Men's Basketball | 1/15/2026 12:41:00 PM

By Paul Suellentrop
 
The allure of Kenyon Giles scoring 33 points on 17 shots is that he is one of the unlikeliest of the 49 members of Wichita State's 30-point club.
 
Giles is a 5-foot-10 guard who thrives on long three-pointers and step-back jumpers over taller defenders. Many of his shots fit into the "No, no, no – Yes!" category of shot selection, until he makes them with such frequency the doubts fade. For the season, he averages 18.6 points and is shooting 42.6 percent from three-point range and 47.2 percent on two-point shots.
 
As his performance in Sunday's win over North Texas shows, Giles' confidence, hours of practice and natural gifts make him such a dangerous scoring threat opposing defenses design their entire plan around the smallest person on the court.
 
Wichita State (10-7, 2-2 American) plays at Florida Atlantic (11-6, 3-1) at 8 p.m. Thursday (ESPN2).
 
On Sunday, Giles made 13 of 17 shots, all four of his three-pointers and all three of his free throws, to record an offensive efficiency rating of 180 according to Ken Pomeroy's advanced statistics. That is the best Pomeroy score of the 10 30-point games by a Shocker since Pomeroy started tracking that stat for individuals during the 2012-13 season.
 
In addition to shooting accuracy, the Pomeroy stat rewards turnover performance and Giles committed one in 40 minutes. Second is the 165 registered by Cleanthony Early in his 31-point performance in a 2014 loss to Kentucky. He made 12 of 17 shots, 4 of 6 threes, and had no turnovers.
 
Sunday's game, however, was not Giles' best Pomeroy score of the season. He gave fans an early look at his skills by making 7 of 8 threes and all three of his foul shots to score 24 points in 21 minutes in a win over Loyola in the third game of the season. That registered a 243 offensive rating.  
 
 

Had a dream that KG absolutely cooked last night 💭🤔 pic.twitter.com/w4qVnkQwue

— Wichita State Men's Basketball (@GoShockersMBB) January 12, 2026

 
 
In 1907, Percy Bates scored 31 points in a 41-12 win over Lewis Academy for what was then called Fairmount College. No Shocker reached that mark between 1921 and 1952, when Cleo Littleton set the school scoring mark with 37 points in a 66-63 win at Creighton.
 
Since then, almost every high-profile Shocker from Dave Stallworth to Paul Miller to Landry Shamet hit 30 at least once.
 
Giles is newest member of the group that scored 30 or more in 133 games over the history of the program. While defenses are determined to throw up a roadblock, he is the kind of scorer who can hit that mark again.
 
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.