Wichita State will try to pull off a stunner when it travels to No. 1 Houston on Thursday night. The Shockers have won three of their last four games and gave Houston a run for their money last month, losing in a 70-61 final. The Cougars are riding a nine-game winning streak and are in line for the top seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Wichita State has been playing near the .500 mark for the entire season, sitting within two games of the break-even point for the entire campaign. The Shockers have found their best form of the season, winning three of their last four games. They beat SMU and Temple in consecutive games before losing to Memphis by five points last Thursday, but they bounced back with an 83-76 win at Tulane on Sunday to get back to .500 in conference play. Craig Porter Jr. had 15 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists and three steals against Tulane, becoming the second Wichita State player with a triple-double in the past 50 years.
.@JPIERRE5_ has himself a new career-high (23 points)!
Live on @ESPNU pic.twitter.com/lC7R8dgQmE
— Wichita State Men's Basketball (@GoShockersMBB) February 26, 2023
Jaron Pierre Jr. had a fantastic game as well, pouring in 28 points on 9 of 17 shooting. The Shockers have struggled on the offensive end for most of the season, ranked No. 214 in effective field goal percentage. Their major weakness has been from the perimeter, as they are knocking down just 30.0% of their 3-point attempts. They are facing a Houston defense that is among the best in the country, ranked fifth in adjusted efficiency. Junior guard Jaykwon Walton leads Wichita State with 14.0 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, while Porter Jr. (12.9), Pierre Jr. (10.4) and James Rojas (10.2) are each scoring in double digits as well.
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