NCAA Final Four: Wichita State vs. Louisville

WICHITA STATE

Starters

P; Player; Ht; Wt; Statistics

G; Ron Baker; 6-3; 218; 8.6 ppg

F; Cleanthony Early; 6-8; 215; 13.7 ppg

F; Carl Hall; 6-8; 238; 6.9 rpg

G; Tekele Cotton; 6-4; 202; 6.4 ppg

G; Malcolm Armstead; 6-0; 205; 10.9 ppg

Reserves

C; Ehimen Orukpe; 7-0; 250; 2.7 ppg

F; Fred VanVleet; 5-11; 190; 4.3 ppg

LOUISVILLE

Starters

P; Player; Ht.; Wt.; Statistics

F; Wayne Blackshear; 6-5; 230; 7.8 ppg

F; Chane Behanan; 6-6; 250; 9.6 ppg

C; Gorgui Dieng; 6-11; 245; 9.5 rpg

G; Russ Smith; 6-1; 165; 18.9 ppg

G; Peyton Siva; 6-0 185; 9.9 ppg

Reserves

F; Luke Hancock; 6-6; 200; 7.4 ppg

F; Tim Henderson; 6-2; 195; 0.6 ppg

SCOUTING REPORT

Wichita State’s play-angry mantra in the tournament has worked out pretty well. The Shockers are tenacious on defense and will not back down from any team — as they proved by knocking off No. 1 Gonzaga and No. 2 Ohio State in the West Region. Louisville was top-seed overall in the tournament and has played like it, romping its way through the Midwest bracket. The Cardinals love to press opponents and break down defenses with their tandem of speedy guards, Russ Smith and Peyton Siva. Center Gorgui Dieng has vastly improved his mid-range jumper. He was already a force on defense.

KEY TO THE GAME

The loss of Kevin Ware, who is out with a broken leg, hurts the Cardinals, a team that relies on its full-court press. It will be up to Tim Henderson to pick up some of Ware’s slack. Wichita State really has no inside answer for the 6-11 Dieng. The Shockers have used undersized Carl Hall during the tournament, but 7-foot reserve Ehimen Orukpe will likely need to use four or five of his available fouls to make Dieng work for his points and rebounds.