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Christmas Wish Lists: Wichita State simply needs good health

Malcolm Armstead, Trae Golden

Wichita State guard Malcolm Armstead (2) drives past Tennessee guard Trae Golden (11) in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012, in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

AP

Over the course of the next two weeks, College Basketball Talk will be detailing what some of the country’s best, most intriguing, and thoroughly enigmatic teams need. It’s the spirit of the holidays. We’re in a giving mood.

What do other teams have on their Christmas Wish Lists? Click here to find out.

Gotta have it list-topper: A return to full strength
There aren’t many teams in the country that have lost three starters to injuries to this point in the season, but the Shockers are one of them. Carl Hall, one of the Missouri Valley’s best players, is out with a broken thumb while Ron Baker was recently ruled out due to a stress fracture in his foot and Evan Wessel has a broken pinky. For a team that’s 10-1 on the season and has won its games by an average margin of 12.2 points, the best thing to ask for is that Gregg Marshall’s charges are at full strength when MVC play begins.

Stocking stuffer: Malcolm Armstead gets going
The Oregon transfer hasn’t shot the ball particularly well in his first season playing for the Shockers, as he’s making just 38.2% of his shots from the field. Over the last five games he’s shooting 37.1%, and with the three starters mentioned above out of the lineup Wichita State will need Armstead to improve his offensive output. With one game remaining (Southern Miss) before the beginning of conference play, there would be no better time for Armstead to get going than Saturday night.

Planning on re-gifting: Long-range marksmanship
Shooting from beyond the arc has been a struggled for Wichita State thus far, as the Shockers are making just 31.9% of their three-pointers. Of the players currently healthy the majority of the shot attempts from deep will come from Armstead (31.6%), Cleanthony Early (21.9%) and Demetric Williams (42.3%). With Baker (team-best 16 three-pointers) and Wessel (45.8%) out the Shockers will need Armstead and early to improve their success rate. If that happens, Wichita State will be more than ready to contend in the Missouri Valley once their injured starters return to the lineup.

Raphielle also writes for the NBE Basketball Report and can be followed on Twitter at @raphiellej.