By The Numbers presented by KDOT: #SKCvMIN | June 3, 2018

"By The Numbers" is a season-long series sponsored by The Kansas Department of Transportation, giving a statistical preview of every Sporting KC match.
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2,211   The number of alcohol-related crashes in Kansas in 2016.

Western Conference leaders Sporting Kansas City (7-2-4, 25 points) and Minnesota United FC (5-7-1, 16 points) square off for the second time in three weeks on Sunday, kicking off at 7:30 p.m. CT inside world-class Children's Mercy Park. Tickets for the game are available on SeatGeek.com as Manager Peter Vermes' men look to extend their four-game unbeaten run at the expense of a Minnesota side that secured an impressive home win last weekend.

Sunday's game will air live on FS1 with local radio calls on ESPN 94.5 FM (English) and ESPN Deportes KC 1480 AM (Spanish). We take a statistical look at the matchup in our latest edition of By The Numbers.

Head-to-Head

• Sporting KC and Minnesota have met five times in all competitions over the last two seasons. The sides have split the regular season series 1-1-2.
• Sporting KC and Minnesota met two weeks ago in Minneapolis, playing to a 1-1 draw after Khiry Shelton and Darwin Quintero traded first-half goals.
• In the previous meeting on May 20, Sporting KC outshot Minnesota 24-6, held 61 percent possession and forced goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth to make a career-high nine saves.
• Coincidentally, Sporting KC last welcomed Minnesota on June 3, 2017 — exactly a year before this Sunday’s matchup. The hosts prevailed 3-0 with Ike Opara and Jimmy Medranda among the goal scorers.
• Minnesota visited Children’s Mercy Park twice in 2017, falling 3-0 on June 3 and suffering a 4-0 defeat in the Open Cup on June 14.
• Defender Ike Opara scored in both home wins over Minnesota last season.

Minnesota United FC

• 2018 MLS record: 5-7-1, 16 points (9th in West)
• 2018 MLS away record: 1-5-0 (7 GF, 15 GA)
• Last MLS match: W 2-0 vs. Montreal Impact on May 26
• Last five MLS matches: 2-2-1, 7 points (W-L-L-T-W)
• Minnesota has conceded 92 goals since the start of 2017, more than any other team.
• Minnesota has scored 12 of its 16 goals this season in the second half.
• Minnesota has been outscored 15-4 in the first half of matches this season.
• Twelve different Minnesota players have recorded an assist this season, the most in MLS.
• Minnesota is 4-0-0 when scoring the first goal this season and 1-7-1 when allowing the first goal.
• Midfielder Miguel Ibarra is tied for the MLS lead with three game-winning assists.
• Midfielder Rasmus Schuller leads MLS with 47 tackles won, ranks second with 44 interceptions and ranks eighth with 97 duels won.
• Forward Darwin Quintero leads Minnesota with 20 chances created despite playing in just eight of the team's 13 games. He joined the side on March 31 from Mexican powerhouse Club America.
• Forward Christian Ramirez has scored 17 regular season goals since the start of 2017, eight more than any other Minnesota player.

 Sporting KC

• 2018 MLS record: 7-2-4, 25 points (1st in West)
• 2018 MLS home record: 4-1-2 (13 GF, 6 GA)
• Last MLS match: T 0-0 vs. Columbus Crew SC on May 27
• Last five MLS matches: 2-1-2, 8 points (W-L-W-T-T)
• Sporting KC has conceded just four goals in its last nine matches, the fewest of any MLS team since March 31.
• Sporting KC has lost just once since March 10, tied with FC Dallas for the fewest in MLS during that time.
• Sporting KC leads MLS in passing accuracy (85.1%), shots per game (18.5) and chances created per game (14.3).
• Midfielder Ilie leads MLS with 456 successful passes in the attacking half. He is also tied for second in the league with 26 chances created from open play.
• Midfielder Roger Espinoza has a career-high five assists through 13 games. He also ranks second in MLS with 425 successful passes in the attacking half.
• Graham Zusi leads MLS in touches (1,144) and ranks first among defenders with 24 chances created.
• Goalkeeper Tim Melia is second in MLS in shutouts (six) and goals against average (1.00).

Milestones and Miscellany

• Defender Matt Besler is one shy of his 240th regular season appearance for Sporting KC, which would tie Davy Arnaud for the most in club history.

Recent #MINvSKC regular season meetings

• Regular season record vs. Minnesota: 1-1-2
• Regular season home record vs. Minnesota: 1-0-0

Team stats (2018 regular season)

MLS rank in parenthesis (source: Opta)