Wichita State Basketball: Ranking 2019-20 non-conference opponents

Wichita State Basketball: Ranking Shockers 2019-20 non-conference opponents

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MARCH 19: Head coach Gregg Marshall of the Wichita State Shockers reacts in the second half against the Kentucky Wildcats during the second round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 19, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

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SAN DIEGO, CA – MARCH 16: The Wichita State Shockers mascot gestures in the second half against the Marshall Thundering Herd during the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Viejas Arena on March 16, 2018 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

The non-conference schedule for Wichita State Basketball has been released. Who are the top opponents the Shockers are going to face?

It was a rough start for Wichita State Basketball last season, beginning with a 2-3 record in the non-conference. They had an opportunity to impress in the 2018 Charleston Classic but fell to both Alabama and Davidson in hard-fought affairs.

The Shockers went 7-5 overall before the start of AAC play, including more losses to Oklahoma and VCU on the road, along with Louisiana Tech at home to start the season. The lone impressive non-conference victory for them of note was the home win over Baylor, arguably their best win of the whole campaign.

Wichita State hopes to have an improved 2019-20 season, thanks to a strong recruiting class backing up a core group of returning players. And with top AAC teams such as Houston and Cincinnati taking a step back, they have a shot to make it back up the conference ladder.

It’ll start by playing well in non-conference, with the schedule recently being released. It features some rematches from the previous season, as well as their opponent in the AAC-SEC Alliance matchup. The Shockers also will be participating in the Cancun Challenge against South Carolina, before facing off against either Northern Iowa or West Virginia.

For this piece, I’ll be ranking the 12 “guaranteed” opponents on Wichita State’s non-conference schedule. It won’t include Northern Iowa or West Virginia but I will say that they would’ve been placed 6th and 4th respective on this list.