Three-minute preview: Sporting Kansas City at Seattle Sounders FC

WHEN/WHERE: 9 p.m. Thursday; at CenturyLink Field, Seattle

TV/RADIO: FS 1; WHB (810 AM), KDTD (1340 AM)

ABOUT SPORTING KC (No. 5 seed in West): While Sporting KC is in the playoffs for the sixth straight season, it has not won a postseason match since 2013, falling in the knockout round in 2015 and 2014. For the third consecutive year, the club plays on the road in the opening round. The bad news: Sporting KC finished the regular season 1-9-5 over its last 15 away games and didn’t score in nine of those. The good news: It posted shutouts over its final two games to clinch a playoff spot, its first consecutive shutouts since July.

ABOUT SEATTLE (No. 4 seed in West): Few teams enter the postseason with more momentum than Seattle, which earned 17 points over its final eight games — best in the Western Conference. After Sporting KC dismantled Seattle 3-0 in July, the Sounders initiated a shakeup that included firing coach Sigi Schmid and supplementing the player roster with midfielder Nicolas Lodeiro. Since his Seattle debut on July 31, Lodeiro has eight assists. The club is 7-2-4 in his starts.

BOTTOM LINE: It’s tough to win on the road in the postseason, and few places are more difficult than Seattle. In its playoff history, Sporting KC is 2-15-5 away from home. The winner of the knockout round match will host the first leg of the Western Conference semifinals Sunday.

PREDICTION: Seattle 2, Sporting KC 1

This story was originally published October 26, 2016 at 3:19 PM with the headline "Three-minute preview: Sporting Kansas City at Seattle Sounders FC."