UMKC To Open Home Schedule with Missouri S&T on Campus Wednesday
11/18/2014 6:25:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Missouri S&T Miners (1-0) at UMKC Kangaroos (1-1)
Date / Time: November 19, 2014 - 7:05 p.m. CST
Site: Kansas City, Mo. / Swinney Recreation Center (1,500)
TV: None
Talent: N/A
Radio: 810 AM
Talent: Steven Davis (p-b-p)
Webstream: Roos TV (subscribers)
Live Stats: UMKCKangaroos.com
Twitter: @TheUMKCRoos or @UMKCMensHoops #WACHoops
Series: First Meeting in Division I
Home: 0-0
Away: 0-0
Neutral: 0-0
Last Meeting: MST won 104-84 on 12/1/79, in Rolla
Richardson vs. Opponent: 0-0
THE GAME
The 'Roos will host Missouri S&T on Wednesday night, one of its sister schools in the Missouri system. UMKC looks to build off its momentum from the weekend after beating Missouri and playing K-State tight. They open the home portion of their schedule in the only on-campus game of the year at Swinney Rec Center, for student and staff appreciation night.
QUICK NOTES
- UMKC is ranked in the College Sports Insider Mid-Major Top 25 at 23rd as of Monday. It is the first time the 'Roos have ever been ranked in any poll.- As a team UMKC hit 79.3 percent from the line vs. Mizzou and 80 percent against K-State, the two highest totals in Kareem Richardson's tenure.
- UMKC has shown its depth early in the year, with 11 different players scoring against K-State and 10 players scoring against Missouri.
- UMKC is in its second season under head coach Kareem Richardson, and is playing its second year back at Municipal Auditorium, and second in the Western Athletic Conference.
- In Richardson's first year, he led the team to a fifth place finish in the WAC, and the fourth seed in the conference tournament, both of which were the highest since 2006 at UMKC.
- The attendance in 2013-14 increased 36 percent from the previous year.
- Martez Harrison was named WAC Freshman of the Year last season. The Kansas City, Mo. product averaged 17.2 points per game.
- The roster currently has eight players from the Kansas City area, the most ever at UMKC (previous record set last season with seven).
- UMKC also has eight players that are completely new to the roster this year.
- There is only one player (Mason Wedel) on the current roster that was not recruited by this coaching staff.
- UMKC returns four redshirts, two of which sat out last season due to Division I transfer rules in Reese Holliday (Toledo) and Shayok Shayok (Bradley).
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
The Division II Miners play Tuesday night against Defending Division II champion Central Missouri in Warrensburg, before facing the 'Roos Wednesday. The Miners come in to the games at 1-0 after a 32-point win over Missouri Baptist Saturday. T
They posted a 12-15 mark last season and return one starter to the lineup. MST added four junior college transfers to the roster in the offseason. They are a high-scoring team, ranking fifth in the nation in scoring last year. They are led in scoring by Michael Nesbitt at 16.0 points per game while . Nesbitt leads the way with eight rebounds a game.
THE COACHES
Kareem Richardson is in his second season as the head coach at UMKC, posting an 11-21 record. He was named the sixth coach in the Division I era on March 19, 2013 after helping Louisville to a National Championship in 2013 as an assistant under Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino.
He brings 14 years of Division I coaching experience to the fold, as well as four years playing at the Division I level, graduating from Evansville in 1997.
Jim Glash is in his sixth season as the head coach at Missouri S&T after serving as the assistant coach there for two seasons. He led MST to its highest finish a year ago in the GLVC, fourth in the east division.
THE SERIES
The 'Roos will be facing the Miners for the first time in the Division I era, but played them during the NAIA days. The last meeting was all the way back in 1979 when they were called Missouri-Rolla. The Miners took a 104-84 win on December 1 that year in Rolla.
A WIN WOULD MEAN...
- Kansas City would have moved to 2-0 at the Swinney Recreation Center under Kareem Richardson.
- UMKC would have won its home opener for the first time since the 2012 season when it rolled Lincoln University.
- The 'Roos would have improved to 11-2 against Division II competition as a Division I school.
UP NEXT
The 'Roos will head to the mainland regional of the EA Sports Maui Invitational on Saturday and Sunday in Little Rock, Arkansas. They will face hosts UALR on Saturday at 3:30 p.m., followed by either CSUN or Samford on Sunday at 1 or 3:30, depending on the result.
The 'Roos will be facing the Trojans of Arkansas-Little Rock for the first time since 2000, and the third time all-time. The series is tied 1-1, with each team winning on its home floor.
The 'Roos have never faced CSUN, and are 2-0 against Samford all-time, winning at home and on the road in 1989 and 1990.
NATIONALLY RANKED MID-MAJOR
For the first time in school history, UMKC has been ranked in the Mid-Major Top 25, coming in at No. 23 on Monday afternoon. The 'Roos are one of two teams from the WAC that are ranked, as NMSU is 19th.
