Jayhawks Head South for Road Test at TCU

Kansas at TCU
Date Tuesday, Feb. 17
Time 7 p.m.
Location Fort Worth, Texas
Arena University Recreation Center
Series Kansas leads 4-3
Television FSSW +
Radio Jayhawk Radio Network
Live Stats GoFrogs.com
Notes Kansas
Stats at a Glance KU TCU
Record 13-13, 4-9 14-10, 6-7
Rankings
Points/GM 63.5 69.8
FG% 43.5 41.1
Rebounds/GM 35.5 34.5
Assists/GM 14.5 13.9
Blocks/GM 4.2 4.2
Steals/GM 6.2 10.9

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas travels to TCU for its second match up of the 2014-15 season on Tuesday, Feb. 17 at 7 p.m., inside the University Recreation Center. The Jayhawks are searching for their first win in Fort Worth since a 76-75 victory at TCU in 2013. The game will air on the FOX Sports Southwest Plus and the Jayhawk Radio Network.
 
ABOUT THE JAYHAWKS
Kansas heads south and looks to even the 2015 series against the TCU Horned Frogs with a win in Fort Worth. After winning four conference games in a row, the Jayhawks’ momentum was halted with a three-game losing skid, which KU hopes to end at TCU. Three Jayhawks posted double figures in the loss against Texas (2/14), including senior guard Natalie Knight, who tallied her 1,000th career point and joined senior forward Chelsea Gardner in the 1,000-point club. She became the 28th Jayhawk, and the 11th under head coach Bonnie Henrickson, to reach 1,000 career points.  She is also the 13th guard and seventh player from Kansas to accomplish the feat.
 
Gardner is averaging a team-high 16.3 points per game, the fourth-best average in the league, while shooting 54.9 percent from the field. Knight is second the team with 12.0 points and 4.0 assists per game. Knight has scored in double figures in all but six games this year, while Gardner has posted 22 games this season with 10 or more points. Fellow classmate Asia Boyd follows Knight and Gardner on the roster with 10.4 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.
 
Freshmen guards Lauren Aldridge and Chayla Cheadle are making an impact in KU’s lineup averaging 7.8 and 5.9 points, respectively. Aldridge has started every game this season at point and is fourth in the conference in assists per game with 4.5. She has played the most minutes (888) among the Jayhawks in 2014-15. Cheadle is connecting on 33.3 percent of her shots from long range. Sophomore forward Jada Brown is the final member of Kansas’ starting lineup. The Las Vegas, Nevada native is grabbing 2.7 rebounds per contest, which is fifth-best on the team. She is also averaging 1.8 points per game in 26 starts.
 
The Jayhawks are averaging 63.5 points per game with a +2.1 scoring margin over their opponents. KU is shooting 43.5 percent from the field, while holding its opponents to shooting 38.3 percent. Kansas has connected on 35.9 percent of its attempts from the three-point line, which is the best mark in the Big 12. The Jayhawks are averaging 35.5 rebounds, 14.5 assists, 6.2 steals and 4.2 blocks per game.
 
KANSAS FAST BREAKS
• Three or more Jayhawks have netted double-figure scoring performances in 19 of Kansas’ 26 games this season. KU had four reach double-digit scoring in three-straight games and in a total of eight contests. Senior forward Chelsea Gardner has scored 10 or more points in 22-of-26 games in 2014-15, while senior guard Natalie Knight has contributed double figures in all but six games this season. For the first time this season, Kansas had five players in double figures against Texas Tech (2/4).
• The outcomes of seven of the last eight KU contests have all been decided by single-digit margins. Of KU’s four wins, the largest winning margin was six, while the lowest was two points. In the losses, the Jayhawks were defeated by eight points twice and most recently by three points at West Virginia (2/10).
• Gardner is the latest Jayhawk to record a double-double after an 18-point, 12-rebound performance at West Virginia (2/10). She is one of three Jayhawks to post a double-double during the 2014-15 season and has recorded seven during her senior campaign. Knight recorded her first career double-double against Arkansas State (12/14), while Boyd posted a double-double effort against Oklahoma State (2/7).
• Kansas’ all-time record is 783-563 while the program has an all-time conference record of 241-258. Head coach Bonnie Henrickson is 342-229 all-time and 184-167 at KU.
• Gardner, a Preseason All-Big 12 selection, joined the 1,000-point club after scoring 24 points in the season opener against South Dakota (11/16). Knight etched her name on to the list of Jayhawks to score over 1,000 points in their career this season. An 11-point performance over Texas (2/14) elevated her past the 1,000-point milestone. With Gardner and Knight both reaching the 1,000-point achievement, it marks the first time since 2012-13 that multiple Jayhawks have reached the 1,000-point milestone in the same season.
• Rookie Lauren Aldridge is one of two freshmen in the Big 12 Conference starting at the point guard position. The Marshfield, Missouri native is fourth in the league in assists per game with 4.5 and has dished out five or more assists in six of her last eight outings.
 
SCOUTING THE HORNED FROGS
TCU comes into Tuesday’s contest with a 14-10 overall record and 6-7 Big 12 mark. The Horned Frogs currently sit in a three-way tie for third place in the conference and look to improve their conference standing with a win over Kansas. TCU is also hoping to snap a two-game losing streak this week, after dropping contests on the road to Kansas State (93-79) and Oklahoma (77-54).
 
Junior guard Zahna Medley is leading the way for the Horned Frogs with 15.3 points and 4.2 assists per game. She is shooting 41.9 percent from field goal range, while she is one of two Horned Frogs to average 38.0 percent from behind the three-point line. Junior guard/forward Veja Hamilton follows Medley with 11.5 points per game and averages a team-high 50.2 field goal shooting percentage. Two other Horned Frogs are averaging in double figures; senior forward Chelsea Prince (11.1 ppg) and senior guard Natalie Ventress (10.2 ppg).
 
Collectively, TCU averages 69.8 points per game behind a 41.1 field goal percentage and connects on 34.3 percent of attempts taken from long range. The Horned Frogs take away an average 10.9 steals per game, which is good for second in the Big 12 and average 13.9 assists per contest. On the defensive end, the Horned Frogs pull down 34.5 rebounds per game and block 4.2 shots.
 
SERIES BREAKDOWN
Record
Kansas owns a 4-3 all-time advantage over TCU and has a 1-1 mark in Fort Worth.
 
Overview
The Horned Frogs have won two of the three meetings. Last season, KU and TCU split the series, each earning a victory on its home court. The all-time series began in 2009, when Kansas lost its first match up with TCU, 69-74, but the Jayhawks went on to win the next three contests after the series-debut loss.
 
Last Time Out
TCU only outscored Kansas by five points in the second half, but costly miscues ultimately led to a TCU victory, 80-63. In the third-most efficient shooting performance of her four-year career, senior forward Chelsea Gardner brought home a game-high 21 points after knocking down 10-of-13 shots. Senior guard Natalie Knight recorded her 100th-career start for the Jayhawks and posted 17 points and seven rebounds.
 
1,000 REASONS TO CELEBRATE
On Sunday, Nov. 16, Chelsea Gardner became the 27th Jayhawk, and 10th under head coach Bonnie Henrickson, to score over 1,000 career points in Kansas women’s basketball history. Her 24-point effort against South Dakota pushed her over the 1,000 career point mark. The senior forward is the fourth Jayhawk in as many seasons to score over 1,000 career points. She is the third Jayhawk to reach the milestone wearing the No. 15 jersey and the fifth to hail from the Lone Star state. Gardner is also the 15th forward to score to join the 1,000-point club and the second standing at 6-3. On Saturday, Feb. 14, senior Natalie Knight etched her name on to the list of KU women’s basketball players to score 1,000 career points. Knight became the 28th Jayhawk, and 11th under Henrickson, to accomplish the feat. She is the seventh 1,000-point scorer from the Sunflower state, the 13th guard and the first that is five feet, seven inches tall. 
 
A SPARK OFF THE BENCH
The Jayhawks’ bench is providing a spark offensively in 2014-15 and is averaging 20.2 points per game. Kansas’ bench has scored in double figures in 24 of 26 games this year, including a season-high 49 against Iona (11/30). KU’s bench has scored 20 or more points on 13 occasions. Senior Asia Boyd is one of the first players head coach Bonnie Henrickson calls upon off the bench and she is the Jayhawks’ third-leading scorer with 10.4 points per game.
 
UP NEXT
The Jayhawks continue its road swing on Saturday, Feb. 21 at Oklahoma State. Tipoff in Stillwater, Oklahoma is set for 7 p.m. on the Jayhawk Radio Network as Kansas looks to even the series with a victory away from Allen Fieldhouse.
 
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