Senior guard Tim Blackwell and his UMKC teammates earned a split (1-1) on the road over the weekend.

Bison end Kangaroo win streak 90-82

By: Dan Stroud

Posted: 1/21/08

Slow starts have been the norm for the UMKC men's basketball team in the 2007-08 season and Saturday night was no different in Fargo, N.D.

Playing a Summit League game against the North Dakota State University (NDSU) Bison, the Kangaroos fell behind 8-0 to start the game. In the second half, already trailing 43-29, NDSU (10-9, 4-4 in Summit) rolled off another 7-0 run, increasing their lead to 21 points in route to a 90-82 victory over UMKC (7-13, 2-5).

After picking up the first road victory of the season against South Dakota State University just two days earlier, UMKC head coach Matt Brown, speaking to Roos' announcer Danny Clinkscale in a pre-game interview, pointed out the squad had talked about the importance of getting off to a quick start.

Afterward, in the post-game interview on WHB 810 Sports with Clinkscale, the coach lamented about the team's failed objective.

"The beginning really hurt us," Brown said. "[NDSU] controlled the tempo early and it was too much to overcome."

In much the same manner as most of their earlier losses, the Roos made several runs at the Bison before eventually succumbing to their foes. In both stanzas they found themselves trailing NDSU by 20 points or more.

The Roos were paced by junior guard Dane Brumagin who rang up 23 points and six rebounds, and senior guard Tim Blackwell's 18-point effort in 39 minutes of work.

In the first half, the team pushed and pulled until it narrowed the Bison lead down to 43-29 at the intermission.

UMKC shot 55 percent from the field in the second half, outscoring NDSU 53-47. It would not be enough. Such valiant comebacks from large-scoring deficits seem to come up short for the Kangaroos each time they occur.

After trailing by as many as 22 points in the second half, UMKC mustered yet another of its near-trademark rallies, pulling to within eight of the Bison, 64-56 with 10 minutes left to play.

When the clock ticked down to 3:46, NDSU had regained a commanding 76-60 lead.

But with the help of a Bison foul spree of near-epidemic proportions, the Kangaroos whittled the scoring margin down into single digits once more before the final buzzer sounded.

"The thing I liked was that our kids never stopped," Brown said.

It seemed little more could be said. Brown and the Kangaroos now return home for a showdown on Jan. 24 against Oral Roberts University inside Kemper Arena. The Golden Eagles hold a commanding two-game lead in the Summit with a 7-0 league record.

dstroud@unews.com