No. 6 Kansas City got past No. 3 North Dakota State in the quarterfinal round of the 2025 Summit League Basketball Championships Friday.
Kansas City opened the game on a 12-0 run, broken by an Avery Koenen layup. The Roos continued their scoring streak, outscoring the Bison 27-15 in the first frame behind nine-first quarter points from Kelby Bannerman.
NDSU suffered a nearly seven-minute scoring drought through the tail end of the second quarter, scoring only three points in the frame. Kansas City went into the locker room with a 39-18 lead. Elauni Bennett contributed 10 points in the first half for the Roos, while Emani Bennett and Tamia Ugass added seven points each.
The Bison came out of the break with a successful and-one opportunity by Koenen. Marisa Frost tallied eight third-quarter points to help cut the Kansas City lead down to 14, prompting a Roos timeout. NDSU cut the lead to seven with 56 seconds left in the game, but it ultimately was not enough and Kansas City took the contest 68-58.
The Roos were led by an Elauni Bennett double-double of 20 points and 14 rebounds. Alaynah Contreras added 14 points, while Bannerman tallied 11 and Emani Bennett notched 10.
Coach Dionnah Jackson-Durrett was proud of the way her team relied on each other.
“Our circle is so tight and we believe in each other. And the outside don’t always believe what we believe, but it don’t matter. A lot of people don’t have respect for Kansas City and what we do, and so I use that with my team.”
She also shared the meaning behind her shirt.
“I promised myself I was going to bring my faith into my coaching. I found this little site and I got this shirt. What it comes down to is knowing that without God I’m not here.”
Kansas City will face No. 2 Oral Roberts in the semifinal round at approximately 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 8 in Sioux Falls.
NDSU was led by 14 points from Molly Lenz. Frost tallied 12 points and Koenen added 10.
Coach Collins acknowledged the challenge that Kansas City posed.
“It’s not our normal style of play, but I thought the kids we had out there did a pretty good job with it.”
NDSU finishes the season 19-11 overall, and 11-5 in the conference.