Lynn Marshall Melts Down After No Sweet 16 for Hubby’s Team

The 6-foot-10, 260-pound freshman had 15 points and 18 rebounds – the third-most for Kentucky in an NCAA Tournament game – during an opening win over Northern Kentucky. North Carolina or Butler await the victor on Sunday. The second trey gave United Kingdom a four-poind lead and was the last basket before the freshmen took over. Arguments based on spreadsheets and calculators can prove that the Shockers deserved that 10 seed they received.

The wife of Wichita State head coach Gregg Marshall was escorted out of the stands of Bankers Life Fieldhouse by a security guard following the Shockers’ 65-62 loss to Kentucky on Sunday, according to the Associated Press.

Then, of course, Bam Adebayo’s rejection on Landry Shamet to close out the game.

Down the stretch, the Wildcats showcased the gap between a scrappy, blue-collar squad like Wichita State and a team with three potential first-round picks in this summer’s National Basketball Association draft as they fed the freshman big man.

The performance may have surprised the selection committee, but nobody else.

The Bluegrass State sent three teams to Indianapolis. Getting the and-one would be nice, too. How many people are picking United Kingdom to get past the Sweet 16, let alone make the Final Four? Marshall said. “I don’t know”. That effort vs. Wichita State was good enough. After Marshall learned his first-round location and opponent, he scanned the rest of the field.

How often do you see games end on consecutive blocked shots from 3-point range? “So I wish we had that to do over again, but we don’t”. However, that seed put the Shockers in the spotlight, and they showed everybody what they’re made of.

Unfortunately, after pulling off a hard-fought win over Dayton in the first round, Wichita State – with its 31-4 record – was forced to face a unsafe and talented Kentucky in only the second round, and it couldn’t quite get over the hump in what proved to be, essentially, an even game. This team is not as talented as 2012’s, is not as volatile as 2014’s, is not as tall as almost any of them.

In fact, no highly touted recruit, not Shamet or even Markis McDuffie, Gregg Marshall’s highest rated recruit, or were offered anything from Kentucky’s head coach John Calipari. It averaged nine blocks per game and averaged 35 defensive rebounds the first weekend.

Calipari lauded the play by Monk and said his shooting guard is on the brink of an offensive breakout. Adebayo was moving with Frankamp toward the corner, but he had his eyes on Shamet and left his man to move toward the shooter when he saw him pump-fake Hawkins.

It made for a riveting final few minutes of action, and when Monk missed with 38 seconds left, Wichita State had a chance to play for the lead. His mother on the other hand was a little more vocal. But throughout the game, Willis and Hawkins provided them with a rock to lean on as they came up with key plays down the stretch. Back in 2014, unbeaten and top-seeded Wichita State lost to 8 seed Kentucky, 78-76, in a classic March Madness battle. “Haven’t seen him for a while. Still not all the way back, but he’s on a path that we need him on”.

“We’re going to play basketball”, Fox told reporters. “So proud of them”. To make the Final Four, given the competition that lies ahead, they’ll have to be.