Thursday, January 8
Kansas City, Mo.
7:00 PM
Kansas City
4-13,1-2Summit League
73
vs
97
North Dakota State
13-5,3-0Summit League
1
2
F
North Dakota St.
54
43
97
Kansas City
34
39
73
Photo by: Anna Simms
Photo by: Anna Simms
Photo by: Anna Simms
Photo by: Syd Siemens
Photo by: Syd Siemens
Photo by: Syd Siemens
Photo by: Syd Siemens
Photo by: Syd Siemens
Branch Leads KC's Scoring Efforts as Roos Outpaced by Bison
1/8/2026 10:11:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Karmello Branch poured in a team-high 19 points on five threes made
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Kansas City Men's Basketball (4-12, 1-2 Summit) could not keep pace with North Dakota State (12-5, 3-0 Summit) this evening, falling 97-73. The Roos were led by Karmello Branch in the scoring category for the sixth-straight game, finishing with 19 points on 5-of-11 three-point shooting.
The Bison came out hot, scoring nine points before the Roos found the bottom of the net on a CJ Evans floater in the lane. KC was hampered by NDSU's hot shooting as the Bison went for a 63.6% field goal percentage in the first half and took a 20-point lead into the break.
Evans opened the second half with a steal and a fast break bucket to draw within 18, but NDSU responded with a triple the next trip down the court and the deficit did not drop below 20 points for the rest of the contest. The Roos shot 56.2% from the field in the second frame but were 3-of-12 from deep and committed eight turnovers resulting in 12 points for the Bison.
Branch put together a balanced scoring effort, scoring nine in the first half and 10 in the second. He was joined by Kasheem Grady II with 18 points and Evans rounded out the Roos' double-digit scorers with 12. Jayson Petty was limited to just three points on the evening, but dished out a career-high six assists in 22 minutes of play.
The Roos turn around quickly for a meeting with North Dakota on Saturday at 7 p.m.
The Bison came out hot, scoring nine points before the Roos found the bottom of the net on a CJ Evans floater in the lane. KC was hampered by NDSU's hot shooting as the Bison went for a 63.6% field goal percentage in the first half and took a 20-point lead into the break.
Evans opened the second half with a steal and a fast break bucket to draw within 18, but NDSU responded with a triple the next trip down the court and the deficit did not drop below 20 points for the rest of the contest. The Roos shot 56.2% from the field in the second frame but were 3-of-12 from deep and committed eight turnovers resulting in 12 points for the Bison.
Branch put together a balanced scoring effort, scoring nine in the first half and 10 in the second. He was joined by Kasheem Grady II with 18 points and Evans rounded out the Roos' double-digit scorers with 12. Jayson Petty was limited to just three points on the evening, but dished out a career-high six assists in 22 minutes of play.
The Roos turn around quickly for a meeting with North Dakota on Saturday at 7 p.m.
Team Stats
NDSU
KC
FG%
.530
.491
3FG%
.448
.364
FT%
.737
.647
RB
35
31
TO
9
17
STL
13
4
Game Leaders
Pts
19
FGM
7
3FGM
5
FTM
0
Pts
18
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
6
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
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