Last we saw the Roos, a decimated roster was scrapping itself into the Summit League semifinals. As the season opened on Monday, the team was yet again scrapping its way to winning basketball, but this time in a different way. 
 
With just three returning players, Kansas City is nearly unrecognizable from the team that took the floor in Dionnah Jackson-Durrett’s first season. In notching a hard-fought, foul-filled win over Bradley on Monday afternoon, the revamped Roos showed the formula that should push them forward in 2023-24. 
 
From the tipoff, it was about pressure. 
 
The Roos flustered Bradley in the first quarter, with their guards hounding the Braves on the perimeter, and Missouri State transfer forward Ifunanya Nwachukwu causing havoc with her length in the paint. Ultimately, it led to 19 Bradley turnovers throughout the game, with the Roos scoring 21 points off those miscues. 
 
That defensive intensity wasn’t by accident. 
 
“The first three drills we do when we get to the defensive portion of the practice are the same,” Jackson-Durrett said after the game. “We talk about ball pressure, we talk about 30 seconds of work, can you defend for 30 seconds, we work on getting ahead of the ball.” 
 
The ability of this team to execute that pressure, led by Johnson County Community College transfer point guard Lisa Thomas, was apparent in the opening win in the Swinney Center. What was also clear was that the Roos – and particularly, Thomas – will want to push the pace. 
 
They scored 14 points on the fast break, and were continually looking to get from one end of the court to the other, especially early on. Putting the pedal down like they did was possible because of that defensive effort, which produced all those turnovers and a 16-rebound advantage on the glass (43-27).
 
For Jackson-Durrett, that’s how it has to work.
 
“When you recruit, every kid says they want to play fast, but they don’t really understand what that means,” she said. “You have to get a stop first, get a rebound, get a steal, so you can go play in transition.” 
 
There was a cost to the aggression, as the Roos gave up 33 free throw attempts, and saw Braves’ guard Kaylen Nelson score 31 points, fueled in part by 12 makes from the line. That led the Roos to primarily play in a zone in the second half, but Jackson-Durrett praised her team’s ability to have the basketball IQ to adapt and close the game out in a different defense. 
 
Case in point, Bradley’s opening possession in the fourth quarter – with the Roos’ lead sitting at three points – ended with an Nwachukwu block as the Braves were forced to drive into the teeth of the Kansas City zone. 
 
Individually, plenty of newcomers shone. Cochise College transfer guard Alayna Contreras (19 points, 5 assists) was dynamic in the half court and Grand Canyon transfer Dominique Phillips (12 points) carried the team early. Jackson-Durrett praised Thomas (12 points) closing the game out at the free throw line and Nwachukwu (5 points, 12 rebounds) was dominant in the paint. 
 
Jackson-Durrett said there is work to do, especially cleaning up on the defensive end.
 
“We definitely can’t send anyone to the line 33 times,” she said. “We need to sure up our technique on defense, and how the referees that we’re ahead of the ball, that we’re in legal guarding position.” 
 
After one game, however, the Roos pressure-based, transition formula seems to be taking shape.