UMKC Hosts Big 12 Foe Iowa State At Municipal Auditorium Wednesday

The 'Roos continue their home stand on Wednesday night, playing at Municipal Auditorium for the first time this season. The Iowa State Cyclones come to town on a two-game win streak, while the 'Roos have lost two in a row for the first time this year. It will be the first ever meeting between the 'Roos and the Cyclones. Kansas City is 6-31 against teams from the current Big 12, with four wins against Baylor, one against K-State, and one vs. Texas Tech.

The contest vs. Iowa State is the fourth this season for the 'Roos against a team from a BCS conference. So far they are 0-3 in those games, losing by an average of 45.7 points. UMKC is playing at Municipal Auditorium for the first time this season, and will play there twice more on January 3 and 5. Under Matt Brown, the 'Roos are 16-16 in games at Municipal.

Iowa State comes into the contest with an 8-3 overall record with losses only to Cinncinnati, UNLV and Iowa. The Cyclones have defeated Omaha and Drake in their last two games.

They are led by a very balanced attack, featuring seven different players averaging at least 8.7 points per contest. Senior guard Will Clyburn leads the squad with 14.3 points a game, while pulling down 7.7 boards as well. Senior guard Tyrus McGee is averaging 12.7 a game, while junior forward Melvin Ejim pulls down a team-best 9.3 rebounds to go with his 11 points an outing.

As a team the Cyclones average 82.7 points per game, but are known for their rebounding prowess, taking a 11.5 more boards a game than their opponents. Defensively, they hold teams to 39.3 percent shooting and 67.3 points per contest.

Fred Hoiberg is in his third season as the head coach of Iowa State and has a 47-30 record there. Called the Mayor, he was a star player for the Cyclones in the 90's, and went on to a 10-year career in the NBA, followed by an executive position with the Minnesota Timberwolves. He was the Big 12 Co-Coach of the Year last season, leading the team to a berth in the NCAA Tournament.

In the 'Roos last outing, a 81-71 loss to Appalachian State on Sunday, Nelson Kirksey had a career-high 18 points on 8-of-8 shooting. He has averaged 12 points per game in his last four outings, shooting better than 57 percent in each. In the last five games, Thomas Staton leads the team with 11.4 points per contest, while Nelson Kirksey is averaging 10.6 points per outing, along with 4.6 boards a contest. Three other players are averaging  at least 8.4 per game (Estan Tyler, Fred Chatmon, Nate Rogers).

If the 'Roos can gain a victioy, it would have defeated a team from a BCS conference for the first time since taking out Kansas State on December 30, 2003 by a 93-52 score. They would also extend its win streak at Municipal Auditorium to three games, defeating Canisius and Southern Utah the last two years.

UMKC will next face Southeast Missouri State on Saturday to cap the three-game home stand, playing at Swinney Recreation Center at an early noon tip-off.