Samajae Haynes-Jones came off the bench to score 27 points and spur No. 11 Wichita State past feisty Arkansas State 89-80 on Tuesday night.
Haynes-Jones, who had scored a combined one point in his last three games, had 18 second-half points for the Shockers (9-2), whose lead was trimmed as low as four in the final 3 minutes.
Landry Shamet scored 15 of his 18 points in the second half for Wichita State, while Darral Willis added 14.
Deven Simms scored 30 points for Arkansas State (4-8), a 29-point underdog. Ty Cockfield had 16 points for the Red Wolves.
The Shockers trailed 57-48 with 17:11 remaining before rallying behind Haynes-Jones and Shamet.
Arkansas State fired its way to a 50-44 halftime lead, marking the third straight home game in which the Shockers allowed at least 50 first-half points.
The Red Wolves shot 62.1 percent in the half and were 10 of 16 from the 3-point line, including a missed desperation shot at the buzzer. Simms (15 points) and Cockfield (13 points) were a combined 10 of 15 from the field in the half.
BIG PICTURE:
Arkansas State: The Red Wolves are done with difficult non-conference road games and gained some confidence with a competitive effort.
Wichita State: The Shockers did not ease concerns about their defense, a program pillar, but avoided a terrible loss.
UP NEXT
Arkansas State: The Red Wolves begin a stretch of three straight home games with Culver-Stockton on Friday.
Wichita State: The Shockers play host to Florida Gulf Coast on Friday night.
