Kansas City
6-8,1-0Summit League
Oral Roberts
5-7,0-1Summit League
Roos Pick Apart Golden Eagles for League Opening Win
12/29/2023 10:39:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Jamar Brown went for a 22-point, 10-board double-double and Khristion Courseault dished 12 assists in the win
KANSAS CITY - Kansas City Men's Basketball (6-8, 1-0 Summit) jumped out early and never looked back against the reigning conference champions, dismantling Oral Roberts (5-7, 0-1 Summit), 77-60 to begin Summit League play. The win keeps the Roos undefeated on the home court and is Kansas City's first home win against the Golden Eagles since 2005.
The Roos led wire-to-wire, setting the tone with defense in the first 10 minutes of the game. Before the under-eight first half media timeout, Kansas City held ORU to 4-of-16 shooting and forced six turnovers, building a double-digit lead in that time span. The Golden Eagles committed 14 turnovers on the game, five above their season average, which translated into 11 points for KC.
Jamar Brown finished with a game-high 22 points, sending home 10-of-18 shots to drop his second 20-plus point performance of the year. He also pulled down 10 rebounds, his third double-double of the season. Melvyn Ebonkoli, Cameron Faas and Yulian Ramirez-Montero all reached double-digits as well, while Khristion Courseault facilitated the offense with 12 assists.
KEY MOMENTS | HIGHLIGHTS
- 1H - 14:40 / 12-8 | The Roos came out with energy in the early going, jumping out to a seven-point lead. ORU drew back within a point, but Courseault found Faas for a catch-and-shoot three and the Roos entered the first media timeout with a lead.
- 1H - 9:26 / 25-11 | Ramirez-Montero took over, scoring a layup, going down to the other end and pulling down a defensive rebound. Kansas City ran the offense and Babacar Diallo found Ramirez-Montero coming around a screen for a three. The bucket came in the midst of a 12-point Kansas City run and forced an ORU timeout.
- 1H - 6:24 / 33-13 | Kansas City scored six-straight points, capped by a pair of Allen David Mukeba Jr. free throws. In total, the Roos went on an 18-2 run and expanded the lead to 20 points.
- 1H - 0:43 / 38-21 | Diallo pulled down a rebound and got the offense going quickly, finding a trailing Tyler Andrews for his second three of the game. The Roos entered the half with a 15-point lead.
- 2H - 16:46 / 45-23 | The Roos opened the second half on a 10-point scoring run, capped by a Courseault step-back three. Courseault scored five-straight points during the run and built KC's lead up to 25 points.
- 2H - 14:42 / 55-28 | Mukeba gave Kansas City an effort play, blocking back-to-back shots on the defensive end. He then pulled the ball out of a scrum and got ahead of the pack for a fast break layup.
- 2H - 9:09 / 65-35 | Brown pulled down an offensive rebound, and brought the ball back out, resetting the offense. Courseault kicked the ball cross-court, finding Brown wide open for a triple that put KC up by 30. The Golden Eagles responded with a 13-2 run to draw back within 20 points.
- 2H - 2:07 / 73-55 | Brown got to the rack and elevated to the rim, dropping in a layup that gave him 20 total points and allowed the Roos to coast the rest of the way, earning the win.
STATS TO NOTE
- Brown's 22-point, 10-rebound double-double was the third double-double of his career and his second in the past three games. It is the first 20-point double-double by a Roo since Andrews accomplished the feat against Omaha on Mar. 3 of last season.
- Courseault finished with 12 assists, besting his previous career-high of eight, set on Nov. 13, 2021. He is the first Roo to reach double-digit assists since Sam Martin against Kansas Christian on Dec. 19, 2020, and is the first to do so against a Division One opponent since Martez Harrison against Omaha on Nov. 17, 2015. The performance is tied for the second-best single game assist mark in program history.
- This marked Kansas City's first win over the Golden Eagles in the past five tries, and was KC's first victory at home vs. ORU since a 77-70 win on Feb. 22, 2005. It snaps a nine-game home losing streak against the Golden Eagles.
- The Roos knocked down 10 three-pointers on the night, the Roos' fourth game this year reaching double-digit triples.
- Kansas City dished out 19 total assists on the year, a season-high. The Roos also committed just nine turnovers, the third time in the last four games that KC has been below 10 turnovers.Â
POSTGAME INTERVIEWS
Coach Marvin Menzies | Jamar Brown and Khristion Courseault
UP NEXT
The Roos hit the road for another Summit League match up to round the year off, taking on St. Thomas at 2 p.m. on Sunday afternoon.
