Wichita State gave us a buzzer-beater from the logo on college basketball’s opening night

Tyson Etienne was pegged as the preseason American Athletic Conference Player of the Year as he entered his junior year this season. Etienne had helped lead the Shockers to the NCAA tournament last season, but they were placed in the First Four and promptly eliminated by Drake. While Wichita was projected to finish only fourth in the conference this year, they knew they had a chance to match or surpass last year’s success if Etienne could continue to blossom into a star.

In their first game of the season, the Shockers found themselves on the ropes against Jacksonville State. The Gamecocks had tied the score with 20 seconds left on a layup from Jalen Finch. For their final possession, Wichita State put the ball in Etienne’s hands and let him cook.

Most coaches would want their star to go to the basket in this situation. Maybe you collapse the defense and find an open teammate. Maybe you get to the foul line. That wasn’t Etienne’s plan, though. Instead, with the game on the line, he ripped a buzzer-beating three-pointer from the logo to win.

Granted, that’s a big Shockers logo. Not all logo threes are created equal because some logos are bigger than others. But given the moment, that’s a massive shot from Etienne. We’ll peg that as a 35-foot make at least.

The Shockers are 1-0 and the 2021-2022 college basketball season had its first dramatic game-winner on opening night. Pretty good all around.

Back in June of 2016, I wrote a feature about how Stephen Curry was inspiring the future of basketball. Five years later, Curry is still popping off for 50-point games, and we’re seeing buzzer-beaters from the logo in college hoops. With players like Etienne leading the way, we’re in for a great season of college basketball this year.