By The Numbers presented by KDOT: #SKCvFCD rivalry continues in Open Cup

"By The Numbers" is a season-long series sponsored by The Kansas Department of Transportation, giving a statistical preview of every Sporting KC match.

Sporting Kansas City and FC Dallas continue their pursuit of Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup glory when they square off in Tuesday's quarterfinal clash at Children's Mercy Park. Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. CT with a live stream on SportingKC.com and radio broadcasts on ESPN 99.3 FM (English) and La Grande 1340 AM (Spanish). Tickets for the matchup are available at SeatGeek.com.

Tuesday's Open Cup battle features the top two teams in the Western Conference, with FC Dallas lurking a point behind Sporting KC. In each of the previous two Open Cup meetings between the clubs in 2004 and 2015, Sporting KC claimed victory en route to winning the tournament championship. The quarterfinal clash also pits the winners of the last two Open Cups, as Sporting KC hoisted the trophy in 2015 before FC Dallas lifted its second title last year.

Head-to-head

• Sporting KC and FC Dallas have met twice previously in the Open Cup. Sporting KC earned a 4-0 quarterfinal win in 2004 and a 6-2 Round of 16 win in 2015. Kansas City would go on to win the tournament in both years.
• In Sporting KC's 6-2 Open Cup win over FC Dallas in 2015, midfielder Benny Feilhaber recorded three assists.
• Sporting KC and FC Dallas have met twice during the 2017 regular season, scrapping to a 0-0 draw on March 11 in Kansas City before FC Dallas earned a 1-0 home win on April 22 behind Maynor Figueroa's 77th-minute header.
• The home side in the series is 8-0-4 in the last 12 meetings across all competitions.
• Sporting KC is 4-0-1 in its last five home meetings with FC Dallas across all competitions, scoring 15 goals and conceding just three.
• FC Dallas won on its first visit to Children's Mercy Park in 2011, but has gone 0-5-2 since then while being outscored 18-5 (all competitions).

FC Dallas

• 2017 MLS record: 8-3-7, 31 points (2nd in West)
• 2017 MLS away record: 2-2-4 (9 GF, 8 GA)
• Last five MLS matches: 2-1-2, 8 points (L-T-T-W-W)
• Last MLS match: W 4-2 vs. D.C. United on Tuesday, July 4
• 2017 Open Cup path: 
  W 2-1 vs. Tulsa Roughnecks FC (USL) in Fourth Round
  W 3-1 vs. Colorado Rapids in Round of 16
• Best Open Cup finish: Champions (1997, 2016)
• FC Dallas has won seven straight Open Cup matches since suffering a 6-2 loss to Sporting KC in the 2015 Round of 16 at Children's Mercy Park.
• FC Dallas used goals from Mauro Diaz, Ryan Hollingshead and a free-kick from Javier Morales to defeat the Colorado Rapids in the Round of 16 on June 27.
• FC Dallas is unbeaten in six straight games across all competitions, going 4-0-2 since June 14.
• Forward Maxi Urruti has scored in four straight MLS appearances and leads FC Dallas with 11 league goals.
• Forward Roland Lamah has scored a brace in two straight matches, leading FC Dallas to MLS wins over Toronto FC (July 1) and D.C. United (July 4).

 Sporting KC

• 2017 MLS record:8-4-8, 32 points (1st in West)
• 2017 MLS home record: 6-0-4 (19 GF, 5 GA)
• Last five games: 1-0-4, 7 points (T-T-W-T-T)
• Last MLS match: T 1-1 vs. Philadelphia Union on Thursday, July 6
• 2017 Open Cup path: 
  W 4-0 vs. Minnesota United FC in Fourth Round
  W 2-0 at Houston Dynamo in Round of 16
• Best Open Cup finish: Champions (2004, 2012, 2015)
• Sporting KC's 0.70 goals against average is the lowest in MLS.
• Sporting KC leads MLS with 14.6 shots per game while facing a league-low 9.2 shot per game.
• Sporting KC leads MLS in passing accuracy (83.3%) while ranking third in average possession (57.9%).
• Sporting KC is unbeaten in eight straight games across all competitions, going 4-0-4 since the start of June.
• Sporting KC is 7-0-4 in all competitions this season at Children's Mercy Park.
• Goalkeeper Tim Melia boasts 11 shutouts in 22 appearances across all competitions, including two clean sheets in the Open Cup.
• Defender Ike Opara led Sporting KC with four goals during the month of June, including two in the Open Cup.
• Midfielder Ilie leads MLS in passes (1,428) and has played every minute of all 22 matches for Sporting KC in all competitions. He also ranks ninth in MLS in duels won (114).

Milestones and Miscellany

• In Thursday's 1-1 regular season draw against the Philadelphia Union, fellow 20-year-olds Latif Blessing, Erik Palmber-Brown and Daniel Salloi started for Sporting KC. It was the first time ever that three or more players aged 20 or younger started for Sporting KC in a competitive match.

Team stats (2017 regular season)

MLS rank in parenthesis (source: Opta)

Recent #SKCvFCD meetings (all competitions)

• Regular season record vs. FC Dallas: 23-22-12 (84 GF, 89 GA)
• U.S. Open Cup record vs. FC Dallas: 2-0-0 (10 GF, 2 GA)