The offense clicked. The defense was stout. And for 40 minutes Saturday evening, Wichita State’s basketball team put on a masterclass against Prairie View A&M.
Six Shockers scored in double-digits during a 105-62 routing against the Panthers. It’s the first time they’ve eclipsed the century mark in a game since 2021.
Coincidentally, Prairie View A&M (2-1) was the last team to suffer this kind of onslaught from a Wichita State (2-0) team.
Within the first four minutes the Shockers jumped out to an 11-2 lead and dictated the tempo throughout. A 10-0 run to start the second half widened the gap to 63-38, effectively putting the game out of reach.
Much of that dominance stemmed from exploiting Prairie View’s aggressive style, a focal point in Wichita State’s game plan. The Panthers entered the game averaging 16.5 steals. The Shockers attacked downhill early, earning 41 free throws and converting 31 of them.
“We knew that they were really disruptive on the ball,” redshirt freshman forward TJ Williams said. “So just coming in, taking care of the ball, getting downhill knowing that these guys don’t really help on defense. It was going to be a lot of backdoor cutting, a lot of rebounding opportunities.
“We took full advantage of it early.”
Williams finished the game with his first collegiate double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. The Wichita native made all 10 of his shots at the charity stripe.
By halftime, the Shockers had built a 17-point lead, 53-36. They outrebounded Prairie View A&M 20-10 and never trailed during the first 20 minutes — in fact, the Panthers never led at any point in the game.
Senior guard Kenyon Giles set the tone early, draining five first-half 3-pointers en route to 15 points by the break. Redshirt junior center Will Berg added 10 points on perfect shooting, going 3-of-3 from the field and 4-of-4 from the line.
Despite the hot start, Wichita State wasn’t flawless. The Panthers’ press defense caused problems, leading to eight first-half turnovers — most of them direct results of pressure looks.
“To be honest, we’re up 17 at halftime, and it feels like you’re down 10,” head coach Paul Mills said. “I just didn’t think we were sharp.”
That changed after the break. Wichita State cleaned up its ball-handling, committing just two turnovers in the second half while forcing 12 from Prairie View A&M.
“You’re going to have a few hiccups,” Giles said. “We had a few and we fixed it right there. We just have to keep playing through that. And it helped — we used that pressure against them.”
The Shockers finished with 42 points in the paint, matching their total from the season opener. They also dished out 15 assists on 32 made field goals, a testament to crisp ball movement.
From beyond the arc, Wichita State was equally efficient, hitting 10 threes at a 54.5% clip — a feat they accomplished only twice all of last season.
“We could, for sure, (have) room to improve,” Giles said. “But I feel like this was a good night. I feel like we shared the ball at an elite level today. Hopefully we can keep it like that. We’re not going to score 100 every game, but we should share the ball like that every game.”
With two wins to open the season, the Shockers are building early momentum under Mills in his third year at the helm. Their next test comes Thursday, Nov. 13, against Loyola Chicago — a familiar foe from their Missouri Valley Conference days — at 6:30 p.m. in Koch Arena.
“It’s hard to nitpick after a 43-point win,” Mills said.
Boxscore breakdown
1H 2H T
WSU 53 52 105
PVAM 36 26 62
Shooting totals (fg-3p-ft)
WSU (52.5% – 43.5% – 75.6%)
PVAM (32.2% – 12.5% – 78.6%)
Leaders
Points — WSU: Kenyon Giles (15), Will Berg (15), Dre Kindell (15), TJ Williams (14), Mike Gray Jr. (13), Karon Boyd (12). PVAM: Cory Wells (15), Tai’Reon Joseph (15), Marcel Bryant (13), Doug Young (12).
Assists — WSU: TJ Williams (5), Mike Gray Jr. (3), Karon Boyd (2), Dre Kindell (2). PVAM: Lance Williams (2), Cory Wells (1), Dontae Horn (1), Elijah Mitchell (1).
Rebounds — WSU: TJ Williams (11), Dillon Battie (9), Will Berg (5), Mike Gray Jr. (4). PVAM: Cory Wells (9), Lance Williams (5), Dontae Horn (4), Marcel Bryant (4).
