The 2021-2022 season has come to an end for Roos basketball, so it’s time to look back and highlight some of the key moments from the 19-13 campaign.
Starting off way back in November, the Roos had a rough start to the season, starting 0-2 against Minnesota and Iowa, but responded in a big way with a huge upset over Mizzou. The team followed up with two more wins to put the team at 3-2
The team would enter Summit League play with a pedestrian 5-5 record, but thanks to key contributors such as Evan Gilyard II, Marvin Nesbiit Jr, Arkel Lamar and others, the team would find itself sitting at 13-9 heading into February.
As the season heated up, the Roos did more so. Kansas City posted a 6-2 record in the latter portion of the season, including big road wins at North Dakota State and North Dakota. Senior Day was the Roos toughest test of the season however, taking on the gauntlet that is the South Dakota State Jackrabbits. While it was a constant battle, the Roos ultimately fell short, losing 86-75, which meant they’d be the fourth seed heading into the Summit League tournament.
Things looked promising for the tournament, as the Roos were fully healthy after missing guys like Josiah Allick for stretches throughout the season. The first-round matchup saw Kansas City take on a South Dakota team that it had beaten twice already this season. But as many know, beating a team three times in the same season is a daunting task.
After a back-and-forth first half, and a pretty competitive second half, South Dakota broke the game open in the last few minutes to propel them to a 74-61 win over the Roos. In what was a fantastic season, guard Evan Gilyard II ended up having one of his roughest nights all year, posting only 11 points on 3-13 shooting. Overall the team turned in a 5-21 shooting performance from three that wasn’t good enough to advance.
Although the ending wasn’t what the team or fans wanted, Kansas City still put together an impressive season, and the future of the program looks brighter than ever before under coach Billy Donlan.
