WICHITA STATE (9-12, 1-7) at RV/RV MEMPHIS (15-6, 4-4)
Saturday, Feb. 3 | 12:00 p.m. CT
Memphis, Tenn. | FedExForum
TV: CBS with Spero Dedes & Clark Kellogg
Radio: KEYN 103.7 FM with Mike Kennedy & Bob Hull
OPENING TIPS
• Wichita State and Memphis square off for Round II Saturday in a nationally-televised matchup on CBS at Noon.
• Wichita State is 17-11 all time when playing on Feb. 3.
• Memphis has won the last seven meetings in the series and holds a 19-12 lead all time vs. the Shockers. The Tigers put up 112 points in the first meeting just a few weeks ago in 112-86 win in Charles Koch Arena.
• It was the first time Wichita State allowed 100 points since 1994 and first time at home since 1972.
• Memphis is 15-6 overall and 4-4 in conference play. After winning its first four league games, the Tigers have lost their last four.
• Wichita State is coming off a tough road loss at Tulsa, 79-68, Wednesday night. The Shockers led by as many as 15 and 11 at halftime.
• The win over SMU (KenPom 37) on Jan. 28 was the highest ranked KenPom win since defeating No. 5 Houston on Feb. 18, 2021.
• Harlond Beverly has 55 assists over his last 15 games. His 69 total assists are tops on the team.
• Beverly has scored in double figures in each of the last four games. He’s averaging 14.8 points per game on 52.1 % shooting from the field in those four games.
• Colby Rogers (15.2 ppg; leading scorer) has made a three-pointer in all 21 games this season and multiple in 16 of the 21. He leads the AAC in total 3PT FG made (56) and 3PT Pct (38.6%).
• His streak of 21 straight games with a made three-pointer is tied for the 6th longest in school history.
• In 13 of the 21 games Rogers has tallied 15 points or more – a team best. He has a team-high five 20-point games.
• Wichita State ranks 25th nationally in rebounds per game and 22nd in defensive rebounds per game. In conference play, Wichita State’s rebounding numbers have taken a hit, averaging only 35.6 rebounds per game.
• Quincy Ballard ranks 18th nationally in blocks (47). He had tied a career-high with 7 vs. East Carolina on Jan. 24. Ballard has 14 games with multiple blocks.
• Ballard has scored 10 or more points in four of the last 10 games. He had three total in the first 11 games of the season. In the last 10 games, he’s 34-for-43 (79.1%) from the field.
• Per KenPom the American Athletic Conference is ranked the 9th best conference in the NCAA.
• Wichita State returns only 20.3 percent of its scoring from a season ago, having lost its top four scorers. Pohto is the only returner to average more than 4.0 points per game. Craig Porter Jr., James Rojas, Gus Okafor and Isaiah Poor Bear-Chandler exhausted their eligibility, and four others exited via the transfer portal.
SCOUTING MEMPHIS
• Led by sixth year head coach Penny Hardaway, Memphis enters the matchup at 15-6 and 4-4 in league play.
• The Tigers have hit a tough stretch, dropping each of their last four games after ripping off 10 straight wins.
• In five seasons since returning to his alma mater as head coach, Hardaway, has led the Tigers to a 122-58 record, five-straight 20-win seasons, the 2021 National Invitation Tournament championship, the 2023 AAC tournament championship and two consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament in 2022 and 2023.
• Hardaway’s 110 wins entering the season are second-most among 14 first-time NCAA Division I head coaches hired prior to the 2018-19 season and tied for third-most among Tiger head coaches in their first five seasons. Only three of Memphis’ 16 head coaches since World War II have won 20 games in each of their first five seasons at the helm, now including Hardaway.
• In his tenure, Hardaway has mentored two first-round NBA Draft picks, three American Athletic Conference Freshmen of the Year, seven all-conference selections, five all-freshman honorees and an AAC Tournament MVP. The Tigers have won eight games against ranked opponents, been ranked inside the top-10 on two occasions and twice had the nation’s number-one recruiting class.
• Memphis was picked to finish 2nd out of 14 teams in the Preseason American Athletic Conference Coaches Poll.
• In mid December, Memphis won three straight games over Top 25 teams (Texas A&M, Clemson and Virginia).
• Of their 15 wins this season, eight have come against Power 5 opponents.
• The Tigers have four wins against Power Five programs this season away from their home floor.
• David Jones is the only player in the nation that is averaging at least 21.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals per outing.
• He leads the American Athletic Conference and ranks 6th in the nation with a 21.6 scoring average.
• Jones has led the Tigers in scoring 16 times this season, and has posted an AAC-high 11 games with 20+ points.
• Memphis’ newest addition has only been on the roster for less than two months in the way of Kansas State transfer Nae’Qwan Tomlin. In 10 games with the Tigers, Tomlin is averaging 10.4 points and 5.9 rebounds.
• Alabama transfer Jahvon Quinerly scores 13.6 points, dishes 4.4 assists and grabs 3.1 rebounds a game. Quinerly was a Preseason All-AAC First Team selection.
• Malcolm Dandridge leads the team with 34 blocked shots to go with 8.0 points and 4.9 rebounds per game. He’s coming off a career-high eight blocks at Tulane.
• Memphis is among the nation’s best teams at getting to the free throw line and connecting on those attempts. They rank 27th nationally in free throws made per game, 34th in free throw attempts per game and 72nd in free throw percentage.
• The Tigers score 81.0 points per game on 46.4% shooting. They are converting on 35.1% of their attempts from beyond the arc.
• Defensively, the allow 75.7 points and opponents are converting 42.0% of their field goal attempts.
THE SERIES VS. MEMPHIS
• This is the 32nd meeting all-time. Memphis leads 19-12 (9-2 AAC era) with seven-straight victories.
• Six of Memphis’ nine wins in the AAC era have been by double digits.
• Wichita State’s last win came Jan. 9, 2020 in a battle of nationally-ranked teams at Charles Koch Arena.
• In the first meeting of the season, just three weeks ago, Memphis was ranked No. 13 and even climbed as high as No. 10 in the AP poll, but has since dropped its last three games to fall completely out of the polls.
• Wichita State is 8-7 against Memphis in Wichita (1-4 AAC era). All 14 matchups have taken place at the Roundhouse.
• Since Wichita State joined the American in 2017-18, Wichita State and Memphis have played each other twice in every season but two (2018, 2021). The only reason they didn’t in 2021 was due to COVID canceling the game.
• The Shockers won on their first visit to FedExForum (Feb. 6, 2018) but have since dropped five-straight. They’re 3-12 all-time against the Tigers in Memphis.
• Wichita State does own two other wins at FedExForum as part of its run to the 2019 AAC semifinals.
• Wichita State is 1-9 against Penny Hardaway.
• The Tigers swept the 2021-22 series, winning by 18 in Wichita and by 24 in Memphis.
• The series in 2022-23 was much closer, but the Shockers still found themselves on the wrong side of the scoreboard.
• Memphis needed 29 points from DeAndre Williams to defeat the Shockers by 10 in Memphis on Jan. 19. One month later, Memphis outlasted the Shockers in Charles Koch Arena, 83-78.
• The only neutral site meeting between the two schools came in 2014 when they meet at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Fall, S.D. to begin the 2014-15 season.
• Ron Baker scored a game-high 21 points and added five rebounds, six assists and two steals to lead Wichita State to a comfortable 71-56 win in front of a sellout crowd.
CONNECT THE DOTS
• A familiar face resides on the Memphis roster this season in the way of senior Jaykwon Walton. Walton departed Wichita State after last season where he led the Shockers in scoring at 13.9 points per game. He entered the transfer portal last spring and proceeded to find two different homes (Alabama and UCF) before finally landing at Memphis late summer.
• He has made 17 starts this season and is averaging 9.3 points and 3.6 rebounds on 40.7% shooting.
RECORD BOOK WATCH
• Quincy Ballard is on pace to shatter the single season school record for field goal percentage.
• Through 21 games Ballard is shooting 70.7% (65-for-92) from the field. The current school record is 61.6% by Steve Grayer set in 1987-88.
• That number would rank 1st nationally but to qualify players must average 5 FGM per game. Currently Ballard is at 3.2 FGM per game.
• On the defensive end, Ballard is trending towards a top five season blocking shots. He’s currently fourth on the single season blocks per game list.
• Ballard needs just 4 blocks to move into the top 10 on the single season total blocks list.
LEAD GUARDS
• Colby Rogers and Xavier Bell have formed a potent 1-2 scoring attack for Wichita State through 21 games. Rogers leads Wichita State in scoring at 15.2 per game and Bell is right behind at 11.8.
• Rogers ranks 9th in the American in points and 9th in points per game.
• The duo of Rogers and Bell make up 37.1 percent of Wichita State’s scoring as they’ve accounted for 567 points.
• Rogers has scored in double figures in 17 of the first 21 games, and Bell in 14 of the 21. They each have multiple 20-point outings to their name (Rogers – 5, Bell – 3).
COLBY ROG333333333333333333333RS
• Colby Rogers is riding a streak of 21 straight games with at least one made three-pointer to start the season.
• He has multiple three-pointers in 16 of the first 21 games.
• Rogers is attempting 6.90 three-pointers per game, which currently stands as the third most in school history behind Tyson Etienne (8.30 in 2021-22; 7.55 in 2020-21).
• His 2.67 three-pointers made per game are currently the third most in school history.
ACCESS DENIED
• Wichita State has an elite rim protector in Quincy Ballard. His season was cut short in 2022-23 due to injuries, so he’s only played 31 total games in his Shocker career. In those 31 games he has 61 blocked shots. Forty-seven of those have come in the first 21 games.
• Through 21 games his 47 blocks rank 18th nationally and his 2.24 blocks per game rank 19th.
• He has multiple blocks in all but six games this season.
BOARD OF APPROVAL
• Through the first 21 games of the season Wichita State has been among the nation’s top rebounding teams. Wichita State ranks 25th nationally in rebounds per game, 22nd in defensive rebounds per game and 56th in rebound margin.
• Wichita State has four players averaging 4.5 or more rebounds per game (Dalen Ridgnal – 6.9; Kenny Pohto – 6.4; Quincy Ballard – 6.0; Harlond Beverly – 4.8).
• Wichita State has been outrebounded seven times this season with five of those coming in the last 10 games.
• Wichita State has pulled down 40 or more rebounds in 9 of the 20 games, including three games of 50+.
A SHOCKER WIN WOULD…
… Make them 10-12 this season.
… Make them 2-7 in AAC play.
… Snap a 6-game losing streak on the road.
… Make them 18-11 all time on Feb. 3.
… Give Paul Mills 116 career coaching victories.
… Run their record to 1,667-1,257 all time.
… Make them 13-19 vs. Memphis all time.
… Snap a 7-game losing streak vs. the Tigers.
A SHOCKER LOSS WOULD…
… Make them 9-13 this season.
… Drop them to 1-8 in AAC play.
… Make Paul Mills 9-13 as Wichita State head coach.
… Drop them to 17-12 all time on Feb. 3.
… Drop their record to 1,666-1,258 all time.
… Make them 12-20 all-time vs. Memphis.
… Be their 8th straight loss to the Tigers.
UP NEXT
GAME 23: UTSA
• UTSA is 8-13 and under eighth year head coach Steve Henson.
• This will be the first meeting as members of the American Athletic Conference.
• Wichita State leads the all-time series, 2-0, both of which came in Wichita.
• The Roadrunners own conference wins over Rice and Tulane.
