UMKC’s season tipped off with a loss to DII Emporia State on Friday night, an inauspicious beginning for a new coach (Kareem Richardson) who inherited a team that went 8-24 a year ago. The Kangaroos struggled to score in that game, making just 35% from the floor and 66% from the free-throw line; the latter stat was particularly troubling, considering they had a school-record 53 free throw attempts. And lest you think Emporia State is an unusually feisty Division II opponent, it’s worth noting they lost the next night to Wichita State 93-50.
The Emporia State team which lost by 43 to the Shockers was nonetheless able to dominate UMKC inside, scoring 42 of their 81 points in the paint, and outscoring UMKC in both second-chance points and points off turnovers. Those facts don’t bode well for the Kangaroos in a matchup against Creighton, since the Jays can not only score inside — they scored 44 on Friday against Alcorn State — but also outside, where they drained 11-24 three-pointers.
Even full-strength, this would be an uphill battle for UMKC. But they’ve been bitten by the injury bug early, with three players expected to be solid contributors all missing time: Mason Wedel, a 6’1″ guard, started four games a year ago, including the last three of the season; 6’8″ freshman Juan Ramon Rivas, the son of former Boston Celtics player Ramon Rivas; and 6’7″ senior Kirk Korver, who’s been battling a foot injury. The latter is the biggest loss, as Korver started 19 games a year ago and is one of their best three-point shooters.
It won’t help them tonight, but coach Kareem Richardson, the former Evansville player and assistant coach, has already had success in keeping local Kansas City kids at home — there are seven players from the KC area on this year’s team, the most of any UMKC squad since they joined D1 in 1987. That bodes well for them going forward. He’s also instilled a faster style of play, as evidenced by their ability to penetrate into the paint and draw fouls. In their lone exhibition game against Rockhurst, they shot 40 free throws; combined with the 53 they shot Friday night against Emporia State, they’ve attempted 93 for the year.
One of those local KC recruits starred in his first game for the Kangaroos on Friday. Freshman Martez Harrison, a 5’11” guard, scored 20 points in his debut thanks to attempting a remarkable 21 free throws. Sure, he only made 12, but for one player to draw TEN fouls — even against a DII opponent — is just nuts. His overall line was a mixture of good and bad; Harrison had five rebounds, four assists and four steals to go along with his 20 points, but he also had six turnovers. Keeping him off the free throw line will likely be one of the Jays’ top defensive assignments tonight.
Trinity Hall, the ‘Roos second leading scorer, is another Kansas City-area product. A 6’7″ senior, he averaged 6.0 points and 3.6 rebounds a year ago but had 19 points and 11 rebounds against Emporia State. Their top returning scorer, Fred Chatmon, was in foul trouble most of the night in that game and played only 18 minutes; the 6’9″ senior center wound up with just four points and four rebounds after averaging nearly twice that much a year ago (7.4 ppg., 7.3 rpg.).
It’s disappointing for Jays fans that Korver is out with an injury, as seeing him play would have added some spice to what will probably be another blowout victory. Things get tougher starting Saturday, as Creighton travels to Philadelphia to play St. Joseph’s, so another big win that allows them to play their bench most of the second half could be exactly what the doctor ordered.
About the Kangaroos: Kansas City (as the school’s media guide suggests they be referred to now, as opposed to UMKC) is beginning a four-game road swing on Monday, and they’ll remain in Omaha for a Wednesday game at Nebraska-Omaha … Kansas City announced February 7, 2013 that it would be going to the WAC after 19 years in the Summit League … This year’s roster features nine newcomers, six of which are freshmen, along with three transfers, two of which have to sit out this season due to Division I transfer rules … Kareem Richardson is in his first season as the head coach at UMKC, being named the sixth coach of the school’s Division I era on March 19, 2013 after helping Louisville to a National Championship last season as an assistant under Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino. He brings 13 years of Division I coaching experience to the fold, as well as four years playing at the Division I level, graduating from Evansville in 1997 … The WAC media and coaches selected the ‘Roos eighth and ninth, respectively, in the preseason poll, and they had no players selected to the preseason all-conference teams.
One Big Paragraph with Lots O’Dots™: In the regular-season opener vs. Alcorn State, Brooks had 15 points, six rebounds and five assists in 15 minutes, sinking 3-of-4 field goals, making him the first Creighton player with at least 15 points, six rebounds and five assists in a season-opener since Benoit Benjamin had 25 points, 17 rebounds and six assists (and six blocks) vs. Nebraska-Kearney on Nov. 24, 1984 … Creighton’s sellout crowd of 17,740 last Friday vs. Alcorn State was its largest ever for a home-opener … Creighton will look to score 100 points in consecutive games for the first time since Jan. 29, 1966 (Idaho State) and Feb. 2, 1966 (Memphis) … Creighton outscored Alcorn State 33-2 off turnovers, the most points off turnovers in the 111 games of Greg McDermott’s Creighton tenure, and most by a Bluejay team since 33 points off turnovers vs. Florida A&M on Nov. 17, 2009.
The RUN-DMD Show: With seven field goals on Friday, Doug McDermott took over sole possession of first place on Creighton’s all-time field goals made list with 818 in his career. He had entered the season tied with Chad Gallagher (1987-91) for the school-record with 811. McDermott also made four free throws on Friday, passing MLB Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson for third in CU history with 420.
The Last Time They Played: On November 18, 1998, Creighton beat UMKC 79-58 at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City. Rodney Buford led the Jays with 21 points, and Doug Swenson contributed 15 points, 13 rebounds and eight blocked shots in one of his best games in CU uniform. He blocked three of UMKC’s first six shots in the first half and three of its first eight in the second, flustering them into often wild shots on numerous occasions.
A close game throughout, the Jays pulled away over the final seven minutes, going on a 23-8 run to end the game. As part of that run, both Buford and Swenson scored four straight points apiece, with both players connecting on alley-oops from Ryan Sears. Later in the run, Sears made back-to-back threes, sending the crowd of 1,552 scurrying for the exits early.
The Series: Creighton leads the all-time series with UMKC by a 7-3 margin, including a 5-0 record in Omaha. The teams have not met since a 79-58 win in Kansas City on November 18, 1998, and last met in Omaha on November 14, 1997.
Greg McDermott is 2-1 all-time against UMKC, with all three meetings taking place while head coach at Northern Iowa. While this is Kareem Richardson’s first head-coaching gig, he’s no stranger to Creighton, having served as an assistant at Indiana State (1999-2002), Evansville (2003-07) and Drake (2008-11) among other stops in a long career. Creighton has gone 16-6 against teams where Richardson was an assistant coach (6-2 vs Indiana State, 7-1 vs Evansville, 3-3 vs Drake). Of note, Richardson was on Steve Merfeld’s staff at Evansville when the current CU assistant was the head coach there.
Gratuitous Linkage: New UMKC coach Kareem Richardson has made it a point to recruit Kansas City more successfully than his predecessors, and he’s done just that in his seven-plus months on the job. In this piece from the Kansas City Star, Blair Kerkhoff details how those efforts have gone so far.
This Date in Creighton Hoops History: Creighton has played just once on November 11, a 97-65 win over North Carolina A&T in 2011. The Jays raced out to an 11-0 lead after just four possessions, and led 46-28 at the half of a game they outrebounded their opponent 27-15 in the first half alone. In his Bluejay debut, Grant Gibbs scored 10 points and had a team-best nine rebounds in 25 minutes of action, while Jahenns Manigat scored 18 in the win.
Completely Random, Totally Rad Music Video of the Day: KC and the Sunshine Band seems apropos for a dreary Monday against UMKC, no?
The Bottom Line: Another blowout win for the Jays as they prepare for the first tough test of the year on Saturday in Philly.
Jays 93, UMKC 64