Our run in the NIT
Photos by Steve Adelson
The Shockers rode down two reckonings of Cowboys in their drive to the quarterfinals of the 2026 National Invitation Tournament, corralling the Wyoming Cowboys 74-70 in first-round NIT action on March 17 in Koch Arena and then dominating the Oklahoma State Cowboys 96-70 on March 22 at Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater. But they came up short — just four points shy — of rallying past Tulsa’s Golden Hurricane in a quarterfinal matchup on March 24 at the Reynolds Center in Tulsa. It was a game the American Conference called an “instant classic.”
The Wichita State vs. Tulsa quarterfinal game was the fourth meeting between the two teams this season and the 148th matchup overall of these longtime rivals. In this clash, the Shockers found themselves down 6-30 in the first eight minutes of the contest. The Hurricane, powered by 10 three-pointers, were up 52-36 at halftime. But the Shockers rode their late first-half momentum out of the locker room and onto the court, cutting the deficit to seven at 55-48 four minutes into the second half. Tulsa pushed back and went up by 12 at 64-52 with 11 minutes remaining.
From that point, the Shockers went full-tilt, tying the game twice before taking their first lead of the game 70-68 with 6:30 to play on a pair of free throws by redshirt freshman guard TJ Williams (4). There were four more ties and three more lead changes over the next three minutes before two free throws gave Tulsa the lead 75-74 for good with 3:21 left to play.
At game’s end, Williams was Wichita State’s top scorer with 19 points and eight rebounds off the bench. Sophomore forward Dillon Battie (8) scored 17 points with seven rebounds, senior forward Karon Boyd (0) had 13 points with six rebounds, and senior guard Kenyon Giles (1) was in double digits with 12 points. But the team — including senior guard Mike Gray Jr. (9), senior forward Emmanuel Okorafor (20), redshirt junior center Will Berg (44) and junior guard Dre Kindell (3) — posted a season record of 24-12, just missing out on advancing to the NIT Final Four by four points, 79-83.
WSU’s electric three-game run in the NIT charged up Shocker fans, including longtime supporter Sherl Weatherbee, who led the fan-based effort to privately book Village Travel buses to make the trip to Tulsa. “We got over 100 fans to the game,” she says, adding that her and her husband Tony’s support of Shocker sports is spurred by a “genuine love of Wichita State and the community.
With WSU netting its first 20‑win season since 2019–20 and finishing second in The American, the Weatherbees are among those looking ahead with anticipation to the 2026-27 season. Head coach Paul Mills and AD Kevin Saal say keeping the Shocker momentum going strong depends on funding to recruit and retain quality student‑athletes, particularly through NIL/revenue‑share support. They encourage fans to renew or purchase season tickets and donate to the We Fight For Wichita Fund, which supports student‑athletes and is tax‑deductible.
