EVANSVILLE, Ind. Rodger Saffold Jersey . -- No. 4 Wichita State relied on the basics Sunday: defence and ball security. Again, it was the perfect combination. The Shockers forced 18 turnovers, finished with a season-high 14 steals and finally locked down Evansvilles shooters late to pull away for an 84-68 victory that kept them one of the nations two undefeated teams. "We wanted to extend them, get their timing disrupted. I dont think we expected that many steals," Fred VanVleet said. "There were only a few times where we had breakdowns where we werent really where we were supposed to be." Few expected the Shockers (27-0, 14-0 Missouri Valley Conference) to be in this spot -- even after reaching the Final Four last April. They are one of only 21 teams in NCAA history to win their first 27 games, extended their school-record winning streak and are 14-0 in conference play for the first time in school history. And after Arizonas latest loss, Wichita State could be poised to move up another notch in the poll, getting even closer to Division Is only other perfect team -- No. 1 Syracuse. A win Wednesday at Loyola also would assure the Shockers at least a share of the regular-season conference title and the No. 1 seed in the Valley tournament -- with three league games still on the docket. How have they done it? With a balanced offence and a staunch defence that Evansville knows is the best in the Valley. Wichita State trumped the Purple Aces by outscoring them 23-2 off turnovers and 10-4 on fastbreaks. Coach Gregg Marshall didnt even need a stat sheet to tell him what had happened. He estimated that the Shockers topped the 40-deflection mark. The other numbers were just as glaring. VanVleet and Ron Baker each finished with a career-best five steals, and, not surprisingly wound up as the top scorers. Baker had a career-high 26 points, while VanVleet added 18 and eight assists and flirted with the possibility of a triple-double throughout the second half. But thats not what motivated Wichita, which lost twice to Evansville last season and fell behind by double-digits early in the first meeting two weeks ago at Wichita. They wanted to put away the Aces, and before the game, Marshall let Cleanthony Early, the teams top scorer, know exactly what he needed to do in front of a Pacers scout who had been asking about his defence. Early responded by scoring 13 points, seven rebounds and playing his best defensive game of the year, too. "I loved his mental approach tonight and thats not always the case," Marshall said. "But tonight I thought he was very disciplined and when he does that, man, hes really good." Evansville (11-16, 4-10) learned its lesson the hard way. Despite getting 19 points from D.J. Balentine, the MVCs top scorer, and 19 points and 10 rebounds from Egidiju Mockevicius, it wasnt quite enough to prevent a fourth loss in five games or a second straight this season to Wichita. The Purple Aces did most of what they set out to do -- shooting 51.1 per cent from the field, 45.5 per cent from 3-point range, made 15 of 16 free throws, limited the Shockers to only six offensive rebounds and kept challenging Wichita State right down to the final minutes. But the turnovers, as they had all game, finally did them in. "We didnt turn it over in the press, we did it in the half-court and you have to take care of the basketball," coach Marty Simmons said. "Weve really got to learn, weve got to learn from that, and thats one of our biggest deficiencies." The Purple Aces, however, only trailed 38-32 at the half and still found a way to fight back after falling into a 55-41 deficit early in the second half. Mockevicius scored the first eight points in a 10-2 spurt that cut the deficit to 57-51 with 11:19 to go. Early answered with five straight points and Evansville rallied again, getting as close as 65-60 with 6:10 left before throwing the ball away on an inbound pass that would have cut the deficit to three. "They did a good job of changing defences and I was trying to get a timeout," Simmons said. Instead, the Shockers got the ball back and forced two more turnovers during the decisive 13-4 run that finally sealed the victory. "We were just focused on getting stops and it went in our favour," VanVleet said. "We wanted to end it right there. After that possession, I think we got back on the right track." Greg Zuerlein Authentic . On Tuesday, they did it again. Roy Hibbert scored 22 points and Lance Stephenson fell just short of his fourth triple double this season, helping the Pacers hold off Torontos late charge for an 86-79 victory that allowed them to keep the NBAs best record. Will Witherspoon Jersey On Sale . Sopoaga hit the upright with his first shot at goal from 15 metres. He then kicked nine goals in succession -- two conversions and seven penalties -- before being replaced in the 62nd minute, three points short of the Highlanders record for most points in a match.SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Reliever Guillermo Mota has announced he is retiring after 14 seasons in the major leagues. Mota was a non-roster invitee to the Kansas City Royals camp and did not pitch last season. The 40-year-old right-hander made 743 career relief appearances with a 3.94 ERA for the Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Dodgers, Florida Marlins, Clleveland Indians, New York Mets, Milwaukee Brewers and San Francisco Giants. Kurt Warner Jersey. He was part of San Franciscos World Series championship teams in 2010 and 2012. In 2003 and 04, Mota topped National League relievers in innings pitched. In 2007 while with the Mets, he was suspended 50 games for using performance-enhancing drugs. ' ' '
