Heartbreaker in St. Louis

Wichita State’s run in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament in St. Louis ended March 6 on a last-second shot from Creighton’s Booker Woodfox to give the Bluejays the quarterfinals win, 63-62.

The No. 7 seed Shockers battled back from a 22-point second half deficit to challenge the No. 2 Jays in the final minutes of the game. Sophomore forward J.T. Durley led WSU with 17 points, 15 of which came in the second half.

Freshman Toure' Murry was the one to drain a three-pointer to put the Shocks on top — until Woodfox made the final bucket of the night.

“Regardless of how the game went,” Coach Gregg Marshall related after the game, “I’m so proud of how we were able to come back.”

In first-round tournament action March 5 in the Scottrade Center, Wichita State breezed by No. 10 seed Missouri State, 59-46, after a close-fought first half. Murry contributed 16 points and six rebounds in the win.

The Shockers entered the tournament with a 15-15 overall record and tied for fifth in the conference with an 8-10 record. They had won nine of their last 13 games.

At press time, the 16-16 post-tournament Shockers plan to play host to an as-yet unnamed opponent at home in the opening round of the College Basketball Invitational either March 17 or March 18. The CBI is a 16-team, single-elimination tournament, until the Championship Series, with all games being held at campus sites of the higher seed. Eleven of the 17 games will be nationally televised on HDNet.

The Championship Series will be a best-of-three series, home-away-home, in which the higher seed will host the first and last (if necessary) home games. Opening round: March 17-18; Quarterfinal Round: March 23; Semifinal Round: March 25; Championship: March 30, April 1, April 3, if necessary.

Wichita State carries a 13-3 home record, has a 63-game attendance streak of more than 10,000 fans and has sold out Charles Koch Arena eight times in 2008-09.

— Larry Rankin, WSU Sports Information, Connie Kachel White