The Basketball Tournament 2025: Aftershocks Team Profile

They won’t have the Kansas City crowd in town, but Aftershocks still look to welcome the home crowd in year six of TBT.

With the excitement of The Basketball Tournament, a potential waiver has occurred in Wichita. The absence of Kansas and Kansas State from the Wichita Regional and their inclusion in the Kansas City Regional have resulted in lower-than-expected ticket sales. The hope for TBT was that the Texas-based teams would relocate to Wichita, but that has just not happened. The Aftershocks have also lost their luster for the Wichita Fans that crave basketball in midsummer.

The bandwagon for the Aftershocks is on shaky ground. Fans come for the nostalgia of seeing former Wichita State players. Year after year, the number of former Wichita State players has decreased, with this year having its fewest at four. There is still hope, as the roundhouse has seen in the past; as the Aftershocks win games, attendance will grow. However, after the brutal loss last year to Team Colorado in the second game, the Aftershocks are going to have to put in some work to bring back their fans.

Not surprisingly, the coaching staff for the Aftershocks remains unchanged, with Bush, Simon, and Stutz all remaining involved. The four returning players for the Aftershocks are Conner Frankamp, Markis McDuffie, Rashard Kelly, and Trey Wade, who bring consistency. Another familiar name to the Aftershocks from three years ago is James Woodard. This year, a TBT journeyman joins the team in Marcus Keene, formerly of Best Virginia and Sideline Cancer.

For more TBT team profiles, click here.

Roster:

• Chad Brown (UCF)
• Chevez Goodwin (College of Charleston, Wofford, & USC)
• Conner Frankamp (Wichita State)
• James Woodard (University of Tulsa)
• Leyton Hammonds (Oklahoma State)
• Marcus Keene (Youngstown State & Central Michigan)
• Markis McDuffie (Wichita State)
• Nike Sibande (Miami (Ohio) & Pittsburgh)
• Rashard Kelly (Wichita State)
• Trey Wade (UTEP, Wichita State, & Arkansas)

Coaching Staff:

• Garrett Stutz (Assistant Coach)
• JR Simon (Assistant Coach)
• Zach Bush (General Manager, Head Coach)

Region: Wichita

All-time Record: 12-5

First Matchup: vs. No Excuses (July 18 at 9 p.m. EST)

Aftershocks MVP: Markis McDuffie

A staple for the Aftershocks has been wing Markis McDuffie. He has become a fan favorite, not only for the Aftershocks but also for anyone watching TBT. His celebratory dance, gliding carrying the Aftershocks name to post as the team advances in the bracket, is a vibe. It envelopes every person on the team, nearby, and in the arena. He remains one of the most consistent players in the league.

Last year alone in TBT play, he went 14-for-20 from the field for a 70% field goal percentage. McDuffie also went 4-for-6 from distance to lead the team, and to top it all off, a perfect 5-for-5 from the charity stripe. McDuffie posted a solid shooting percentage this past year in the FIBA Europe Cup. He had a 57% from within the arc and 36.6% from beyond. McDuffie also shot 86.4% from the free throw line.

McDuffie is the fuel for this team. When he’s going, it gets hot quickly, but he can simmer. Luckily, the Aftershocks have been able to find ways to get him going or lean on other players to re-ignite his flame.

Make-or-break Player: Leyton Hammonds

The Aftershocks strive to create balance as a team, and with that in mind, Leyton Hammonds comes in. The Yang to the Yin of Markis McDuffie. The style of play and ability are so similar that it is eerie. Hammonds is more patient, but is an almost carbon copy of Markis: a fluid 3-point shooter, explosive dunks, and massive blocks. Hammonds has solid footwork and will grind you down-low if he doesn’t lose you with his footwork and length. He sees the floor and is dangerous in fast breaks. Hammonds reminds me especially of McDuffie with his blocks that seem perfectly timed.

He sneaks up on players who believe they have an easy bucket and erases it. Suppose Hammonds can take to TBT like McDuffie did, this team is going to be dangerous. Last year, the team had Darral Willis, Jordan Parks, and Caleb Walker trying to create a player similar to McDuffie. Hammonds could be the one who mixes all the best of those three. He needs to be confident and take some of the swagger that Markis plays with and inject it into his style of play in Charles Koch Arena.

Team Outlook

After a brutal loss early last year, this team is hoping to return to two-plus win territory. The Aftershocks team build is so similar to the ones that fans came to see during Gregg Marshall’s tenure, featuring the sharpshooting guard Frankamp and Keene, the defensive-minded players against 1-5 and ball handlers in Kelly and Wade, and the deterrent in the center of Goodwin and Brown.

This hometown team has a challenging road ahead with a first-round opponent that could pose problems. This will be a difficult matchup with Team No Excuses. The team could match up with Austin’s Own or Challenge ALS, both teams that have similar experience. Finally, the Aftershocks would likely face off against a team that debuted last year in the championship game in Forever Coogs. For a team reminiscent of old, the Aftershocks will need to be defensively tough and bring in that MTXE and junkyard dog mentality. Are they up for the challenge? Wichita sure hopes so.