'Roos To Host Wichita State At Municipal Auditorium On Wednesday Night
12/8/2009 9:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
THE SETTING
The UMKC men's basketball team will play its first home game of the season downtown at Municipal Auditorium on Wednesday night against Wichita State. The game between the 'Roos and Shockers is slated to begin at 7:07 p.m. and be broadcast live on Metro Sports.
ON THE AIR
Radio: 810 AM WHB (Steven Davis - p-b-p; Steven St. John - color)
Television: Metro Sports - tape delayed (Bruce Haertl - p-b-p; Craig Steven - color)
Web: Roo Vision (UMKCKangaroos.com)
Live Stats: www.UMKCKangaroos.com
LAST TIME OUT
The 'Roos rallied from a 10 point deficit in the final 3:26 to claim an 84-83 road victory at Centenary last Saturday night in Shreveport. Junior Bakari Lewis led a group of four UMKC players in double digits, finishing with 18 points on 4-of-8 shooting. Lewis carried the 'Roos in the clutch, as he scored the final seven points for the team, which included hitting the game-winning jumper with 3.3 seconds remaining to propel the squad to the victory.
THE COACHES
Head Coach Matt Brown is in his third season with the UMKC men's basketball program, where he has compiled an 22-48 overall record and has coached three players to all-Summit League recognition. Former forward Dane Brumagin was a second team all-league honoree and Reggie Hamilton was an all-newcomer team selection in 2007-08, while Brumagin earned an honorable mention all-league nod in 2008-09. Last season, Brown guided the 'Roos to a pair of wins over Missouri Valley Conference foes Wichita State and Bradley. It was just the third time in school history for the team to beat two MVC teams in the same season.
Gregg Marshall is in his third season as the head coach of the Wichita State men's basketball program where he has posted a 35-38 overall record. Last season, Marshall guided the Shockers to the second round of the College Basketball Invitational. Prior to WSU, Marshall coached Winthrop to the NCAA Tournament in seven of his nine seasons as the head coach.
SCOUTING WICHITA STATE
The Shockers have won five straight contests to up their overall record to 7-1 this season. This past weekend, WSU picked up home wins over Texas Southern (74-43) and USC Upstate (72-45) at the Charles Koch Arena in Wichita.
Five Shocker players are averaging at least 8..5 points on the season with sophomore Toure' Murry pacing the team with a 14.0 per game average. The honorable mention preseason all-conference selection is shooting .470 from the floor and .368 from long range on the season, while also pacing the team in steals (16) and assists (21). Center J.T. Durley is second on the team with a 9.9 average, followed by fellow big man Garrett Stutz (9.6), guard Clevin Hannah (8.8) and forward Graham Hatch (8.5). Reserve forward Gabe Blair, meanwhile, is the top rebounder with a 6.1 average.
The Shockers are out scoring their opponents 73.8 to 54.1 on the year, while shooting .462 from the floor and .367 from three point range. The squad is also +8.5 on the glass (37.5-29.0) and it has 30 more assists than turnovers.
WSU GAME NOTES
• UMKC has multiple ties to the Wichita State program. Graduate assistant Ryan Martin played at WSU from 2005-07, where he helped lead the Shockers to the 2006 NCAA Sweet 16. Junior guard Reggie Chamberlain transferred to UMKC after playing under Coach Marshall in Wichita last season and junior Jay Couisnard played two seasons in the Missouri Valley Conference against the Shockers from 2006-08. Additionally, his brother, P.J., played for WSU from 2004-08.
• WSU will be returning to Kansas City for the second time in three weeks when it faces UMKC on Wednesday. The Shockers played at the Sprint Center on Nov. 23-24 in the O'Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic, where they lost to Pittsburgh (68-55) before defeating Iowa (74-57).
• Sophomore Garrett Stutz is a Kansas City, Mo., native, as the center played prep ball at North Kansas City High School.
THE SERIES
Wednesday's game will be the eighth meeting in the series between UMKC and Wichita State with the Shockers holding a 4-3 advantage in the series. The 'Roos, however, have claimed the last two meetings in the series, winning 59-56 in 2007 in KC and 66-63 last season in Wichita.
UMKC AGAINST THE VALLEY
The 'Roos have won three of the last four games against opponents from the Missouri Valley Conference to improve their record to 10-29 against the league. UMKC has three wins against Wichita State and Creighton, two against Missouri State and one apiece over Bradley and Northern Iowa.
QUICK HITTERS
• UMKC is 4-3 overall this season, which is the best start for the program since the 2001-02 season (6-1).
• The 'Roos will be playing their first game of the season at Municipal Auditorium on Wednesday. All three home wins came at Municipal last season and the program is 156-108 at the venue all-time.
• Alex Bazzell opened his collegiate career by playing 108 minutes before committing his first turnover. Bazzell now has a 10.5-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio (21-2), which is tops in the league and the nation.
• UMKC had four players reach double digits in the road win at Centenary. The squad is now 2-0 when four players reach double figures.
• UMKC out rebounded Centenary, 31-25, to win the battle on the glass for the first time in four games. On the year, however, the 'Roos are -0.6 on the boards.
• The 'Roos are shooting .483 from the floor and .333 from long range in three games at the SRC and .433 from the field and .308 from long range on the road.
• UMKC is struggling from the free throw line this season, as it is shooting .635 (94-148). After making 12-of-25 attempts in combined in games against Idaho State and Oral Roberts, the 'Roos improved dramatically by making 23-of-30 in the road win at Centenary. The 23 attempts and the .767 percentage were season-highs.
• Bakari Lewis went a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line against the Gents.
• After going scoreless for the first time since his freshman season, Spencer Johnson scored 14 points in the road win at Centenary. It was the forward's fourth game in double digits this season.
• The 'Roos have forced 126 turnovers in seven games, while committing just 78 TOs. This includes just four turnovers in the road win at North Dakota.
• Kirk Korver is second on the team with 20 three-point attempts despite playing roughly 90 fewer minutes than Jay Couisnard (23 attempts). Korver is also two shy of the team lead with six long balls on the year.
• UMKC has posted a 2-2 record on the road this season, as it earned the all important split in its first league weekend. Last year, the squad went 3-13 on the road and it was 5-26 away from KC the last two seasons.
• Junior Spencer Johnson has made 30 consecutive starts and has started 37 of the last 38 contests.
MUSHATT FINALLY BREAKS THROUGH
After flirting with double-doubles numerous times in his collegiate career, sophomore LaTreze Mushatt finally broke through with his first career double-double when he finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds at Centenary. The forward made 7-of-14 shot attempts in the game and five of his boards came on the offensive glass. The Michigan native is the first 'Roo player to tally a double-double this season.
Mushatt has reached double digits in five games this season and is tied for the team lead with a 13.1 scoring average, which is tied for 14th in the league. He is also fifth in the league with a .494 field goal percentage on the season.
TMJ ENJOYS A CAREER NIGHT
Sophomore Trey McKinney-Jones made 8-of-9 field goal attempts en route to a career-high 17 points in the road win at Centenary. The eight field goals are also a career-best, while the .889 field goal percentage is a team high this season.
The Wisconsin native has scored in double digits in back-to-back games for the second time in his career. Last Thursday at Oral Roberts, McKinney-Jones netted 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting.
Over the past two games, the guard is shooting better than 80 percent (.813) on 13-of-16 shooting, while averaging 14.5 points per contest.
BK-LUTCH
Junior Bakari Lewis was clutch when it mattered most in the 84-83 road victory at Centenary on Dec. 5. The guard scored 10 of his team-high 18 points over the final four minutes of the contest. This included seven straight points over the final 52 seconds, which included the game-winner with 3.3 seconds remaining to lead the 'Roos back from a 10-point deficit for the victory.
SHARING THE ROCK
UMKC is second in The Summit League with 14.3 assists per game through seven contests as it has recorded an assist on 57 percent of its field goals. The squad finished with a season-high 20 assists on 29 field goals in the season-opening win over Truman State, which matched the high for the program during the Matt Brown era. The 'Roos have finished with more assists than turnovers in 5-of-7 games on the season.
KEEPING THE ROCK
Not only is UMKC doing an excellent job distributing the rock, but the squad is doing an even better job taking care of the rock. The 'Roos turned the ball over a season-low four times in the road win at North Dakota, which is the lowest figure during 0Coach Brown's tenure. On the year, UMKC is averaging 11.1 turnovers per contest, while forcing 18.0 TOs a game.
STREAK COMES TO AN END
Junior Jay Couisnard missed double figures for the first time this season when he was held to just three points in the road win at Centenary. The forward was in foul trouble in the contest, as he played just 15 minutes before being disqualified.
Couisnard, who has led the team in scoring in four games, is tied for the team-lead with a 13.1 scoring average, while shooting .381 (33-86) from the field.
PRODUCTIVE FRESHMAN MINUTES
Freshmen Kirk Korver and Fred Chatmon have been providing the 'Roos with productive minutes early in the 2009-10 season. The duo have combined to score a total of 67 points, which translates into 9.6 points per contest. Korver has scored eight or more points in four contests, which includes a 12-point outing in his debut against Truman State. Chatmon, meanwhile, has scored in all five-of-six games in which he's appeared, which includes an eight-point outing against TSU.
DEFENSIVE INTENSITY
The coaches have been preaching defense all season and the effort is paying off statistically, as the 'Roos have the top scoring defense in The Summit League. UMKC is giving up 62.4 points per game on the year.
In the opener, UMKC's defense limited Truman State to a total of just 33 points, which is the second fewest points allowed in a single game in school history (William Jewell - 29 pts. - 11/21/99).
QUICK HANDS
UMKC has three games this season with 10 or more steals to give it a total of 59 steals (8.4 p/game) on the year. The 8.4 steals per game are the third most in The Summit League this season. Individually, five 'Roo players have five or more swipes with LaTreze Mushatt leading the team and league with 18 (2.6 p/game).
NEARLY HALF WAY TO 1,000
Junior Spencer Johnson is approaching the 500-point mark for his career in Blue and Gold. The forward currently has 455 points in 68 career games for the 'Roos. This is remarkable considering Johnson scored a grand total of 54 points during his freshman season in Kansas City.
IN NEED OF A TUNE-UP
After allowing its opponents to shoot just 33 percent from the floor in the two wins to open the season, UMKC's opposition has been scorching the nets in the last five contests. In the last five games, opponents have been shooting a blistering .549 (123-224) from the field and .451 (23-51) from long range. The 'Roos are 2-3 in these three contests.
The UMKC men's basketball team will play its first home game of the season downtown at Municipal Auditorium on Wednesday night against Wichita State. The game between the 'Roos and Shockers is slated to begin at 7:07 p.m. and be broadcast live on Metro Sports.
ON THE AIR
Radio: 810 AM WHB (Steven Davis - p-b-p; Steven St. John - color)
Television: Metro Sports - tape delayed (Bruce Haertl - p-b-p; Craig Steven - color)
Web: Roo Vision (UMKCKangaroos.com)
Live Stats: www.UMKCKangaroos.com
LAST TIME OUT
The 'Roos rallied from a 10 point deficit in the final 3:26 to claim an 84-83 road victory at Centenary last Saturday night in Shreveport. Junior Bakari Lewis led a group of four UMKC players in double digits, finishing with 18 points on 4-of-8 shooting. Lewis carried the 'Roos in the clutch, as he scored the final seven points for the team, which included hitting the game-winning jumper with 3.3 seconds remaining to propel the squad to the victory.
THE COACHES
Head Coach Matt Brown is in his third season with the UMKC men's basketball program, where he has compiled an 22-48 overall record and has coached three players to all-Summit League recognition. Former forward Dane Brumagin was a second team all-league honoree and Reggie Hamilton was an all-newcomer team selection in 2007-08, while Brumagin earned an honorable mention all-league nod in 2008-09. Last season, Brown guided the 'Roos to a pair of wins over Missouri Valley Conference foes Wichita State and Bradley. It was just the third time in school history for the team to beat two MVC teams in the same season.
Gregg Marshall is in his third season as the head coach of the Wichita State men's basketball program where he has posted a 35-38 overall record. Last season, Marshall guided the Shockers to the second round of the College Basketball Invitational. Prior to WSU, Marshall coached Winthrop to the NCAA Tournament in seven of his nine seasons as the head coach.
SCOUTING WICHITA STATE
The Shockers have won five straight contests to up their overall record to 7-1 this season. This past weekend, WSU picked up home wins over Texas Southern (74-43) and USC Upstate (72-45) at the Charles Koch Arena in Wichita.
Five Shocker players are averaging at least 8..5 points on the season with sophomore Toure' Murry pacing the team with a 14.0 per game average. The honorable mention preseason all-conference selection is shooting .470 from the floor and .368 from long range on the season, while also pacing the team in steals (16) and assists (21). Center J.T. Durley is second on the team with a 9.9 average, followed by fellow big man Garrett Stutz (9.6), guard Clevin Hannah (8.8) and forward Graham Hatch (8.5). Reserve forward Gabe Blair, meanwhile, is the top rebounder with a 6.1 average.
The Shockers are out scoring their opponents 73.8 to 54.1 on the year, while shooting .462 from the floor and .367 from three point range. The squad is also +8.5 on the glass (37.5-29.0) and it has 30 more assists than turnovers.
WSU GAME NOTES
• UMKC has multiple ties to the Wichita State program. Graduate assistant Ryan Martin played at WSU from 2005-07, where he helped lead the Shockers to the 2006 NCAA Sweet 16. Junior guard Reggie Chamberlain transferred to UMKC after playing under Coach Marshall in Wichita last season and junior Jay Couisnard played two seasons in the Missouri Valley Conference against the Shockers from 2006-08. Additionally, his brother, P.J., played for WSU from 2004-08.
• WSU will be returning to Kansas City for the second time in three weeks when it faces UMKC on Wednesday. The Shockers played at the Sprint Center on Nov. 23-24 in the O'Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic, where they lost to Pittsburgh (68-55) before defeating Iowa (74-57).
• Sophomore Garrett Stutz is a Kansas City, Mo., native, as the center played prep ball at North Kansas City High School.
THE SERIES
Wednesday's game will be the eighth meeting in the series between UMKC and Wichita State with the Shockers holding a 4-3 advantage in the series. The 'Roos, however, have claimed the last two meetings in the series, winning 59-56 in 2007 in KC and 66-63 last season in Wichita.
UMKC AGAINST THE VALLEY
The 'Roos have won three of the last four games against opponents from the Missouri Valley Conference to improve their record to 10-29 against the league. UMKC has three wins against Wichita State and Creighton, two against Missouri State and one apiece over Bradley and Northern Iowa.
QUICK HITTERS
• UMKC is 4-3 overall this season, which is the best start for the program since the 2001-02 season (6-1).
• The 'Roos will be playing their first game of the season at Municipal Auditorium on Wednesday. All three home wins came at Municipal last season and the program is 156-108 at the venue all-time.
• Alex Bazzell opened his collegiate career by playing 108 minutes before committing his first turnover. Bazzell now has a 10.5-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio (21-2), which is tops in the league and the nation.
• UMKC had four players reach double digits in the road win at Centenary. The squad is now 2-0 when four players reach double figures.
• UMKC out rebounded Centenary, 31-25, to win the battle on the glass for the first time in four games. On the year, however, the 'Roos are -0.6 on the boards.
• The 'Roos are shooting .483 from the floor and .333 from long range in three games at the SRC and .433 from the field and .308 from long range on the road.
• UMKC is struggling from the free throw line this season, as it is shooting .635 (94-148). After making 12-of-25 attempts in combined in games against Idaho State and Oral Roberts, the 'Roos improved dramatically by making 23-of-30 in the road win at Centenary. The 23 attempts and the .767 percentage were season-highs.
• Bakari Lewis went a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line against the Gents.
• After going scoreless for the first time since his freshman season, Spencer Johnson scored 14 points in the road win at Centenary. It was the forward's fourth game in double digits this season.
• The 'Roos have forced 126 turnovers in seven games, while committing just 78 TOs. This includes just four turnovers in the road win at North Dakota.
• Kirk Korver is second on the team with 20 three-point attempts despite playing roughly 90 fewer minutes than Jay Couisnard (23 attempts). Korver is also two shy of the team lead with six long balls on the year.
• UMKC has posted a 2-2 record on the road this season, as it earned the all important split in its first league weekend. Last year, the squad went 3-13 on the road and it was 5-26 away from KC the last two seasons.
• Junior Spencer Johnson has made 30 consecutive starts and has started 37 of the last 38 contests.
MUSHATT FINALLY BREAKS THROUGH
After flirting with double-doubles numerous times in his collegiate career, sophomore LaTreze Mushatt finally broke through with his first career double-double when he finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds at Centenary. The forward made 7-of-14 shot attempts in the game and five of his boards came on the offensive glass. The Michigan native is the first 'Roo player to tally a double-double this season.
Mushatt has reached double digits in five games this season and is tied for the team lead with a 13.1 scoring average, which is tied for 14th in the league. He is also fifth in the league with a .494 field goal percentage on the season.
TMJ ENJOYS A CAREER NIGHT
Sophomore Trey McKinney-Jones made 8-of-9 field goal attempts en route to a career-high 17 points in the road win at Centenary. The eight field goals are also a career-best, while the .889 field goal percentage is a team high this season.
The Wisconsin native has scored in double digits in back-to-back games for the second time in his career. Last Thursday at Oral Roberts, McKinney-Jones netted 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting.
Over the past two games, the guard is shooting better than 80 percent (.813) on 13-of-16 shooting, while averaging 14.5 points per contest.
BK-LUTCH
Junior Bakari Lewis was clutch when it mattered most in the 84-83 road victory at Centenary on Dec. 5. The guard scored 10 of his team-high 18 points over the final four minutes of the contest. This included seven straight points over the final 52 seconds, which included the game-winner with 3.3 seconds remaining to lead the 'Roos back from a 10-point deficit for the victory.
SHARING THE ROCK
UMKC is second in The Summit League with 14.3 assists per game through seven contests as it has recorded an assist on 57 percent of its field goals. The squad finished with a season-high 20 assists on 29 field goals in the season-opening win over Truman State, which matched the high for the program during the Matt Brown era. The 'Roos have finished with more assists than turnovers in 5-of-7 games on the season.
KEEPING THE ROCK
Not only is UMKC doing an excellent job distributing the rock, but the squad is doing an even better job taking care of the rock. The 'Roos turned the ball over a season-low four times in the road win at North Dakota, which is the lowest figure during 0Coach Brown's tenure. On the year, UMKC is averaging 11.1 turnovers per contest, while forcing 18.0 TOs a game.
STREAK COMES TO AN END
Junior Jay Couisnard missed double figures for the first time this season when he was held to just three points in the road win at Centenary. The forward was in foul trouble in the contest, as he played just 15 minutes before being disqualified.
Couisnard, who has led the team in scoring in four games, is tied for the team-lead with a 13.1 scoring average, while shooting .381 (33-86) from the field.
PRODUCTIVE FRESHMAN MINUTES
Freshmen Kirk Korver and Fred Chatmon have been providing the 'Roos with productive minutes early in the 2009-10 season. The duo have combined to score a total of 67 points, which translates into 9.6 points per contest. Korver has scored eight or more points in four contests, which includes a 12-point outing in his debut against Truman State. Chatmon, meanwhile, has scored in all five-of-six games in which he's appeared, which includes an eight-point outing against TSU.
DEFENSIVE INTENSITY
The coaches have been preaching defense all season and the effort is paying off statistically, as the 'Roos have the top scoring defense in The Summit League. UMKC is giving up 62.4 points per game on the year.
In the opener, UMKC's defense limited Truman State to a total of just 33 points, which is the second fewest points allowed in a single game in school history (William Jewell - 29 pts. - 11/21/99).
QUICK HANDS
UMKC has three games this season with 10 or more steals to give it a total of 59 steals (8.4 p/game) on the year. The 8.4 steals per game are the third most in The Summit League this season. Individually, five 'Roo players have five or more swipes with LaTreze Mushatt leading the team and league with 18 (2.6 p/game).
NEARLY HALF WAY TO 1,000
Junior Spencer Johnson is approaching the 500-point mark for his career in Blue and Gold. The forward currently has 455 points in 68 career games for the 'Roos. This is remarkable considering Johnson scored a grand total of 54 points during his freshman season in Kansas City.
IN NEED OF A TUNE-UP
After allowing its opponents to shoot just 33 percent from the floor in the two wins to open the season, UMKC's opposition has been scorching the nets in the last five contests. In the last five games, opponents have been shooting a blistering .549 (123-224) from the field and .451 (23-51) from long range. The 'Roos are 2-3 in these three contests.
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