Kansas City Welcomes North Dakota to Town for Back Half of Doubleheader

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First Five

Kansas City Men's Basketball looks to return to the win column on Saturday evening, hosting North Dakota for a 5 p.m. tipoff. Kansas City has played nine games this season with a tipoff time earlier than 7 p.m. CT, posting a 5-4 record in those games. The Roos have had just one 5 p.m. tipoff, a 90-67 win over Oral Roberts on Jan. 4.
The Roos were big on the offensive glass in the most recent game against North Dakota State on Thursday, pulling down 12 offensive boards. Jamar Brown pulled down six by himself, contributing to his average of 3.36 offensive rebounds per game, the 22nd-most in the nation.
Brown finished the night with a game-high 26 points and 12 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the year, ranking second in the Summit League and top-100 in the nation. His 26 points were the most by a Kansas City player in a double-double effort against a Division One opponent since Jay Cousinard scored 28 against NDSU on Jan. 29, 2011.
Melvyn Ebonkoli scored a career-high 18 points against the Bison, surpassing his previous high of 14 from KC's win over Bowling Green on Dec. 14. Ebonkoli has reached double-digit scoring seven times in his career and the Roos hold a 6-1 record in those games.
Ring Nyeri earned his first collegiate start on Thursday, playing a career-high tying 25 minutes.

Scouting NDSU

North Dakota enters Saturday's game with a 9-16 record and a 3-7 mark in Summit League play. The Fighting Hawks dropped a 80-77 decision at Omaha on Thursday.
UND is led in the scoring column by Treysen Eaglestaff, who averages 18.1 points per game on 34.1% three-point shooting.
The Fighting Hawks lead the league in offensive rebounds per game, averaging 13.68.
Kansas City owns an 8-6 advantage in the all-time series, but UND has won two-straight games at the Swinney Center.
North Dakota won the first meeting this season in a 76-72 decision on Jan. 18. Cameron Faas scored a team-leading 20 points in that game.

University of Missouri Kansas City Athletics