Preview: Men's Basketball Welcomes Western Illinois to Swinney

Saturday, November 30

Kansas City, MO

7:00 PM

Kansas City

Western Illinois

Tickets

Preview: Men's Basketball Welcomes Western Illinois to Swinney

11/26/2019 3:11:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Buy Tickets Game Notes

Kansas City Opening Tip
• Kansas City men's basketball (4-4) welcomes Western Illinois (2-4) to the Swinney Center for a post-Thanksgiving feature at 7 p.m. on Saturday. The Roos are 2-0 thus far on their home court.
• The match-up is part of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) / Summit League Challenge. In the second year of the Challenge, things are tied up at one apiece heading into the first half of the week. The Challenge features head-to-head competition between the teams in both leagues.
• Saturday will mark the 44th all-time meeting between the programs and renews a rivalry that was established in the former Mid-Continent Conference. However, the game is the first between the two teams since Feb. 28, 2013.
• The Roos are back in the United States after taking a trip to Nassau, Bahamas last weekend. At The Islands of the Bahamas Showcase, Kansas City displayed a strong defensive effort and a preview of what's to come in the coach Billy Donlon era -- toughness. The Roos defeated George Washington and East Carolina to advance to the Showcase championship against Liberty last Sunday. Kansas City dropped the game against an undefeated and NCAA-tournament team in Liberty by a 62-49 score. Senior Rob Whitfield was named to the Showcase All-Tournament Team as he averaged a team-high 14.0 points and connected on 10-of-22 from long range.

The Starting Five
1. With four wins prior to Dec. 1, the Roos have collected the most victories before the calendar flips into December since the 2016-17 program went 6-2. That year was the last time Kansas City had a winning record.
2. Kansas City is trying to get back in the win column after a three-game win streak. That mark was the longest stretch since the 2017-18 season.
3. By gaining its fourth win in its seventh overall game, Kansas City is seeing early success it has not accomplished recently. Kansas City notched win No. 4 in its 12th game last year.
4. By connecting on five three-pointer's as a team against Liberty last Sunday, the Roos have now gone 305-straight games with making at least one trey. The streak dates back to January, 2000. This year, the unit has averaged 6.6 makes per game.
5. Kansas City is No. 1 in the conference in five statistical categories: assists (14.9), steals (10.1), scoring defense (61.4 papg), field goal percentage (45.5 %) and field goal percentage defense (40.0). The Roos have nearly doubled the opponents total in the steals column (81-43) and is +29 in assists (119-90).

Going Deep
• Kansas City is riding a streak of 305-straight games making at least one three-pointer. The last time the team failed to connect from deep was on Jan. 22, 2000 against Oakland when the Roos were 0-for-13. This year, Kansas City averages 6.6 make's per game with a game-high of 12 against Avila (11/5). The fewest amount was four against George Washington (11/22).

Series History Notes vs WIU
• Kansas City is 26-17 all-time against the Leathernecks, which marks the second-most wins against any opponent.
• Western Illinois has won the last three meetings, with all three games decided by five-points or less. The margin of victory in those last three games was 4.3 points.
• The teams are matching up for the first time since Feb. 28, 2013. The Leathernecks won by a 53-50 count in Macomb, Ill. It was a tale of two halves as Kansas City led 39-21 at the break. But Western Illinois out-scored the Roos 32-11 in the second half and shot 50 percent. Kansas City made just 3-of-15 field goals in the second half.
• The last Kansas City win occurred on Jan. 19, 2012 at home as the Roos prevailed 72-50.
• The Roos are 17-4 at home in the series, but just 9-12 in games played in Macomb.

Last Time Out Against Liberty (Sunday)
• The Kansas City Men's Basketball team (4-4) took on a NCAA-tournament squad last year facing a tough test in undefeated Liberty (8-0). The Roos came up short by a 62-49 score in The Islands of the Bahamas Showcase championship contest. With eight points, four rebounds and two assists, senior Rob Whitfield was named to the All-Tournament Team. Senior Jordan Giles led the way for the Roos with 13 points and junior Brandon McKissic came off the bench to net 11.
• Kansas City hurt their chances by shooting a cold 34.6 percent (9-of-26) in the first half.
• The first couple minutes of the second half looked promising for the Roos. Giles and McKissic countered by each swishing a jumper to start the scoring and Kansas City trailed 32-26. But, that was the closest the Roos could get. Three free throws by two Liberty players was the end of a 17-2 scoring run and the undefeated Flames had a 21-point lead at that point (49-28).

The Do-It-All Machine
• Senior graduate transfer Javan White is first or tied for first on the team in four of the five major statistical categories: scoring (12.6), rebounding (7.5), steals (1.5) and blocks (1.1). He has compiled two double-doubles already and led the team in rebounding four times and scoring twice.
• In conference rankings, he is No. 3 in rebounding and 13th in scoring.

Setting Records
• Here is a list of single-game school records the Roos have set so far this year:
   - Assists in game (30) vs Avila (11/5) (tied record)
   - Made FGs in game (48) vs Bacone (11/18)
   - Scoring margin (+73) vs Bacone (11/18)

The Comeback Kids
• In the 74-68 victory over George Washington (11/22) at the Bahamas, Kansas City trailed 30-23 at the half. That marked the first time this year the Roos won in spite of trailing at halftime. The key was shooting 62.1 percent from the field in the second half and 14-of-17 (.824) from the foul line.
• Prior to that game, the last time the Roos won but trailed at the half was against South Dakota on Dec. 8, 2018. Down 40-30 at halftime, Kansas City stormed back to take the 65-63 victory.