The Wichita State offense is reeling.

Over the course of the last five games, the Shockers have only scored above 60 points once – against Central Florida on Jan. 25 – and are shooting 34.3% over that span. To start conference play, they are attempting the most field goals (61.0) in the conference while shooting the lowest percentage per game (36.5%).

Regardless of their struggles, the Shockers are still finding ways to win, even if it is ugly.

Since the 2015-2016 basketball season, WSU has shot 40% or worse and won 22 times – classifying them as “ugly” wins. This year alone, the Shockers have shot 40% or worse on nine different occasions, but have found ways to win five of those games. Those five wins ranks No. 1 in the country, tied with eight other teams which include conference foes Houston and Temple.

The Shockers are also finding answers by being in the conference’s top-4 in both offensive and defensive rebounding percentage. They’re also averaging a league-high 23.8 free throw attempts per game and their plus-2.00 turnover margin is second in the AAC.

For Head Coach Gregg Marshall, he knows all his team has to do is start making baskets. In Saturday’s loss to Tulsa at the buzzer, 16 of the team’s 31 three-pointers taken were open looks that the players simply didn’t knock down.

“We can certainly improve, we can execute better, we can get the ball inside more, we can screen and cut with more purpose, but, in the end, you just need to make one more shot,” Marshall said during Tuesday’s press conference.

One consistent piece that the Shockers have been able to rely upon during this cold stretch is senior center Jaime Echenique. Echenique has averaged 13.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game.. He’s 26-48 from the field with an eye opening 54.2/33.3/70.6 split line in 25 minutes of action per night. The rest of the team is a combined 73-241 (30.3%) during that stretch.

Marshall had nothing but praise for the Colombian on Tuesday, but did note that the senior wants to win now, since he knows that his time with the team is running out.

“I was so proud of him, I thought he’s one guy that played well. As a senior, he can’t wait until next year for him there is no next year for college basketball,” Marshall said of Echenique. “There’s no excuse that we’re the 25th youngest team, we have ten underclassmen, he’s a senior, he’s the only senior, he wants to win, he wants to do well. The vibe for him is ‘come on guys, I want to do this now.’”

Marshall and Wichita State also have history on their side this month, which could help out in the long run. Since 2014, Marshall’s Shockers are tied for the most February wins (42) and has the highest February win percentage (.875) of any team in Division I.

But wins won’t just come easily for this team, especially on Thursday win Cincinnati comes to town. The Bearcats are led by defending AAC Player of the Year Jarron Cumberland, who has found his groove after a slow start to the season, averaging the second most points in the conference at 16.9 points per game. They are also ranked No. 1 in the AAC in field goal percentage.

“He’s (Cumberland) making shots, he gets to the line, he can drive it, he’s physical, strong, makes pretty good decisions, has the ball in his hands quite a bit,” Marshall said. “They run some pretty good stuff but, in the end, it’s he and a ball screen with two guys on the left, one guy on the right. He makes a ton of plays out of that.”

The Shockers are scheduled to tip off against the Bearcats at 6 p.m. on Thursday inside Charles Koch Arena. Cincinnati is the only team since 2003 with multiple wins inside CKA without a loss (2-0). Marshall is just 1-4 against the Bearcats all-time.