UMKC gets rematch with Texas-Pan American in WAC Tournament

UMKC men’s basketball coach Kareem Richardson hopes his squad will be battle-tested enough when they tip off the Western Athletic Conference Tournament on Thursday.

The Kangaroos, the No. 2 seed in the tournament, suffered two other defeats this season in similar fashion to their last game, a heart-breaking 53-51 loss to Texas-Pan American on Saturday. The two teams will meet again around 6:30 p.m. Central time at the Orleans Arena with a WAC semifinal spot on the line.

“On the one hand, a team that wins that final (regular-season) game goes into a tournament with plenty of confidence,” Richardson said. “When you are on the losing end, confidence can sometimes be taken to task.”

Whatever success Richardson’s team finds in the conference tournament may depend heavily on the play of guards Martez Harrison and Reese Holliday, who transferred from Toledo to play his final season at UMKC.

Harrison, who earlier this week was selected as the player of the year in the conference, is the leading scorer for the Roos, averaging 17.8 points. He also has recorded a team-high 58 steals.

“(Harrison) has continued to do a nice job of leading us on both ends of the court,” Richardson said. “He has proven very capable of doing the things we ask of him on offense and on defense.”

Holliday, who prepped at Sumner Academy, is averaging 11.7 points per game in WAC play this season and has scored in double figures in eight of the last 10 games for the Roos.

Richardson and the Roos have been hampered by the loss of Shayok Shayok, a 6-foot-8 redshirt junior who injured a shoulder and managed to see action in just eight games. He averaged 8.8 points and seven rebounds before being sidelined.

Freshman guard Noah Knight has missed the last four games because of an injury, but is expected back Thursday. He was averaging 4.8 points and 2.1 rebounds per game before being injured.

“Having (Knight) back is going to be a big plus,” Richardson said. “He has transitioned to the college game nicely and we expect to see continued improvement from him.”

The loss of Shayok early this season forced Richardson into several variations in his lineup. But, he is pleased with the way his squad has responded.

“Losing (Shayok) was a big, big blow,” said Richardson, who also saw center Thaddeus Smith miss several games because of injury. “I am proud of the the way the guys have embraced the need to play a number of different positions throughout the year.”

Smith has been limited to just 28 games and has averaged 2.5 points and 4.3 rebounds per outing in his junior season. A solid defender, he has added 19 steals and 42 blocks. Freshman Darius Ashton has contributed 21 blocks of his own for the Roos, who have 104 blocks as a team this season. More than half of those coming from Smith and Ashton, who have combined for 63 of those.

“We don’t have a lot of game experience with any particular lineup,” Richardson said, “but I am liking our chances as we head into the postseason.”

Richardson believes New Mexico State, the regular-season champion, is the favorite heading into the tournament.

“They seem to be head and shoulders above everyone else,” Richardson said of the Aggies, who completed league play at 13-1. “But, after that it’s really a flip of the coin. The league is very balanced and being No. 2 really doesn’t mean anything. We simply have to play our style of basketball and do the things we are capable of doing.”

UMKC women fall

The UMKC women fell to Texas-Pan American 61-50 in the first round of the women;s tournaent on Wednesday night in Las Vegas.

Calli White led UMCK with 12 points. Brittany Bush and Shawnte Goff has 17 apiece for Texas-Pan American.

UMKC finished the season with a 6-24 record. The Broncs improved to 18-13 and advanced to the semifinals against Bakersfield.

WAC men’s tournament

At Orleans Arena in Las Vegas

Thursday’s opening round

▪ (4) Bakersfield vs. (5) Utah Valley, 4 p.m.

▪ (2) UMKC vs. (7) Texas-Pan American, 6:30 p.m.

▪ (3) Seattle vs. (6) Chicago State, 9 p.m.

Friday’s semifinals

▪ (1) New Mexico State vs. Bakersfield/Utah Valley winner, 8 p.m.

▪ UMKC/Texas-Pan American winner vs. Seattle/Chicago State winner, 10:30 p.m.

Saturday’s championship

▪ Semifinal winners, 10 p.m. (ESPNU)

This story was originally published March 11, 2015 at 2:36 PM with the headline "UMKC gets rematch with Texas-Pan American in WAC Tournament."