The No. 2-seed Wichita State is preparing to face No. 1-seed South Florida in the championship game of the American Conference on Sunday at Birmingham, Alabama.
This is the first time Wichita State has ever reached the finals of the conference tournament. On the hindsight, both teams have automatic bids on the line for the NCAA Tournament. The last time both teams met, South Florida got the best of its opponents. Will Wichita State mark history by winning its first conference title this time?
Prediction
Wichita State is coming off a 81-68 semifinal win over Tulsa, with senior guard Kenyon Giles going off with 27 points and setting a single-game program record for 3s made in a conference tournament game.
Wichita State has won seven straight games since its loss against South Florida back in February. The need for a revenge in the conference’s biggest stage is probably the heat with which the Shockers are now running.
USF comes in on a 10-game winning streak, most recently grabbing a 86-64 win against Charlotte in the semifinals. Wes Enis has been the engine of USF’s offense, averaging a career high 14.5 points and shooting 39.1% from the deep.
Izaiyah Nelson has posted 17 double-doubles this season and averages 10.0 rebounds per game. USF maintains a comfortable efficiency margin over the shockers on both ends, averaging 78.3 points per game and allowing just 70.4. Also, USF got more rest and has better offensive firepower than Wichita State.
ESPN’s matchup predictor estimates a 63.1% chance for South Florida to win this matchup.
Lineups
Wichita State Lineup
- Kenyon Giles
- Dre Kindell
- Mike Gray Jr.
- Karon Boyd
- Will Berg
South Florida Lineup
- Wes Enis
- Gavin Hightower
- Joseph Pinion
- Izaiyah Nelson
- Jamille Reynolds
Injury Report
For Wichita State, Joy Ighovodja has been sidelined throughout the season due to a foot injury and is expected to miss the remainder of the year as well. Dre Kindell has been dealing with an undisclosed issue and his availability is worth monitoring for this upcoming matchup. In the last matchup against USF, Kindell played only eight minutes.
For USF, freshman forward David Gomez remains out with an undisclosed injury. Frank Oguche and Major Freeman have also been managing undisclosed issues and their statuses are worth monitoring. The Bulls got a three-game tournament bye which gave them ample time to rest and recover. All of USF’s key starters are expected to be available for Sunday’s final.
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