Oklahoma State Edges Kansas, 70-68, on Schools for Success Day
Jan. 12, 2010
Postgame videos Coach Henrickson | McCray | Jacobs | Morris | Sutherland
LAWRENCE, Kan. –
Oklahoma State outlasted Kansas 70-68 in a back and forth duel Tuesday afternoon at Allen Fieldhouse on Student Success Day.
The Jayhawks fell to 10-5 on the season and 0-2 in Big 12 play, while Oklahoma State improved to 14-2 on the season and 2-0 in Big 12 play.
The crowd of 6,671 was largely made up of Lawrence area elementary students who were energetic throughout the afternoon.
Both teams leaned on their All-Americans, as Danielle McCray led Kansas with 28 points, while OSU’s Andrea Riley scored one more bucket to finish with 30 points.
KU appeared to take a 67-66 lead when McCray laid it up with 48 second remaining. The referees then checked the replay monitor and ruled that the shot clock had expired prior to McCray’s basket.
With a one-point lead, the Jayhawks forced Riley into a tough shot, but failed to corral a rebound with 27 seconds remaining.
After two Riley free throws, McCray tied the game with a three-pointer with 15 seconds to play.
Riley then drove the length of the court and found a wide-open Toni Young under the basket for a layup with just three seconds remaining.
A desperation heave by KU senior LaChelda Jacobs was off the mark and the Cowgirls were able to hold onto the victory.
After trailing 39-29 at halftime, the Jayhawks surged back into the game by outscoring OSU 11-4 to open the second half.
The Jayhawks were seemingly climbing a mountain all day to try and catch the Cowgirls on the scoreboard. The game was tied on seven occasions, but KU’s largest lead of the game was just two points.
The first 10 minutes of the game featured a seesaw battle between the Cowgirls and Jayhawks. The game was tied at 18 with 9:42 when Kansas redshirt freshman Angel Goodrich was forced to leave the game with injury.
Goodrich was able to return to action four minutes later, but not before the Cowgirls built a five-point lead at 25-20.
The Jayhawks edged to within four, at 30-26, when Nicollette Smith drained a three-pointer off a crosscourt pass by Goodrich. The Cowgirls then responded over the last four minutes to take a 10-point lead in to intermission.
Goodrich was forced to leave the game with injury for the second time late in the second half. She would not return to action. Before leaving the game, Goodrich scored 13 points, pulled down eight rebounds and dished out four assists.
To go along with her 28 points, McCray ripped down three boards and recorded three steals.
Sophomore Aishah Sutherland scored 12 points and had 14 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season.
The Jayhawks were able to climb back in the game by cooling off the Cowgirls from the field in the second half. OSU shot just 35 percent from the floor in the second half, after connecting on 52 percent of its shots in the first half.
Kansas will next be in action Sunday, Jan. 17 when it hosts Border Showdown rival Missouri at 1 p.m. The game will be televised on Metro Sports.
