Kansas City
Chicago State
Cougars Hit Bucket with 1.7 Seconds Left, Hand 'Roos Heartbreaking Loss, 68-66
1/11/2014 9:35:00 PM | Men's Basketball
(Kansas City, Mo.) - Chicago State's Quinton Pippen hit a runner in the lane with 1.7 seconds left on Saturday night at Municipal Auditorium, giving Kansas City a heartbreaking 68-66 loss in WAC play. Senior Nelson Kirksey nearly tied it for the 'Roos at the buzzer with a 15-footer off a long pass, but it rolled off the rim.
“We didn't want to call a timeout (after the Pippen jumper) because we wanted to catch them in a scramble situation, and that's what we did,” Head Coach Kareem Richardson said. “We got free throw line jumper, and you'll take that any day in that type of situation.”
The Cougars (7-9, 2-0 WAC) came out of the gates with more intensity than the 'Roos (5-10, 2-1 WAC), jumping out to an 8-2 lead in the first four minutes. Kansas City kept it within striking distance though, and took its first lead on a Martez Harrison layup with 10:27 on the clock. It went back and forth until the final 2:24 as CSU went on a 10-2 run to close the period and take a 31-25 lead into the break.
“We were just waiting for shots to fall in the first half, and we let it affect our defense when they didn't go in,” Richardson said.
The 'Roos had nine turnovers in the period, and hit only 1-of-11 from three-point range, while Chicago State hit 4-of-8 from three and 7-of-11 from the line to go with nine turnovers. Fred Chatmon was the bright spot for UMKC in the period, scoring six points and pulling down nine rebounds, with three blocks.
The final stanza was much cleaner for both teams, and UMKC stepped up its intensity after the initial CSU run to open the half. The Cougars went up 41-30 in the first three minutes, but the 'Roos didn't give up, chipping away until the 10:12 mark when Frank Williams hit a jumper to tie it at 48.
The 'Roos got their first lead since the opening half less than a minute later when Kirksey drilled a three-pointer, but CSU answered with two straight buckets. During the stretch though, UMKC lost Trinity Hall to an injury that sidelined him for the final 10 minutes, leaving the 'Roos shorthanded.
CSU went up by three with 2:30 to play, but Williams hit a three with 1:20 on the clock to give Kansas City a one point advantage. An old fashioned three-point play by the Cougars with 1:04 on the clock made it a two-point Cougar lead, but Kansas City tied the game with seven seconds left on a dunk by Chatmon off a feed from Harrison, setting up the frenzied finish.
Chatmon finished with a double-double, his second of the season and sixth of his career as he tallied 11 points and a season-high 15 rebounds. Kirksey led the 'Roos with 17 points, while Harrison and Williams each had 14. Harrison led the team with five assists. Pippen led the Cougars with 23 points, while Matt Ross had 19 points and 11 boards.
Kansas City will host Texas-Pan American on Thursday night at 7:05 p.m. at Municipal. The contest will be televised on KSMO in Kansas City and simulcast on ESPN3.
