The most interesting stat of Sporting KC’s game against the Columbus Crew on Saturday was the scoreline. It wasn’t interesting because the Crew scored and won at home 1-0, It was interesting because Sporting Kansas City, one of the top offensive teams in the league, was shut out.

The Crew are no stranger to tight defensive play. They recorded their fourth straight shutout Saturday. On the season they have allowed just three goals in five games. All three of those came in the team’s first contest of the year against D.C. United. In Saturday’s game, the defense looked just as sharp. While they may have lacked a little focus in the first half, they certainly made up for it in the second. The Crew have been dominant defensively since their first contest of the 2011 campaign. They have now played 373 minutes without allowing a goal. That’s tops in the league.

For Sporting KC, the result Saturday raises some concerns on both sides of the ball. First, Kansas City, who had scored eight goals leading up to the match, recorded a shot on goal only twice in ten tries against Columbus. Some of those missed shots could be chalked up to the wet conditions and skip of the ball of the grass, but not all of them. This was the first time in which Kansas City didn’t look in control in the attacking third. They were once again without Omar Bravo, who is nursing a sports hernia injury. Even still, they didn’t manage to get Teal Bunbury involved much throughout the entire 90 minutes. Kei Kamara did most of the positive work in the offensive third, beating defenders off the dribble and using his speed and strength to get to the baseline for crosses. The only problem was there wasn’t anyone to finish them, or even get them directed at the goal.

The shutout was the first for Kansas City this season and the loss was Sporting KC’s second. The team dropped to eighth out of nine teams in the Eastern Conference. Only Chicago sports an inferior record. Looking at the stats shows one team was focused and ready to play. One team did its homework and locked down a hot offense. One team outworked and out-hustled the other. That team was Columbus. They fouled less and won more corner kicks, usually a sign of smarter play, better passing and better control.

Sporting Kansas City’s performance wasn’t without highlights. Goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen had some spectacular saves, even if one of the best was only made because he botched a clearance. Defender Roger Espinoza played brilliant one-on-one defense for the majority of the game. He stood up the Crew’s attackers and anticipated their touches nicely.

One glaring moment in the game came when KC’s Julio Cesar received his second yellow card of the game for what appeared to be a phantom handball. By that time though, the game’s momentum was fully in Columbus’ favor.

Sporting KC should keep its head up. It dominated the first half and didn’t give up after going down a man and a goal in the second. The team showed good composure. Every team has games where things just don’t fall into place. This was one of those games for Sporting Kansas City.

The team will have a few days to work on its finishing before heading to Gillette Stadium to take on the New England Revolution. Kansas City will reach the halfway point of its 10-game road trip against the Revs, who currently sit two places and two points ahead of KC in the conference.