Kansas City Roos fall short against FGCU in Gulf Coast Showcase final
Kansas City’s run to a potential Gulf Coast Showcase title came to an end at the hands of Florida Gulf Coast on Wednesday. The Roos saw their two-game winning streak snapped with a 73-59 loss in Estero, Florida.
The Roos were never quite competitive on Wednesday, holding a one-point lead for just 15 seconds of game time. Kansas City fell behind by double-figures for the first time at the 13:09 mark and had a second-half flurry to pull within eight, but the game never got closer than that. FGCU (5-2) led by as many as 18 en route to a comfortable win.
RayQuawndis Mitchell capped off an outstanding tournament — and prolific start to the season — with 29 points (9-for-13 shooting), four rebounds and a steal. Mitchell hit five three-pointers in the contest, as he finished the three-game showcase with nine total made threes.
Mitchell, who was averaging 14.9 points entering Wednesday, scored 35 points in an opening-round stunner over Toledo, then added 18 more in a narrow win over Indiana State. He is now averaging 16.6 points per contest after Wednesday’s result.
In prior rounds of the event, Mitchell had a running mate — or two ... or three — to help the Roos over the top. Three starters joined Mitchell in double-figures against Toledo, while all five starters had at least six rebounds. Against Indiana State, Shemarri Allen poured in 22 points, while Anderson Kopp added 13 points, seven rebounds and three steals.
On Wednesday, Allen (10 points, 3-for-12 shooting) added two free throws in the final minute to join Mitchell as the only other Roo in double-figures. Outside of Mitchell, the Roos combined to shoot 11 of 46 (23.9%) from the field and 3 of 17 (17.6%) from three.
Kansas City now sits at 3-5 on the season, having earned the aforementioned wins in the Gulf Coast Showcase, as well as a blowout win against Calvary. The Roos will return to action on Nov. 26 against SIU Edwardsville before games against Idaho State (Nov. 29) and Lindenwood (Dec. 3), all leading up to a road test at Oklahoma on Tuesday, Dec. 6.
This story was originally published November 23, 2022 at 8:58 PM.