No. 8 Wichita State debuted in the American Athletic Conference with a 10-point win over UConn.

Although the Shockers won by 10, the game was close up until the final few minutes. The defensive effort from both teams made it difficult for either to get into an offensive groove.

UConn’s zone defense caused Wichita State to shoot almost all of their shots from the perimeter.

The Shockers didn’t get their first basket in the paint until two minutes into the second half after a dunk from senior guard Rashard Kelly.

Wichita State attempted 25 threes and made 12. Contrary to WSU’s previous opponents who shot mostly from behind the arc, The Huskies only attempted 16 threes with three makes.

Kelly, with a double-double, finished with 11 points and 12 rebounds, making him the 40th Shocker in school history to reach 500 career rebounds.

Sophomore guard Landry Shamet finished as Wichita State’s leading scorer with 16 points after making five of his six threes. Kelly, senior guard Conner Frankamp, and sophomore guard Austin Reaves all finished with 11 points.

Junior forward Markis McDuffie saw the floor for 16 minutes, almost doubling his time from his debut game last Saturday.

McDuffie finished with four points and four rebounds.

Wichita State, the best rebounding team in The American, finished with 13 more rebounds than UConn.

The Shockers will host their first AAC game on Thursday against Houston. Tipoff is at 6 p.m. and will air on ESPN.