Kansas City
4-11,1-1Summit League
South Dakota
11-4,1-0Summit League
Roos Outmatched by Coyotes in Second Summit Match
1/3/2026 4:25:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Kansas City totaled 28 bench points, the most scored against a Division I opponent this season
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kansas City Women's Basketball (4-11, 1-1) was without enough firepower to contend with South Dakota (11-4, 1-0) falling 47-67 inside the Swinney Center on Saturday afternoon. The Roos were outmatched in each quarter but kept the second and fourth quarters within three points. The Roos failed to go on a run when it was needed, leading to the Coyotes stretching out their advantage bit by bit. Kansas City limited the Coyotes to under 40% shooting from the floor (39.7%) but doomed themselves by shooting just 32% for the game.
South Dakota got out to the early lead but the Roos stayed level with the Coyotes alternating ties and lead changes in the first few minutes of the game. Kansas City took their first and only lead with just five minutes to play in the first frame thanks to Elauni Bennett's sweet spin move and layup to put the Roos up 12-10 with 4:54 remaining in the first quarter. South Dakota went on a 10-1 run to close the opening period while Kansas City was unable to score a basket in that span.
The Coyotes stretched a seven point lead out to 10 by halftime but not without key buckets off the bench from Funmi Amode and Hallie Majoros that kept the deficit manageable. Kansas City saw eight players crack the scoreboard in an evenly dispersed scoring effort led by four points each from Amode and the Bennett sisters.
Kansas City got on the third quarter scoreboard with Em. Bennett and Harrell knocking down mid-range jumpers in the first two minutes out of the half. Down a dozen, the Roos adjusted by playing inside out basketball as Kelby Bannerman flipped a pass from the paint to the left wing where Jamyah Winter connected on a three pointer to cut the deficit down to single digits, 30-39 at the 6:29 mark of the third. The Coyotes responded with a 13-5 run to close the quarter and go up 17 points.
The fourth quarter didn't yield results any more positive for KC as South Dakota poured in a flurry of shots from the outside with the Roos unable to find answers on the other end. Bannerman reached 10 points with free throws at the 6:50 mark of the fourth, becoming the lone Roo to reach double figures in the game.
South Dakota was led in scoring by Molly Joyce who posted a game-high 21 points and shot 50% from the field and hit four three pointers. The Coyotes held the Bennett twins to just eight points combined, a rare occurrence for the KC duo. On the positive side, Kansas City saw 10 players crack the scoreboard and 28 points off the bench, more than doubling the bench production of South Dakota and setting a season-high against DI opponents.
Among the key contributors off the bench was Winter and Majoros, who both chipped in six points a pop while Amode totaled five points and pulled in a couple rebounds. Harrell also finished with four points, six rebounds and a career-high three blocks. Following the first two conference home games, the Roos travel to Fargo. N.D. to take on North Dakota State on Thursday at 7 p.m. for the first of a three-game road slate.
