Category Archives: Recruiting

Wichita State at Missouri State

Jan. 14, 20096:42 p.m.

Final: MSU 68, WSU 55. I think everybody was prepared for tough times this season. I don’t think anybody was prepared for an 0-6 MVC start and a bad performance against another winless team. The Shockers have a lot of soul-searching to do if they want to avoid last place. Read More »

By Paul Suellentrop | Filed under Basketball, Recruiting | Comments (0)

Wichita State at Drake

Jan. 11, 20095:42 p.m.

Final: DU 74, WSU 69. Nice effort. I think that may be WSU’s best signs of progress since the MVC season started. Tough not to get rewarded with a win. Drake, as it was last year, does a lot of smart things, shoots well and makes few mistakes. Read More »

By Paul Suellentrop | Filed under Basketball, Gregg Marshall, Recruiting | Comments (2)

Gardner-Webb at Wichita State

Dec. 12, 20087:56 p.m.

Final: WSU 76, G-W 64. Read More »

By Paul Suellentrop | Filed under Basketball, Gregg Marshall, Recruiting | Comments (1)

Friday at Koch Arena

Dec. 5, 20087:18 p.m.

Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall talked mostly about his offense on Friday before practice. He pointed out the lack of practice time during a four-game stretch between Nov. 27-Dec. 3. The problems on offense are numerous. Bad shots. Bad passes. Lack of movement. Lack of execution. Marshall ticked off several examples of teammates missing open teammates with sloppy passes. Or of players taking ill-advised shots. Other than guard Clevin Hannah, coaches don’t know who is going to show up from game to game and score. Read More »

By Paul Suellentrop | Filed under Basketball, Gregg Marshall, Recruiting | Comments (0)

Signing day

Nov. 12, 20089:53 a.m.

The men’s and women’s basketball signatures are in hand.

Rivals.com weighs in with the opinion that WSU point guard signee Kenny Manigault is the top recruit in the Valley. Read More »

By Paul Suellentrop | Filed under Basketball, MVC, Recruiting, WSU baseball, volleyball | Comments (0)

South Dakota lefty commits to WSU

July 21, 20084:07 p.m.

Aaron LaBrie, a left-handed pitcher from Washington High in Sioux Falls, S.D., gave Wichita State baseball a commitment over the weekend. He’ll arrive in 2009, after his upcoming senior season.

Read the story here.

By Kirk Seminoff | Filed under Baseball, Recruiting | Comments (0)

Basketball talent in Wichita

June 25, 200811:17 a.m.

Wichita State’s specialty camp is Saturday at Koch Arena and it’s one of those chances for recruits and coaches to check each other out. It’s one of the mileposts before the critical July recruiting evaluation periods (July 6-15 and 22-31). Soon after, official visits and commitments are on the menu. It all leads up to the early signing period in November.

I talked to L.J. Goolsby, the former Shocker guard who coaches with Kansas City Pump N Run, about players in the area who might be in WSU’s ballpark. William Chrisman (Mo.) teammates Justin Clark (6-4) and Jon Ekey (6-7) are expected to be at the camp. WSU has contacted both. Goolsby also said he believes junior-to-be Mark Braden of O’Hara (Mo.), a 6-3 guard, will also be at the camp.

Some other names of Missouri-Kansas kids that might be worth following for recruiting fans:

  • Alex Burks, a 6-4 guard from Grandview, Mo.
  • Will Spradling, a 6-3 guard from Shawnee Mission South (and son of former Tulsa player Phil Spradling).
  • Dorian Green, a 6-1 guard from Lawrence
  • Trevor Releford, a 5-9 guard from the class of 2010 who attends Bishop Miege. He is the brother of Kansas freshman-to-be Travis Releford.

Goolsby said the Shockers are doing a good job in Kansas City, with the signing of center Garrett Stutz the prime evidence. Getting some of the KC area’s best to Koch Arena this weekend is also helpful.

“That’s always a good sign,” Goolsby said.

 

By Paul Suellentrop | Filed under Basketball, Recruiting | Comments (0)

Bobby Maze and WSU

April 22, 200811:36 a.m.

Shocker fans who follow recruiting closely are buzzing about Hutchinson Community College point guard Bobby Maze. He is a free agent after Maryland backed out on the commitment. WSU appears to be in the picture, although the list of schools recruiting Maze reveals tough competition.

“It’s a long shot,” HCC coach Ryan Swanson said. “I would say right now he wants to go high-major. He’s a high-major player. That being said, I would also not be surprised if he’s interested in talking to Wichita State.”

Maze will visit Saint John’s this weekend. Swanson said Kentucky, Cincinnati and Southern Cal are also interested. Maze played at Oklahoma as a freshman. At Hutch, he averaged 20.7 points and was named NJCAA All-American.

Whether or not WSU lands Maze (What fun is recruiting without dreams?), this story seems to highlight the fact WSU coaches enjoy a strong relationship with the Jayhawk Conference. Swanson said he regularly talks with coach Gregg Marshall and assistant Chris Jans. Several Jayhawk teams, including Hutch, practiced at Koch Arena last season. Hutch came down when the Sports Arena was booked. As Swanson said, it’s a no-brainer to work the jucos in Kansas for WSU. But as WSU fans can attest, it hasn’t always been that way. Jans, a former Jayhawk coach, and the rest of the staff seem to put a priority on the jucos.

As for Maze and WSU, Swanson said the WSU coaches know about his availability. Swanson is not sure how Maze fits in at WSU. He is a point guard, and WSU already has two transfer point guards coming in for next season. Maze, according to Swanson, likes Marshall and Jans. He plays pickup with the Shockers and came to WSU games last season.

“He was impressed,” Swanson said. “He liked the way they played. He knows they’re going to get better.”

 

In another piece of recruiting news, Blair Academy coach Joe Mantegna said WSU has inquired about 6-9 forward Alex Vouyoukas and transcripts are on the way to Wichita. The Shocker coaches may want to see him play before progressing. He said his player would be very interested, should an offer materialize. Vouyoukas, from Greece, signed with Davidson but was not admitted.

 

You can read more about him at The Dallas Morning News’ North Texas blog. Sounds like the Mean Green are interested.

By Paul Suellentrop | Filed under Basketball, Recruiting | Comments (0)

Seward guard commits to WSU

April 15, 200811:58 a.m.

WSU picked up its first commitment of the spring from Seward County Community College guard Reggie Chamberlain. He was a qualifier out of high school, so he will have three years to play at WSU. Chamberlain averaged 14.5 points and 4.6 assists (3.2 turnovers) for the Saints, who finished third in the NJCAA Tournament. He shot 42.6 percent from three-point range, 40.2 percent from the field and 83.3 percent from the line. Read More »

By Paul Suellentrop | Filed under Basketball, Recruiting | Comments (0)

Point guard Joey Parker

March 26, 20085:25 p.m.

WSU, in its far-ranging search for backcourt help, is looking at Southwestern Illinois College sophomore Joey Parker. Coach Jay Harrington says no visit has been set, and he believes the Shockers are choosing from among three guards. Where Parker fits, he is not sure. Read More »

By Paul Suellentrop | Filed under Basketball, Recruiting | Comments (0)