St. Thomas Pulls Away in Second Half to Take Down KC

Saturday, February 3

St. Paul, MN

12:00 PM

Kansas City

10-14,1-8Summit League

St. Thomas

14-9,6-3Summit League

Kansas City

St. Thomas (MN)

Photo by: Kylie Macziewski

St. Thomas Pulls Away in Second Half to Take Down KC

2/3/2024 3:23:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Highlights

Nariyah Simmons and Alayna Contreras both earned 13 points and four assists in the loss

ST. PAUL, Minn. —Kansas City Women's Basketball (10-14, 1-8) came out with energy in the loss against St. Thomas (14-9, 6-3) but fell 75-55. The Roos went on a seven-point run to open the game, knocking down two three-pointers in the first quarter, one from Nariyah Simmons and another from Alayna Contreras. Both Simmons and Contreras earned two assists each in the first quarter, by halftime the Roos documented six assists, tying the last game in the first 20 minutes of play.

St. Thomas responded to the Roos in the second quarter, going on their own seven-point scoring streak to open the period. Kelby Bannerman put an end to the scoring drive with a free throw, and Simmons earned the Roos' first field goal off an Ifunanya Nwachukwu block, nearly four minutes into the second quarter. The Roos kept themselves in the matchup, outrebounding the Tommies 18-to-16 in the first half with six offensive rebounds. A 16-point second quarter allowed St. Thomas to take and maintain the lead, but Kansas City stayed in striking distance going into the break 23-28.

Following the half, both teams struggled to get hot from the field. The Blue and Gold made eight field goals in the third quarter along with four baskets from the charity stripe. The Tommies found their rhythm a couple of minutes into the third for a 23-point quarter giving them an edge going into the fourth. The Roos fought to make a comeback with a team-high 19-point fourth quarter, but it was not enough to cut the Tommies 19-point lead in the fourth.

KEY MOMENTS | HIGHLIGHTS

1Q — 9:32 / 0-2 | From outside the arc, Simmons found Elani Bennett under the basket. El. Bennett snatched the pass with her left hand, made a turn move, and found the net, for her first basket as a starter.
1Q — 0:33 / 12-14 | With just six seconds remaining on the shot clock, Contreras found Bannerman at the top of the key. Bannerman launched the shot to give the Roos a two-point advantage in the final seconds of the game.
2Q — 6:24 / 21-17 | St. Thomas came out with some heat in the second quarter. Nwachukwu put a stop to their momentum with a huge block. Following her block, Nwachukwu found Contreras who launched the ball down the court to Simmons. Simmons put up an easy layup to earn the first KC bucket of the quarter.
2Q — 3:43 / 24-19 | As the Tommies brought the ball up the court, Emani Bennett was able to get her hand their pass. Em. Bennett tipped the ball and Contreras was there to recover, running it back for a layup.
3Q — 7:19 / 31-26 | Simmons carried the ball around the court, looking for an opportunity to get to the net. She drove the ball into the paint and connected with El. Bennett, who banked the shot for six points on the day.
3Q — 1:41 / 2:03 | 46-34 | Phillips carried the ball from outside the arc into the paint. She did a quick crossover to drop her defender and knocked down the bucket.
4Q — 6:57 /56-43 | Simmons drove the ball to the net and picked up some contact on the way. She managed to make the shot and picked up a foul in the process.

STATS TO NOTE

Bannerman brought down a career-high 11 rebounds and tied her previous career-high of nine points. Bannerman earned five rebounds on three occasions this season for her previous career high. Prior to this game, Bannerman had earned nine points on two occasions, once against Chicago State on Nov. 22 and again against North Dakota on Jan. 13.
The Roos outrebounded the Tommies 37-to-35, documenting 13 offensive rebounds. Prior to this matchup, the Roos were 9-and-3 when outrebounding opponents.
Kansas City knocked down two three-pointers in the first quarter, putting them on track for one of their best three-point performances of the season. Ultimately, the Roos earned three threes across the game. Two from Contreras who has 25 threes this season, and one from Simmons who has 27 threes on the season.

UP NEXT
The Roos return home Thursday for a two-game home stretch. Kansas City and North Dakota State (11-9, 5-2) face off Thursday at 7 pm.