By Mark Bennett
WICHITA, Kan. - The atmosphere in Levitt Arena
(a.k.a. The Roundhouse) is almost always charged. And the closeness
of Sunday's 87-84 overtime victory by host Wichita State over
Indiana State only added to the sparks.
They flew in the first half, when ISU Coach
Royce Waltman drew a technical after Shocker freshman Jamar Howard
pulled the ball away twice from Sycamore senior Kelyn Block and
dunked both times, with no foul call.
They flew again minutes later, when Waltman's
Shocker counterpart Mark Turgeon was whistled for his own T after
his freshman forward Jamie Sowers was called for a foul on Block.
Then an intentional foul by Jamar Howard on
ISU senior Djibril Kante with 12 minutes, 20 seconds left in
the second half triggered more sparks from the sideline coaching
boxes.
Ah, college basketball in the Old West.
Moments after the game, some heated words
echoed down the tunnels toward the lockerrooms.
It's February, the toughest month in college
basketball. And after four straight winning seasons and a pair
of NCAA appearances, this season's start - 4-16 overall and 2-9
in the Missouri Valley Conference - hasn't been easy for the
Sycamores and their coach to accept.
And Sunday's loss - which could have been
a victory if the final shot in regulation had dropped, if a layup
with 89 seconds left in overtime had dropped, and if Jamar Howard
hadn't stolen the ball on ISU's final possession in OT - was
particularly hard to take.
"That's just an example of how I am.
And a lot of people don't like it," Waltman explained. "It
wasn't particularly frustration. When you beat me, you get your
whole pound of flesh."
He and Turgeon spoke on the court moments
after the game ended.
Turgeon wouldn't describe the elements of
that conversation, and neither would Waltman. When asked if it
concerned Howard's intentional foul, Turgeon said, "Maybe."
The crowd of 8,289 took it all in. But later,
Waltman - the architect of ISU's four-year rise from mediocrity
to the top of the MVC - wanted everyone to know he admires Turgeon's
efforts to do the same thing at Wichita State. The second-year
coach is on the verge of giving WSU its first winning season
since 1997-98. His team climbed to 12-10 overall and 6-5 in the
MVC after Sunday's win.
"Some of the people I was upset with,
I shouldn't have been," Waltman told the media.
"First of all, I really, really like
Mark Turgeon. And if I flared at him, it's because of things
that happened in the game with my team that I'm angry at or whatever,"
Waltman added. "So I would like to set the record straight
- he is an outstanding coach and a good person, and I don't want
him to ever be on the other side the fence from me. But if you
enjoy beating somebody, you'll love beating me. So that was not
anything unusual.
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"I think Mark understands that,"
Waltman continued. "I think he knows that was not directed
at him. And if he just caught fragments of it, it really wasn't.
I just like him, and he's going to get this thing going the right
way."
There was still competitive spirit lingering
in the postgame news conference.
Waltman was asked his thoughts on the play
of Jamar Howard, who had 18 points, 11 rebounds, five assists
and three steals in 38 minutes.
"Didn't notice him," the ISU coach
answered.
Later, Waltman added, "I don't mean to
be smart, but some guys notice themselves enough. They don't
need to be noticed by anybody else."
Sitting next to senior teammate C.C. McFall,
the older Shocker told his younger teammate not to answer a reporter's
request for a response to Waltman's comment.
"If he's going to make comments about
players on opposing teams ... I mean he's a veteran in this conference,"
McFall said. "He's a better coach than that. We're not going
to make no comments about what a coach said about a player, as
long as we play hard."
Howard, though, acknowledged that he's had
his own temper problems.
In a recent loss to Bradley, Howard was ejected
after a flagrant foul, along with a Braves player.
On Sunday, he committed an intentional foul
on Kante.
"I did get nicked in my face. I did get
a little upset. [Kante] came with a pick, so I just thought I'd
give him a little something ... some revenge," Howard admitted.
"I knew it wasn't good at all. But I've got [little] temper.
I'm trying to fix that."
Some numbers
- Kante has struggled from the free throw line this season, hitting
just 51 percent going into Sunday's game. But against the Shockers,
the 6-foot-8, 245-pound senior sank a career-high 13 of 14 free
throws.
"Djibril knocked down free throws,"
Block said. "Guys just stepped up and did things we've been
looking for them to do."
The Sycamores need to win their final seven
games to finish at .500 in the MVC.
Wichita State's 27 free throws were the most
this season by an ISU opponent. So was the Shockers' 52.8 field-goal
percentage. Wichita State was the first Sycamore foe to shoot
better than 50 percent this season.
Mark Bennett can be reached by telephone
at 1-800-783-8742, Ext. 377, by e-mail at mark.bennett@tribstar.com
or by fax at (812) 231-4321.
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