UMKC gets shocked in season opening game at Wichita State
The UMKC men’s basketball team played its first game of the 2017-18 regular season on the road against No.7/8 Wichita State. The game went according to the chalk.
The first regular season contest for the men’s basketball team from UMKC was billed as a monumental task. Defeating the No.7/8 Wichita State Shockers on Friday night in front of their home crowd would have required succinct execution by the Roos on both ends of the court. Unfortunately for UMKC, that wasn’t what played out in a 109-57 defeat.
UMKC head coach Kareem Richardson spoke about what his team can take away from the game afterwards.
"“The biggest [lesson] is going to be playing through adversity. [In] our exhibition game, there was little to no adversity. We had a closed-door scrimmage where there wasn’t a ton of adversity, and so, the staff and I were talking, it will be interesting to see how we respond to adversity.”"
The Shockers sent the Roos to an 0-1 record by limiting UMKC’s ability to do what it is best at. Opportunities for transition offense were almost nonexistent, mostly because Wichita State turnovers were sparse. As Wichita State was able to successfully manipulate the game into a half-court contest, it took control of the affair. Richardson commented on the game’s flow.
"“Our inexperience showed heavily. Guys had the right spirit but they were trying to do it themselves. They were taking what I would call hero shots. Everyone wanted the basketball on the offensive end to try to go one-on-one with no pass or one pass. We had to talk about playing unselfishly and defensively it was the same thing. Our rotations weren’t where they were supposed to be. I don’t know what pressing that was but that was all because of adversity and inexperience.”"
As far as stats that told the story, there were plenty. UMKC finished the game shooting under 28 percent, and got out-rebounded 51-26. Most tellingly, the Roos managed just seven offensive rebounds for the game.
As much as this game could be a learning experience for a young UMKC team, the Roos don’t have much time to reflect on the lessons. UMKC plays its home opener against Haskell on Sunday, Nov. 12, at 4 p.m. With the short turnaround, Richardson will keep a laser on focus on what’s important right now.
"“We will learn a great deal and we will be better next time adversity hits. I thought we shared the ball much better in the second half, shots weren’t always falling but we can live with that. I thought that was better, our pressing got a little bit better as we got out our jitters in the second half. There’s a lot we’ll take from it. We don’t have much time to lick our wounds so to speak, we have to get back at it.”"
One of the bright spots from the game was sophomore guard Isaiah Ross, who came off the bench and contributed 12 points to pace the team. Senior guard Broderick Robinson added 11 points, while junior forward Aleer Leek scored 10.
On the boards, Robinson led the way for UMKC with five rebounds. Sophomore guard Xavier Bishop issued three assists to lead in that category.
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UMKC’s efforts against Wichita State came up short, but the scheduling presents a great opportunity for the Roos to quickly move on. A better showing on Sunday against Haskell will make this game only a memory.