Wichita State men’s basketball’s losing streak extended to six games on Thursday night as the Shockers lost a tough road clash with No.23 Florida Atlantic, 86-77.
Wichita State held a 11-point lead at halftime, but hot shooting from the Owls in the second half gave them the win.
The Shockers came flying out of the gates, racing to a 17-4 lead in just six minutes. However, sloppy offensive play from Wichita State and a 10-1 Florida Atlantic run led to the game being tied, 22-22, with 8:45 left in the half.
A back-and-forth spell was ended by a dunk from junior center Quincy Ballard and 3-pointer from junior guard Bijan Cortes. In the last five minutes of the first half, Wichita State scored 14 unanswered points to take a 42-31 lead into halftime
Florida Atlantic would have a charge coming out of the break, but the Shockers kept them at bay. With 6:48 left in the game, Florida Atlantic finally took the lead with consecutive 3-point shots, and Wichita State never had the advantage again.
Down three points with just under six minutes remaining, the Shockers were unable to score for the next two minutes.
An open three from Florida Atlantic junior guard Alijah Martin in transition with 3:39 left gave the Owls some wiggle room, 72-66, and Wichita State never had a possession with a chance to tie or take the lead again.
Wichita State continued their hot shooting from the game against No.13 Memphis earlier in the week. As a team, they shot 56% from the floor, a new season-high, and went 8-18 from the three point line.
Florida Atlantic went 1-12 from three in the first half but 8-15 in the second, which allowed them to pull back into the game despite good offensive play from the Shockers.
Ballard and junior guard Colby Rogers each scored 18 points, although the former did it in only 21 minutes of game time. Inserted into the starting lineup for the first time this year, Cortes scored 8 points and had 4 assists.
Wichita State’s poor form from the free throw line continued against the Owls, as they hit only half of their shots from the line. Junior forward Ronnie DeGray III was the worst offender, going 1-4 from the line.
The Shockers, now 8-9 on the season and still winless in conference play, will attempt to end their losing streak on Sunday, Jan. 21 when they face South Florida on the road. Tipoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
