Wichita State: calm Shockers

Wichita State's 86-66 rout of Seton Hall on Thursday, propelled the Shockers into a second-round match with Tennessee on Saturday afternoon.

Wichita last appeared in the tournament in 1988 and last won a game in 1981.

"We played like we'd been here 20 years in a row,'' said coach Mark Turgeon. "I'm so proud of the kids.

"There's a reason we've won 25 games. All my kids played with a sense of calm and a sense of competitiveness.''

The champions of the Missouri Valley Conference were in control nearly the entire game over Seton Hall of the Big East.

The seventh-seeded Shockers (25-8) led 50-30 early in the second half. Seton Hall (18-12), the 10th seed, got as close as 55-44 with 12 minutes to play, but Wichita pulled away.

"We've had a lot of practice the last two weeks since our tournament,'' said Turgeon, "and it showed.

"We played one of our best games all year.''

Guard Sean Ogirri scored 23 points for the winners, falling one short of his career high.

Center Paul Miller, the MVC player of the year, scored 15 points.

"We felt like we belonged,'' said the 6-foot-10 Miller.

Kyle Wilson, a 6-10 forward, sounded what might be a warning for Tennessee.

"Maybe Seton Hall didn't realize how good we are,'' said Wilson. "Those teams in the bigger conferences don't get a lot of chances to watch us play, just because we're not on TV as often.''