With Wichita State sitting on the NCAA Tournament bubble, the upcoming AAC Tournament looms large for the Shockers’ postseason implications as they prepare to face off against the winner of UConn-Tulane winner in Friday’s quarterfinals.

The Shockers defeated both teams in conference play this season, but the wins came in decidedly different fashions.

Early in the conference slate, the Shockers outlasted UConn in double overtime. The win has turned out to be one of WSU’s best resume wins of the season to date. The win over the Huskies is one of just two Quadrant-I victories for WSU, with the other coming against Oklahoma State. 

The Shockers won their game against Tulane handily by a score of 82-57, the team’s largest margin of victory since a 26-point blowout of Central Arkansas in early December. 

Head Coach Gregg Marshall said it’s difficult to game-plan against a team you’ve only faced once this year.

“Well, you’re not as familiar with them as you are with a team you played twice — especially UConn,” Marshall said. “We played them so early in our third conference game. We’ve played 15 games since then. We played Tulane a little later, so we should be more familiar with them. 

“UConn has gone through some personnel changes, so they’re a different team. They’re playing very small. They’re basically playing four guards.”

Since the earlier matchup with the Huskies, two players have stepped up in a major way. On Tuesday, both Christian Vital (First Team All-Conference) and James Bouknight (Third Team All-Conference and First Team All-Freshmen) were honored. Their recent surge could make for a different kind of game than the one in January.

“(Christian Vital) is a really good player. He’s been a really good player all three years we’ve been in the league,” Marshall said. “He’s probably one of the best shooters, gets to the line and makes those shots, knocks down threes, can score in transition and in the mid-range. 

“(James) Bouknight is playing really well as a freshman. They’re a different team from the first time we played them. They play hard — well-coached. They’re a good basketball team and it would be a great challenge.”

Marshal said securing a first-round bye could be pivotal to WSU’s success in Forth Worth. 

“Well, winning three games in three days is hard. It’s even harder to win four games in four days. Essentially, beating Tulsa and UConn’s win over Tulane gave us the fourth seed. We get the opportunity to scout the UConn-Tulane game on Thursday, and our guys will be fresh going into Friday’s game. 

“UConn will have all the nerves out. They will have played on the floor. It could be Tulane that has the kinks worked out without a newness of playing on the floor for the first time or whatever it may be. I’d prefer not to have to win Thursday to get to Friday.”

Marshall said he wants his team to focus on defending and rebounding. He said that as long as WSU can shut out the distraction, they will have a good chance of prevailing and securing an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

“You need to have defense and rebounding in your back pocket. Everyone’s got to be carrying water,” Marshall said. “There can’t be distractions. There can’t be people worried about whether they’re in the starting lineup or how many shots they’re getting. They just need to go in and play well and help us win. If we do that like we did against Tulsa, we have a pretty good chance, and we’re a pretty good ball club. If we don’t do that, that just takes away from our opportunity.”