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 —

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Even though Kansas entered its game Saturday against Montana with the nation’s third-best scoring offense, coach Bill Self had been imploring his guys to play better on defense.

Evidently, they heard his plea.

Perry Ellis had 18 points and nine rebounds and the second-ranked Jayhawks used some stifling defense to bury the Grizzlies, 88-46.

“The big deal with us is we just have to get better from a team-defense standpoint, playing the scouting report,” said Self, whose team held Montana to 26 percent from the field. “We were fortunate they missed some shots. But still, I think we had something to do with it.”

Brannen Greene and Wayne Selden added 11 points apiece, and Svi Mykhailiuk finished with 10 for the Jayhawks (9-1), who led by 20 at halftime before coasting to their eighth straight win.

The victory in the Jayhawks’ first game at Allen Fieldhouse in 10 days was also their 29th in a row at their venerable arena. That’s the seventh-best streak in school history.

“We were overwhelmed when the ball went up, to be honest,” Montana coach Travis DeCuire said. “I think the guys fought, they kept playing, they tried their hardest to compete.”

Brandon Gfeller led the Griz (4-6) with 12 points in the first meeting between the schools since Dec. 1, 1962. But unlike that game, when Montana hung around in a close defeat, the Jayhawks made sure their hot shooting and suffocating defense would have this one over by halftime.

“We knew they were a great team, but we’ve also played some pretty good teams, and played them pretty well,” Montana guard Michael Oguine said. “We still have to come out and play hard.”

Kansas was in control from the opening tip, when Greene responded to his first start by making a 3 in the opening minute. Frank Mason III and Ellis converted three-point plays on the next two trips down floor, and the Jayhawks never trailed again.

Instead, the rest of the game amounted to a Kansas highlight reel.

There was Selden’s alley-oop pass that Cheick Diallo flushed, and Diallo’s rim-shaking dunk just moments later. There was the Selden’s nifty no-look pass that set up Carlton Bragg’s layup, and Selden’s soaring dunk along the baseline that gave the Jayhawks a 31-17 lead late in the half.

Perhaps no play trumped Mason’s when he got the ball in the open floor and went around the back with it on the drive to the basket. He scored while getting fouled and made the free throw.

“We try to get out in practice, get the ball out, rebound and push it and it works well for us,” Ellis said. “(Self) is telling us to continually push it and run.”

Powerless in grounding the high-flying Jayhawks, the Griz only made six field goals in the first half. They missed 10 of their final attempts in falling behind 44-24 at intermission.

The Jayhawks outscored the Griz 18-3 out of the break before coasting the rest of the way.

“We wanted to step out and show we’ve improved,” Ellis said. “I feel like we had a good win, it was a good game for everybody. You can take a lot of positive out of it.”

GRAHAM OFF BENCH

Devonte Graham did not start after oversleeping Saturday, so Greene got the nod. “Devonte is the starter. Don’t make a big deal out of that,” Self said. “He didn’t say his alarm clock was broke. At least he didn’t come with that one.”

UGLY SWEATERS

Kansas fans broke the Guinness World Record for largest gathering of people wearing holiday sweaters when 3,473 showed up in them. A holiday sweater is defined as “having at least one holiday themed item on it, such as reindeer, trees, snowmen or lights.” The record had been 1,175, set by Loughborough University in England on Dec. 10, 2014.

TIP-INS

Montana: Starting guards Oguine and Walter Wright and combined to go 2 of 15 from the field. … The Griz were out-rebounded, 44-26. … Montana is 4-0 at home, 0-6 on the road.

Kansas: Bragg and Graham scored nine points apiece. … Mason finished with seven points and nine assists. … The Jayhawks came in averaging 90 points.

UP NEXT

Montana: Plays its nonconference finale against Montana Western on Tuesday night.

Kansas: Tries to avenge a 2014 loss at San Diego State on Tuesday night.

— Associated Press —