Wichita State’s slow start made a turn for the worst in the second half. Trailing by eight points with under 12 minutes left to play in the game, the Shockers had fumbled away the lead and possibly a chance at post-season play.

Much like Sunday’s game against Bradley, junior forward Rashard Kelly provided the sparks that would ignite a comeback against Drake on Wednesday night.

In Kelly’s 13 minutes, he was knocked in 13 points, reeled in six rebounds and blocked a shot.

Kelly silenced the crowd of 3,024 at the Knapp Center in Des Moines, Iowa, when he cut the Bulldogs’ lead down to five points with an and-one basket.

An offensive rebound from Kelly was followed up with another monster jam that gave the Shockers a 59-58 lead that WSU would keep for the rest of the game. He finished with 13 points and six rebounds off the bench to give the Shockers their eighth straight 20-win season and keep their chances for an at-large NCAA Tournament bid alive.

Kelly resembled the floor activity of former forward Evan Wessel, who was known for his scrappiness, ability to fight for loose balls and bring energy to the court.  Head coach Gregg Marshall said he saw the same qualities out of Kelly, noting more size and athleticism out of the junior forward, Kelly.

“He’s really bouncy out there,” Marshall said. “He’s moving well. He’s pursuing the basketball. He’s the first to the floor. He’s doing the Evan Wessel-type things, but he’s a little bigger and a little more athletic.”

In the final few minutes, WSU was able to slow down the speed of the game and retake control, causing Drake to either foul or let the time run out.

Four Shockers scored double-digit points. Redshirt junior Shaquille Morris rebounded off a 2-point effort against Bradley, picking up his second double-double of the season with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Redshirt freshman Landry Shamet was the leading scorer with 17 while junior guard Conner Frankamp picked up a season-high of 16 points, surpassing his previous season-high of .

Shamet has hit at least one 3-pointer in 13 consecutive games, earning the title for second longest streak at WSU.  Shamet hit a 3-pointer from the corner to close Drake’s lead late in the second half.

“That’s the big thing we have to do as coaches, we have to understand what they’re capable of,” Marshall said “A lot of coaching is putting people in a position where they can be successful; masking their deficiencies and accentuating their positives.”

Frankamp had another break out game following his record-breaking performance previously at Bradley. This season Frankamp has been averaging seven points per game; he finished with 16, a new season high.

“We’ve always wanted Conner to be more aggressive, we’ve talked about that for two years,” Marshall said. “I don’t want him to be a risk-taker, but he has to be able to play with the confidence that we have in him. It’s a fine line, but I think he is getting better with that.”

The Shockers now have 20 wins for the eighth consecutive season in a row, which is the second longest streak in the Missouri Valley. Marshall picked up his 250th win at Wichita State, only being the 32nd active Division I coach to have more than 250 wins at one school.

Wichita State plays their conference rival, the undefeated (MVC) Illinois State Redbirds at 7 p.m. Saturday in Charles Koch Arena. The Redbirds handed Northern Iowa their first loss in six games on Wednesday night.