# 2016–17 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team

The 2016–17 Wichita State Shockers men's basketball team represented Wichita State University in the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They played their home games at the Charles Koch Arena in Wichita, Kansas and were led by 10th-year head coach Gregg Marshall. They were members of the Missouri Valley Conference. They finished the season 31–5, 17–1 to finish in a tie for first place in MVC play. In the MVC tournament, they beat Bradley, Missouri State, and Illinois State to win the tournament championship. As a result, they earned the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. As the No. 10 seed in the South region, they defeated Dayton in the first round before losing to No. 2-seeded Kentucky in the second round.
This was the Shockers' final season as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference, as the school announced on April 7, 2017 that it would be joining the American Athletic Conference effective July 1, 2017.

## Previous season

The Shockers finished the 2015–16 season with a record 26–9, 16–2 in Missouri Valley play to win the MVC regular season championship. They lost in the semifinals of the MVC tournament to Northern Iowa. The Shockers received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as a No. 11 seed. They defeated Vanderbilt in the First Four and Arizona in the first round before losing to Miami (FL) in the second round.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason left |
| Evan Wessel | 3 | G | 6'3" | 218 | Senior | Wichita, KS | Graduated |
| Anton Grady | 15 | F | 6'8" | 230 | Graduate | Cleveland, OH | Completed athletic eligibility; graduated from Cleveland State in 2015 |
| Tom Wamukota | 21 | C | 6'11" | 224 | Senior | Bungoma, Kenya | Graduated |
| Fred VanVleet | 23 | G | 6'0" | 195 | Senior | Rockford, IL | Graduated |
| Ron Baker | 31 | G | 6'4" | 220 | RS Senior | Scott City, KS | Graduated |

### Class of 2016 recruits

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Darrlyn Willis PF | Poplarville, MS | Pearl River C.C. | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 225 lb (102 kg) | Nov 13, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| C. J. Keyser G | Wolfeboro, NH | Brewster Academy | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | Nov 23, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Daishon Smith G | Tallahassee, FL | Tallahassee C.C. | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | Nov 23, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Austin Reaves PG | Newark, AR | Cedar Ridge High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Jan 20, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2016 Wichita State Basketball Commits". Rivals.com. "2016 Wichita State Basketball Commits". Scout.com. "2016 Wichita State Basketball Commits". ESPN.com. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

## Preseason

The Shockers were picked, for the fourth consecutive year, to win the Missouri Valley Conference by an MVC preseason poll. Markis McDuffie, the 2016 MVC Freshman of the Year, was selected to the conference's preseason All-MVC team.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| Nov 5, 2016* 2:00 pm, Cox Kansas | | Augusta | W 73–67 | | 24 – Morris | 7 – Tied | 7 – Shamet | Charles Koch Arena (10,105) Wichita, KS |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| Nov 11, 2016* 8:30 pm, Cox Kansas | | South Carolina State | W 85–39 | 1–0 | 14 – Nurger | 9 – Kelly | 4 – Tied | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Nov 13, 2016* 7:00 pm, Cox Kansas | | Long Beach State Battle 4 Atlantis opening round | W 92–55 | 2–0 | 15 – Frankamp | 6 – Smith | 6 – Smith | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Nov 16, 2016* 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Tulsa | W 80–53 | 3–0 | 18 – McDuffie | 7 – McDuffie | 4 – McDuffie | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Nov 20, 2016* 2:00 pm, Cox Kansas | | Maryland Eastern Shore | W 116–79 | 4–0 | 16 – Tied | 4 – Tied | 5 – Frankamp | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Nov 23, 2016* 11:00 am, ESPN2 | | vs. LSU Battle 4 Atlantis quarterfinals | W 82–47 | 5–0 | 16 – Shamet | 6 – Kelly | 7 – Frankamp | Imperial Arena (1,604) Nassau, Bahamas |
| Nov 24, 2016* 1:30 pm, ESPN | | vs. No. 10 Louisville Battle 4 Atlantis semifinals | L 52–62 | 5–1 | 10 – Tied | 5 – Nurger | 3 – Shamet | Imperial Arena (1,604) Nassau, Bahamas |
| Nov 25, 2016* 12:00 pm, ESPN2 | | vs. No. 24 Michigan State Battle 4 Atlantis 3rd place game | L 72–77 | 5–2 | 16 – Willis Jr. | 6 – Willis Jr. | 3 – Shamet | Imperial Arena (1,569) Nassau, Bahamas |
| Nov 29, 2016* 7:00 pm, Cox Kansas | | Southern Nazarene | W 87–57 | 6–2 | 15 – Morris | 9 – Willis Jr. | 5 – Smith | Charles Koch Arena (10,436) Wichita, KS |
| Dec 3, 2016* 4:00 pm, CBSSN | | at Colorado State MW–MVC Challenge | W 82–67 | 7–2 | 16 – Brown | 6 – Morris | 4 – Smith | Moby Arena Fort Collins, CO |
| Dec 6, 2016 7:00 pm, Cox Kansas | | Saint Louis | W 75–45 | 8–2 | 15 – Kelly | 8 – Kelly | 5 – Shamet | Charles Koch Arena (10,157) Wichita, KS |
| Dec 10, 2016* 3:00 pm, ESPN2 | | vs. Oklahoma All-College Classic | W 76–73 | 9–2 | 17 – Brown | 8 – McDuffie | 6 – Smith | Chesapeake Energy Arena (11,157) Oklahoma City, OK |
| Dec 17, 2016* 6:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Oklahoma State | L 76–93 | 9–3 | 24 – Willis Jr. | 13 – Willis | 3 – Tied | Intrust Bank Arena (15,004) Wichita, KS |
| Dec 22, 2016* 7:00 pm, Cox Kansas | | South Dakota State | W 89–67 | 10–3 | 21 – Shamet | 9 – Willis Jr. | 6 – Brown | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Missouri Valley regular season |||||||||
| Dec 28, 2016 6:00 pm, Cox Kansas | | at Indiana State | W 80–72 | 11–3 (1–0) | 25 – Willis Jr. | 10 – Willis Jr. | 4 – Shamet | Hulman Center (4,550) Terre Haute, IN |
| Jan 1, 2017 1:00 pm, Cox Kansas | | Bradley | W 100–66 | 12–3 (2–0) | 15 – Tied | 6 – Kelly | 6 – Shamet | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Jan 4, 2017 7:00 pm, Cox Kansas | | Drake | W 90–65 | 13–3 (3–0) | 13 – Tied | 11 – McDuffie | 5 – Shamet | Charles Koch Arena (10,383) Wichita, KS |
| Jan 8, 2017 3:30 pm, ESPNU | | at Northern Iowa | W 80–66 | 14–3 (4–0) | 17 – Shamet | 5 – McDuffie | 3 – Tied | McLeod Center (5,547) Cedar Falls, IA |
| Jan 11, 2017 6:00 pm, Cox Kansas | | Loyola–Chicago | W 87–75 | 15–3 (5–0) | 26 – McDuffie | 6 – Nurger | 3 – Tied | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Jan 14, 2017 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | | at Illinois State | L 62–76 | 15–4 (5–1) | 14 – Tied | 9 – Willis Jr | 6 – Shamet | Redbird Arena (9,078) Bloomington, IL |
| Jan 17, 2017 8:00 pm, CBSSN | | at Evansville | W 82–65 | 16–4 (6–1) | 17 – Morris | 10 – Morris | 5 – Shamet | Ford Center (4,019) Evansville, IN |
| Jan 21, 2017 2:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Indiana State | W 84–58 | 17–4 (7–1) | 24 – Morris | 8 – Morris | 4 – Morris | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Jan 24, 2017 6:00 pm, CBSSN | | Southern Illinois | W 87–45 | 18–4 (8–1) | 20 – McDuffie | 9 – McDuffie | 4 – Tied | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Jan 29, 2017 3:00 pm, ESPNU | | at Bradley | W 64–49 | 19–4 (9–1) | 19 – Shamet | 14 – McDuffie | 6 – Shamet | Carver Arena (6,001) Peoria, IL |
| Feb 1, 2017 6:00 pm, Cox Kansas | | at Drake | W 77–69 | 20–4 (10–1) | 17 – Shamet | 14 – McDuffie | 8 – McDuffie | Knapp Center (3,024) Des Moines, IA |
| Feb 4, 2017 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | | Illinois State | W 86–45 | 21–4 (11–1) | 18 – Frankamp | 11 – Morris | 5 – Brown | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Feb 9, 2017 8:00 pm, CBSSN | | Missouri State | W 80–62 | 22–4 (12–1) | 13 – Morris | 4 – 3 tied | 5 – McDuffie | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Feb 12, 2017 3:00 pm, ESPNU | | at Loyola–Chicago | W 81–64 | 23–4 (13–1) | 16 – Frankamp, Shamet | 9 – Morris | 7 – Shamet | Joseph J. Gentile Arena (4,156) Chicago, IL |
| Feb 15, 2017 6:00 PM, Cox Kansas | | at Southern Illinois | W 87–68 | 24–4 (14–1) | 14 – Frankamp | 9 – McDuffie | 6 – Shamet | SIU Arena (4,447) Carbondale, IL |
| Feb 18, 2017 11:00 am, ESPN2 | | Northern Iowa | W 73–44 | 25–4 (15–1) | 14 – Shamet, Willis | 11 – Willis | 5 – Frankamp | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Feb 21, 2017 7:00 pm, Cox Kansas | No. 25 | Evansville | W 109–83 | 26–4 (16–1) | 18 – Morris | 6 – Kelly | 6 – Kelly | Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS |
| Feb 25, 2017 11:00 am, ESPN2 | No. 25 | at Missouri State | W 86–67 | 27–4 (17–1) | 23 – Shamet | 8 – Shamet | 5 – Tied | JQH Arena (6,823) Springfield, MO |
| Missouri Valley tournament |||||||||
| Mar 3, 2017 6:05 pm, ESPN3/FSMW/CSNC | (2) No. 21 | vs. (7) Bradley Quarterfinals | W 82–56 | 28–4 | 14 – Kelly | 10 – McDuffie | 3 – Tied | Scottrade Center (9,124) St. Louis, MO |
| Mar 4, 2017 5:00 pm, CBSSN | (2) No. 21 | vs. (6) Missouri State Semifinals | W 78–63 | 29–4 | 21 – Morris | 7 – Tied | 4 – Shamet | Scottrade Center (12,124) St. Louis, MO |
| Mar 5, 2017 1:00 pm, CBS | (2) No. 21 | vs. (1) Illinois State Championship | W 71–51 | 30–4 | 19 – Frankamp | 10 – Morris | 2 – Kelly | Scottrade Center (11,744) St. Louis, MO |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| Mar 17, 2017* 6:10 pm, CBS | (10 S) No. 19 | vs. (7 S) Dayton First Round | W 64–58 | 31–4 | 13 – Shamet | 11 – Kelly | 3 – Tied | Bankers Life Fieldhouse (18,269) Indianapolis, IN |
| Mar 19, 2017* 1:40 pm, CBS | (10 S) No. 19 | vs. (2 S) No. 5 Kentucky Second Round | L 62–65 | 31–5 | 20 – Shamet | 8 – Tied | 3 – McDuffie | Bankers Life Fieldhouse (18,293) Indianapolis, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. S=South Region. All times are in Central Time. |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| AP | RV | RV | RV | — | RV | RV | — | — | — | RV | — | — | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 21 | 20 | 19 | Not released |
| Coaches | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | — | — | RV | — | — | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 22 | 22 | 19 | |
*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings