UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Kansas women’s basketball team suffered its first defeat of the season Monday night, falling 91-85 to Penn State at the Bryce Jordan Center.
The Jayhawks fall to 1-1 on the year while Penn State improves to 3-0.
Kansas shot a better percentage from the field, hitting 29-of-61 (47.5%) field goals compared to 46.3% shooting for Penn State. The Lady Lions, however, had eight more field goal attempts and hit 12 three-pointers compared to six for the Jayhawks. PSU outrebounded the Jayhawks 40-to-33, but KU outscored the Lady Lions 40-to-30 in the paint.
“I think the rebounding margin is the biggest thing that jumps out to me,” Kansas coach Brandon Schneider said. “We knew that the possession battle was going to be really important because they’re a team that presses and tries to turn you over. I thought for the most part we did a good job with that, we won the turnover battle, but to get beat on the glass is disappointing.”
Kansas scored the first six points of the game, but quickly saw the advantage taken away by the Lady Lions, who heated up and hit three-straight three-pointers to take their first lead at 11-8. The rest of the quarter was played within one possession, but the Lady Lions hit five threes in the quarter to lead 23-22 despite eight points apiece from Taiyanna Jackson and Holly Kersgieter.
Penn State added to its lead in the second quarter, using a 12-3 run to break a 28-all tie and go up 40-31 with 5:37 to play in the half. Jackson scored 14 first-half points on 7-of-7 shooting, but the Jayhawks still faced a deficit of 51-39 at the break.
The Jayhawks stormed out of the locker room on a 12-2 run, which included an 8-0 run by Kersgieter, who hit a pair of three pointers to get KU within two, 53-51, with 6:51 to play in the third. Penn State responded with the next five points and the teams traded baskets the rest of the quarter, which ended with PSU up 66-59.
Penn State scored the first five points of the fourth quarter, pushing its lead to 12. The Lady Lions led the rest of the way, with KU only getting as close as six points on a late three-pointer by Wyvette Mayberry.
Four Jayhawks scored in double figures, led by Kersgieter with 24 points on 4-of-6 shooting from three-point range. Jackson was 9-of-11 from the field, finishing with 18 points, eight rebounds and two blocked shots. Zakiyah Franklin added 17 points and S’Mya Nichols scored a career-high 14. Mayberry added nine points as KU’s starting five scored 82 of the team’s 85 points on the night.
Next Up
Kansas plays its first of three-straight neutral site contests on Saturday, Nov. 18, as the Jayhawks head to Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri, to face the Kansas City Roos in a game that will tip off at 3:15 p.m. CT.
