Finally at the finish line of a busy week, the players on the Kansas women’s basketball team figure to have their conditioning tested Sunday afternoon at Allen Fieldhouse, when the Jayhawks play their third game in six days.
Some reshuffling of the schedule became necessary for KU when it was unable to play several games in early January due to roster issues caused by injuries and COVID protocols.
The Jayhawks’ trip to Oklahoma State got rescheduled for Feb. 2, leading to the atypical three-game week. What’s more, the home matchup with TCU marks the team’s fourth game in a nine-day stretch.
The Frogs, meanwhile, have been off since Jan. 30.
What: Kansas (6-9 overall, 2-7 Big 12) vs. TCU (7-8, 2-8)
When: 1:30 p.m. Sunday, ESPN+
Where: Allen Fieldhouse
Quick Note: The first meeting between the Jayhawks and Horned Frogs, back on Jan. 17 in Fort Worth, Texas, took overtime to decide.
The Frogs prevailed, 84-81, three weeks ago. But the Jayhawks could get a boost in the rematch from a pair of key players who weren’t available the first time around.
Both freshman forward Ioanna Chatzileonti and junior guard Brooklyn Mitchell missed that game for KU.
Chatzileonti is averaging 7.8 points and 7.9 rebounds on the year and started for the ninth time this season in KU’s loss at Baylor on Thursday, when she provided eight points and six rebounds.
Mitchell started versus the Bears, too. And though she only averages 4.5 points a game in 16.0 minutes, she recently scored 13 at Oklahoma.
Streaking: The Frogs haven’t played in a little more than a week, but when they last took the court, guard Lauren Heard was on fire, scoring 34 points versus West Virginia.
That gave Heard six games in a row producing double-digit points for TCU. She’s averaging 19.1 points per game this season.
In Round 1 against KU, Heard shot 6-for-16 and scored 19 points in 43 minutes.
Slumping: The Jayhawks, who have lost four games in a row and seven of their previous eight, have seen their shooting percentages decline lately, during this busy stretch of the schedule.
KU converted fewer than 35% of its shots in each of its past three outings. The Jayhawks’ 34.7% shooting at Baylor was the best of the stretch. They hit 31.1% at Oklahoma State and just 27% when facing OSU in Lawrence.
Last game’s starters
Kansas
G — Zakiyah Franklin, 5-7, so.
G — Holly Kersgieter, 5-10, so.
G — Brooklyn Mitchell, 5-6, jr.
F — Ioanna Chatzileonti, 6-3, fr.
C — Chisom Ajekwu, 6-3, so.
TCU
G — Lauren Heard, 5-9, sr.
G — Caroline Germond,5-7, jr.
G — Aahliyah Jackson, 5-10, gr.
F — Yummy Morris, 6-3, jr.
F — Michelle Berry, 6-2, gr.
