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A win won't be enough for Sporting KC Wednesday night. Not only does the team face elimination when it hosts the Houston Dynamo in the second leg of a two-leg aggregate of the Eastern Conference semifinals, they have to erase a two-goal deficit.
Houston defeated Sporting KC 2-0 on Sunday, leaving KC's season on the brink. Kansas City will have to win by at least two goals to avoid elimination. Winning by exactly two goals would result in two 15-minute extra periods played in their entirety. If no aggregate winner is determined then, penalty kicks would decide who would go to the Eastern Conference Finals to face either D.C. or New York, who also plays the second leg of its series Wednesday night following a 1-1 tie in the first leg.
It would be a devastating end to a dominant Sporting KC season. The team's 63 regular-season points easily outpaced D.C. for best in the conference and trailed only the 66 points accrued by San Jose in the Western Conference. Houston, meanwhile, barely got into the playoffs and had to defeat Chicago in a one-game knockout round to advance to the conference semis.
Houston and KC play at 8 p.m. CT Wednesday. The game can be seen on MLS Live, Direct Kick and Fox Sports Southwest.