Kansas City
8-7,0-0Summit League
East Tennessee State
7-6,0-0SoCon
Red-Hot Roos Stave off ETSU for Fourth Win in a Row
12/21/2024 3:50:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Season best three point shooting performance powers Kansas City to double digit victory over the Buccaneers
KANSAS CITY, MO – Kansas City Men's Basketball (8-7) earned its fourth victory in a row, taking down ETSU (7-6) by a score of 73-66 in the Swinney Center on Saturday afternoon, closing the non-conference slate above .500 for the first time in the Marvin Menzies era. The Roos and Buccaneers played a tight first half as Kansas City made eight three pointers in the first 20 minutes of the game. After a 35-33 halftime score, the Roos broke out on a 20-7 run in the second half to pull away and ultimately come out on top with an eight point win.
Jamar Brown was the Roos leading scorer, recording 22 points on 6-of-10 shooting to go along with eight rebounds. Jayson Petty finished with a stellar statline of 17 points on 4-of-11 shooting with all of his makes coming from three-point range. Cameron Faas chipped in 14 points and Babacar Diallo added 12 points to aid in the Roos' cause. Kansas City finished the game at 47% from the field and 52% from three, a season best mark, and totaled 20 points off turnovers.
KEY MOMENTS | HIGHLIGHTS
- 1H – 8:14 / 22-21 | In the midst of a tight first half of play, Faas skied up for a defensive rebound and ushered the ball up the floor for the Roos next offensive possession. With the shot clock under 15 seconds, Diallo shuffled the ball to Faas on the left wing, who took one dribble to his right and uncorked the Roos sixth made three pointer of the game, giving Kansas City their first lead in eight minutes.
- 1H – 7:17 / 25-21 | Kansas City capitalized off a Buccaneers missed shot on the offensive end as Diallo drove downhill and got straight to the basket where he converted the layup and got fouled in the process. Diallo converted the three point play at the free throw line, completing a 6-0 mini-run for the Roos.
- 1H – 3:19 / 30-24 | In a four point game, Davontae Hall wiggled his way in and out of a crowded lane, clearing space down low for Josh Ijeh. Hall threaded the needle on a slick bounce pass for the open Ijeh to slam down the authoritative dunk which gave the Roos a little bit of breathing room as the first half wound down.
- 2H – 16:40 / 46-36 | Following a three point shot that was just off target by Faas, the Roos hauled in the offensive rebound as Jamar Brown tapped the loose ball out to Diallo for a second chance opportunity. Diallo returned the favor, feeding the rock back to Brown for a right wing three pointer, sparking a 11-3 Roos run to open the second half.
- 2H – 4:43 / 65-55 | After a Faas steal on defense, Kansas City got busy on the other end. On the ensuing possession, Brown unloaded a three ball from the left corner that fell short. Luckily, the ball bounced right back into Brown's ready hands and the steady senior guard followed up his own miss for a layup that broke a nine-plus minute drought without a made field goal.
- 2H – 2:03 / 73-61 | As time wound down in the tightly contested matchup, Kansas City salted the game away when Brown followed Petty's missed driving layup with an offensive rebound, his fourth of the game, and put the ball back up and into the hoop for the and-one dagger. Brown swished the foul shot at the charity stripe to elevate the Roos lead up to a dozen.
Another game, another @jamar_brown2 2?0? ball ????? pic.twitter.com/nWBhUWIpjh
— Kansas City Men's Basketball (@KCRoosMBB) December 21, 2024
STATS TO NOTE
- The Roos finished the non-conference schedule at 8-7 and above .500 for the first time since the 2021-22 season when Kansas City went 7-5 in non-conference games.
- Kansas City tied its season high for most three pointers in a game against a D1 opponent this season, draining 11 shots from long range, eight of which were made in the first half. The Roos' other game of 11 made threes came against Bowling Green where KC went 11-of-22.
- Kansas City set a season-best three point percentage, shooting a scorching 52% from deep. The Roos previous season best three point percentage was 50%, a mark that KC hit twice previously against Calvary and Bowling Green.
- Brown totaled 22 points and eight rebounds, four of them being offensive boards. It was Brown's fifth 20-plus point game of the season and the sixth time that he has nabbed four-or-more offensive rebounds in a game this season.
- Petty finished with 17 points, six rebounds and four made three pointers Saturday afternoon. It was Petty's highest scoring output since late-November against Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras. Petty now has 12 games of double figure scoring this season and set a season high in three pointers, surpassing his previous best of three in the Roos season opener against Hannibal-LaGrange.
INTERVIEWS
Coach Menzies | Cameron Faas/Jamar Brown
UP NEXT
Kansas City returns to the hardwood to face off against South Dakota on January 2 at the Swinney Center for the Roos first game of Summit League play.
