UMKC struggles offensively against Kansas State
On a night on which the defensive effort for the men’s basketball team from UMKC was solid, the inability to convert possessions into points doomed the Roos.
For the first 17 and a half minutes of play on Tuesday night in Manhattan, Kansas, it looked like the young UMKC men’s basketball team might make history. No Roos squad has ever defeated the Wildcats of Kansas State (2-0) on their home court through the first 11 meetings of the two schools in that situation. Unfortunately for UMKC (1-2), the rest of the game elevated that number to 12 as Kansas State ultimately claimed a 72-51 victory.
The improved defensive effort as compared to UMKC’s first road game at No.7/8 Wichita State last Friday was obvious from the tip. The Roos’ rotations on defense, energy in contesting shots and rebounding were all solid. UMKC actually led for over five and a half minutes of the contest early, as they were able to penetrate into the Wildcat defense early on. Many of the shot attempts weren’t falling, however, and Roos head coach Kareem Richardson spoke about how much of a different game it might have been if more of the shots found the bottom of the net.
"“The offense, that lies on me, I told the guys, we were too stagnant. We didn’t have enough movement. Second half, we shot the three better because we had better looks. We had a little bit better ball movement and body movement. That offense is on me, and we’ll get some things corrected and we’ll be fine.”More from KC KingdomWin $650 GUARANTEED Plus $100 Off NFL Sunday Ticket With Caesars, FanDuel and DraftKings Kansas Promos!This Plus-Money Bobby Witt Jr. Prop Bet is on Fire (Hit in 15/21 Games)!How to Bet on the Chiefs vs. Cardinals in NFL Preseason Week 2The Royals Need to Extend Bobby Witt Jr. ImmediatelyThe 3 Most Intriguing Games on the Chiefs’ Schedule"
The shots especially went cold for UMKC in the last two and a half minutes, when Kansas State got junior Dean Wade going. Wade led the Wildcats in scoring in their first game, but the Roos were able to keep him off the scoreboard until this point. With him taking charge on the offensive end, Kansas State opened a 34-20 lead at halftime. Richardson identified a simple difference between how UMKC responded to earlier runs by the Wildcats and this one to end the half.
"“Simply, we weren’t able to score the basketball. We responded because we made a couple of shots earlier in the first half, in that late one we didn’t score. I thought we defended well the whole game. I just told our guys, minus we fouled too much, but if we defend like that, we’re going to get offense, we’ll tweak some things that need to be there. But if we defend like that, we’ll have a lot more Ws than we will losses.”"
The second half was characterized by more of the same, as Kansas State found its shot, especially from 3-point range. The Wildcats shot over 33 percent from downtown in the second half as the Roos continued to struggle to score, resulting in the final.
As a team for the game, UMKC shot just 26 percent from the field. As Richardson referred, to the Roos did shoot nearly 29 percent from 3-point range, including almost 36 percent in the second half. The largest scoring disparity was in points in the paint, where Kansas State outscored UMKC 32-4.
Sophomore guard Isaiah Ross led the team in scoring with 12 points, making this the second time in the team’s first three games that he has done so. Freshman guard Marvin Nesbitt Jr. grabbed five rebounds to lead the Roos in that category, while sophomore guard Xavier Bishop’s four assists lead UMKC there. Freshman guard Brandon McKissic notched two steals.
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The Roos will again follow a road game with a quick turnaround to a home game, as they host Loyola (Chicago) on Thursday, Nov. 16. If UMKC can replicate Tuesday’s defensive effort while getting a few more shots to fall, they will have a great chance to even their record.