Despite a hot start and a late-game rally, the Kansas women’s basketball team lost its second conference game in a row, 69-61 at Iowa State, on Wednesday night.
The Jayhawks, who are still looking for their first conference win, had a nearly four-minute scoring drought in the second quarter that allowed the Cyclones to tie the game at the half. Then, Iowa State doubled its score in the third, and the Jayhawks were facing an 11-point deficit. In the final period, though Kansas outscored Iowa State and got within five points with a minute and a half remaining, the Jayhawks still couldn’t close the gap.
Kansas started off hot from behind the arc. Holly Kersgieter inched closer to the all-time 3-point record with two triples, and S’Mya Nichols had another one. The Jayhawks’ defensive effort and a few Iowa State turnovers left them in good position after the first ten minutes, and they had a 17-8 lead going into the second period.
But a long scoring drought stretched across the majority of the second quarter for the Jayhawks. Over just four minutes, the Cyclones trimmed the deficit to two points.
Nichols finally ended the drought with a free throw at just under three minutes left in the half, and Zakiyah Franklin’s first 3-pointer of the game put the Jayhawks up 24-18. But then the Cyclones went on another run, and Iowa State’s Addy Brown tied the game at the half with a late three-point play.
Nichols was Kansas’ leading scorer at the break with seven points, while Kersgieter and Taiyanna Jackson sat just behind with six apiece.
The Cyclones came out firing in the second half with four straight three-pointers, rushing out to a quick nine-point lead on a 14-5 opening run. Iowa State’s hot streak forced a series of substitutions for Kansas, but it did no good in slowing down the Cyclones. Nichols and Kersgieter managed to pull the Jayhawks back within nine points, however, and the game was not completely out of reach for Kansas at the end of the quarter. The Jayhawks trailed 48-37.
In the fourth quarter, the Cyclones twice grabbed a 16-point lead before the Jayhawks connected on a string of buckets to make it 59-51 with half the quarter remaining. Kansas held strong throughout the stretch, shrinking its deficit to 65-59 with less than two minutes left to play.
But just after that, Jackson fouled out — something she had struggled with early on in the season, but that hadn’t been a problem in more recent games.
Kansas still had a chance to make it a game, down by six with under a minute left. But on the other end of the floor, Franklin was blocked under the basket, a crucial play that seemed to seal the game. The Jayhawks caused trouble on Iowa State’s inbound, forcing a turnover, but a personal foul by Kersgieter on the resulting possession ended any chance of a comeback.
Wednesday’s game was just the third game this season in which Jackson failed to break the 10-point mark. She finished with only nine points, four rebounds, and five fouls.
With the loss to Iowa State and the blowout last Friday against West Virginia, which now sits atop the Big 12 standings, the Jayhawks are in last place in the conference. Their next conference matchup is a road game against Texas Tech, which is 9-1 this season. Tipoff is at 2 p.m. Saturday on ESPN+.
Carter Gaskins/Special to the Journal-World
