National Basketball Association
Wichita St. 76, Southern Illinois 55
When: 9:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Where: Charles Koch Arena, Wichita, Kansas
Officials:
# K.B. Burdett, # Hal Lusk, # Bert Smith
Attendance:
10506
By The Sports Xchange
WICHITA, Kan. -- The record victory looked much like those that preceded Wednesday's landmark.
Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall turned loose a defensive nightmare on the opposition, the sell-out crowd at Koch Arena roared, and the Shockers won big.
No. 21 Wichita State rolled past Southern Illinois 76-55 at Koch Arena, giving Marshall win No. 221 as coach of the Shockers.
The victory pushed Marshall past Ralph Miller. Marshall is 221-81 in nine seasons at Wichita State, and he is also the career wins leader (194-83) at Winthrop. Miller coached the Shockers from 1951-64 and went 220-133.
"It just means you've been coaching a long time and you've had a lot of great coaches and a lot of great players," Marshall said. "To equal a legend in Coach Miller, a guy that captivated this city and made basketball important ... He left it better than he found it. When he left, he left them with a Final Four team."
The Shockers might be that good again. They won a Missouri Valley Conference game by double digits for the 10th time this season.
Wichita State (17-5, 11-0 MVC) also won its 43rd consecutive home game, the nation's longest streak. The Shockers' 12-game win streak is tied for the program's fourth longest.
Southern Illinois (18-5, 7-4) lost its third game in a row.
The Shockers, two-time defending conference champions, lead the Valley by four games with seven to play.
Up 37-28 at halftime, Wichita State started the second half with a 10-3 run. Southern Illinois committed four turnovers on its first five possessions of the half, forcing coach Barry Hinson to call an early timeout.
"The game was simple, we just turned it over," Hinson said. "You can't do that and be successful."
The Shockers kept rolling, eventually building their lead to 64-42 on a 3-pointer by senior guard Fred VanVleet, forcing another Hinson timeout.
Wichita State held the Salukis to 30.6 percent shooting and forced 22 turnovers.
Sophomore center Shaq Morris led Wichita State with 13 points. Forward Anton Grady scored 10 points, joining Morris as an inside scoring threat that Southern Illinois couldn't handle.
"Our guards were doing a really great job of penetrating and dropping the ball off to us," Grady said.
VanVleet added 12 points and 11 assists.
Southern Illinois senior guard Anthony Beane scored 20 points on 6-of-17 shooting.
"They have great length," Hinson said. "I don't do a very good job of subbing Anthony. We wear him down. The constant pressure that the Shockers put on him wears him down."
Wichita State took a comfortable lead late in the first half, helped by nine Southern Illinois turnovers that led to eight points.
Morris scored nine points and the Shockers made 48 percent of their first-half shots. Beane scored 15 points, making five of his team's 11 first-half field goals.
Beane, held to 15 points on 14 shots in a loss to the Shockers in January, carried the Salukis with eight points early in the game. The Shockers went up 6-0 before Beane scored on a drive. His 3-pointer cut the deficit to 8-5.
The Salukis pulled within one point on several occasions, but they could not grab the lead.
An 11-1 Wichita State run, capped by a lob from VanVleet to sophomore forward Rashard Kelly, gave the Shockers a 31-21 lead.
NOTES: Wichita State G Fred VanVleet's 11 assists matched his career high. ... The Shockers defeated Southern Illinois for the seventh straight time and fifth in a row at Koch Arena. ... Wichita State senior G Evan Wessel earned his 100th win, fourth on the school's career list.
Top Game Performances
Southern Illinois |
|
Wichita St. |
Anthony Beane Jr. 20 |
Scoring |
Shaquille Morris 13 |
Mike Rodriguez 3 |
Assists |
Fred VanVleet 11 |
Bola Olaniyan 16 |
Rebounds |
Ron Baker 8 |
Anthony Beane Jr. 5 |
Free Throws Made |
Ron Baker 4 |
Tyler Smithpeters 3 |
Steals |
Fred VanVleet 4 |
Armon Fletcher 1 |
Blocks |
Shaquille Morris 3 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Southern Illinois
|
55 |
30.6 |
6-23 |
11-19 |
7 |
39 |
3 |
6 |
22 |
Wichita St.
|
76 |
48.1 |
9-20 |
17-24 |
18 |
27 |
7 |
9 |
13 |