Kansas Returns to Allen Fieldhouse, Hosts Creighton

 

Head coach Brandon Schneider

Game 6: Creighton at Kansas
Date Wednesday, Dec. 2
Time 7 p.m. (CT)
Location Lawrence, Kansas
Arena Allen Fieldhouse (16,300)
Series Kansas leads 25-13
Television Jayhawk Television Network/ESPN3
Radio

Jayhawk Radio Network
Online: KUAthletics.com

NOTES Kansas
Stats at a Glance Kansas Creighton
Record 3-2 4-2
Points/GM 65.2 74.8
Field Goal % 39.7 44.4
3-Point Field Goal % 31.9 38.5
Free Throw % 62.5 78.8
Rebounds/GM 39.8 34.5
Assists/GM 12.6 18.8
Blocks/GM 4.8 3.0
Steals/GM 7.0 7.3

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas women’s basketball returns home to Allen Fieldhouse ready to host a six-game homestand to close out its 2015-16 non-conference slate. The Jayhawks (3-2) welcome Creighton (4-2) for the first game of the lengthy homestand on Wednesday, Dec. 2 at 7 p.m. The game will air on the Jayhawk Television Network/ESPN3 and the Jayhawk Radio Network.
 
AROUND THE GYM
Fans are encouraged to bring non-perishable food donations for Just Foods. The first 200 Kansas students get a free corn dog and chips at the game.
 
KANSAS FAST BREAKS

  • Kansas leads the all-time series against Creighton, 25-13. The Bluejays’ overtime victory in 2014 snapped Kansas’ 11-game winning streak that began in 2005.
  • KU has a 34-19 record against programs from the Big East Conference. Kansas has faced eight schools that are members of the Big East Conference, and have a lead or even series against seven of eight teams.
  • When Brandon Schneider coached teams are leading with less than five minutes to play, his overall record is 349-12, and 3-0 at Kansas.
  • In the month of December, the Jayhawks own an overall mark of 185-81 (.696). During the 2019-10 season, Kansas went 7-0 in the final month of the calendar year.
  • Kansas has a record of 408-166 (.715) in Allen Fieldhouse. Over the last five seasons, Kansas has posted a 63-29 mark on its home court.
  • Junior forward Caelynn Manning-Allen is 4-1 winning the opening tip this season, while Kansas is 3-1 when Manning-Allen claims possession on the opening tip.
  • Sophomore guard Lauren Aldridge has recorded double-figure scoring performances in four of five games so far this season. Manning-Allen has posted double-digit scoring efforts on four occasions, including the first double-double (12 points, 11 rebounds)  against Northern Illinois (11/27).  
  • In the past two games, three Jayhawks have posted double-digit scoring performances, and have reached the feat in four of five games this season.
  • The Jayhawks’ roster features six local products that hail from Kansas or Missouri. Junior Sydney Benoit and freshmen Kylee Kopatich and Tyler Johnson are from the Sunflower State, while redshirt junior Timeka O’Neal and sophomores Lauren Aldridge and Chayla Cheadle are from the Show Me State.

 
ABOUT THE JAYHAWKS
After a three-game road swing that saw Kansas suffer its first two losses of the season, the Jayhawks return to the comforts of home and begin a six-game homestand with Creighton on Wednesday, Dec. 2. KU is 2-0 inside Allen Fieldhouse this season and looks to extend that streak with the final six non-conference games before starting Big 12 Conference action on Dec. 30 at Oklahoma.
 
Over the weekend in Dallas, several Jayhawks saw personal bests on the hardwood. Junior forward Caelynn Manning-Allen netted a career-high 14 points against SMU (11/28). Prior to her career-best performance, Manning-Allen posted KU’s first double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds against NIU (11/27). Sophomore guard Lauren Aldridge connected on 5-of-7 from beyond the arc, a new career-high in three-pointers made in a single game. Freshman Chelsea Lott saw her first minutes as a Jayhawk over the weekend. She recorded her first points (2) and rebound in the Crimson and Blue at SMU (11/28).
 
KU averages 65.2 points per game, while shooting 39.7 percent from the field and 31.9 percent from beyond the arc. Kansas averages 39.8 rebounds, 12.6 assists, 7.0 steals and 4.8 blocks per contest.
 
SCOUTING THE BLUEJAYS
Creighton, voted to finish its Big East slate in fourth place by the league coaches, is off to a 4-2 start to the 2015-16 campaign. The Bluejays opened the season with a pair of victories, a 79-54 win over Wichita State and a 89-46 win over Marist, before suffering their first loss of the year at Drake, 81-72. Creighton has won two of its last three games, including a 66-60 overtime win against Eastern Washington. The Bluejays are 2-2 in games played on the road or on a neutral court.
 
Sydney Lamberty and Marissa Janning were selected to the 2015-16 Preseason All-Big East team. Lamberty is averaging 11.2 points per game behind 41.9 percent shooting from the field, while Janning, the 2015 Big East Player of the Year, is averaging 10.7 points per game behind 31.9 percent shooting. Audrey Faber leads the team with 16.5 points per game and Brianna Rollerson has collected a team-best 5.5 rebounds per game.
 
Collectively, the Bluejays are averaging 74.8 points per game, while shooting 44.4 percent from the field and 38.5 percent from the three-point arc. Creighton has recorded 34.5 rebounds, 18.8 assists, 7.3 steals and 3.0 blocks per game.
 
SERIES BREAKDOWN
Record
Kansas leads the all-time series against Creighton, 25-13.
 
Overview
The Jayhawks and Bluejays meet for the 39th time in program history. Creighton’s overtime win in 2014 snapped Kansas’ 11-game winning streak over the Bluejays. The series began in 1980 with a 75-39 victory for Kansas.
 
Last Time Out
Last season, four Jayhawks scored in double figures, but Kansas was unable to overcome Creighton’s scoring output in extended time as the Jayhawks eventually fell 84-81. Kansas led Creighton 68-67 with three seconds to play in regulation.
 
THE WEEK THAT WAS
Kansas made its second appearance in the annual tournament hosted by SMU over the Thanksgiving holiday. KU went 1-1 at the 2015 SMU Thanksgiving Classic after defeating Northern Illinois, 66-58, and falling to SMU, 73-64.  Over the weekend, three Jayhawks posted double-digit scoring performances, and have reached the feat in four of five games this season. Junior forward Caelynn Manning-Allen earned all-tournament honors, averaging 13 points and 7.5 rebounds over the two games in Dallas.
 
THIS DAY IN KU WOMEN’S BASKETBALL HISTORY
Record on Dec. 2: 13-3
Kansas women’s basketball will play on the second day of December for the 17th time in program history. The first meeting on Dec. 2 was in 1978 against Texas Tech, while the last time the Jayhawks faced a team on Dec. 2 was in 2012 against Minnesota. Both the first and last games played on Dec. 2 resulted in a KU victory.
 
In 1995, Kansas defeated Northern Iowa, 95-71, on Dec. 2. The Jayhawks outrebounded the Panthers 48-30. Five Jayhawks ended the night in double digits led by Suzi Raymant, who recorded 14 points.
 
AROUND THE LEAGUE
After five games this season, Kansas is among the top six of Big 12 Conference teams in several statistical categories. The Jayhawks are fourth in offensive rebounds (15.4 per game), tied for fifth in three-point field goals made (6.0 per game), tied for sixth in blocked shots (4.8 per game) and sixth in offensive rebound percentage (37.9 percent). Redshirt-junior Timeka O’Neal is tied for third in the Big 12 in three-point field goal percentage, shooting 50 percent this season, while sophomore guard Lauren Aldridge is 10th in the conference, making 43.5 percent of her attempts. Additionally, Aldridge is tied for 12th in the Big 12 in scoring (13.2 points per game) and first in minutes played (34.8 minutes per game). Junior forward Caelynn Manning-Allen is eighth in the league in rebounding (7.4 boards per game), third in blocked shots (2.6 blocks per game) and tied for sixth in the conference in defensive rebounds (5.2 per game). Junior forward Jada Brown is tied for sixth in the Big 12 in offensive rebounds (2.8 per game).
 
HOW TEH JAYHAWKS STACK UP NATIONALLY
Collectively, Kansas is 68th in the country in blocked shots per game with 4.8. Individually, junior forward Caelynn Manning-Allen is 27th in the country in blocks per contest with 2.6. Sophomore guard Lauren Aldridge ranks No. 78 in three-point field goal percentage after connecting on 43.5 percent of her attempts.
 
TOURNAMENT TESTED
The Jayhawks will face 12 teams this season with postseason experience from the year prior. Familiar Big 12 foes Baylor, Texas, Iowa State, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State all advanced to the 2015 NCAA Tournament. The No. 2 seed Baylor Bears experienced the most successful tournament run, reaching the Elite Eight. TCU, Kansas State, West Virginia, Texas Southern, St. John’s and Washington State all were invited to the Women’s National Invitational Tournament at the end of last season. West Virginia advanced the farthest, reaching the championship game where the Mountaineers fell to UCLA. Oral Roberts was selected to play in the Women’s Basketball Invitational, advancing to the semifinal before losing a one-point game to eventual tournament champion, University of Louisiana Lafayette.
 
UP NEXT
Kansas continues its six-game homestand to close out the 2015-16 non-conference slate. The Jayhawks continue the homestand with St. John’s on Sunday, Dec. 6 at 2 p.m., inside Allen Fieldhouse. The game will be broadcast on the Jayhawk Television Network/ESPN3 and the Jayhawk Radio Network.
 
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