Basketball

Head Coach Gregg Marshall has announced the signing of Nick Wiggins to a National Letter-of-Intent to play basketball at Wichita State beginning with the 2012-13 season. Wiggins, a 6-foot-6 wing from Toronto, Canada, averaged 17.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists for Wabash Valley (Ill.) College in 2011-12 and led them to the NJCAA Tournament in Hutchinson, Kan. "Nick is a player our staff had targeted who can really score the basketball," Marshall said. "He can shoot it, drive it, and has big-time athleticism.

Cleanthony Early and Demetric Williams combined to hit 6 straight free throws in the final 41 seconds to help seal the Shockers 66-62 win over Indiana State. Early started shooting hot in the first half of this game, as he hit three straight 3-pointers to give the Shockers a 24-21 lead.  Neither team could pull away in this game with the Shockers 8 point lead late in the second half being the widest margin. Malcolm Armstead followed his excellent performance against Illinois State with another impressive game against the Sycamores.  Armstead started the second half with 5 quick points to push Wichita State out to a 30-27 lead.  He would hit the 18-point mark with just under 5 minutes remaining in the game to give Wichita State a 57-51 lead.  The story of the night was at the free throw line for Indiana State.  The Sycamores went just 15-23 from the charity stripe for the game, 11-17 in the second half.  The Sycamores did outrebound Wichita State though, 35-27, but they turned the ball over 15 times to Wichita State's 8. Wichita State moves to 23-5 overall and 12-4 in Valley play as the team returns home to face Detroit on Saturday in their Bracket Buster Matchup.  That game will be at 3 pm in Koch Arena.

When Elijah Johnson talks about his best friend, he talks just like an older brother.  "First of all," states Johnson, "He was a baseball player.  And he was skinny, he was so skinny, that dude was so skinny.  When I moved to Vegas we ran into each other in the gym.  He was in the gym shooting the ball but he wasn't taking basketball serious. " It didn't take long for Elijah to influence his new neighbor, and soon to be best friend, Demetric Williams. "When he started hangin' with me all I was was basketball," says Johnson.  The rest, was history.

Wichita police say a former Final Four Wichita State men's basketball player is under investigation for rape.  The player is no longer on the team because he's out of eligibility. Police aren't releasing the name, but say the investigation involves allegations from a 20-year-old female, who is not a student.  Police say the investigation stems from an incident at a teammate's home over the weekend. "It appears that there was some sort of get together over at this residence and during that time frame, late Saturday/early Sunday, is when it was reported that it happened," said Lt. Doug Nolte with the Wichita Police.

Sophomore Molly O'Brien has been suspended from the Shocker basketball team effective immediately.  Coach Jody Adams made the announcement today.  Adams says O'Brien violated team rules.  The release did not indicate a timetable for O'Brien's return. O'Brien has played in 6 games so far this season for Wichita State.  She averages less than 9 minutes per game and has scored 6 points this season.  O'Brien also has 12 turnovers this season and has not recorded a field goal all season; her 6 points came from the free throw line.

MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) -Just about everyone is back for Kansas State this season but the coach. Frank Martin is gone to South Carolina, and former Illinois coach Bruce Weber has taken over. So far, so good. He says he has successfully "re-recruited" 12 lettermen, including six who started 10 games or more for the Wildcats in 2011. Seniors Rodney McGruder, Jordan Henriquez and Martavious Irving all have considerable experience, and other players have logged meaningful minutes.

Local toddler a basketball prodigy

Productivity probably came to a halt this afternoon.  The Shockers played during the middle of the work day.  At least one Wichita business knew it couldn't compete with the game. "This is great," said Phillip Lange, who works at A Box 4 U which produces blast resistant modular buildings. But this was hardly a normal day at A Box 4 U, anymore than at any other business in Wichita.  Employees are a little distracted by March Madness. "We have a lot of alumni here, as well as sports fanatics, I would call them," said Bobbi Santana.

Fort Hays State women's basketball will be the No. 6 seed in the MIAA Championship Tournament, March 5-10. With the new 12-team tournament format this year, FHSU will host a first round game on Tuesday (Mar. 5) at Gross Memorial Coliseum against No. 11 seed Lincoln. FHSU just defeated Lincoln in Hays on Friday in the regular season finale. Game time is set for 7 pm on Tuesday. Fort Hays State ended the regular season in a tie for fifth place with Truman, each finishing 12-6 in the MIAA.

Former FHSU basketball player Dijon Smith has been signed to play professional basketball in Germany with the BSV Wulfen organization. Smith has recently joined the team to begin training for the season which begins in September. Smith was an All-MIAA Second Team selection for FHSU in 2010-11 as a senior and helped the Tigers to consecutive appearances in the regional semifinals of the NCAA Tournament. He averaged 14.4 points per game last year while shooting 63.5 percent from the field and led the MIAA in blocked shots per game (1.6)

The Big 12 and Southeastern Conferences have announced an annual men's basketball challenge that will begin during the 2013-14 season. "The Big 12 is excited to enter into another partnership with the SEC," said Commissioner Bob Bowlsby. “It will add more quality opponents to our schools' annually strong non-conference schedules and provide an additional avenue to showcase some outstanding intersectional matchups. " The majority of the games are scheduled for December 2-6, with three taking place outside the four-day series window due to scheduling issues.

The top recruit in the nation, and the brother of a Wichita State basketball player has made his choice for college next season, and it's in the state of Kansas, but not where Shocker fans had hoped. Andrew Wiggins announced this morning he will be a Jayhawk next season. Andrew's brother Nick is a senior-to-be for Wichita State, but the Shockers were considered a long-shot at best to get the top-rated younger brother. For the University of Kansas, this is a big win, as the Jayhawks are looking to replace their top five scorers from last season.

Wichita police say a former Final Four Wichita State men's basketball player is under investigation for rape.  The player is no longer on the team because he's out of eligibility. Police aren't releasing the name, but say the investigation involves allegations from a 20-year-old female, who is not a student.  Police say the investigation stems from an incident at a teammate's home over the weekend. "It appears that there was some sort of get together over at this residence and during that time frame, late Saturday/early Sunday, is when it was reported that it happened," said Lt. Doug Nolte with the Wichita Police.

A local Salina business will be accompanying the Wichita State basketball team to the final four. Its name is Power Ad and its possession arrows will be used in the last four games. "Anytime you can turn on the TV and see your product, you have that sense of pride that you're participating in the event,too," Deb Marseline said. Marseline's father, Roger Naylor Sr., developed a see-through possession arrow using clear acrylic and red LED lights. The business patented the design in 2005.

They may play angry, but the Shockers have a softer side off the court. “It put a smile on my face as soon as I walked in,” says Kyle Begin. Kyle, a three time cancer survivor, is one of several young cancer patients to get a surprise visit from the team earlier this year at Dr. David Rosen's clinic. “They inspired me. It makes me want to beat cancer and play basketball,” says Kyle who is on the court any chance he gets. "It meant a lot.  It lets you know how blessed we are to play basketball and be in the situation we're in," says WSU player Carl Hall.

The Kansas State athletic department released a statement today saying that former athletic director Bebe Lee has passed away at the age of 96.  Here is the official release from the university: H.B. “Bebe” Lee, director of athletics at Kansas State from 1956-1968, passed away Sunday at the age of 96 in Southport, North Carolina. Following a successful stint as head basketball coach at Colorado, which culminated with a Final Four appearance in 1955, Lee became the youngest athletics director in the Big Seven Conference when he took over the Wildcat athletic program.

As if having the name Kansas across the front of your jersey isn't pressure enough, there are three members of the KU basketball team whose name on the back of the jersey brings with it just as much pressure. Manning, Self and Roberts are all names Jayhawk fans know well. But Evan Manning, Tyler Self and Niko Roberts are the next generation of KU basketball. "He has always kind of been coach, but at home he's more dad then a coach," sayd Tyler Self, who plays for the Jayhawks and whose father is head coach Bill Self.

The Scott City Beavers put down their pencils and picked up signs to cheer on former student Ron Baker as he plays in the national spotlight. "After he won that game against Gonzaga, I was like wow he just beat the number one team in the nation. I kind of teared up a little bit. I'm happy for him and can't wait to watch him tonight," said sophomore basketball player Trey O'Neil. The people of Scott City will never forget the day Ron sank a buzzer beater to win the state championship.

When you're asked to play Wilt Chamberlain in a movie, you don't say no. So when approached and asked to play the legendary University of Kansas forward in an upcoming film, junior Justin Wesley didn't have much of a choice. Wesley agreed to play Chamberlain for 'Jayhawkers,' a full-feature film by KU professor, writer and filmmaker Kevin Wilmott. He is best known for the film CSA: Confederate State of America, about America had the South won the Civil War. Wilmott reached out to Kansas head basketball coach Bill Self for suggestions on who he thought should play the role.

It's hard to say that six and a half minutes defines a season. But in the game of basketball, it can definitely make or break it. In Saturdays NCAA tournament opener with Texas A&M, the Wichita Lady Shockers went from leading 20-19 to trailing 35-22. It was a hole they could not recover from. "Basketball is a game of momentum," said senior Chynna Turner. "We feed off our defense. A&M went on a run and we weren't stopping them. " The Lady Shox started strong, neutralizing the Aggies decided height advantage by getting the A&M biggs in foul trouble.