Kansas Erases Deficit, Downs Texas Tech in Final Seconds, 68-66

Box Score

LUBBOCK, Texas. – Senior guard Asia Boyd helped the Jayhawks regain possession of the ball with their biggest defensive stop of the game in the waning minutes of the contest. Although, she was never able to gain possession of the rebound, her efforts forced Texas Tech to commit shot clock violation, giving the ball back to Kansas with 28 seconds left.
 
The Detroit, Michigan native then took the ball down the court and dribbled past three Lady Raiders before laying the ball in giving the Jayhawks the lead with less than a second remaining. KU’s defense got the ball back as time expired on the clock sealing Kansas’ (10-9, 1-5) victory over Texas Tech (12-6, 2-4), 68-66, on Wednesday night at the United Supermarkets Arena.
 
In the second half, Kansas erased a 17-point deficit en route to its first Big 12 and road victory of the season. The Jayhawks outscored TTU, 40-23, in the latter frame and shot an impressive 56 percent from the field. The Lady Raiders cooled off in the second half and shot under 30 percent in the final 20 minutes.
 
In its second game in a row with at least three Jayhawks and sixth game this season with four or more players in double figures, Kansas shot an above-average 56 percent from the field with a 27-for-48 mark on the night. Senior forward Chelsea Gardner led with a game-high 20 points and eight rebounds. She ended the night 9-for-13 from field goal range. Senior guard Natalie Knight followed with 14 points, eight rebounds and several big-time hustle plays that kept the momentum on the Jayhawks’ side. Freshman guard Terriell Bradley had her best game with 13 points since scoring 21 points at Creighton (12/22). Freshman guard Lauren Aldridge rounded out the four with 10 points on the night.
 
Along with the Jayhawks, the Lady Raiders shot better than average completing 46 percent of their shots (22-for-48). Texas Tech had three players in double figures: senior guard Amber Battle (16), senior forward Kelsi Baker (13) and redshirt-sophomore Ivonne CookTaylor (12). Texas Tech had its best three-point shooting game since Dec. 21 against Houston when the Lady Raiders tied their accomplishments tonight with seven-made shots. Battle had the most with three connected shots behind the arc.
 
Kansas started the first two minutes of the game with nothing to show on the scoreboard and the Jayhawks allowed the Lady Raiders to go on an 8-0 run. Kansas went on to come within five of the Texas Tech lead, but TTU refused to give up its advantage for the following minutes.
The early eight to nothing Lady Raider lead became a memory as the Jayhawks posted a 16-5 run over almost six minutes. An 8-for-10 mark from the field also helped them take over the lead, 20-18. The two teams fought for the advantage, each taking its turn with the lead for the following minutes.
Texas Tech would go on to hit two back-to-back three-point shots, to give them back the lead, this time by four, 27-23. The Jayhawks were forced into a four-minute scoring drought and gave the Lady Raiders the chance to continue their run, 14-0 in all.
From Aldridge, a shot beyond the arc ended the scoring silence. Unfortunately, Texas Tech was strong from three-point range, too. With seven already thus far in the game, the Lady Raiders had no fear of losing control of the game for the remainder of the first half. To round out the first 20 minutes of action, TTU took a 43-28 lead into the locker room.
The Lady Raiders shot nearly double of what they average from the field with a 62.5 percent mark (15-for-24). They were also 7-for-10 behind the three-point arc. Kansas was also shooting better than average, going 12-for-21 from the field (57 percent). Gardner was already in double figures with 10 points. 
Kansas outscored Texas Tech 6-4 in the first four and a half minutes of the second half and continued to chalk up a 17-4 run throughout a big chunk of the final 20 minutes. After being down by as much as 17, Kansas was now within three. Texas Tech on the other hand was stuck at a 1-for-12 mark during this time.
Kansas had a span of about five minutes without a field goal. The Lady Raiders fell into a scoring slump as well going seven minutes without a connected shot. With new life, Kansas still battled to swing momentum into its favor. A pair of free throws from Aldridge made the Kansas deficit vanish for just an instant and tied the game, 55-55. The two teams fell into a shooting war that lasted deep into the final minutes of the game.
Kansas took over the lead for the first time since the beginning of the first half as the result of Aldridge hitting her second trey of the night, 63-61. A three of their own along with a pair of charity shots gave the Lady Raiders the lead yet again with only two minutes to play.
Gardner tied the game with 40 seconds left and that’s when Boyd fought to regain possession for KU. She drove the ball to the basket and gave the Jayhawks the lead with less than a second left to play. The Lady Raiders attempted to tie the game as inbounded they inbounded the ball, but it went almost straight to Chayla Cheadle. As time expired, Kansas took home its first Big 12 win of the season, 68-66.
 
NOTES:

  • Four Jayhawks reached double figures for the first time since the contest against Samford on Dec. 29. It marked the seventh game this season with four players finishing with 10 or more points.
  • Seniors Chelsea Gardner and Natalie Knight each posted their 16th game in double figures. Knight is on a five-game streak with the feat, while Gardner has scoring 10 or more points in the last four straight game.
  • Freshman guard Terriell Bradley had her best game since scoring 21 points at Creighton (Dec. 22). Tonight, the Arlington, Texas native put up 13 points.
  • Becoming the fourth Jayhawk with double figures, freshman Lauren Aldridge knocked in 10 three-point shots and had a total of 10 points.

 
 
UP NEXT:
The Jayhawks return to Lawrence to host to face West Virginia on Saturday, Jan. 24 at 1 p.m. It’s Superhero Day inside Allen Fieldhouse and all children that dress as a superhero will receive free admission to the game.
 
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