Field Level Media
Nov 15, 2021
Evan Gilyard II scored 28 points with six 3-pointers Monday as Kansas City stunned Missouri 80-66 in a battle of cross-state programs at Columbia, Mo.
The upset snapped a 15-game losing streak for the Roos (1-2) against Power 5 opponents. They claimed their second straight victory against Missouri after the cross-state rivals last met in 2014.
Gilyard, a New Mexico State transfer, scored 11 points during a 21-8 second-half surge in which Kansas City scored on nine straight possessions. The Roos made seven straight shots during that flurry to establish their biggest margin, 56-34, with 11:39 remaining.
Gilyard, who went 10-for-15, scored all but three of his points in the second half, when Kansas City shot 70 percent.
Kansas City played much of the game without its top scorer, Josiah Allick, because of foul trouble. Allick, who went scoreless and fouled out with 1:24 left, was a first-team preseason selection in the Summit League poll, which also tabbed Kansas City for a sixth-place finish.
The Roos still had their way against their SEC counterparts, going 11 of 23 overall from deep.
Marvin Nesbitt Jr. added 20 points and a team-high four assists, while Anderson Kopp added 12 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Kansas City opened the season with tuneups against two Big Ten opponents, Minnesota and Iowa.
Missouri started 1-for-11 from 3-point range and finished with just four treys. Koby Brown paced the Tigers (1-1) with 20 points. Ronnie DeGray III added 14.
Nesbitt scored 12 points to pace the Roos to a 32-23 halftime advantage, despite getting just eight minutes from Allick after he drew his second foul.
Kopp, a Lamar transfer, added nine points as Kansas City often exhausted much of the shot clock, yet showed determination to drive to the hoop while forcing eight turnovers.
Missouri shot just 38.5% for the half and was led by seven points from DaJuan Gordon, a Kansas State transfer who missed the season opener serving a one-game suspension issued by the NCAA. Coleman scored the last six points of the half for the Tigers over a stretch of six-plus minutes.
--Field Level Media