UMKC to Face Canisius at Municipal Auditorium With National TV Audience
12/15/2011 1:09:00 PM | Men's Basketball
TV: KSMO-TV/ESPN Full Court/ESPN3 (Neil Harwell, J.C. Pearson)
Radio: 810 AM (Steven Davis, Steven St. John)
THE GAME
The Kangaroos will play their last non-conference home game until February's Bracketbuster on Friday night against Canisius at 7:05 p.m. The game will be played on TV (KSMO-TV/ESPN Full Court/ESPN3) at Municipal Auditorium in downtown Kansas City in conjunction with the annual "Boy Scout Night", with a 4,000+ crowd expected. UMKC comes into the contest winning five of its last six games, while the Golden Griffins are on a six-game skid.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Canisius, who is a member of the MAAC, comes in with a 1-7 overall record, and is currently on a six-game slide. Their last win came against Longwood, a team UMKC also defeated.
They are led by guard Harold Washington, who averages 19.3 points and 4.4 boards a game. Also in double-figures is junior guard Alshwan Hymes at 15.1 per game. The leading rebounder is forward Chris Manhertz at 8.0 per contest.
The Golden Griffins average 65.2 points per game and give up 79.9 per outing. They have an assist-to-turnover ratio of 80-to-135 and shoot .419 from the field. Opponents are hitting 49.4 percent.
THE COACHES
Matt Brown is in his fifth season as the head coach of the UMKC men's basketball program, and comes off his most successful season at the helm. In 2010-11, he posted his first winning record at 16-14 overall. The 'Roos also posted the third-most home wins in school history, going 11-4 in Kansas City, and the third-most overall wins in program history.
Brown joined the 'Roos as the eighth head coach in school history on April 12, 2007. In his five seasons as head coach, Brown has guided UMKC to a 48-82 overall record and has coached seven players to all-Summit League recognition.
Tom Parotta is in his sixth season as the head coach at Canisius, and has a 60-103 overall record there. He came to Canisius from Hofstra, where he was the associate head coach. He led the Golden Griffs to a 15-15 overall mark a year ago, finishing 9-9 in conference play for sixth place.
THE SERIES
The Kangaroos and Golden Griffins are meeting for the first time ever. This is also the first time that UMKC has faced a member of the Metro Atlantic Conference. The 'Roos will have played someone from all but three Division I conferences (America East, Big South, Ivy League)
Matt Brown has a 0-0 mark against Canisius, while Tom Parotta has a 0-0 mark vs. UMKC.
A WIN WOULD MEAN...
- UMKC will have won six of seven games for the first time since 2005-06.
- UMKC will be two games over .500 for the first time since the end of last season.
THE LAST FIVE GAMES - TURNAROUND
As a team UMKC is shooting significantly better during the last five games, posting a 4-1 record. The 'Roos have hit for at least 49 percent from the floor (.540 overall during the stretch). UMKC was shooting .355 percent in the first six games.
Also, opponents shot .470 percent in the first six contests, and have shot .425 since then.
In the last five games, Chamberlain is averaging 23.6 ppg, and Nate Rogers is the second leading scorer at 10.0 ppg, with Staton and Dibble at 9.0 ppg. Rogers also has a 21-9 assist-turnover ratio.
