LAWRENCE, Kan. – The Kansas Jayhawks used a 19-0 third quarter run to pull away from Houston Christian before going on to defeat the Huskies 79-57 on Wednesday evening at Allen Fieldhouse.
With the win, Kansas evens its record at 4-4 on the year, while Houston Christian falls to 4-6.
“We talked at halftime about trying to emulate the second quarter,” said Head Coach Brandon Schneider after the game. “We just really wanted to try to replicate the energy and be more disruptive. I thought we were good in transition, Holly ran the floor really well and there were a couple plays where I thought Wyvette did a good job of pitching the ball ahead.”
The first quarter was very balanced offensively between both squads with eight ties and two lead changes. Three-pointers from Wyvette Mayberry and Zakiyah Franklin gave KU the lead on separate occasions, but HCU scored the final basket of the quarter to take a 23-22 lead after 10 minutes of play.
Kansas started to find their groove offensively in the second but HCU continued to stay right behind the Jayhawks. Already ahead by seven, the Jayhawks went on an 8-2 run over the last 3:38 of the half to take an 11-point, 44-33 lead into the break.
Kansas dominated the Huskies out of the intermission. After HCU scored four points early in the third, Kansas went on a 20-3 run to close out the quarter, including 19 consecutive points at one point. They weren’t just focused on offense, as they held the Huskies scoreless for 7:43 and forced six turnovers.
The last quarter was back-and-forth between both squads, but KU maintained a comfortable lead throughout. Danai Papadopoulou scored eight of KU’s 15 points in the fourth, helping the Jayhawks maintain the margin of victory despite being outscored 16-15 in the quarter.
Every player that entered the game scored for Kansas, with the Jayhawks being led by freshman Nichols, who had a career-high 20 points along with four rebounds and four assists on the night. Kersgieter added 12 points, six rebounds and a career-high four blocked shots, while Franklin had 10 and three assists.
Kansas also scored 25 points off the bench, led by a career-high eight points from Papadopoulou and five apiece from Zsofia Telegdy, Skyler Gill and McKenzie Smith. That’s the most offensive production Kansas has gotten from the bench since the reserves combined to score 27 points against Northwestern State in the season opener.
Next Up
Kansas will head back on the road as they travel to Charles Koch Arena to take on Wichita State this Sunday, Dec. 10. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. CT and the game will be streamed on ESPN+.
