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No. 14 Wichita State blows past Missouri State

Jan 22, 2015 - 3:40 AM Springfield, MO (SportsNetwork.com) - Ron Baker, Fred VanVleet and Tekele Cotton each scored 15 points and No. 14 Wichita State pulled away in the second half for a 76-53 win over Missouri State in a Missouri Valley Conference game.

Darius Carter added 14 points for the Shockers (17-2, 7-0 MVC), who remained unbeaten since losing to George Washington in their last non-conference game on Christmas.

Dorrian Williams and Chris Kendrix had 10 points apiece to lead the Bears (8-11, 2-5), who have dropped five in a row.

Wichita State returned to the site of one of its narrowest wins last season, a 72-69 victory over the Bears in overtime on Jan. 11 that kept the Shockers unbeaten on the way to the first 35-0 start by a team in NCAA history.

The Shockers ultimately came up a win short of the Sweet 16 after losing to Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament.

They are 7-0 in conference play for the second season in a row and fourth time in team history. Each of the previous three runs ended in conference titles.

Baker was 5-of-7 from 3-point range and the Shockers went 11-of-21 as a team.

Wichita State had a 10-point lead in the first half but didn't pull away until after the break, when a 10-1 run sparked by consecutive 3-pointers from Rashard Kelly and Baker extended its advantage to 60-42 with nine minutes remaining.

Missouri State was never closer than 15 points after that and suffered its third home loss in a row for the first time since the 2008-09 season, the only other time that's happened at JQH Arena.

Game Notes

The Shockers have won nine consecutive games in the series ...Wichita State hosts Drake on Sunday ... Missouri State travels to Peoria, Illinois to play Bradley on Sunday.