WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Fred VanVleet scored 17 points and Kadeem Coleby had 13 to lead No. 16 Wichita State in a 66-49 victory over Western Kentucky early Tuesday morning.
Cleanthony Early finished with 11 points and nine rebounds for the Shockers (2-0) while Tekele Cotton added 10 points in the matchup that tipped at midnight locally and finished at 2:09 a.m.
T.J. Price and Aleksej Rostov scored 12 points each to lead the Hilltoppers (0-1).
After unveiling the banner to commemorate its run to the Final Four last season, Wichita State led just 30-28 at halftime and then scored the first nine points of the second half to take control.
Caden Dickerson’s 3-pointer pulled Western Kentucky to 51-42 with 8:44 to play, but Cotton scored the next four points for the Shockers to stem the tide.
Western Kentucky didn’t get within 10 points again.
