Davis Guides Jayhawks to Second Victory in Italy

Aug. 14, 2011

MONTECATINI, Italy – Behind the strong inside play of junior forward Carolyn Davis, the University of Kansas women’s basketball team defeated Roma Selezione 90-76 Sunday evening in the Jayhawks’ second contest of its nine-day tour of Italy.

KU improved to 2-0 during its foreign trip, having topped Roma Selezione 66-38 just two days earlier in Rome.

Davis used her height down low in the post to pour in a team-high 25 points on 12-of-19 shooting from the field. She also added seven rebounds, while senior Aishah Sutherland led KU on the boards with 16 caroms to go along with 10 rebounds for a double-double. Sutherland’s defense helped the forward grab a team-best four steals during the contest as well.

The Jayhawks got off to a slow start falling behind 24-22 after the first quarter. At the start of the second frame, Sutherland and sophomore Keena Mays each hit a basket on Kansas’ first two possessions to put KU ahead 27-26. Roma Selezione answered right back however to regain its lead and the Jayhawks trailed until just under three minutes to play in the first half.

At the 2:47 mark, freshman Natalie Knight sank a jumper to give Kansas a 42-41 lead, an advantage that it would maintain through the rest of the contest. Sophomore Tania Jackson and junior Angel Goodrich followed Knight with back-to-back field goals and one possession later, Jackson added another two points right before halftime to give KU a 48-43 edge heading into the break.

KU came out of the lockerroom with a renewed sense of urgency as Davis went to work down low scoring the Jayhawks’ first nine points in the third quarter. Often feeding Davis the ball was Goodrich from the top of the key. The point guard dished out 12 assists during the contest and matched that tally with 12 points in the contest.

The Jayhawks continued to push the ball as Sutherland poured in eight of her 16 points in the last few minutes of the third frame. Holding a sizable 71-58 lead heading into the final quarter, Kansas’ underclassmen received quality court time and finished out the game as the Jayhawks held on to win 90-76 behind a 53 percent shooting percentage from the field.

Goodrich, Davis and Knight earned the starting nod for a second time and were joined by Mays and Jackson in the opening tipoff. Mays and Knight each handed out five assists and added eight points in the start.

KU will travel to Venice Monday afternoon and will take a day and a half to rest before hitting the court again on Wednesday, Aug. 17 in its final destination of Lake Como, Italy. The fourth and final game of the tour is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 18.