Kansas City
4-7,0-0Summit League
Lindenwood
4-6,0-0OVC
Defensive Dominance Drives Kansas City Past Lindenwood
12/3/2022 9:53:00 PM | Men's Basketball
The Roos held Lindenwood to 27.6% shooting and pulled down 50 rebounds en route to victory
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Kansas City Men's Basketball used a dominant effort on the boards to propel them to an 61-47 vs Lindenwood this evening. The Roos out-rebounded the Lions by a margin of 50-26, including a 15-9 advantage on the offensive glass.
Kansas City was in a tight battle late in the first half but used an 8-3 run to expand their lead heading into the break. The Roos would use that momentum and open the second half on a 17-10 run to expand a lead that they would cling onto the rest of the way.
RayQuawndis Mitchell provided an offensive spark to the Roos, dropping 27 points, including 6 three pointers. Other notable scorers were Shemarri Allen with 13, and Allen David Mukeba Jr. with 8. Overall, the Roos shot 39.5% from the field and 39% from downtown.
KEY MOMENTS
- 1H - 17:00 / 8-2 |Â Mitchell started the Roos off hot, knocking down a pair of three-pointers in the game's first three minutes. Kansas City held Lindenwood to just one field goal in the first seven minutes of game play.
- 1H - 9:13 / 15-8 | Lindenwood attempted a turnaround jumper, but Mukeba was all over it, blocking the shot and snatching a rebound. That sparked a fast break for the Roos, as Mitchell gunned a pass to a running Jeff Ngandu, who converted the layup to cap a 7-2 run that put the Roos up by seven.
- 1H - 1:20 / 25-14 | Mitchell knocked down his third three of the first half, capping off an eight-point Kansas City run that took the Roos into the half with a lead. The Roos held the Lions scoreless for over five minutes during the run.
- 2H - 18:52 / 30-17 | Kansas City scored the first five points of the second half, highlighted by Mitchell's fourth three of the game. The Roos' lead extended to 13, their largest of the game to that point.
2H | New half, but @rayquawndis still doing the same stuff ?? pic.twitter.com/XFNIsx7sV6
— Kansas City Men's Basketball (@KCRoosMBB) December 4, 2022
- 2H - 11:54 / 42-27 | Mukeba dished to a wide open Mitchell in the corner for his fifth three of the game, surpassing the 20-point mark and tying his career-high for three-pointers made.
- 2H - 4:52 / 55-37 | The Lions cut Kansas City's lead down to 10, but the Roos responded with an eight-point run over the next two minutes, using buckets from Mitchell, Mukeba and Promise C. Idiaru. Eighteen points was as large as the Roos' lead would reach as Lindenwood scored the next six points, but Kansas City would ice the game down the stretch.
STATS TO NOTE
- The Roos held Lindenwood to just 6-of-27 field goal shooting in the first half, a 22.2% clip. They also forced seven turnovers, holding Lindenwood to 17 points, the fewest points in a half by a Kansas City Division One opponent since holding IUPUI to 17 points in a 48-44 win on March 2, 2013.
- Six three-pointers is a single-game career-high for Mitchell. He had previously made five triples in the same game twice, against Oakland on Dec. 19, 2020 and against Florida Gulf Coast on Nov. 23, 2022.
- The Roos out-rebounded the Lions by 24, the largest margin on the boards against a Division One opponent since out-rebounding Troy by 26 in a 120-95 victory on Feb. 27, 1996.
- Kansas City led from wire-to-wire, their first 40-minute win against a Division One opponent this year.
- Mukeba finished with 12 rebounds on the day, his fourth double-digit rebounding effort of the season.
COACH MARVIN MENZIES, QUOTED
"I'm just going to talk about our guys and how they've dealt with adversity. I'm really proud of them. In this game of basketball there are peaks and valleys. The teams that can bounce back from a valley and get back on an incline are the teams that are left standing at the end of the year."
UP NEXT
The Roos head to Norman, Okla. on Tuesday for a matchup with the Sooners before heading to Green Bay on Saturday to close out next week's action.
