UMKC To Battle UTSA On Monday At Municipal Auditorium
12/20/2008 3:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
The Setting
After a three-game, seven-day road trip, the UMKC men's basketball team will return home on Monday night to face off against UTSA. The Kangaroos and Roadrunners will square off at Municipal Auditorium beginning at 7:05 p.m. in a game that will be televised on Metro Sports.
On The Tube
Monday's game will be broadcast live on Metro Sports. Neil Harwell will call the play-by-play, while Doug Elstun will serve as the color commentator.
On The Air
Monday's game will be aired on 810 AM WHB with the “Voice of the Kangaroos” Steven Davis calling the play-by-play with Steven St. John serving as the color commentator. Davis is the son of long-time Kansas and Royals play-by-play announcer Bob Davis, while St. John is the host of the “Border Patrol” on 810 AM.
Last Game
The Kangaroos used a 9-0 run over a two-minute span and scored 9-of-the-final-11 points in the game to run out 68-61 winners at Eastern Washington on Thursday night. The game was tied at 59 all when UMKC made its run.
Game Notes
- The Kangaroos won the battle on the boards (36-36) for the third time this season. It was, however, the first time where the team has come away with the victory.
- UMKC won despite getting a total of 11 points from its two leading scorers in Dane Brumagin (9) and Reggie Hamilton (2). Hamilton played a season-low 10 minutes in the game.
- UMKC committed a season-low five turnovers against the Eagles. It was the fewest turnovers for the Kangaroos in a game in the Matt Brown era.
- The Kangaroos made 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.
Scouting UTSA
The Roadrunners enter Monday's game with a 3-4 overall record after dropping a 74-72 decision at Texas-Pan American on Thursday night. UTSA had a pair of players score in double digits against Pan Am with guard Devin Gibson leading the way with 16 points and 10 assists.
Four UTSA players are averaging in double figures on the year, all of which are shooting better than 41 percent from the floor. 5-7 guard Omar Johnson is leading the team with 15.7 points per game, while guard Joey Shank is averaging 12.1 points a night. Forward Travis Gabbidon and Gibson, meanwhile, add 11.7 points and 10.1 points, respectively. Demarco Stepter leads the team on the boards with 5.1 rebounds per game.
The Roadrunners are averaging 79.3 points per game, while shooting .446 from the floor and .408 from three-point range. UTSA is also out rebounding its opposition (34.6-34.0), and it has just three more turnovers than assists (107-104).
UTSA Game Notes
- The Roadrunners opened the year with losses at Oklahoma State (76-57) and at Iowa (73-67).
- Guard Devin Gibson was the Southland Freshman of the Year, a second-team all-conference, a CollegeInsider.com Freshman Mid-Major All-America and CollegeHoops.net Mid-Major All-Freshman Team honoree in 2007-08. Gibson averaged 14.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game and he became just the third freshman in history to lead the NCAA in steals with 3.32 per contest.
- Guard Omar Johnson missed Thursday's game at Texas-Pan American after suffering a concussion in practice last week.
UMKC vs. Southland
UMKC is 4-5 all-time against opponents from the Southland Conference. The Kangaroos are 1-1 vs. Central Arkansas, 1-0 vs. Nicholls State, 1-1 vs. UT-Arlington, 1-0 vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and 0-3 vs. UTSA.
Spencer “Double-Double” Johnson
Sophomore Spencer Johnson has recorded five straight double-doubles, which is the longest consecutive streak in school history. The latest double-double came at Eastern Washington, where he finished with a career-high 23 points to go along with 11 rebounds. He made 9-of-15 shots from the floor and 3-of-5 three-pointers in the game.
During the five game stretch, Johnson is averaging 18.2 points on .493 (34-69) shooting to go along with 12.0 rebounds per game. The forward has hit the 20-point mark in three of the five games for the squad.
Johnson has set his career high three times during the streak, and he's also reached a new reached new career best in rebounds on a pair of occasions.
On the year, the Illinois native is third on the team with an 12.2 scoring average to go along with a team-best 7.2 rebounds per game, which ranks fourth in the league. Johnson has reached double digits in scoring in a total of seven games on the year.
Johnson Leads The Nation In Consecutive Double-Doubles
With his current streak of five straight double-doubles, sophomore Spencer Johnson is tied for the longest active streak in the nation.
Humphrey Listed As Day-To-Day
Sophomore James Humphrey has missed each of the last two games after suffering a shoulder injury in the game at Loyola (Ill.) on Dec. 13. The forward is listed as day-to-day heading into Monday's game against UTSA.
Lewis Shines In Second Career Game
Sophomore Bakari Lewis provided the Kangaroos with an offensive lift in the seven-point win at Eastern Washington on Thursday night. The guard, who made his first career start, finished with 14 points, which included four straight in the final two minutes. Lewis also got his teammates involved as he finished with eight assists.
Brumagin Named A Semifinalist For The Lowe's Senior CLASS Award
Dane Brumagin has been named to the initial list of 30 candidates for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. The award, given annually to senior student-athletes across nine NCAA Division I sports, has become one of the most prestigious honors in college athletics and is sponsored by Lowe's, an Official Corporate Partner of the NCAA.Based on criteria focusing on the “Four C's” of classroom, character, community and competition, the award winners will be selected by national balloting of head basketball coaches, national media and college basketball fans.
The 2008 candidates on the men's sides includes student-athletes from 27 different schools from around the country representing 14 conferences. Brumagin is the lone representative from The Summit League.
Double-Double Duo
The Kangaroos recorded their first two double-doubles of the season on Dec. 4 against Oakland. Senior Dane Brumagin finished with a game-high 29 points to go along with 10 boards to tally his second career double-double. Sophomore Spencer Johnson, meanwhile, finished with a career-high 20 points and 13 rebounds to record his first career double-double.
It is the first time that UMKC has had a pair of players post double-doubles in the same game since the 2005-06 season when Kalu Guasco (19-10) and Dee Ayuba (21-10) accomplished the feat in an 82-81 overtime win over Chicago State on Feb. 6, 2006.
UMKC Surpasses 2007-08 Road Win Total
The Kangaroos surpassed their 2007-08 road win total when they defeated Eastern Washington on Dec. 18 in Cheney. The squad is 3-4 on the road this season. Last year, UMKC went 2-13 in games away from Kansas City.
The Kangaroos picked up their first road victory at Wichita State on Nov. 19. The win was the program's first win in Wichita and the first road victory against a Missouri Valley Conference opponent. The win over WSU was also the largest crowd (10,282) that UMKC has won in front of since the squad topped Oral Roberts in from of 10,331 fans at the Mabee Center during the 2004-05 season.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Senior Dane Brumagin ranked 37th in the nation with a .878 free throw percentage on Dec. 15.
- UMKC has either been even or won the battle on the glass in each of the team's last three contests.
- The Kangaroos are one of two teams in The Summit League to have two players listed among the top-10 in scoring. Senior Dane Brumagin ranks seventh with a 17.2 average, while Reggie Hamilton is ninth with 16.1 points.
Closing Out On The 3's
UMKC has been contesting the three-point shots through the early portion of the schedule. The Kangaroos are third in the league in allowing its opposition to shoot 29.6 percent (69-233) from three-point range. UMKC has held its opponents under 30 percent from three-point land in a total of eight games on the year. In the NCAA statistical rankings on Dec. 15, the Kangaroos ranked 35th in the nation in three-point field goal defense (.285).
Brumagin Leads Team In Scoring
Senior Dane Brumagin has scored in double figures in seven of the last eight games and in 11-of-13 games this season. The forward has also hit the 20-point mark in three contests this year.
The Montgomery City, Mo., native is leading the team with a 16.5 scoring average on .427 shooting from the floor. He has also made a team-best 33 three-pointers this season.
Etching Their Name In The Record Books
Sophomores Reggie Hamilton and James Humphrey have both etched their names in the single game record books this season. Hamilton finished with five steals against Florida on Nov. 30, which are tied for the third most in a single game in school history. Humphrey, meanwhile, swatted five shots in the win over IPFW. The five blocks are also tied for the third most in a single game in school history.
Getting Others Involved
Sophomore Reggie Hamilton registered his third game this season with seven or more assists when he tallied eight in the loss at Northwestern on Dec. 15. The guard has six games this season with five or more assists, which included a career-best nine helpers against Oakland on Dec 4. Hamilton currently ranks third in The Summit League with 4.6 assists per game.
Hamilton Shines In Florida
Sophomore Reggie Hamilton had a superb five-game stretch during UMKC's trip to the state of Florida from Nov. 22-30. The guard hit the 20-point mark in four of the team's five games, and he averaged 19.4 points on .493 (34-69) shooting from the floor and .483 (14-29) from long range. Hamilton also averaged 5.6 assists and 2.6 steals for the Kangaroos.
Hamilton is the first Kangaroo player since Michael Watson to score 20 or more points in four straight games. Watson had two different six-game streaks during the 2003-04 season.
On the year, Hamilton is second on the team and ninth in The Summit League with a 15.0 scoring average. The Harvey, Ill., native has reached double figures in 11 of 13 games this season, and in five of those contests, the guard finished with at least 20 points.
Brumagin Moves In To Seventh On Career Scoring Charts
Senior Dane Brumagin moved into seventh place on the UMKC career scoring charts with his 29 point performance against Oakland on Dec. 4. The forward now has 1,162 career points, which is 48 points behind David Robinson (1,211) for sixth place all-time.
Brumagin became just the ninth player in school history to reach the 1,000-point milestone on Nov. 24 against Bradley. The forward hit the mark on a fast break dunk at the 1:46 mark of the first half.
Reggie Halfway To Milestone
Sophomore Reggie Hamilton scored his 500th career point when he finished with 10 points in the game against nationally-ranked Florida on Nov. 30. The guard now has 557 points in Blue and Gold, which puts him in 29th place in the record books.
Crashing The Boards
The Kangaroos finished with a season-high 22 offensive rebounds on Dec. 4 against Oakland. This season, the Kangaroos rank third in the league in offensive rebounds with 12.3 per game. Sophomore Spencer Johnson grabbed nearly half of the boards, as he finished with 10 offensive rebounds on the night.
Mushatt Hitting The Glass
Freshman Latreze Mushatt has been one of UMKC's top rebounders this season. The Michigan native is second on the team with 6.0 boards per game, and he has grabbed at least eight rebounds in a total of six games. In his second career game at nationally-ranked Kansas, Mushatt finished with a career-best 10 rebounds.
Offensively, the forward is fourth on the team with a 8.5 per game scoring average, and he's scored in double figures in five games this season.
Switch-A-Roo
Head Coach Matt Brown has used nine different starting line-ups over the first 13 games this season. Last season, UMKC used a total of 17 different starting line-ups on the year.
Returners Carry The Load
Through 13 games, the four returning players on the UMKC roster have been carrying the scoring load. Dane Brumagin, Reggie Hamilton, Spencer Johnson and James Humphrey have accounted for 71.5 percent of the team's scoring. The four players have scored 606 of the team's 847 points on the season. In the season opener against North Dakota, the group scored 50 of the squad's 56 points, and in the Dec. 13 game at Loyola (Ill.), the foursome scored 44 of the team's 47 points.
Raining Threes
UMKC has made at least one three-point basket in 258 consecutive regular season or tournament games dating back to January 22, 2000.
Brumagin In The Career Record Books
Free Throw Percentage - 1st - .860 (196-228)
40-point scoring games - t3rd - 1
30-point scoring games - t4th - 3
Three-Point Field Goals Made - 4th - 200
Three-Point Field Goal Attempts - 4th - 510
Field Goals Attempted - 6th - 930
20-point scoring games - 7th - 19
Points - 7th - 1162
3-Point Field Goal Percentage - t7th - .392 (200-510)
Field Goals Made - 7th - 383
Double Figure Scoring Games - 8th - 49
Free Throws Made - 10th - 196
Games Played - 10th - 103
Rebounds - 13th - 353
