Roos Dominate from Start to Finish in First Win Over USD Since 2013

Thursday, January 30

Kansas City, Mo.

7:00 PM

Kansas City

9-14,5-3Summit League

South Dakota

9-13,3-5Summit League

South Dakota

Kansas City

Photo by: Anna Simms

Roos Dominate from Start to Finish in First Win Over USD Since 2013

1/30/2025 11:43:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Highlights Jackson-Durrett Postgame Em. Bennett / L. Thomas / Bannerman Postgame Photo Gallery

Emani Bennett, Kelby Bannerman and Alayna Contreras all reached double-digits

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — From the jump, Kansas City Women's Basketball (9-14,5-3) had the energy on its side. The Roos took the lead early and never looked back, defeating South Dakota (9-13, 3-5) in declarative fashion, 77-54. The Roos shot lights out, going 10-of-15 from beyond the arc (66.7%) and 31-of-61 (50.8%) from the field. Tonight's win marks the Roos' first win over South Dakota since Jan. 12, 2013, when they defeated the Coyotes 60-56.

The Blue and Gold found success from the field just over a minute into the first quarter with a three from Em. Bennett. KC rained down five threes on 5-of-5 shooting outside the arc in the first 10 minutes of play. The Roos carried the energy over into the second and third quarters, outscoring the Coyotes in every frame but the fourth when South Dakota outshot the Roos 15-to-14. Rebounds were key for the Roos who brought down 10 offensive boards and outrebounded South Dakota 41-to-19.

Em. Bennett led Kansas City from the field scoring 24 points and grabbing five boards. Kelby Bannerman scored a career-high 17 points and brought down another nine rebounds. Alayna Contreras joined the pair in double-digits earning another 17 points and three assists. Another playmaker for KC was Lisa Thomas who earned a game-high in assists (9) and rebounds (10). The Roos close January with a 5-3 record and a 3-2 record at home, which places them fourth in the Summit League. Tonight's win marks their best three-point shooting since 2018.

KEY MOMENTS | HIGHLIGHTS
1Q — 8:38 / 3-0 | Em. Bennett knocked down the first bucket of the game. Contreras pushed Em. Bennett the ball, allowing her to give KC the lead with a corner three.
1Q — 2:09 / 15-10 | Kaia Ponder hit Kansas City's third three of the night. Her bucket started the Roos on an 11-0 run to close the first quarter. Em. Bennett and Contreras each added a three and Ugass made two free throws to bring KC to 23 at the break.
2Q — 5:19 / 32-21 | Em. Bennett snagged an offensive rebound and fired off a second chance shot. She then hit a three to put KC up by 14. Em. Bennett's baskets started Kansas City on a 15-3 run where they held the Coyotes to a field goal and one free throw.
3Q– 0:00 / 63-39 | Ana Oliveira Dias fired off a shot that went wide of its mark with five seconds remaining on the shot clock. Elauni Bennett came down with the offensive rebound with one second remaining, firing off the second-chance layup as the clock sounded to put KC up by 24.
4Q — 2:38 / 77-52 | Contreras earned her first steal with KC quickly bringing the ball down the court. Bannerman drove the ball to the net, bringing her to 17 points and putting the Roos up by 25. KC allowed one more South Dakota field goal before the buzzer sounded, winning by its largest margin of the season against Division One opponents, 23.

STATS TO NOTE

Kansas City notched its best three-point shooting performance since 2018 when the Roos went 6-of-9 (66.7%) at Grand Canyon on Jan. 20. Four Roos hit three-pointers, but Em. Bennett led KC in threes knocking down four.
The Roos outscored South Dakota 18-to-12 in the third quarter. Across the season, Kansas City outperforms its opponents 382-379 in the third frame.
Bannerman bested her previous career-high by one which she set against South Dakota last season on Feb. 22.
KC shot 31-of-61 from the field for a .508 clip, matching its season best. Tonight's game marks the third time this season that the Roos have shot 50.8% from the field, advancing them to 3-0 when they hit that mark.
The Roos had a season-low 11 fouls allowing just five South Dakota free throws.

POSTGAME INTERVIEW
Coach Jackson-Durrett | Em. Bennett / Thomas / Bannerman

UP NEXT
Kansas City Women's Basketball travels to Denver (8-13, 1-7) to begin the second round of conference play. The Roos and the Pioneers play on Wednesday at 7 p.m.