The AfterShocks, Wichita State’s alumni team for The Basketball Tournament (TBT), trailed by just four points throughout the whole game in their 74-51 opening-round blowout win against No Excuses.
All 10 players on the roster made a shot on Friday night, which gives head coach Zach Bush confidence as the team heads further in the $1 million tournament.
“Everybody brought something tonight,” he said. “So that was really fun to see; refreshing, different than maybe in past years … But this just felt like wave after wave of guys who could make a play. I think the longer we can play together and get a chance to gel, the better that we’ll get.”
Guard Conner Frankamp said that, given the lack of time spent as a team, there are naturally some things to improve on. Seven different AfterShocks players turned the ball over and the team allowed 20 offensive rebounds.
“But overall, for the first game, I thought it was not a bad effort from us,” Frankamp said.
Forward Markis McDuffie jokingly said that the team would’ve practiced for hours afterward had they given up that many offensive rebounds in a game during his time at Wichita State.
Limiting offensive rebounds will be crucial for the AfterShocks throughout their tournament run, especially when they play Challenge ALS and former North Carolina State star DJ Burns on Sunday. Burns was listed at 6-foot-9 and 275 lbs in his senior season of college and was a key player in the Wolfpack’s 2023-24 Final Four run.
“You have to be able to block out,” Bush said about going up against a player like Burns. “It’s not only on a guy that is guarding him and blocking him out, but it’s on the rest of the guys to make sure you’re helping out and rebounding … (It’s) just an intensity and I think a focus coming into the game — a mindset that you’ve got to be the guy that goes and hits and not gets knocked under.”
Despite some lapses on the offensive glass and with ball security at times, the AfterShocks held No Excuses to 22-of-73 shooting and 2-of-20 from 3-point range during the game. No Excuses’ 51 points marked the lowest-ever score against the AfterShocks.
They also stole the ball 12 times, outscored their bench by 19 points (31-12), and made more free throws (13) than No Excuses had attempted (11).
McDuffie said he was surprised by the team’s defensive intensity, considering it was some of the players’ first games back from playing overseas.
“So, if we can make shots and still do that, I think we’ve got a high ceiling,” McDuffie said.
Game recap
The AfterShocks’ four-point deficit came within the first four minutes of the first quarter, but they ended the period on a 9-0 run to open up a seven-point lead, 17-10. The AfterShocks’ bench scored six of their points during the run.
The momentum gained at the end of the first quarter bled into the second, and with 3:40 left in the half, the AfterShocks’ lead ballooned to 12 after a pair of threes from McDuffie and forward Rashard Kelly, 28-16.
The AfterShocks led by 11 points at the end of the half, behind nine points from guard Marcus Keene, 35-24. No Excuses shot 0-of-10 from 3-point range at the break and didn’t attempt a free throw.
The AfterShocks never led by less than double-figures in the third quarter, cruising to a 24-point lead going into the fourth, 58-34.
Back-to-back buckets from McDuffie gave the AfterShocks a 66-42 lead roughly midway through the fourth quarter, which remained as the game headed into the Elam Ending, with the target score set at 74 for both teams.
The teams traded buckets in the Elam Ending until forward Trey Wade ended the game with a free throw. Center Marcus Santos-Silva, a late addition to the AfterShocks, scored four of his eight points in the Elam Ending and set up the charity stripe finish for Wade with a layup.
Kelly scored a team-high 11 points and managed a double-double, with 10 rebounds. McDuffie was right behind him in points with 10 of his own.
The team shot 26-of-62 (41.9%) during the game, with a 9-of-30 (30%) clip from beyond the arc.
Up next
Tipoff on Sunday against Challenge ALS is scheduled for 8 p.m. in Charles Koch Arena and can be streamed on FS1.
