Witchita State sets non-conference games
The Shockers upcoming season’s non-conference schedule will boast eight home games and a trip to the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands.
Of the eight home games, three really stick out. The Shockers will host LSU, Wyoming, and UAB. LSU had a down season last season, but should be better in the coming season. Wyoming went 17-15 last season, but should be improved for the coming season. UAB went 15-16 last season, but landed the ninth best recruiting class in the nation.
New coach Gregg Marshall will have his hands full as the team travels to play in the Paradise Jam. In the opener, the Shockers play Baylor, who returns all starters from last season’s 15-16 performance. That is a very early test for the Shockers and could be an indication as to how their season will turn out. The winner of that game will play the winner of the Notre Dame-Monmouth game. Expect the Irish to take that. If the Shockers can get by Baylor and Notre Dame (or Monmouth), then they would be in the championship and either be playing Charlotte, Georgia Tech, Illinois-Chicago, or Winthrop.
The most interesting game at the Paradise Jam is the potential match up between the Shockers and Winthrop. Shockers coach Gregg Marshall came to Witchita State after the Shockers former coach, Mark Turgeon, left for Texas A&M. Marshall is set to make a little over $800,000 dollars, which is nearly three times the amount he made coaching Winthrop. If the two teams should happen to play, expect Marshall to be trying to prove his worth with a victory over his former school.
The Shockers will also be featured in the 2008 O’ Reilly’s Bracket Buster games. Their game will be between February 22nd and February 25th, and will be played on the road with other details still to be announced.
Witchita State has a tough road ahead of them before they begin brutal conference play in the Missouri Valley. However, new coach Gregg Marshall has a lot to prove and should have the Shockers above .500 as they enter with MVC play.