Wichita State handles tough Evansville offense in win

WICHITA, Kan. — The Evansville Purple Aces can make a case for the best offense in the Missouri Valley Conference since they lead the conference in shooting accuracy and assists and are tied with the Wichita State Shockers for the scoring lead. The Aces, usually, put on an exhibition of passing and cutting in coach Marty Simmons’ motion offense.

Until they meet the No. 13 Shockers.

Wichita State knows how to defend the Aces and it proved it again in Sunday’s 62-43 win at Koch Arena.

“We took as many bad shots today as we have all year,” Simmons said. “You’ve got to work every possession. That’s what makes them special. They all play hard. They all defend.”

Wichita State junior guard Fred VanVleet handed out five assists to become the Shockers’ career leader with 431, passing Toure Murry with a one-handed pass to freshman forward Rashard Kelly for a layup late in the game. VanVleet scored 22 points, 18 in the first half, and grabbed eight rebounds.

“It’s really special, with the history of guys in this program,” VanVleet said. “You can’t get assists without having anybody else, so it speaks to the teammates I’ve had.”

WSU junior guard Ron Baker scored 18 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for his first double-double of the season.

The Shockers won their 31st consecutive home game, a streak that started after a 2013 loss to Evansville.

Defense made all that possible.

The Shockers held the Aces to 15-of-48 shooting and forced 13 turnovers. In two games against WSU, Evansville has totaled 84 points, when it averages 70.9. It is 30 of 98 (30.6 percent) from the field in two games against the Shockers. Evansville made 48.9 percent of its shots entering Sunday.

The Shockers held Evansville junior guard D.J. Balentine to eight points, 11 below his average, on 2-of-10 shooting. Junior center Egidijus Mockevicius scored 15, the only Ace in double figures, on 5-of-7 shooting.

As usual, WSU senior guard Tekele Cotton hounded Balentine into a subpar shooting game.

“He’s like his shadow,” WSU coach Gregg Marshall said. “He doesn’t give him any free looks. He knows very well how to play him.”

VanVleet scored 18 points and grabbed five rebounds in the first half. He made seven of eight shots and all three of his 3-pointers to outscore the Aces as a team. Wichita State held Evansville to 4 of 22 shooting to lead 30-14 at the break.

“It’s a battle of wills,” Simmons said. “We’ve got to be much tougher and execute much better.”

Baker and VanVleet scored all of Wichita State’s first 14 points. VanVleet made his first three shots, including two from 3-point range, and his second trey gave Wichita State a 14-6 lead.

Junior forward Evan Wessel made a 3-pointer from the corner for a 17-6 lead while Evansville’s scoreless drought stretched to six minutes with six misses and two turnovers.

Balentine, the MVC’s leading scorer, went to the bench after picking up his second foul with 9:46 to play in the first half.

Mockevicius ended that drought with a three-point play with 6:56 remaining. He added two more free throws to cut Shockers’ lead to 18-11. Baker responded with a three, and the Shockers upped their lead to 23-11 as the Aces missed 13 of 15 shots.

VanVleet scored Wichita State’s final six points of the half, sending the teams to the locker rooms with a step-back fadeaway in the final seconds.

Wichita State (25-3, 15-1 MVC) plays at third-place Indiana State on Wednesday before Northern Iowa visits Koch Arena for one of the Valley’s biggest games since the 1980s. Evansville (19-9, 9-7) ended a three-game winning streak and plays at Northern Iowa on Wednesday.

NOTES: Wichita State freshman G Zach Brown played after missing four games with a concussion. Brown practiced Friday for the first time since early February, when he took an accidental elbow to the head from teammate Bush Wamukota during practice. … Evansville scored 18 points in the first half in a 61-41 loss to Wichita State on Jan. 17 and scored just 14 points in the first half Sunday. … WSU defeated the Aces for the fifth straight time.