(Kansas City, Mo.) – The UMKC men’s basketball squad completed its second sweep of an opponent on Thursday night, pulling away in the second period for a 69-50 conference victory over Utah Valley, and moving into a tie for second place in the WAC.
“A lot of guys stepped up, Kevin (Franceschi) came in and gave us really good minutes, especially offensively, and we needed that with some guys being out tonight in Noah (Knight) and Broderick (Newbill),” Head Coach Kareem Richardson said.
The ‘Roos (12-17, 7-5 WAC) came out fast on both ends of the floor, opening the game on an 11-2 run in less than three minutes. Thaddeus Smith set the tone early with numerous rebounds and put-back buckets. The ‘Roos were up by as many as 10 in the early going before the energy level dipped and the Wolverines (10-17, 4-8 WAC) were able to take advantage to make a run. By the 6:56 mark, the ‘Roos led by only three.
UMKC answered again though, and again the energy came from Smith, taking a Frank Williams pass inside on a seal, and slamming down a thunderous dunk to get the ‘Roos up by nine with 1:58 to play in the half. Kansas City went into the break with a 32-26 lead.
Smith led the way with a career-high nine points and seven rebounds, while Martez Harrison put up eight points and had a pair of steals. UMKC had a 21-13 lead on the glass, while forcing seven UVU turnovers. The ‘Roos were also on fire from three-point range in the half, hitting 7-of-15 attempts.
Utah Valley brought the energy to start the second half though, going on an 11-3 run and taking their first lead of the game at 37-35 with 15:39 to play.
“We started the second half off poorly and they took a lead, but our guys bounced back and Reese (Holliday) helped change the momentum with a couple and-ones,” Richardson said.
Reese Holliday scored all 16 of his points in the second period, and it started with 15:19 to play when he gave the ‘Roos back their lead on the first of two straight old-fashioned three-point plays. UMKC would never trail again.
The ‘Roos allowed only 10 points from the Wolverines in the final 14 minutes, and used that to pull away and coast down the stretch. By the 10 minute mark, they were up by 11, and stretched their lead to as many as 19 with two minutes to play.
The ‘Roo out-rebounded the Wolverines 39-27 in the game, the first opponent the ‘Roos have out-rebounded since January 17. The victory also clinched at least a .500 record in league play for the first time since 2010-11 when UMKC went 9-9.
Smith finished the game with nine points and nine rebounds, while Kevin Franceschi matched his career-best with 10 points. Holliday led the ‘Roos with his 16, while Harrison filled the stat sheet, with 14 points, seven rebounds, five assists, four steals and only one turnover.
UMKC will play its final home game on Saturday night at 6:05 p.m. against Grand Canyon, who is one of the three teams tied for second in the standings. The game will be available to watch for free on Roos TV.