KC Roos men’s basketball can’t keep up with Denver in second half, loses 63-55

The Kansas City Roos men’s basketball team dropped a second straight game in Summit League play Monday night at Swinney Center, 63-55 to the Denver Pioneers.

The Roos trailed 30-23 at halftime but came out hot, taking the lead with a 12-2 run fueled by three-pointers from Arkel Lamar, Evan Gilyard and Anderson Kopp. But Denver outscored KC 31-20 the rest of the way.

Tevin Smith led Denver (7-14, 3-5) with 23 points and 10 rebounds. It was the Roos’ first home loss to the Pioneers in seven tries.

Kansas City (8-8, 2-3) was led by Gilyard with 16 points, Lamar with 13 and Kopp with 12.

The Roos women take on the Pioneers in Denver at 8 p.m. Tuesday. The men return to action at 7 p.m. Thursday against North Dakota State at home.