WICHITA, Kan. -- Wichita State will carry its pursuit of perfection into the Missouri Valley tournament. Cleanthony Early scored 19 points, Ron Baker added 13 and the second-ranked Shockers rolled to a 68-45 victory over Missouri State on Saturday, easily putting away a team that had given them fits this season. Relying on the same stubborn defence that carried it on last years improbable March run, Wichita State (31-0, 18-0) became the first team since Saint Josephs in 2004 to enter its league tournament unbeaten. The Shockers will have a first-round bye in St. Louis next week. Missouri State (19-11, 9-9) had them in trouble when they met Jan. 11 in Springfield, Mo., but the Bears blew a 19-point second-half lead and ultimately lost 72-69 in overtime. They never came close to making it a game Saturday, trailing by double-digits in the opening minutes. The Shockers are off to the best start since UNLV began 34-0 and lost in the 1991 national title game. Theyre also off to the best start by a Missouri Valley team since Indiana State, led by Larry Bird, won its first 33 games and fell to Michigan State in the 1979 title game. The Shockers last loss came in the Final Four, too -- to eventual champ Louisville last year. Putting this one away early gave a sellout crowd that had braved the threat of freezing rain ample opportunity to celebrate. Waving signs that applauded their unblemished record, fans packed inside Koch Arena serenaded a senior class led by Early that managed to elevate the program from a solid mid-major into a national power in the midst of a memorable season. Along with fellow seniors Chadrack Lufile, Kadeem Coleby and Nick Wiggins, Early gave coach Gregg Marshall a bear hug when he checked out for the final time in the closing minutes. Jarmar Gulley scored 15 points to lead Missouri State, which was dominated on the boards, in transition and just about everywhere else in losing its 10th straight against ranked teams. Unlike the first meeting, when it was Wichita State that stumbled early, Missouri State missed 18 of its first 22 shots, suffocated under token pressure and never got into a rhythm. When the Bears werent blowing layups, they were turning the ball over, leading to some easy baskets at the other end. Wichita State shot 57 per cent from the field in the first half, a big reason why it had built a 20-point lead just before the break. The trio of Early, Baker and Fred VanVleet picked up where it left off out of the locker room, Early scoring quickly and Baker hitting a long 3-pointer to keep Missouri State at bay. In fact, the only interesting moment of the second half came when Lufile was fouled with about 10 minutes to go. After missing his first seven free throw attempts, the big senior forward -- with the crowd rising to its feet -- finally got one to rattle home. Of course, it hardly mattered that Lufiles foul shooting wasnt perfect. Everything else about Wichita State is these days. 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The team interviewed Chicago Bulls assistant coach Adrian Griffin for its coaching vacancy Tuesday, two people with knowledge of the meeting told the Associated Press. They spoke on condition of anonymity because of the private nature of the situation. Griffin is believed to be the first candidate to formally interview with the Cavs, who are looking for their third coach in three years after owner Dan Gilbert fired Mike Brown last month for the second time in four years. And while the team was meeting with Griffin, Florida coach Billy Donovan, who has reportedly been contacted by the Cavs, wouldnt promise he will return for another season in Gainesville. "I think when you start making guarantees about life and start making guarantees about where youre going to be, thats not good because if for some reason I ever change my mind and did something, I wouldnt want (people) saying, Well, he promised, he guaranteed, he said this on record," Donovan said at the Southeastern Conferences annual spring meetings. "I just think when you start doing that, thats a mistake." The 39-year-old Griffin wasnt drafted out of college, but he played for five teams during nine seasons in the NBA. He has been on Tom Thibodeaus staff in Chicago since 2010. He also worked under former Milwaukee coach Scott Skiles. Griffins background working with the defensive-minded Thibodeau and Skiles, and playing under Jeff Van Gundy and Don Nelson makes him an attractive choice to Gilbert, who believes defence wins championships. New Cavs general manager David Griffin has said he wants to find a coach with "the defensive background thats dyed in the wool of this franchise" and one with offensive openness. The Cavs, who defied long odds to win the NBA draft lottery last week, are not commenting during their coaching search. Soon after Brown was let go following a disappointing 33-49 seasonn, Griffin was one of the first candidates to be linked to Clevelands opening.dddddddddddd He has a good rapport with players, and can identify with life as a pro after being bounced around the league and playing in Europe. Griffin has been pursuing his doctorate in leadership studies while working as an assistant. Last week, a person familiar with the Cavaliers plans told the AP the club plans to interview Los Angeles Clippers assistant Alvin Gentry this week. He previously worked in Phoenix with David Griffin. The Cavs are also reportedly interested in meeting with Clippers assistant Tyronn Lue, and intend to interview former Memphis coach Lionel Hollins later this week. David Griffin recently said the Cavs would not limit themselves during the search and would consider coaches without any NBA experience. One of them could be Donovan, who said last week he has been approached by "several teams." On Tuesday, the Gators coach said hes committed to the school -- he signed a three-year extension in February -- but didnt rule out the chance to jump to the pros at some point. Donovan accepted Orlandos job in 2007 but changed his mind and returned to Florida six days later. While Donovan made it clear hes comfortable at the school, hes leaving his options open for the future. "All I can say is I love Florida, Im happy here ... the schools been great to me," he said. "But at the same point, some of the NBA stuff, as Ive said before, is intriguing in a lot of ways -- the basketball part of it. Thats not to say that Im unhappy here; thats not the case at all. "But when people start getting into forecasting where theyre going to be or what theyre going to do, and Ive seen a lot of coaches over the years come out and say, No, no, no, no, Im not going anywhere, Im not going anywhere, and then all of a sudden they go somewhere and its like, Well, this guy is a complete liar. I dont want to get into that situation. Theres been some teams that have called, but thats really it." ' ' '