According to a report from ESPN Wichita 92.3 sports director Pat Strathman, the Kansas Jayhawks and Wichita State Shockers will be renewing their rivalry this December.
Strathman reports that the two programs will face off on December 29. It’s unclear where that matchup would take place. The two sides have played each other 15 times in their history with the Jayhawks winning 12 of 15 matchups. The two teams last met in 2015 during the NCAA Tournament where Wichita State shocked the Jayhawks 78-56.
Before that, their last meeting came in 1993 in Lawrence, a 103-54 win for the Jayhawks. Kansas had previously won each of the last five matchups, Wichita State’s last regular season win coming in 1987.
The in-state rivalry dates back nearly 115 years, the two schools first met in 1908, a 65-15 win for Kansas. They would also meet in 1942, 1942, and 1955 before playing 10 times between 1981 and 1993.
Kansas is coming off a second-round exit in this year’s NCAA Tournament after a 28-8 regular season. After defeating Howard in the opening round, the Jayhawks narrowly fell to Arkansas 72-71. Their brief tournament run was overshadowed at the time by the health of Bill Self who missed the end of the Big 12 Tournament and the Jayhawks’ two NCAA Tournament games due to heart-related issues.
This offseason, the Jayhawks reloaded looking to make a run at a national championship this upcoming season by adding the likes of C Hunter Dickinson, PG Arterio Morris, PF Parker Braun, and SG Nicolas Timberlake.
The Shockers after making the NCAA Tournament eight times from 2011 through 2021 have missed the tournament in each of the last two seasons. This past season they were 17-15 under head coach Isaac Brown. The Shockers also had a strong offseason in the transfer portal so far including adding SG Harlond Beverly, PF Ronnie DeGray, and PG Bijan Cortes.