also outrebounding their opponents by an average of 15.0 per game.
• In Wichita State's 10 losses, the Shockers are allowing opponents to shoot 49.4 percent from the field and 45.2 percent from three-point range. In Wichita State's 15 wins opponents are shooting only 39.3 percent from the field and 27.7 percent from beyond the arc.

ON THIS DATE: FEB. 20
• 2019 – Visiting Wichita State rained down 15 threes on Tulsa's zone defense to tie the school's single-game record in an 81-60 thrashing at the Reynolds Center. Dexter Dennis (6-of-9) and Samajae Haynes-Jones (5-10) combined for 11 of them. Jamarius Burton (10 assists) became the first Shocker freshman in 46 years to hand out double-digit dimes.
• 2020 - Wichita State shot just 35.2% from the field, but was still able to hold off South Florida, 65-55, in the Roundhouse, thanks in large part to Jaime Echenique's 20 points, 9 rebounds, 4 blocks, 2 assists and 2 steals. Twelve of Echenique's 20 points came from the free throw line.
• 2022 - Wichita State took No. 14 Houston to double overtime in the Roundhouse only to come up two points short, 76-74. Ricky Council IV had a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double.

MEMPHIS LEFTOVERS
• Wichita State improved to 14-21 all-time vs. Memphis.
• The Shockers are now 59-148 all time vs. ranked opponents, snapping a 10-game skid to Top 25 teams.
• Wichita State moved to 2-0 in OT games this season.
• The Shockers grabbed a season-high 54 rebounds one game after pulling down 50 against UTSA. Wichita State has outrebounded its last four opponents, 185-125 (+60).
• Wichita State had 19 offensive rebounds. They have 54 over the last three games.
• Wichita State is 11-4 this season when outrebounding the opponent.
• Wichita State had a season-high 9 blocked shots.
• Wichita State committed a season-high 22 turnovers in the first meeting, but had just 8 in the win on Sunday.
• Justin Hill (toe) missed his fourth straight game.
• Xavier Bell registered his 19th game in double figures behind 12 points on a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line.
• Corey Washington recorded his seventh double-double of the season with 18 points and 15 rebounds. He extended his streak of games with 10+ points to 14 in a row.
• Quincy Ballard scored a team-high 19 points to go with 7 rebounds and 4 blocks. He has 15 games of 10 or more points this season.
• Bijan Cortes scored a career-high 13 points to go with a career-high 6 rebounds, 4 assists and no turnovers.
• Harlond Beverly reached double figures for the 11th time this season behind 11 points, 6 assists and 3 rebounds.
• Ronnie DeGray III pulled down a season-high 8 rebounds to go with 8 points and 3 assists.

OLD TIMERS
• With COVID still impacting eligibility, several schools around the country have multiple student-athletes on their rosters playing in their fifth, sixth and even seventh seasons. Wichita State is tied for second in the country with seven student-athletes in their fifth year or higher of collegiate basketball.

A SHOCKER WIN WOULD...                                                                     
... Make them 16-10 this season.
... Be their fifth straight win.
... Make them 6-7 in conference play.
... Move them to 2-2 all time vs. Florida Atlantic.
... Make Paul Mills 31-29 as Wichita State head coach.
... Give Mills 137 career coaching victories.
... Run their record to 1,688-1,274 all time.

A SHOCKER LOSS WOULD...                                                                     
... Make them 15-11 this season.
... Snap a four-game win streak.
... Drop them to 5-8 in conference play.
... Drop them to 1-3 all time vs. Florida Atlantic.
... Make Paul Mills 30-30 as Wichita State head coach.
... Lower Mills' career record to 136-114.
... Drop their record to 1,687-1,275 all time.

GAME 27: TULANE                                                                     
• Wichita State is 7-5 all-time vs. Tulane. This is the lone regular season meeting between the two schools this season.
• This is the second straight season Wichita State and Tulane only face off once in conference play.
• Picked to finish Tied for 11th in the preseason coaches poll, Tulane has been the surprise team in the league this season at 8-4.