? Game notes (.pdf)
UTSA Roadrunners (3-1) vs. UMKC Kangaroos (3-3)
Thursday, Nov. 29 ? 7 p.m. ? Convocation Center (4,080) ? San Antonio, Texas
Series Record: UTSA leads, 2-0
Last Meeting: UTSA 85, UMKC 83 (Dec. 16, 1998)
Opening Tip: Fresh off a 93-79 win over Paul Quinn on Monday, UTSA (3-1) looks for its best start in six seasons when it hosts UMKC on Thursday, Nov. 29. Tip is set for 7 p.m. at the Convocation Center.
Tuning In: Live audio and video will be available to Rowdy Zone subscribers at goUTSA.com. Andy Everett has the call. Live stats also will be provided online at goUTSA.com.
Fast Break Points:
? This is the third meeting between UTSA and UMKC, with the Roadrunners owning a 2-0 advantage in the all-time series
? The Roadrunners defeated the Kangaroos, 85-83, on Dec. 16, 1998, in Kansas City and 82-81 on Nov. 22, 1997, in San Antonio
? UTSA is seeking its best start since going 4-1 to begin the 2001-02 season
? The Roadrunners have forced 27 or more turnovers in three of four games this season
UTSA/UMKC Series History: This will be the third meeting between UTSA and UMKC with the Roadrunners owning a 2-0 advantage in the series. The Roadrunners defeated the Kangaroos, 85-83, on Dec. 16, 1998, in Kansas City and 82-81 on Nov. 22, 1997, in San Antonio. The average margin of victory for UTSA is a mere 1.5 points. UTSA is 7-7 all-time against members of the Summit League (formerly Mid-Continent Conference). The Roadrunners are 5-5 versus Centenary and 0-2 against Oral Roberts.
Scouting the Kangaroos: UMKC (University of Missouri-Kansas City) is off to a 3-3 start under first-year head coach Matt Brown. The Kangaroos have won two straight, defeating Arkansas Tech, 90-82, on Nov. 24, and Florida Atlantic, 77-66, on Monday. Junior guard Dane Brumagin leads the team in scoring at 17.0 points per game, while senior forward Brent Stephens (16.7 ppg) and freshman guard Reggie Hamilton (12.2 ppg) also score in double figures. Senior forward Jeremiah Hartsock is the top rebounder at 5.3 boards per contest, while Hamilton has 27 assists and eight steals. UMKC has made 59 3-pointers (9.8 per game) and is scoring 72.0 points per game.
Last Time Out: Senior Keith Spencer posted his seventh career double-double and freshman Devin Gibson led five Roadrunners in double figures with a career-high 23 points as UTSA held off Paul Quinn, 93-79, on Monday night at the Convocation Center. UTSA shot a season-high 54 percent (34-63) from the field and held Paul Quinn, an NAIA school located in Dallas, to 17 points below its season average. The Roadrunners recorded 13 steals in forcing 27 turnovers, the third opponent with 27 or more this year. The 93 points were the most by UTSA since a 100-75 victory over McNeese State on Feb. 9, 2006. Spencer scored a career-best 19 points and pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season. Gibson’s 25 marked his second 20-point output of his young career, while senior Isaiah Allen nearly pulled off his first double-double with 11 points and a career-high nine assists. Juniors Joey Shank and Travis Gabbidon contributed 16 and 11 points, respectively. Damien Chisholm led all players with 25 points for the Tigers, while Joseph Cormadelle added 20. UTSA led 40-36 at the break, but Paul Quinn used an 8-0 run capped by a 3-point play from Chisholm to take a 58-55 lead with 13:36 remaining. UTSA responded with seven unanswered that began an 18-2 run over the next 4:25. The Tigers would not quit, pulling to within 81-72 with 5:48 left. A Shank jumper gave UTSA an 87-72 advantage with just under three minutes to play, but Paul Quinn scored five straight to make it a 10-point game with 1:47 left. Spencer converted two straight baskets, the second a one-handed slam dunk with 1:04 on the clock, to put the Tigers away for good.
Tough Slate: UTSA will face one of the toughest schedules in recent history this season. Texas is ranked No. 8, while Arkansas is receiving votes in both the USA Today/ESPN and The Associated Press Top 25 Polls this week. Also on the slate are traditional power Oklahoma State, an NIT participant last season, Navy, SMU and defending Southland Conference champion Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, the league’s NCAA representative last March.
Tough At Home: The UTSA Convocation Center has been a tough place for opponents to play. The Roadrunners own an all-time record of 234-105 (.690) in the facility dating back to the inaugural 1981-82 season. UTSA is 2-0 at home this year.
New Faces: UTSA returned five letterwinners, each of whom earned one letter apiece, from last year’s 7-22 team which marked the least returning NCAA Division I experience in the nation entering this season. A talented group of first-year players has joined forces with the returnees and their contributions are being felt immediately. Three of UTSA’s top four scorers ? freshman Devin Gibson (18.8) and juniors Travis Gabbidon (12.5) and Joey Shank (11.8) ? are each in their first season of action, while Gibson (5.5), junior Antoine Dade (5.0) and Gabbidon (4.8) rank as three of the top four rebounders.
Record-Setting Defense: UTSA broke three school records in back-to-back games last season. In a 64-49 victory against San Diego on Nov. 26, the Roadrunners limited the Toreros to 13-of-53 shooting from the floor, or 24.5 percent, which broke the school record for lowest field goal percentage by an opponent previously held by Howard Payne (26.9%) in 1988. The 13 field goals also were the fewest allowed since Texas State made 14 in 1996. One game later, UTSA held Henderson State to 36 points, breaking the previous fewest-points record of 42 set by Texas State in 1996. The Roadrunners surrendered just 649 field goals for the season, also a new school record, and ranked second in the league in scoring defense (66.3 points per game). That trademark tough defensive approach has continued into this season as UTSA limited Hardin-Simmons to just 47 points, including 19 in the first half, in the season opener. The Roadrunners held Texas to its lowest point total (58) since a 46-43 loss at Texas A&M on March 1, 2006, and held Paul Quinn to 17 points below its scoring average.
Turnover Feast: A big key to UTSA’s early-season success can be contributed to its ability to force turnovers. Opponents have turned the ball over 90 times through four games, an average of 22.5 per game, and three of the four opponents have committed at least 27 turnovers, including a season-high 29 by Hardin-Simmons. UTSA leads the Southland Conference in turnover margin (+5.75) and steals per game (12.50). Individually, freshman Devin Gibson leads the league with 4.25 steals per game, while junior Antoine Dade ranks third with 1.67 blocks per contest.
Improvement At The Line: UTSA shot just 58.9 percent from the free throw line as a team in 2006-07. The Roadrunners are already out to a marked improvement in that category after four games this season as they have converted 71-of-101 (70.3 percent) from the charity stripe.
Double-Double Tracker: Freshman Devin Gibson registered his first career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds in the loss at No. 15 Texas. Senior Keith Spencer posted UTSA’s second double-double of the season with 19 points and 10 rebounds in the 93-79 win over Paul Quinn. It marked his seventh double-double in a UTSA uniform.
Second-Half Scorer: Junior Travis Gabbidon has scored 40 of his 50 points ? or 80 percent ? in the second half. The Phoenix, Ariz., native picked up two quick first-half fouls in both the Texas and Navy contests, but came out strong in the second stanza to score 9 and 14 points, respectively. Gabbidon is averaging 12.5 points per game, 10.0 points coming in the second half.
Next Up: UTSA hosts SMU at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 1. The game will be televised in the San Antonio area on Time Warner Cable channel 50.
