KANSAS CITY, Mo. (Dec. 21, 2024) – Quimari Peterson poured in a career-high 30 points, but it wasn't enough to carry ETSU past Kansas City as the Roos defeated the Buccaneers 73-66 on Saturday inside Swinney Center.
 
Peterson finished 9-of-16 from the field (9-of-10 at the free throw line), while adding six rebounds, three assists and two steals. Jaden Seymour also scored in double figures with 15 points before fouling out, and Roosevelt Wheeler tied his career high for the second straight game as he pitched in with nine points. Seymour also collected four rebounds, two assists and two steals.
 
Unfortunately, the Blue & Gold lost starting forward Karon Boyd in the opening five minutes to an injury, and Curt Lewis did not dress. To add more stress to the Bucs, foul trouble set in as Seymour fouled out, while Allen Strothers and John Buggs III each finished with four.
 
For the game, ETSU shot 39 percent from the field (22-56) and 30 percent from three (9-30); however, the Bucs were 13-of-16 at the free throw line. Kansas City finished 47 percent from the field (21-45), 52 percent from three (11-21) and 91 percent at the free throw line (20-22). The Bucs assisted on 14 of their 22 makes, but 14 turnovers led to 20 points for the Roos.
 
"Losing Karon definitely hurt us, but it's not an excuse as we need other guys to step up," said head coach Brooks Savage. "Like we saw last year, losing Karon is a big blow to us defensively and on the glass. But credit to Kansas City. They shot the ball well from three and at the free throw line. They have a great team and got things rolling in the second half. We weren't sharp to start the second half. The lead went from two to 15 in hurry. You can't do that on the road. We need to find ways to be more consistent. It's the same story all the time and it has to change. We have too many swings in performances – we played well at Charlotte and Elon – but then we undeformed on the road. It's hard to get a read of where we are at, because of those swings. It's been a disappointing non-conference season. The record isn't where we wanted to be. It's an accurate reflection of our inconsistent play. We have to decide what we want to be after Christmas. We have to get off to a good start and get momentum going if we want to contend in league play."
 
The first half was tightly contested as neither team led by as many as seven and the Roos took a 35-33 lead into halftime. The opening 20 minutes saw five ties and four lead changes, while ETSU's largest lead was four, 20-16, after Buggs fed Wheeler for a lay-up with 11:04 left in the half. Kansas City then used a 12-1 run to go up by seven at 28-21 with just over five minutes remaining in the frame. The Bucs closed the half scoring 12 of the final 17 points to make it a two-point game.
 
Kansas City then grabbed all the momentum as they opened the second half on a 16-3 run to build a 15-point lead, 51-36, with 13:40 left in the contest. With the fouls adding up as the Roos were in the bonus at the 12:30 mark and the double bonus with 8:12 remaining, ETSU was only able to cut its deficit to six.
 
Peterson, who scored 19 points in the second half, made it a 61-55 score with 7:03 showing on the clock, but the Blue & Gold were unable to inch any closer. The Roos pushed their lead back to double figures with three minutes left to play and secured the seven-point win.
 
The Roos had four players score in double figures with Jamar Brown leading the charge at 22 points and eight rebounds.
 
With the loss, ETSU ended non-conference play with a record of 7-6, while the Roos – who have now won four straight – improved to 8-7.
 
The Bucs turn their attention to Southern Conference play as ETSU hosts VMI on New Year's Day at 12 p.m. inside Freedom Hall.
  
For more information on ETSU men's basketball, go to ETSUBucs.com and click on the men's basketball tab.