Missouri Valley Conference tournament

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Gregg Marshall has piloted Wichita State to four straight NCAA Tournament appearances, an undefeated regular season and a Final Four in the last four years. Now, for the first time in this historic stretch, his Shockers might need help to make March Madness.

It's not that the Shockers aren't the class of the Valley again; they are, led by the nation's best per-possession defense and seniors Fred VanVleet and Ron Baker, and will probably be favored by KenPom against any conceivable first-round NCAA Tournament foe. It's just that Wichita State ended up devoured by every non-conference beast whose pelt it attempted to take, save for Utah, and doesn't have much margin for error at Arch Madness.

After the Shockers got, well, shocked, on Saturday by No. 4 seed Northern Iowa, like they were by Illinois State in 2015, it's entirely possible that another Valley team will be the only one dancing. Prime candidates Evansville and Northern Iowa are just within the KenPom top 100, and will face off for the conference tournament title on Sunday.

 

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What started as a one-sided affair ended with the Panthers (20-12) winning 57-52 in overtime. They defend their conference title Sunday against Evansville.

Wes Washpun, who led his team with 20 points Saturday, said the hardest part of playing the Purple Aces is facing Egidijus Mockevicius, who leads the conference in rebounding, and D.J. Balentine, who leads the conference in scoring.

?D.J. Balentine is always tough to guard. He?s one of the best scorers our conference has ever had,? Washpun said. ?But the coaches will have a game plan and draw it up and we?ll just have to stick to that.?

UNI defeated Evansville (25-8), which beat Indiana State in the other semifinal game Saturday, in both meetings this season by a combined five points.

Balentine is averaging just 14 points against UNI this season ? the lowest against any MVC team. He is the active leader in career points in the NCAA.

Panther coach Ben Jacobson called Washpun his best perimeter defender on Friday, meaning the senior guard will probably be on Balentine, who is averaging 17.5 points during Arch Madness.

Mockevicius, a 6-foot-10 senior from Lithuania, grabbed an MVC tournament-record 18 rebounds against Missouri State on Friday. He scored just two points and grabbed five rebounds in 14 minutes Saturday as his team won by 26 points.

As for UNI?s game Saturday, the Panthers led for just 2:55, all of which came in the second half and overtime.

Junior guard Jeremy Morgan?s 3-pointer with 1:13 left in overtime gave UNI a lead it would not relinquish.

But to begin the contest, Northern Iowa couldn?t buy a basket.

Eight minutes in court time elapsed before Washpun scored UNI?s first bucket.

?(WSU?s three-quarter) press just had us out of whack a little bit and we weren?t able to get moving,? Jacobson said. ?Offensively, we couldn?t get any rhythm.?

But it was defense that kept UNI in the game.

The Shockers (24-8) shot 32 percent from the field and 8 percent from 3-point range.

Wichita State?s All-MVC tandem of senior guards Ron Baker and Fred VanVleet struggled, combining to shoot 7-of-27 from the field.

?(The Panthers) play the gaps and they?re not out denying much, they just clog the paint and make it hard for you to drive, make it hard to cut,? said VanVleet, who had eight points and five assists. ?I mean, they pretty much give you open jumpers.?

Baker failed to make a 3-pointer (0-for-5) for just the third time this season. He had 12 points and nine rebounds.

Washpun talked about defending the duo after the game.

?We just tried to keep them uncomfortable, keep them on their toes, keep them guessing what we were doing defensively, use our length and our quickness to be able to force them into some tougher shots,? Washpun said.

But the All-MVC guard wouldn?t stay focused on the emotional comeback win.

?I?d say you enjoy it for a little bit, but we know we have one more left, and we?re going to play a talented team tomorrow,? he said. ?It?s not going to be easy and nobody is going to lay down, so we?ve got to prepare ourselves.?

Evansville and UNI play for the MVC crown at 2 p.m. Sunday at Scottrade Center.