A late score with 2.2 seconds left by the Missouri-Kansas City Kangaroos gave them the win over the Falcons men’s basketball team by a score of 71-69 on Saturday at Stroh Center. This was the third straight loss for the team as they couldn’t quite hold off a Missouri-Kansas City rally at the end.
Leading the way for the Falcons was sophomore guard Antwon Lillard, who recorded 19 points, three rebounds and three assists. Also standing out for the Falcons was senior guard Zack Denny who recorded a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds.
“We gave up some easy buckets in transistions,” Falcons head coach Michael Huger said. “We relaxed at the wrong time. Critical situation with us needing a rebound towards the end and they got it. We’re getting better despite no wins and that’s what I like so far.”
The Falcons came out firing on all cylinders as Lillard hit a pair of threes to give his team the lead at 11-5 with three minutes into the game.
Missouri-Kansas City came back later in the game with a 9-0 run to give them their first lead of the game at the 12 minute mark. Five minutes later, the Falcons answered back with a 9-0 run of their own as Denny was able to get six points in that span. For the rest of the half, Missouri-Kansas City and the Falcons each traded baskets until freshman guard Dylan Frye knocked down a pair of free throws to give his team the lead with 20 seconds left in the half.
The team would go into the half with the lead by a score of 37-35. The Falcons outrounded Missouri-Kansas City 24-14, but also had 12 turnovers. Lillard led the team in scoring at the half recording 10 points, but it was Denny that came up with crucial rebounds and second chance opportunities.
In the second half, Lillard set the tone early with a three point play on the first possession. This started a 6-0 run for the Falcons and would eventually got their biggest lead of the game at 47-39. However, Missouri-Kansas City would respond with an 11-4 run to cut the deficit to just one at 51-50 at the midway point.
Later in the game, BG held on to a 62-61 lead with four minutes left in the game. It wasn’t until junior Matt Fox knocked down a three pointer to give them a 65-61 lead. The next couple of minutes were dominated by Missouri-Kansas City as they were able to execute plays and went on an 8-2 run to give them the lead at 69-67. Senior guard Ismail Ali tied the game driving to the lane with a game tying layup.
Missouri-Kansas City would get the final possession following a huge offensive rebound to give them that extra possession. They would convert with a game-winning floater with three seconds remaining. Redshirt sophomore Rasheed Worrell would catch a full court pass and shot a fade away jumper that would miss giving Missouri-Kansas City the win.
“We had careless turnovers and they have to do a much better job of taking care of the ball,” Huger said. “We can’t win games by turning the ball over and we gave them too many opportunities to score.”
