Wichita St. @ West Virginia preview

Wichita State and West Virginia took different routes, but the undefeated teams reached the desired destination as they meet Wednesday in the championship game of the Cancun Challenge. Wichita State led from start to finish in a 70-47 rout of South Carolina and can become the first two-time winner of the tournament while the Mountaineers rallied from 13 points down in the final nine minutes to beat Northern Iowa 60-55 in the semifinals.

The Shockers, who also won the event in 2012, jumped to a 27-9 lead Tuesday and were up 19 at halftime to start the season with six straight victories for the first time since opening 35-0 in 2013-14 - one year after reaching the Final Four. Wichita State received 19 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals from sophomore guard Erik Stevenson in the semifinals and held an opponent to less than 40 percent shooting for the sixth straight time this season. West Virginia, which struggled to an uncharacteristic 15-21 record in 2018-19, has won five in a row to open the season and scored the last seven points of the game to reach the final while forcing 17 turnovers. Freshman guard Miles McBride scored 18 points in the semifinal - matching his total over the first four games of his career - and senior Jermaine Haley reached double figures for the fourth time in five games for the Mountaineers of the Big 12.

TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network

ABOUT WICHITA STATE (6-0): The Shockers have shown plenty of balance in the early season and boast five players averaging at least nine points per game - led by Stevenson (14.6), who also averages a team-high 3.7 assists. Junior forward Trey Wade, a transfer from UTEP averages 11.8 points and a team-best 7.7 rebounds, while sophomore guard Jamarius Burton chips in 11.4 points. Freshman guard Tyson Etienne (9.8 points, team-high 15 made 3-pointers) and sophomore guard Dexter Dennis (9.2) are also big contributors.

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA (5-0): Haley, who averaged 7.1 points along with 4.1 rebounds last season, has scored a team-high 12.2 and grabbed 7.2 boards per game in 2019-20 - connecting on 22 of his 32 shots from the field. Freshman forward Oscar Tshiebwe from Congo is off to a strong start in his career, averaging 11.2 points and a team-best 8.2 rebounds, while 6-10 sophomore forward Emmitt Matthews Jr. has chipped in 9.4 points. Derek Culver, a 6-10 sophomore forward, was held to three points in the semifinal to drop his average to 9.2, but hauled in a game-high 15 rebounds.

TIP-INS

1. West Virginia sophomore G Sean McNeil, who scored a season-high 11 in the win over Pittsburgh on Nov. 15, had nine Tuesday.

2. Wichita State’s 6-11 F Jaime Echenique has scored 11 points combined in the last two games after missing the first three with a hand injury.

3. The Mountaineers and Shockers meet for the first time in their history.

PREDICTION: Wichita State 76, West Virginia 70