WICHITA, Kan.— ACU returned from their break in action to close out both their non-conference schedule and the decade at Wichita State on Sunday afternoon. Both teams were coming into the game with undefeated records in the month of December, but it was the Shockers who came away with an 84-66 win.
The Wildcats would get the scoring started going up 4-0 early, but the Shockers responded with a 12-0 run. The teams traded buckets before the Wildcats were able to cut their lead to one on a steal and layup from
Coryon Mason. After the Wildcats cut into the lead, Wichita State once again went on a run to close out the half and led by 12 at the break.
The Shockers only outscored ACU by six in the second half, but they kept the Wildcats at bay anytime they tried to make a push.
Payten Ricks led all scorers with 19 points in his return home to Wichita and the Shockers completed an undefeated December. WSU is now 11-1 on the season while ACU will return to their conference schedule where they are already 2-0 in Southland play.
Key Plays
- Daniels scored two threes for the Wildcats, he had made just two threes on the season coming into the game.
- Mason hit three threes, he also only had three made threes coming into the game.
- The Shockers had double digit points from both of their standout freshmen to lead them in scoring.
- The Wildcats had three separate instances where they jumped a pass to get the steal and easy transition layup at the other end.
Turning Point
Two different Shockers scoring runs in the first half kept the Wildcats at bay and they were unable to get enough stops in the second half to get back in the game.
Stat Pack
- For just the second time this season, the Wildcats lost the turnover battle 18-16.
- The Shockers outrebounded the Wildcats 39-28
- Payten Ricks led all scorers with 19 points, but he is now 0-13 over the last two games from beyond the arc.
- Both Coryon Mason and Damien Daniels scored as many threes in this game as they had on the season overall.
- Mason also scored a season-high 16 points on 5-9 shooting.
- Of their 18 turnovers, five were offensive fouls
Up Next
ACU will be on the road once again as they dive in to the rest of their conference schedule. The team travels to Beaumont, Texas to take on the Cardinals of Lamar on Jan. 4 at 2 p.m.
