WICHITA STATE (5-16, 2-6 American) vs. UAB 7-13, 0-8 American)
Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026 | 2:00 p.m.
Wichita, Kan. | Charles Koch Arena
TV: ESPN+ with Shane Dennis and Tracy Anderson
Radio: KEYN 103.7 & GoShockers.com/Listen with Pat Strathman
 
OPENING TIPS
Wichita State is coming off back-to-back American Conference wins and looks to pick up a third-straight as they take on UAB on Saturday afternoon in Charles Koch Arena.
The Shockers and Blazers meet for just the sixth time in program history with Wichita State leading the overall series, 3-2, but UAB winning both previous meetings in Charles Koch Arena.
The Shockers concluded their non-conference slate with a 3-10 record, defeating Lincoln in the season opener and claiming back-to-back wins over Loyola Marymount and Oral Roberts in December. They picked up their first American Conference win against Memphis and took now the No. 2-ranked American Conference team on the road, defeating East Carolina, 63-54, last time out.
In the win over Memphis, Abby Cater poured in 42 points, breaking Wichita State's single-game scoring record and tying for No. 7 in the nation this season for single-game points.
Cater and Jaila Harding are leading the Shockers in scoring, averaging 11.8 and 11.6 points per game, respectively. Cater is averaging 12.6 points per game in American Conference play.
Harding is one of the best three-point shooters in the nation, ranking 36^th in made threes with 56, leading the conference in three-point attempts and ranking fourth all-time in Wichita State history for single-season threes. She is averaging 2.7 threes per game.
Cater leads the conference in steals per game with 2.6, recording a career-high eight at Florida Atlantic, good for No. 7 all-time in program history for single-game steals. She has recorded five or more steals in five games this season. She also ranks seventh in the conference in free throw percentage, shooting 79.2 percent from the charity stripe.
Treasure Thompson ranks sixth in the conference in blocks per game with 1.05 and recorded her 100^th career block in the non-conference finale.
The Shockers rank second in the American Conference in three-point percentage defense, holding opponents to 28.5 percent from beyond the arc.
 
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 and the five wins this season.
Eighty-eight percent of Terry Nooner's wins have come when outrebounding the opponent.
Harding has hit two or more threes in 15 of 21 games and at least one in the first 19.
Harding is the only Shocker to have started every game this season. Wichita State has tested 13 different starting lineups.
Taya Davis has played all 40 minutes of regulation in the last two-straight games.
Cater has been perfect from the free throw line eight times this season.
 
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 women's basketball downed the No. 2 team in the American Conference, picking up its first road win of the season with a 63-54 victory over East Carolina Tuesday evening in Minges Coliseum.
 
The Shockers (5-16, 2-6 American) turned in one of their most complete efforts of the season, using a dominant fourth quarter and a strong interior presence to secure their first win over the Pirates (15-7, 7-2 American) since 2022. Wichita State outscored the Pirates 16-8 in the final 10 minutes and held ECU to just 20 percent shooting in the fourth quarter to seal the win. Wichita State led for more than 31 minutes in a game with nine lead changes. Maimouna Sissoko paced Wichita State with a Division I career-high 16 points on an efficient 7-of-9 shooting from the floor, adding three rebounds and two assists. Jaila Harding and Abby Cater also finished in double figures with 11 and 10 points, respectively, while Jaida McDonald chipped in seven points and a game-high nine rebounds. Cater finished with six steals, her fifth game this season with five or more takeaways. Wichita State established control inside, outscoring East Carolina 38-22 in the paint and holding a 37-35 rebounding edge. The Shockers also capitalized on second-chance opportunities, scoring 13 points off offensive rebounds. After taking a slim 20-19 lead at the end of the first quarter, Wichita State stretched the margin to seven by halftime behind strong bench play and consistent interior scoring. East Carolina trimmed the deficit in the third quarter, making it a one-point game heading to the final period. The fourth quarter belonged to Wichita State. The Pirates scored the first three points of the quarter before the Shockers went on a 12-0 run to pull away down the stretch. ECU made just one of its last 12 field goals and turned the ball over five times in the last period. Taya Davis played all 40 minutes and finished with seven points, six assists, four rebounds and three steals, helping anchor the defensive effort. Wichita State finished the night shooting 39 percent from the field and forced 17 ECU turnovers, converting them into 18 points.
 
SERIES VS. UAB
The teams meet for just the sixth time in program history with Wichita State leading the all-time series 3-2. Both teams are undefeated in the other team's arena. The Blazers won the last meeting in overtime in Charles Koch Arena, while the Shockers won the two prior meetings on the road.
 
LAST MEETING
For the second-straight season, Wichita State dropped an overtime heartbreaker on its home court to the Blazers, coming up just short as UAB came away with a 76-73 victory Saturday afternoon in Charles Koch Arena. Redshirt-junior Jayla Murray recorded her second career double-double and second career 20-point performance, leading all scoring with 20 points and leading the Shockers with 11 rebounds. Junior Princess Anderson poured in a Division I career-high 19 points with five rebounds and two steals. Redshirt-junior Bre'Yon White finished in double figures for the third time that season with 11 points and grabbed five rebounds. For the Blazers, Sara Bershers was 5-for-6 from three with 19 points, and Jade Weathersby had a double-double with 16 points and 19 rebounds. UAB proved why they led the American Athletic Conference in three pointers per game, hitting 14 from behind the arc to Wichita State's three. For the sixth time that season, the Shockers missed as many or more free throws than the final score margin in a loss, shooting 18-for-27 from the line tonight in a three-point loss. Wichita State scored the first four points off the game, all from the free throw line and led by as many as five in the first quarter. The game saw three lead changes and six ties, and every time UAB started to pull away, the Shockers fought back. The Blazers went up 11 in the second quarter, but White hit back-to-back jumpers at the end of the half to cut it to six. One minute into the third quarter, UAB went up 11, but the Shockers were able to erase that deficit and regain the lead  with three minutes remaining in the period, courtesy of a 12-point quarter from Anderson. Bershers hit a three with seven seconds left in the quarter to lead by three going into the fourth. The Blazers went on a 10-0 run early in the fourth quarter to regain an 11-point advantage, but the Shockers held them scoreless through the final five minutes of regulation to tie it up and take it to overtime. Anderson and Murray scored 30 of their combined 39 points after halftime. UAB opened overtime on a 7-1 run and hit 9 of 10 free throws in the period, white the Shockers were 6-for-10 from the line in overtime. Journey Armstead scored 9 of her 17 points in overtime, seven from the charity stripe to help seal the deal for the Blazers. The Shockers had multiple opportunities to tie it up but couldn't get layups to fall in the final minute of overtime. Murray made a second-chance layup as time expired, but the Blazers came out on top, 76-73.
 
SCOUTING THE BLAZERS
Led by head coach Randy Norton, UAB is 7-13, 0-8 American, dropping its last eight-straight. The Blazers lead the American Conference in three-point percentage, shooting 35.1 percent from beyond the arc. They average 23.1 three-point attempts per game, hitting 8.1 per game. Five Blazers are averaging double figures, led by Cali Smallwood with 14.1. Small leads the conference in made threes with 58, averaging 2.9 per game. UAB was picked 11^th out of 13 teams in the American Conference Preseason Poll.
 
TREY-LA HARDING
Jaila Harding is the best shooter on Wichita State's roster, shooting 33.7 percent from beyond the arc. The graduate transfer and Wichita native ranks third in the conference in made threes per game with 56, hitting four or more threes in seven different games and tying her career high of six at Tulsa. Her 56 total threes this season landed her on Wichita State's all-time top-10 list for single-season threes, currently sitting No. 4. The record was set by Courtney Sims at 73 during the 1999-2000 season.
 
SERVING POINTS ON A PLATTER
Abby Cater broke Wichita State's single-game scoring record in the win over Memphis, scoring 42 points to tie for No. 7 in the nation this season for single-game points. Cater shot 15-for-29 from the floor, hitting a career-high four threes and shooting a perfect 8-for-8 from the line. The Shocker record was previously held by Kareema Williams, who set it at 41 points in 1992.
 
Cater poured in 47 points over two games, leading the Shockers to back-to-back wins over LMU and Oral Roberts. She shot 11-for-12 from the field against Oral Roberts and a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line against LMU. At Florida Atlantic, she put up 17 points and recorded a career-high eight steals, good for No. 7 all-time in program history for single-game steals.
 
Cater also leads in the conference in steals per game, averaging 2.6 and recording five or more five times this season with the goal of becoming the American Conference Defensive Player of the Year.
 
THE MAIN DISH
Taya Davis is described as a true pass-first point guard, leading the Shockers in assists with 3.0 per game. She has dished five or more assists in six games this season, including the last two-straight. She averaged 7.3 assists per game her sophomore season at Garden City CC.
 
DEPTH CHART
The Shockers rank fourth in the conference in bench points per game, averaging 23.2 with 11 players averaging at least 10 minutes per game.
 
NON-CONFERENCE IN REVIEW
The Shockers finished their non-conference slate 3-10, opening with a 96-49 win over Lincoln before hitting a nine-game slump. Wichita State got back on track with back-to-back wins over Loyola Marymount and Oral Roberts before falling to Middle Tennessee State in a 45-46 heartbreaker in the non-conference finale. Seven of the 10 losses were single digit games. Jaila Harding and Abby Cater led the team in scoring, averaging 12.6 and 11.2 points per game, respectively. Cater recorded back-to-back 20-plus point performances in the wins over LMU and ORU, and Harding put up 21 at UC Irvine. Jaida McDonald led the Shockers on the boards, averaging 5.1 rebounds per game.
 
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 take on Tulsa on Tuesday, Feb. 3 at 6 p.m. in Charles Koch Arena.