Kansas City
Oakland
Kangaroos Rally To Knock Off Oakland
2/16/2013 3:34:00 PM | Women's Basketball
(Rochester, Mich.) - The Kansas City women's basketball team used a 13-1 run midway through the second half to propel them to a 59-53 victory over Oakland on Saturday afternoon at the O'rena.
The Kangaroos' second ever win at Oakland improves the squad to 9-17 overall this season and 5-8 in The Summit League, while Oakland falls to 9-16 overall and 3-10 in league play.
"I Couldn't be more proud of this team," Kansas City Head Coach Marsha Frese said. "Wins are always how we are measured, but I'm more proud of how hard this team is working to play for each other. We know there is plenty on the court that we can't control but our effort, our focus and our chemistry is our choice, and it was definitely on display tonight."
Junior Eilise O'Connor led the 'Roos with 21 points, including knocking down all 10 of her free throws, while adding eight assists and just one turnover.
Sophomore Lexis Hardiek, meanwhile, finished with a career-high 18 points on a career-high six three-point field goals, while junior Ashli Hill added 10 points, seven rebounds and three blocks.
"It feels good to have a game like this," Hardiek said. "Whenever you are slumping a little bit as a shooter, it is good to be able to see the ball go in the basket early. Today, my teammates found me for open looks and I was able to knock them down. When I'm able to hit those shots its forces the defense to stay tight and opens the lane for our post to have big games like Ashli did today."
"I'm Excited that Lexi and Ashli both stepped up and had such a big nights when we needed them," Frese added. "Lexi, in particular, packs her lunch pail every single day and comes to work, so it always rewarding when a players hard work is not only evident but so critical to our success."
Offensively, the 'Roos finished a perfect 12-of-12 from the free throw line and hit 7-of-14 three-point attempts, while limiting Oakland to just 36.4 percent shooting from the field.
The Kangaroos opened with the game's first five points when Hardiek buried a three from the right corner and freshman Taylor Leathers knocked down a jumper from the top of the key, but an 8-0 run by the Grizzlies gave Oakland its first lead of the contest at 8-5.
O'Connor ended the rally with a pair of free throws and jumper to put the 'Roos back in front by one, before a 7-2 run by Oakland flipped the lead for the second time.
Kansas City would match the Oakland run with a 7-2 stretch of their own, featuring four more O'Connor free throws and Hardiek's second three of the half.
The Golden Grizzlies, would go on to extend their lead to a first half high at 24-18, but two more Hardiek three balls down the stretch cut the halftime deficit to 32-29 for the 'Roos.
Coming out of the break, O'Connor knocked down a pair of jumpers for the 'Roos, but Oakland would match the output to keep the lead at three over seven minutes into the half.
Oakland pushed the lead to eight with with back-to-back baskets, before a baseline jumper by Leathers cut the score to 41-35.
After a layup by Oakland, Hardiek knocked down her fifth three from the left corner and junior Hailey Houser followed with a layup, slicing the lead to 43-40 midway through the half.
Four straight by the Grizzlies put the lead back at seven, but the 'Roos again answered with the sixth Hardiek three and a pull-up jumper by O'Connor to pull Kansas City to within two at 47-45 with just under eight minutes left to play.
UMKC followed with scores on four straight possessions, including six points by Hill, to take its first lead of the second half at 53-48.
An Oakland three ended the 13-1 Kansas City rally, but Hill immediately answered with a jumper from the left wing to push the lead back to four at 55-51 with just over three minutes remaining.
Two Oakland free throws brought the lead to within two at the 3:05 mark, but the 'Roos would hold the Grizzlies scoreless the rest of the way and O'Connor would add four free throws down the stretch as Kansas City held on for the 59-53 victory.
The Blue & Gold will be back in action again on Thursday when they return to Kansas City to take on Western Illinois at 7 p.m. in the Swinney Recreation Center.
