A game where the home team enters the half with a 42-24 advantage is usually seen as a blowout and unworthy of watching the rest of the way. Saturday night, however, had a different vibe when the fifth-ranked Wichita State Shockers trailed fellow Missouri Valley Conference opponent Missouri State. Although it was the biggest deficit the Shockers faced this season, there was a feeling that the undefeated Wichita State squad wouldn’t drop its first game of the season this easy.

And that feeling came to life in the second half.

“It’s the first close game we’ve had, to be honest,” Wichita State head coach Gregg Marshall told the Associated Press. “We’ve had some games where we made some plays down the stretch to win by five or whatever … but as far as a game really being in doubt, this is by far the toughest game we’ve had.”

The Shockers converted turnovers into easy buckets with full court pressure that flustered the opposing Missouri State squad. When Wichita State opened the second half with a 7-0 run, the hometown Bears fans knew that the Shockers meant business.

After Wichita State’s sophomore point guard Fred VanVleet split a pair of free throws with eight seconds left to send the game into overtime, he scored seven of the team’s eight overtime points to escape with a 72-69 victory.

“It didn’t look good,” Marshall told Paul Suellentrop of The Wichita Eagle. “We knew these games were going to happen. In the end, we just made one more play.”

With the comeback win in addition to a 72-50 rout over Bradley on Tuesday, Wichita State improved to 18-0 and continues to have its best start in school history. After a run last season where the upset-minded Shockers advanced to the Final Four before falling to the eventual champs, Louisville, no one will be making the mistake of overlooking Wichita State again this season.

Its leading scorer from last season, Cleanthony Early, has continued the success into his senior year. He’s averaging a team-high 16.0 points and 6.6 rebounds per contest while his leadership and ability to defend opposing big men has been key for the Shockers.

At point guard, VanVleet has been a major contributor in various ways. He’s logged the most minutes for the Shockers and has only committed three turnovers in his last six games. VanVleet has shown the ability to score or distribute depending on the situation. He’s averaging 12.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, and a team-high 5.2 assists per game while shooting 49 percent from the field and 46 percent from behind the arc. His clutch scoring late against Missouri State was crucial to the victory.

Fellow sophomore Ron Baker might be the most underrated player in the country. He’s not a volume shooter, but is averaging 12.8 points per game and is making the most of his opportunities by shooting 45 percent from the field and 40 percent from three-point range. Baker is a quality defender and appears bigger than his listed 6-foot-3 size. He can handle the ball and run the point when VanVleet is off the floor, but primarily plays off the ball. Baker doesn’t have one elite skill, but is an overall quality player who could have an NBA career in his future.

Another key guard to the Wichita squad is Tekele Cotton. The junior has made his biggest contribution on the defensive end while also chipping in 9.6 points per game. Chadrack Lufile adds a defensive presence in the post.

As one of only four undefeated teams in the country, Wichita State has the easiest path to an undefeated regular season with only Missouri Valley Conference opponents in the way. Arizona and Syracuse will face much tougher competition in the Pac-12 and ACC respectively.

However, with a huge target on its back, Wichita State’s path to a perfect regular season will be much easier said than done (which showed on Saturday). Missouri State had its third largest crowd in its school history to root against the Shockers and there will be plenty of other packed arenas in hopes of seeing Wichita State drop its first game of the season.

“Anybody talking about being undefeated at the end of a college basketball season ­– I’m not going to say they’re out of their mind, but they haven’t coached a team going on the road through an entire season,” Marshall said in an article by Mike DeCourcy of Sporting News. “We anticipate more of these. Hopefully we’ll have the same resolve and toughness.”

The gutsy performance on Saturday showed that Wichita State won’t be letting its undefeated record slip easily. An unbeaten regular season may be too much to ask from the Shockers, but it certainly isn’t out of the question.