Wichita State beats Hoosiers, gets Kansas next
OMAHA, Neb. – Wichita State senior Darius Carter had just turned to head up the court when an elbow caught him in the kisser.
The impact pushed one of his front teeth back into his mouth, and he thought he was going to lose it. The tooth was saved, and Carter was out of the game for only a few minutes. When he came back, he dunked.
Yeah, he was playing angry, as is the Shockers’ mantra.
“I let out a big scream and I felt a release,” he said. “I just wanted to win, that’s all.”
Carter returned in time for Wichita State’s decisive run in an 81-76 victory over Indiana on Friday in the NCAA tournament, setting up a much-anticipated Sunflower State showdown against second-seeded Kansas.
“I’m thankful I got my tooth,” Carter said. “That would be a bad look, to not have a front tooth.”
As it was, there were toothy smiles all around as No. 7 seed Wichita State won its tournament opener for the third straight year in its typical bruising style.
Fred VanVleet led the way for the Shockers (29-4) after a slow start, taking the ball to the hoop often against an Indiana team that, because of injury, was short on rim protectors. VanVleet matched his career high with 27 points and Ron Baker, who struggled from the field, made 7 of 8 free throws in the last 2 minutes.
And now, finally, the Shockers can talk about their first game against the Jayhawks since 1993.
“It’s a big thing for the state of Kansas,” said Baker, who hails from Scott City. “A lot of houses are going to be divided. Being a player from Kansas, I’m really fortunate to be in this game. These types of games don’t happen a whole lot.”
Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell scored 24 points for Indiana (20-14). James Blackmon Jr. added 14 points, and Troy Williams and Collin Hartman had 11 apiece.
“We’re not happy with the outcome today. Certainly we could have played better,” Indiana coach Tom Crean said. “But I have zero disappointment in the way these guys battled, competed and persevered throughout the season.”
The Shockers trailed by eight points in the first half and played from behind most of the game before going on a 15-3 run in the middle of the second half for their biggest lead. Freshman Zach Brown, who had a career-high 11 points, did much of the work, scoring off an inbounds play, dunking and putting back Tekele Cotton’s miss to make it 65-57.
The Shockers answered each time Indiana looked ready to come back. After Williams made a smooth move through the lane to cut it to 76-74, Carter laced a pass through the lane to Cotton, who went up and under to restore the four-point lead.
Ferrell made a couple of free throws to get Indiana within two, but Baker hit a pair on the other end with 19 seconds left.
Wichita State hasn’t played Kansas since a 103-54 loss at KU in January 1993.