Kansas City
13-20,4-12Summit League
Omaha
20-12,13-3Summit League
Comeback Falls Short in Quarterfinal Meeting with Top-Seeded Mavericks
3/6/2025 9:23:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Jamar Brown scored 27 points, averaging 25.5 across the Roos' two postseason games
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - The 2024-25 season came to an end for #8 Kansas City Men's Basketball (13-20, 4-12 Summit) at the hands of top-seeded Omaha (20-12, 13-3 Summit) this evening, 70-61. After allowing the Mavs to shoot at a high clip in the first half, KC locked in defensively in the second stanza but could not complete a comeback.
Early foul trouble for KC allowed Omaha to jump out to an early lead and never look back, staying in front for the final 39 minutes of the contest. The Mavs went ahead by as many as 19 points early in the second half, but the Roos never backed down, drawing as close as seven in the game's closing stages.
Jamar Brown led Kansas City, as he has all season, finishing with 27 points on 8-of-17 shooting. Jayson Petty was the only other Roo to finish in double-digits, going for 15 points and seven rebounds. Babacar Diallo went for eight assists, averaging 8.5 across KC's two postseason games.
KEY MOMENTS | HIGHLIGHTS
- 1H - 13:14 / 10-12 | Diallo pulled down two offensive rebounds on the same possession, finishing near the hoop for an easy bucket and pulling within two.
- 1H - 8:15 / 16-22 | Diallo dished to a streaking Brown, who hit a floater to halt a scoring drought of nearly four minutes for KC.
- 1H - 0:37 / 25-40 | After a run by Omaha, Petty knocked down a three and then a free throw by Brown took KC into the half down 14.
- 2H - 16:13 / 36-45 | Omaha scored the first five of the half, but the Roos responded by scoring 10-straight, capped by a triple off the fingers of Brown.
- 2H - 12:47 / 40-47 | Diallo grabbed another offensive rebound and found Brown wide-open inside, bringing the Roos as close as they had been since the eight minute mark of the first half.
- 2H - 1:11 / 58-65 | After the Mavericks pulled back ahead by 15, the Roos responded with eight-straight on a bucket by Brown, a three from Cameron Faas and three free throws by Petty. Omaha would close out the game and advance to the semifinal round.
STATS TO NOTE
- Brown finished the day with 27 points, his 11th 20-point performance of the season and the 17th of his career. He ends the season with 511 points, the fifth 500-point season by a Roo in the last 10 years.
- Petty's averaged 16.5 points across the Roos' two Summit League Tournament games. He has surpassed the double-digit mark in all three of his career postseason contests.
- Ebonkoli was the only Kansas City player to finish with a positive plus/minus rating, going plus-10 in 18:15 minutes of play. He ended the game with a career-high tying three blocks.
- KC ends the season with 13 losses at the hands of Summit League opponents, 11 of which were by less than 10 points.
POSTGAME INTERVIEWS
Head Coach Marvin Menzies and Jamar Brown
SEASON IN REVIEW
The Roos end the year with 13 wins, including a six-game winning streak that spanned from Dec. 10 through Jan. 4. Brown was named Second Team All-Summit League, leading the Roos in points, rebounds and steals. Kansas City will graduate four seniors: Jamar Brown, Cameron Faas, Babacar Diallo and Anderson Kopp.
