SUN FLOWER
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INSIDE:
THURSDAY, MARCH 10, 2016
VOLUME 120, ISSUE 50
Flip to page 5 to find the regular edition of The Sunflower as a pull-out section.
THESUNFLOWER.COM
With a 24-win record, Wichita State is on the bubble of national brackets. The Shockers’ hopes of one of the 36 elusive at-large berths is at the center of debate. Their fate will be determined on Selection Sunday.
Bubble watch résumés: Shockers’ hope of making who’s in, who’s out? field of 68 may rely on eye test EVAN PFLUGRADT
SPORTS EDITOR
@evpflu
In December, Gregg Marshall, gleaming with excitement from a 17-point win over then No. 25 Utah, addressed the media with strong statements of a resurgent group, a team already proven tournament-ready. “Maybe having people write you off for the NCAA Tournament inspired us,” he said, directed to a reporter from Bleacher Report. WSU handily defeated the Utes, shooting more than 40 percent from the field. Conner Frankamp recorded his first basket as a Shocker, and Zach Brown was showing signs of steady improvement, all positives in the Shocker locker room. After a gut-wrenching November, when the team was 2-4 against Division I opponents, the Shockers desperately needed positives to draw from. The result was winning three straight marquee wins, and on Dec. 12 there was bass-thumping music, celebratory dances and chants and cheers of pure positivity filling the locker room. On Saturday everything changed. WSU fell to a high-fire Northern Iowa team in overtime. On Sunday, UNI guard Wes Washpun sent the Panthers dancing into March on a game-winner in overtime of the Missouri Valley Championship. As the Panthers danced in the Scottrade Center, Gregg Marshall did the one thing he could do to determine his NCAA Tournament selections — he watched television. “I’ll watch, I love college basketball,” Marshall said. “I’ll watch a lot of games, and try and learn and try to get better. A lot of so-called bubble teams’ bubbles burst today and may throughout the week, I’ll watch.” In fact, it’s all he could do. With 24 wins to
his résumé, Marshall has the task of seeing his future played out on courts across America. In the next few days, the final 36 at-large spots will be factored out and decided by a selection committee, announced Sunday night. As with all of the Shocker-faithful, Gregg Marshall will be clinging to the screen, waiting for a chance to lead his team into March. Days, hours and minutes, all in which players and coaches won’t sleep easy. “It’s going to be a long, tough week, a lot of things going through my mind, whether I’m in, whether I’m not, nothing more I can do now to persuade [the committee],” senior forward Anton Grady said. Last season, WSU fell to Illinois State in the semifinals of the MVC Tournament, they were secured into the field of 36 selected at-large teams with a 28-4 record. Two years prior, they locked up an at-large after falling to Creighton, a record of 26-7 put them in the field. The record Marshall may not want to revisit, a 24-8 record in 2011. WSU fell short of an NCAA Tournament bid after falling in the semifinals to Indiana State. They went on to rally five more wins, and end the season victors of the NIT. Players and coaches don’t want to revisit that record, but they have to because it’s where they stand now, a record of 24-8 with feet firmly stuck in the bubble. “Let the chips fall where they may, all we can do is wait and see,” sophomore Zach Brown said. The Shockers want in, and frankly, so does America. But the selection committee is far from a popularity contest.
SEE BUBBLE • PAGE 4
As the NCAA selection show approaches COLUMN BY this NICK BEACH Sunday Wichita State is still a mystery. Many think they’ll be in, many think they’ll be out. It should be noted that ESPN’s Joe Lunardi still has the Shockers firmly in the field as an No. 8 seed. Lunardi is widely regarded as the most trusted “bracketologist,” he has been more accurate than CBS and USA Today in recent years. The Shockers are up against it with quite a few other bubble teams in question. Wichita State The Shockers are currently No. 11 in the KenPom rating and no team in the top 15 has ever missed the NCAA tournament. Monmouth’s loss to Iona Monday night didn’t help but the Shockers have 24 wins. Most other bubble teams do not. The Utah win is still very strong and with an RPI of 50 they should be able to squeeze their way in. The committee will likely take name recognition and VanVleet’s injury into account even if they say they will not.
Verdict: In Monmouth The Monmouth Hawks lost in the final of the MAAC tournament Monday which got Shockers fans worried once again. Monmouth finished 27-7 with two big quality wins against Notre Dame and USC. The MAAC now looks like a two bid league. Monmouth has a better résumé than plenty of bubble teams and although UCLA and Georgetown finished with sub-par seasons, Monmouth’s true road wins over the Bruins and the Hoyas are still impressive. Verdict: In Oregon State: The Beavers are currently 18-11 and finished with just a 9-9 conference record entering a very difficult Pac 12 tournament in Las Vegas this weekend. Assuming the Beavers defeat Arizona State in the opening round they’ll meet California in the quarterfinal which will be no easy task. The Beavers have quality wins against California, Oregon, USC, Colorado and Utah. However, 9-9 in conference is not strong and USC has 20 wins while also being 9-9 in league play.
SEE RESUME • PAGE 2