Seattle University held an eight-point lead early in the second half, but Missouri-Kansas City used a combination of tough pressure defense and the three-point shot to defeat the Redhawks, 75-55, Saturday night in a Western Athletic Conference men’s basketball game at Municipal Auditorium.
Jarell Flora (Bremerton, Wash.) led the Redhawks with 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field and six rebounds, while Isiah Umipig (Federal Way, Wash.) collected 20 points, hitting 11-of-12 attempts from the free throw line. William Powell (Huntsville, Ala.) and Jack Crook (Manchester, England) also pulled down six rebounds, but Seattle U could not find a third person to pick up the scoring, as the rest of the squad combined for just 14 points.
The first half went back and forth, starting with UMKC taking a four-point lead six minutes into the contest thanks to a three-pointer by Collin Jennings. A jumper by Flora and a three-pointer from Umipig gave the Redhawks a one-point advantage, which was the same margin at halftime at 25-24 in Seattle U’s favor as the two teams basically traded points during the final 10 minutes of the opening half.
After Martez Harrison hit a three-pointer to give the Kangaroos a 29-27 lead early in the second half, the Redhawks scored 10 unanswered points, the first five by Flora on a steal and layup followed by a three-pointer. The Kangaroos used the three-point shot to put together a 23-5 run, featuring consecutive long distance baskets from Harrison, to retake the lead at 52-42 halfway through the second half.
Umipig hit two free throws to briefly stop the UMKC momentum, but the Kangaroos were able to extend their lead to 13 thanks to two free throws by Harrison and a three-pointer from Noah Knight. Jadon Cohee (Langley, B.C.) earned back-to-back traditional three-point plays to cut the Redhawk deficit to seven at 57-50, but Jennings hit another three-pointer to extend the Kangaroo lead back to double figures.
UMKC (8-13, 3-1 WAC) was able to pull away with the victory thanks in part to shooting 45.5 percent (25-of-55) from the field, including 12 three-pointers, and 68.4 percent (13-of-19) from the free throw line. The Kangaroos forced the Redhawks into a season-high 22 turnovers, earning 32 points off of those mistakes, as Harrison led UMKC with 23 points, five assists, and three steals.
Seattle University (10-9, 3-2 WAC) will have a week between games before heading to California to face the Bakersfield Roadrunners next Saturday, Jan. 31, starting at 7 p.m. The game will be streamed online through the WAC Digital Network (www.wacsports.com/watch), plus Dave Grosby and Gary Hill Jr. will broadcast the game live on 770 AM KTTH, starting with the pregame show shortly before tipoff.