MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Markis McDuffie had a career-high 34 points plus 12 rebounds as No. 6 Wichita State upset No. 3 Temple, 80-74, in the last quarterfinal game of the 2019 Air Force Reserve American Athletic Conference Tournament on Friday night at FedExForum.
Wichita State (19-13) became the fourth six-seeded team to advance to the semifinal round. In five of the six American Championships, a six seed made an appearance in the semifinals.
Temple (23-8) led for 18:54 in the game and the Owls held Wichita State to four field goals through the final 11 minutes of the opening frame. Additionally, Shizz Alston Jr. hit a buzzer-beater 3-pointer at the end of the first half to give the Owls a 37-35 lead at the break.
Tied at 56-all in the second half, Wichita State freshman Dexter Dennis put the Shockers up for good with an And-1.
Wichita State used then an 11-1 run through a 4:46 span in the second half to take a 65-57 lead. The Owls had four turnovers during the Shockers' rally.
Wichita State shot 91.7-percent from the free throw line (22-of-24) - which set Wichita State's record in American Tournament play.
McDuffie hit 12-of-13 from the charity stripe and set an American Tournament record with 23 made free throws in two games to top SMU's Markus Kennedy who had 21 over three games in 2015.
Dennis joined McDuffie with a double-double as he finished with had 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Alston Jr. had a team-high 20 points for the Owls. Quinton Rose added 17 points and six rebounds while Ernest Aflakpui had 16 points and 19 rebounds. His total boards set a new American Athletic Conference Championship single-game record.
Wichita State will take on No. 2 Cincinnati in the semifinals tomorrow. The Bearcats took both games in the regular season, winning 66-55 in Wichita on Jan. 19 and 72-62 in Cincinnati on Feb. 17. It will mark the first time the Shockers and Bearcats meet in The American Tournament. No team has beaten Shockers head coach Gregg Marshall three times in the same season. Marshall will also go for career win number 500.