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Saturday night the men took a demanding victory, 80-33, over the Truman State University Bulldogs in their season opener after a closing three-pointer from sophomore guard Dustin Dibble.
The men came out strong when junior forward Jay Couisnard won the tip and dropped a quick basket.
It was UMKC's game from the get-go, and they didn't quit.
Sophomore Guard Trey McKinney-Jones drew a three-point play, while Alex Brazzel planted his feet for an offensive foul, giving freshman forward Kirk Korver a shot from behind the arc to grab an early lead, 12-2.
And from there, the men only got better, with good ball rotation and a great flow within the team.
"We want to make sure everyone gets a touch on the ball and to stay in rhythm" junior forward Spencer Johnson said.
In the second half, UMKC had a near impenetrable defense, holding the Bulldogs to just 12 points.
"It can be difficult to maintain a good amount of intensity in the second half when you're winning by so much," Johnson said.
But it didn't seem to affect the way the team played their defense.
Head Coach Matt Brown had a score he wanted to keep the Bulldogs to that wasn't quite met by UMKC.
"If we guard the way we are capable of, then we will be really really good" Brown said. "If we really get out and pressure the ball, we can cause turnovers and get possession."
High intensity ball pressure was seen on Saturday night, with UMKC stealing the ball 14 times. But with that increased pressure came a greater amount of fouls for UMKC and that's where the men can improve - and they are completely prepared to improve.
Johnson quoted an assistant coach at the end of the game: "Let's be the team that can learn off of wins instead of learn off of losses."
Hopefully, this will be a season of wins, with UMKC taking them in stride, not being satisfied with being good, but being the best.
The men play again at home at 7:05 p.m. on Tuesday night versus Lincoln University.
kbryce@unews.com
