LAWRENCE, Kan. – Double-figure scoring from three separate Kansas women’s basketball players was not enough to complete a second-consecutive comeback, as the Jayhawks fell to Washington State 66-53 on Sunday night, inside Allen Fieldhouse.
Despite holding Washington State’s leading scorer, freshman forward Borislava Hristova, to just six points on the night after entering the game averaging 19 points per contest, the Jayhawks endured multiple shooting slumps that ultimately proved to be the difference.
The Jayhawks (5-5) were led by sophomore guard Lauren Aldridge with 13 points, marking her ninth double-digit scoring effort of the season. All four of Aldridge’s made field goals came from beyond the arc. Freshman guard Kylee Kopatich tallied 11 points, with seven of those being earned from the free throw line, while junior forward Caelynn Manning-Allen recorded 10 points and pulled down a game-high seven rebounds.
Washington State’s (9-2) Dawnyelle Awa scored a game-high 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting. The senior guard drained all three of her three-point attempts on the night. Senior guard Taylor Edmondson posted 12 points and grabbed a team-high six rebounds.
After the Jayhawks connected on their first field goal attempt of the evening, KU struggled to find the bottom of the net on their next six attempts. Kansas forced four Washington State turnovers in the first seven minutes of action, while Aldridge and Kopatich combined for four free throws to hold the Cougars’ lead to a single point at 7-6 with three minutes left in the quarter. The shooting slump extended to eight consecutive missed field goals for Kansas, allowing the Cougars to put together a 7-0 run and push the lead to 12-6. Aldridge ended the run with less than a minute left in the quarter with her first three-pointer of the contest. Two more free throws from Kopatich, just before the end of the first period, cut the deficit to one point, 12-11.
Washington State began the second quarter on a 7-1 run in less than three minutes of game time on 3-of-6 shooting. In the last three minutes of the half, the Jayhawks went on a 6-0 run behind Manning-Allen and junior forward Jada Brown, who each logged three points, bringing the Cougar lead back to one point, 28-27. WSU tacked on a jumper for the last points of the half at the 1:15 mark, to carry a three-point lead into the locker room at halftime.
Despite Washington State connecting on 12 field goals in the first half to Kansas’ seven, the Jayhawks only trailed, 30-27, by sinking 10 points from the free throw line. Freshman guard Jayde Christopher logged the only bench points for Kansas in the first half with a long-range basket, while Washington State’s bench combined for 15 of the team’s 30 points.
Both teams began the second half on 2-of-4 shooting, as the Cougars kept Kansas from eliminating their lead. Aldridge helped the Jayhawks break through at the 5:37 mark with her third triple of the contest to tie the game at 35-35. A made free throw from freshman forward Tyler Johnson gave Kansas its first lead since the five-minute mark of the first quarter. Another three from Aldridge capped off a 7-1 run to push the Jayhawks’ lead to four points, their largest of the evening.
The Cougars responded with a six-point run behind two quick three-pointers to reclaim the lead before the end of the quarter. Entering the final 10 minutes of play, the Jayhawks faced a three-point deficit, looking to pull off their second-consecutive comeback victory.
Washington State found the bottom of the net on its first two attempts of the fourth quarter, quickly establishing an eight-point advantage. Kansas did not back down, with a 5-0 run of its own to bring the game back to within three points. The Cougars put together a 13-3 run over the next five minutes of game time in response, as the Jayhawks saw the deficit extend to 13 points with less than three minutes remaining in the game.
Kansas continued to fight, as Kopatich fought through the lane for a layup and Manning-Allen sank two free throws in the closing moments of the game, but the Washington State lead was too large for the Jayhawks to complete the comeback.
— KU Athletics —