Shockwaves

Final: WSU 65, WSU 60

Strange game. WSU makes 10 of 21 free throws and ices the game late.

Matt Braeuer scores 15 to lead the Shockers, while Cooz scores 14 and Thomasson 12.

Good win for WSU over the Valley’s seventh-place team. One of those games you need down the homestretch.

Have a great night, Pat.

Final: WSU 65, ISU 60

WSU will eat clock and ISU will play a man, then Mekel throws it away. Stinson misses a runner and ISU fouls with 52 seconds to go. Mekel catches a break. He got trapped, made a bad pass and could’ve suffered.

Durley is at the line for one-and-one . . . perfect, miss. 64-58.

ISU’s looking for threes, but WSU is playing great no-three defense. ISU gets foul shots after a rebound with 35.6 to play. Arnold makes both, it’s 64-60.

ISU didn’t foul Durley or Couisnard but will hack Thomasson with 31.2 to go. Double-bonus time, though. WSU is 9 of 17 at the line tonight. Phil bounces the first one off, misses the second one badly.

ISU misses a forced three, really had nothing for it that entire possession, and Clemente is fouled and will get two FTs with 14 seconds to go. Most folks have stayed the entire time, good for them.

Clemente misses (that’s 9 of 20, folks) and makes. 65-60.

WSU fouls on a rebound with 3.7 to go, ISU gets two shots but misses the first, virtually making a comeback impossible. Second one is off and ISU misses. Game over.

1:20, 2nd half: WSU 63, ISU 58

Moore makes both technical free throws despite a hail of boos raining down — if that’s possible. WSU, 56-54, now it’s Sycamore ball. But a Tunnell miss means WSU only lost two points in the possession. Not bad.

Mekel scores for the first time on a hesitation 12-footer. It’s 58-54.

Tunnell scores inside for ISU, 58-56, 2 1/2 to play.

Durley finds a cutting Cooz to the basket for a dunk and foul. He makes the FT for a 61-56 lead, 2:14 to go.

Stinson misses a one-and-one, WSU gets the ball back up five. A clearout for Cooz lets him make a drive past a Sycamore for a seven-point lead.

ISU is fouled and Stinson pretty much has to make these, with 1:37 to go, to get the Sycamores back in it. He bounces in the first, makes the second, it’s 63-58 with 1:37 to go.

ISU fouls Clemente (.523 at the line) with 1:23 to go . . . misses, but Cooz gets the rebound and Marshall calls a timeout before Cooz falls out of bounds.

3:41, 2nd half: WSU 56, ISU 52

Cooz scores on a post move, it’s a one-point game. WSU gets it back after Arnold tosses it out of bounds.

Mekel remains scoreless after a 15-foot miss, but Ellis gets the rebound and is fouled, he’ll get two shots . . . make, make, and WSU has the lead (53-52) for the first time since 36-34.

We go to a break after a big exchange. Braeuer hit a three for a 56-52 Shocker lead. At the ISU end, a rebound went out of bounds after a tangle and the baseline official called it WSU’s ball. But the outer official called a foul on Braeuer, and when Braeuer realized it he jumped up and ripped his headpiece off, which got him a technical foul. ISU will have two free throws and the ball after the TO.

6:49, 2nd half: ISU 52, WSU 49

Carter misses the FT. Braeuer finds his range with a three as the shot clock winds down, it’s 46-42 with 10 to play.

And put a star by the 9:22 mark, when Harry Marshall throws in a 25-footer than banks in as the shot clock expires. Triple oof.

Braeuer gets nailed by Todd McCoy under the basket, fans boo their butts off. Braeuer makes 1 of 2.

I’ve seen Gregg Marshall mad during games, but none moreso than just now. Durley flew to a three-point shooter, who missed, then the shooter (Stinson) out-hustled Durley for the rebound and got Durley to foul him on a layup attempt. Marshall whisked off his coat, stomped to the end of the bench, sent in a sub, then gave Durley a killer look as Durley trotted off. At least Stinson missed both FTs.

Couisnard’s layup makes it a four-point game, then Harris steals and gives to Braeuer for a layup.

McKenna, knowing a timeout is coming at the next whistle, doesn’t call one himself. Then Moore buries the Shockers with a three for a 52-47 lead. That may have been WSU’s best shot, though a ton of time remains.

After an Ellis basket cuts it to three, we go to a media TO.

10:38, 2nd half: ISU 46, WSU 39

ISU radio guy, sitting next to me, takes off his headsets at the break and asks, “I know we’re biased, but was that offensive foul (on Tunnell) a foul to you?” I agreed, it was a poor call. But when you play defense like J.T. Durley, you’re going to get the refs’ respect.

GRITTY, GUTTY Lance Harris nails a three to cut the lead to four.

But Clemente fouls Aaron Carter as he makes a three, and ISU can extend the lead to eight after the break.

12:31, 2nd half: ISU 41, WSU 36

Thanks for checking in tonight, Doug. The lads are making you proud so far this half.

And just as I say that . . . ISU is on a 7-0 run. Three-pointers from Tunnell and Cole Holmstrom make it 41-36 while WSU has committed turnovers the last two possessions.

15:32, 2nd half: WSU 36, ISU 34

Thomasson gets WSU within a point with the first basket of the second half, but Marshall scores four straight for ISU to extend the lead to five.

Clemente answers inside, cuts it to three.

Braeuer shows signs of being at game speed. He drives under the basket for a nifty move and basket, drawing the foul but missing the free throw. He slapped five with somebody on press row — THAT’S NOT ALLOWED.

Thomasson, continuing to fight hard inside, scores a three-point play to tie it up with 16:19 to go. Next time down, Couisnard takes a loose ball downcourt and feeds a flying Braeuer for a layup and WSU lead. WSU hits the media TO with the fans rocking for the first time.

Halftime: ISU 28, WSU 25In a half with 10 lead changes and some up-and-down action, you’d like to say it was a thrilling first half. But it wasn’t. Pretty sloppy stuff at times. Both teams are shooting better than 45 percent, but there’s 14 turnovers and six steals between them.

ISU scoring: Moore 11, Stinson 8, Tunnell 7, Marshall 2. And that’s it. ISU is shooting 47.8 percent from the field, 3 of 7 from three, 3 of 3 at the line.

WSU scoring (much more even): Thomasson 7, Couisnard 5, Durley 4, Harris 3, Clemente 2, Braeuer 2, Ellis 2 (none for Mekel). WSU is shooting 45.5 percent from the field, 2 of 9 from three, 3 of 7 from the line.

WSU is winning the rebounding battle 15-11.

Halftime: ISU 28, WSU 25

It’s the little things sometimes. At the timeout, Marshall got in the ear of official Mike Litzenfelner, but head referee Bo Boroski — clearly the most experienced of the three — traveled three-quarter court to break up the conversation. Wish I knew what he said to his fellow official afterward, but the facial expression was something like, “Hey, don’t put up with this guy.”

Couisnard hits 1 of 2 foul shots after the break to tie it at 20-20, but Stinson hits a three for ISU.

ISU back in the zone. Braeuer has made two passes that have been deflected in this possession. He just doesn’t seem up to game speed.

Moore has 11 points after a steal — Harris threw it right at him by mistake — and took it downcourt for a layup.

Stinson hits his second three for a 28-23 lead.

Commenter Doug — you’re an ex? Ex-girlfriend? Ex-Shocker? Ex-Exxon exec?

Durley makes a tremendous post move for a basket in the final 10 seconds. That’s his bread and butter.

3:28, 1st half: ISU 20, WSU 19

Sycamores are showing some man defense, but Durley got a nice feed from Mekel for a basket and 19-18 lead — our eighth lead change in 14 minutes.

An official’s call gets fans’ blood boiling — and it was a call in WSU’s favor. WSU got a loose ball and Mekel took two dribbles before the ISU shot clock went off. The whistle sounded, but WSU wanted the fast-break opportunity. Instead, they had to set up the offense.

ISU takes the lead — ninth lead change — on Moore’s ninth point of the half. WSU has the ball after the media TO.

7:58, 1st half: ISU 16, WSU 15

A three by Lance Harris — gritty, gutty Lance Harris — and a somewhat forced runner that goes in by Braeuer and WSU leads 15-9 and has scored nine straight.

Topekan Tunnell ends that quickly, though, with a jumper.

Tunnell and Thomasson are having some pretty good one-on-one battles on the block. Officials are letting them play. Tunnell gets a three-point play here to give ISU a 16-15 edge.

Braeuer has airballed consecutive three-point shots, both short.

11:13, 1st half: WSU 10, ISU 9

Yes, I know there are two “ISUs” in the Missouri Valley. I trust you can remember this ISU is Indiana State and not ask me to type the long name for two hours. Thanks for your support.

Thomasson has five after a short shot from the left block. J.T. Durley and Lance Harris are in for Braeuer and Clemente.

Some ragged, ragged play so far. Almost three minutes without a basket and very little offense being run on either side. Aaron Ellis, Braeuer and Clemente are in for Cooz, Thomasson and Mekel.

Ellis hits a jumper for a 10-9 Shocker lead. We hit another media timeout with WSU on a 4-0 run.

14:28, 1st half: ISU 9, WSU 6

McKenna is obviously an Altman disciple — his jacket was off by tipoff.

WSU is hitting the offensive boards hard early with three putback attempts in two possessions. Clemente gets one to go in for a 3-0 WSU lead.

ISU scores four straight on baskets from Tunnell and Stinson. Stinson floated in a smooth 14-footer.

Let’s watch Braeuer’s early minutes as his body tries to get back into 40-minute shape.

Thomasson lowers a shoulder and makes the basket and gets the foul (makes the FT). He easily could’ve been called for a charge. Shocker fortunes are chaning.

Gabe Moore busts a long three to give ISU the lead again, then hits a bank shot to make it 9-6.

ISU’s in a 2-3 zone and Mekel misses a three. But WSU gets the ball back after a turnover.

7:07 p.m.: Here we go

Kevin McKenna, who engineered the Creighton upset of Wichita State here in the 1981 MVC final, makes his first visit as a head coach to the Roundhouse after being Dana Altman’s assistant at Creighton.

Braeuer gets the start at guard, and it’s fun to watch trainer Todd Fagan show the officials Braeuer’s headpiece. They look at it, see that it has padding, then OK it. If only the legislature worked that well.

7:05 p.m.: Lineups

The Sycamore five: F Adam Arnold, F Jay Tunnell (of Topeka West), G Marico Stinson, G Harry Marshall, G Gabe Moore.

The Shocker five: F P.J. Couisnard, F Ramon Clemente, C Phil Thomasson, G Gal Mekel . . . and G Matt Braeuer.

6:55 p.m.: Some pregame thoughts

Garrett Stutz, the Shockers’ early signee from North Kansas City, Mo., is here again tonight. He’s been to more games this year than the academic advising senior director.

If you’re a officiating freak like me, I’ve found a great website that shows where every Division I official has worked this season. It’s fascinating to see the amount of travel most of these guys go through. We at The Eagle are still amazed by Ed Hightower working three games in three days in Maui, then working a game in Orlando, Fla., the next afternoon.

Here’s where tonight’s threesome worked most recently: Bo Boroski worked the IUPUI-South Dakota State game in Brookings, S.D., on Thursday (tonight is his 45th game); Mike Litzelfelner is working his second straight Sycamores game, he last worked last Saturday in Terre Haute for Drake-ISU (tonight is his 21st game); and John Moore last worked Jan. 31 in Denver for FIU-Denver (this is only his 9th game of the season).

6:45 p.m.: Time to rate the Indiana State Sycamores

As always during the conference season, we’ll rate the incoming opponent to start the blogging night. We rate the school and its importance to the Missouri Valley Conference. We’ll use the following for criteria, giving a maximum of 10 points for each and a minimum of 1. Here’s our look at the Sycamores.

1. Its national reputation in college basketball. We all know that the Sycamores’ national reputation comes down to a single, magical season. The 1978-79 team, led by senior Larry Bird and with wonderful role players like Steve Reed and Carl Nicks, won their first 33 games, including the first four in the NCAA Tournament. But on a Monday night in Salt Lake City, it all came to an end when Bird lost to Magic Johnson and Michigan State. The NBA was reborn beginning that night, and Indiana State hoops slipped back into obscurity. But play this scenario out in your head: If WSU could go through one season of perfection, a 33-0 season that got the Shockers to the NCAA championship game against (insert team here), only to lose . . . would you take that season and follow it up with 30 years of mediocrity, instead choosing to relive that one season over and over? That’s what they’re doing in Terre Haute, bless their hearts. 5 points.

2. Where its best players rate historically among the conference’s best. Larry Bird battles Oscar Robertson for best player in MVC history. After that . . . Michael Menser was pretty good. Sigh. 4 points.

3. Its home arena. I would’ve loved to have seen a game in the Hulman Center in that magic ‘79 season. But I didn’t, instead having to watch four Shocker-Sycamore games in front of about 4,000 less-than-thrilled fans. The Hulman Center doesn’t have the same “hockey is played here” atmosphere as the Kansas Coliseum, but it has that same feel of an unimaginative basketball facility. The upper seats are way, way up there, seemingly more vertical than most places. Of course, they’re empty 95 percent of the time. 3 points.

4. Its home fans. They won’t get points because the Sycamores rarely give them something to cheer about. 3 points.

5. Its home city. Before Cedar Falls, Terre Haute (that’s French for “high land”) was the place in the Valley nobody wanted to visit. Broken into halves by I-70, it’s a western Indiana town that’s centered around the university. A good shopping mall and a tremendous hole-in-the-wall bar that Shocker baseball coaches introduced me to years ago, but nothing the Chamber of Commerce is hanging its hat on. 4 points.

6. Its mascot and school colors. Sycamores, a lighter shade of blue and white. The nickname refers to sycamore trees. For about 20 years, somebody saw the need for a fictional Sycamore Indian tribe and a mascot that looked like an Indian. Thankfully, it was abandoned. 5 points.

7. Most colorful players and coaches from the school. I’ve blogged before about Bird and his off-the-backboard dunk to end the Jan. 26, 1978 game at Levitt Arena. That was colorful. John Sherman Williams gets colorful points for his name. After that . . . again, Michael Menser was a good player. 3 points.

8. And, finally, a chance to earn 10 bonus points based on none of the above. Indiana State gets bonus points because even though Terre Haute is one of the Valley’s smaller cities (at least in the bottom half at about 60,000), it’s the only town with a suburb that carries the town name and a directional prefix . . . West Terre Haute! Seriously, is there a need for West Terre Haute? Kinda like saying “North Newton” or “South Hutchinson.” Oh, wait . . . . ISU also gets points for its original nickname: The Fighting Teachers! And finally, an extra point to the Sycamores for hanging tough with the Shockers playing with only four players in the second half of that 1989 game. Maybe the most bizarre game I’ve ever watched. 5 points.

The Sycamores check in at . . . 54 points. Three more schools (including WSU) to go. We’ll rate SIU a week from tonight.

The current standings

Creighton 55

Bradley 54

Illinois State 43

Missouri State 39

Northern Iowa 33

Indiana State 32

Drake 29

6:35 p.m.: 30 minutes to tipoff

Good evening, everyone. No TV tonight, so I know millions of you are tuned into the blog to see what happens between Indiana State and WSU. We’ll rate the Sycamores in a bit, then get to the normal lineups and all that stuff.

Great to have you with us on the Sycamore Network.