Roos Close Road Swing at Utah Valley in Televised Game
2/19/2016 9:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball
UMKC Kangaroos (10-16, 3-8 WAC) at Utah Valley Wolverines (11-15, 5-6 WAC)
Date / Time: February 20 - 8 p.m. CT
Site: Orem, Utah. / UCCU Center (8,500)
TV: KSMO-TV, Kansas City area, ESPN3
Talent: Neil Harwell (pxp), Michael Watson (analyst)
Listen:UMKCKangaroos.com (free)
Talent: Steven Davis (pxp)
Webstream:WAC DN (free)
Live Stats: UMKCKangaroos.com (via UVU)
Twitter: @UMKCMensHoops #RooUp
Series: UVU leads 7-5
Home: 4-3
Away: 1-4
Neutral: 0-0
Last Meeting: UVU won 90-79 in KC, 1/21/16
Richardson vs. Opponent: 3-2
QUICK NOTES
- UMKC had its largest positive rebound margin of the season (+17) vs. UTRGV, then was -15 vs. GCU.
- UMKC had its largest margin of victory and halftime lead of the season at 17 and 12 points, respectively, on Saturday vs. UTRGV.
- The Roos held UTRGV to 58 points, the lowest opponent total this year in WAC play.
- Martez Harrison is now fourth on the UMKC scoring chart with 1,480 points. He passed Tony Dumas for fourth all-time in assists (349) last time out, and tied Dumas for fourth all-time in steals (142). His 29 games of scoring 20+ is now tied with Quinton Day for fourth all-time.
- Harrison has 106 assists so far this year, and needs 108 to crack the single-season top 10. The school record is 131 by Day.
- Harrison is the WAC's active career leader in points (1,480), free throws made (476), steals (142), and assists (349).
- LaVell Boyd is the first player under Kareem Richardson to hit 50 threes in a season (65).
- Harrison's 171 free throw attempts are 53rd and 134 free throw makes are 39th in the country. LaVell Boyd is 58th with a .406 three-point percentage.
- UMKC has several players in the WAC rankings. Martez Harrison and LaVell Boyd are 3rd and 11th in scoring in the WAC at 15.5 and 13.4 ppg. Shayok Shayok is fourth in field goal percentage (.559). Harrison is 6th in assists (4.2), while sitting 5th in steals (1.3) and 5th in free throw percentage (.784). Boyd is 2nd in three-point percentage (.406) and 3rd in three point makes per game (2.5).
- UMKC is ranked No. 284 in the RPI rankings as of Friday, fifth highest in the WAC.
- The Roos strength of schedule is No. 187 in the nation, second in the WAC.
- UMKC finished its non-conference schedule with seven wins, marking the most for the Roos since the 2010-11 team also had seven. The last team with eight or more: 2001-02 team, with 10.
- The 'Roos are facing 10 schools this season that went to postseason tournaments last year (South Dakota St., UT-Martin, Iowa, Louisville, UNC-Wilmington, Oklahoma St., USC-Upstate, Seattle, New Mexico State and Grand Canyon). So far UMKC is 3-9 against those teams.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
The Wolverines enter the game with a 11-15 overall record, and are 5-6 in the WAC. They defeated Chicago State on Thursday night.
They are led by a trio of scorers in Konner Frey (14.0 ppg), Jaden Jackson (14.5 ppg), and Marcel Davis (13.9 ppg), while Frey pulls down a team-best 6.8 rebounds per contest. Davis fills the stat sheet with 5.6 rebounds and a team-best 128 assists as well. The Wolverines are a fast-paced team, scoring 76.0 points a game, while giving up 78.9 per contest.
THE COACHES
Kareem Richardson is in his third season as the head coach at UMKC, posting a 34-55 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.
His second season in Kansas City as the head man was another step in the right direction in 2014-15, and generated several program firsts. The 8-6 WAC record was the first above .500 at UMKC since 2005-06, and its second place finish matched the highest ever in league play. UMKC finished with a 6-1 WAC home record, the best in school history in conference play.
Mark Pope is in his first season at UVU (11-15) after four years as an assistant coach at nearby BYU. He is another Pitino disciple, playing for him at Kentucky and winning a national championship there in 1996. He also played seven seasons in the NBA.
THE SERIES
The Roos will be meeting Utah Valley for the 13th time, with UVU holding a 7-5 series advantage. UMKC had won three in a row before the Wolverines won in Kansas City earlier this season, 90-79.
A WIN WOULD MEAN...
- The 'Roos would have won on the road for the first time since Nov. 21 at Drake.
- The 'Roos would have defeated UVU for the fourth time in the last five meetings.
- Missouri-Kansas City would have won at Utah Valley for the second time ever, and second straight year under Kareem Richardson.
UP NEXT
The 'Roos will play their final home game of the year on Saturday against league-leading New Mexico State. The game will be televised on KSMO in Kansas City.
The Roos will be facing the Aggies for the sixth time, and are 1-4 against them in the all-time series. UMKC has posted a 1-1 mark against them at home. Earlier this year, UMKC lost at NMSU by one point.
