MBB ESPN Events Invitational Preview: vs. #18 Florida (Nov. 29)

ESPN Events Invitational Championship
WICHITA STATE (6-0) vs. #18/16 FLORIDA (7-0)

Friday, November 29 | 2:30pm CT/3:30pm ET
Kissimmee, Fla. | State Farm Field House

TV: ESPN with Kevin Fitzgerald & Daymeon Fishback
Radio: KEYN 103.7 FM with Mike Kennedy & Bob Hull

OPENING TIPS

• Wichita State and no. 18/16 Florida competes in the ESPN Events Invitational Championship game on Black Friday.
• This is Wichita State’s third appearance in the ESPN Events Invitational, previously the Advocare Invitational and the Old Spice Classic. Wichita State is 2-5 in its three appearances in the ESPN Events Invitational.
• The Shockers are 22-21 in Multi-Team Events since 2007 and 83-71 all-time.
• The Shockers are seeking their third MTE championship and first since 2013 when they won the CBE Classic.
• Wichita State is 15-6 all-time as of Nov. 29.
• Wichita State moved to 6-0 with a 68-66 overtime victory over Minnesota on Thanksgiving.
• Florida is 7-0 and ranked no. 18 in the AP Top 25 and no. 16 in the Coaches Poll. The Gators have won all seven games by double digits, including a 75-58 win over Wake Forest to open the ESPN Events Invitational.
• Four Gators averaged in double figures, led by Walter Clayton Jr. with 17.1 points per
• Harlon Beverly ranks 2nd in the AAC and 33rd nationally in steals per match (2.60).
• Wichita State ranks 9th nationally in free throws made per. match (21.6), 15th in turnover per game (9.2) and 22nd in free throw attempts per battle (28.4).
• As no. 78 in the KenPom rankings, Wichita State is third out of the 13 teams in the American.
• Senior forward Ronnie DeGray III will be out for the next few weeks after suffering a broken wrist vs. Monmouth on November 18.
• Wichita State returns three starters and seven letterwinners from the 2023-24 roster, including three of the top five scorers.
• Fifty-one (51.0) percent of the scoring from last year’s team returns for the Shockers, led by second-leading scorer Harlon Beverly (11.2 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 3.2 APG).
• Quincy Ballard broke the single-season school record for field goal percentage and also had top-five marks in blocks per game and total blocks in 2023-24.
• Ballard moved into 9th on the Wichita State career blocks list vs. UNI on 14 November. He is on pace to break the WSU career record for blocks per game at 1.96.
• Eight student-athletes on Wichita State’s roster have NCAA Tournament experience: Quincy Ballard (Florida St.), Xavier Bell (Drexel), Harlon Beverly (Miami), Ronnie DeGray III (Missouri), Justin Hill (Longwood), AJ McGinnis (UNCG), Zane Meeks (San Francisco) and Corey Washington (St. Peter’s Church).

WE > ME
• With the late arrival of Matej Bošnjak on the roster this summer, Wichita State had no scholarships left. Enter the redshirt senior Harlon Beverly. Beverly volunteered to give her scholarship to Bošnjak and is classified as a walk-on during her final season of collegiate basketball.
• In an interview with Wichita Eaglesaid Beverly, “I’m just grateful to be in this position where I can play Division I basketball while I get my bachelor’s degree and work toward my master’s degree. It’s really just a blessing to be in college. I’ve really been at two. good schools and it will be really helpful for my future so I understand how helpful college can be if I can help someone else get a scholarship one of my teammates don’t mind the one who sacrifices when it is beneficial to our team.”
• Head coach Paul Mills said in the same interview: “To be a part of it, you have to make a sacrifice, and it’s a pretty significant sacrifice on his part. I’ll tell you, he didn’t just volunteer to do it , he was eager to do so, to be honest with you.”

WICHITA STATE IN MULTI-TEAM EVENTS
• The Shockers are seeking their first title at a Multi-Team Event since winning the 2012 Cancun Challenge and 2013 CBE Classic in consecutive years. They have finished runner-up four times since then: 2014 Diamond Head Classic (Honolulu), 2017 Maui Invitational, 2019 Cancun Challenge, 2022 Hall of Fame Classic.
• The 2012 Cancun title was Wichita State’s first at a neutral site since winning the 1963 All-College Tournament in Oklahoma City.
• Shocker teams have won a total of 15 regular season contests in the modern era, 10 of which have come on their home court.
• Wichita State was scheduled to participate in the 2020 Battle 4 Atlantis, but the event was canceled due to COVID-19. A replacement event took place in Sioux Falls, SD featuring many of the same teams, but the Shockers had to withdraw when two players tested positive during a pre-tournament COVID screening.
• Wichita State took third place in the 2021 Roman Main Event in Las Vegas. Both games had memorable finishes. Against an Arizona team that would eventually win a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, WSU rallied from 16 down in the second half before falling in overtime. The Shockers staged a similar comeback in the second half against UNLV in the consolation game. One point down Tyson Etienne drew a foul near midcourt with 3.5 seconds left and sank two game-winning free throws.
• The Shockers are also coming off a third-place finish at last year’s Myrtle Beach Invitational. Wichita State fell to Liberty in the semifinals before coming back to defeat third-place Saint Louis.

ABOUT THE ESPN EVENTS INVITATION
• Now in its 18th year, the Shockers are making their third appearance at the ESPN Events Invitaitonal. Wichita State went 0-3 in the 2015 Advocare Invitational and 1-2 in the 2008 Old Spice Classic.
• The inaugural ESPN Events Invitational took place in 2006, where Arkansas defeated West Virginia. Florida Atlantic won the 2023 title in dominant fashion over Virginia Tech, 84-50.
• This is the first year that the event has only featured four teams.

SCOUTING FLORIDA

• Todd Golden has the Gators on the rise through his first two seasons at the helm, leading Florida back to the NCAA Tournament in 2024. UF posted 24 wins, its most since 2016-17, and advanced to the SEC Tournament championship game for the first time since 2014.
• The Gators tallied four top-25 wins in 2023-24, bringing the team’s total to six under Golden through his first 66 games, the fastest pace of any Florida coach in the last 50 years. Florida had its highest scoring team in program history at 85.7 points per possession. game, ranking in the top 10 nationally in scoring, rebounds per game, offensive rebounds per game and offensive rebounding percentages.
• Gators return leading scorer and All-SEC guard Walter Clayton Jr.who posted 17.6 points per game and knocked down 93 3-pointers.
• Co-starter Will Richard also returns after averaging 11.4 with 70 3-point field goals last season.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. FLORIDA
• Should the Shockers and Gators meet, Florida holds a 2-0 all-time series lead.
• Both matchups came in the early ’90s, with the Gators winning in Wichita and Gainesville.

HIGH TASK
• Wichita State will have its hands full with Florida in the ESPN Events Invitational Championship. The Shockers are looking to snap an 8-game losing streak against ranked opponents. The Shockers’ last win on a neutral field vs. a ranked enemy came all the way back in 2016 vs. Arizona in the NCAA Tournament.
• Wichita State is 58-146 all-time vs. ranked opponents and 6-28 on a neutral ground.
• The Shockers 0-4 under head coach Paul Mills vs. ranked teams.

WORKING OVERTIME
• Wichita State’s 68-66 overtime win vs. Minnesota in the opener of the ESPN Events Invitational on Thanksgiving made the Shockers 1-0 in OT this season and 64-79 all-time.
• Wichita State is 4-5 all-time in overtime games on a neutral field, snapping a three-game losing streak. Wichita State’s last overtime game on a neutral court came against Arizona in the 2021 Roman Main Event. Arizona won that game, 82-78.
• Over the last three seasons, Wichita State is just 2-4 in overtime games.
• Shockers are 1-2 in overtime under head coach Paul Mills.

NON-CONFERENCE NOTABLES
• Wichita State could potentially face two first-time non-conference foes (East Tennessee State and Wake Forest).
• The Shockers will play three teams ranked in the Top 60 of KenPom’s preseason rankings (vs. Florida – 28; vs. Wake Forest – 44; K-State – 49; Minnesota – 59).
• Wichita State has won 10 of its last 13 non-conference true road games dating back to the 2019 NIT run. The Shockers have two true non-conference road games in 2024 (WKU and DePaul).

MILESTONE FUR WATCH

• Quincy Ballard is 3 blocks away from 100 in his Wichita State career.

• Xavier Bell needs 44 points to reach 1,000 for his collegiate career.

• Harlon Beverly is 82 points shy of 1,000 career points.

• Justin Hill has 1,465 career points. He needs 35 points to reach 1,500. He has 49 assists and 500 for his career.

• AJ McGinnis is 138 points away from reaching 1,000 for his career.

WARM UP
• After scoring just six points in his Wichita State debut at Western Kentucky, Corey Washington has found its way. The junior has scored 10 or more in each of the last five games, including a game-high 20 vs. Monmouth. Washington is averaging 15.8 points per game over the last five games.

MINNESOTA REMAINS
• Wichita State improved to 4-2 all-time vs. Minnesota.
• The Shockers are now 8-3 when they play on Nov. 28.
• Wichita State’s 25 first-half points marked a season low.
• Wichita State is 2-0 when trailing with 5:00 remaining this season. They were 1-16 all of last season.
• Wichita State had lost 10 straight games when they scored between 60-69 points in a game. The Shockers are now 2-12 under Mills when hitting that mark.
• Wichita State has won eight in a row as it holds its opponent between 60-69 points.
• Wichita State has yet to commit more turnovers than the opponent in a game this season. They have drawn three times.

• Harlon Beverly scored a season-high 16 points and has finished in double figures four times.

• Corey Washington has scored 10 or more in five consecutive games.

• Justin Hill has reached double figures in every game this season.

OLD TIMERS
• With COVID still affecting eligibility, several schools around the country have multiple student-athletes on their roster playing in their fifth, sixth and even seventh seasons. Wichita State ranks second in the nation with seven student-athletes in their fifth year or higher in collegiate basketball.

A SHOCKER WIN WILL…
… Makes them 7-0 for the 11th time in program history.
… Be their first MTE title since 2013.
… Be their sixth MTE championship in program history.
… Up their record to 3-0 on a neutral court this year.
… Low Paul Mills 22-19 as Wichita State head coach.
… Give Mills 128 career wins.
… Run their record to 1,679-1,264 all-time.
… Be their first ever win against Florida.

A SHOCKER LOSS WOULD…
… Be their first loss of the season and snap a 6 game winning streak.
… Drop them to 2-5 in MTE championship games since 2007.
… Makes them 2-1 on a neutral court this season.
… Low Paul Mills 21-20 as Wichita State head coach.
… Lower Mills’ career record to 127-104.
… Drop their record to 1,678-1,265 all-time.
… Drop them to 0-3 all-time vs. Florida.

GAME 8: ALCORN STATE
• Wichita State is 2-1 all-time vs. Alcorn State with two of the three meetings coming in consecutive seasons (2021, 2022).
• The Braves upset the Shockers in the Roundhouse two seasons ago, 66-57.
• Alcorn State is led by fifth-year head coach Landon Bussie.