FORT WORTH, Texas – Chandler Prater scored a career-high 24 points as the Kansas Jayhawks closed out the regular season with an 84-61 victory over TCU on Saturday at Schollmaier Arena.
KU has now won three-straight games to close out the regular season with a record of 19-10, which includes a 9-9 mark in Big 12. It’s the second-straight season that KU finishes with a conference mark of .500 or better, a feat last accomplished by the program in 1999-2000.
"I really like how we played on both ends and I think our bunch played really well today. I think the game honors toughness, and Chandler Prater proved that today. We have done everything we could these past few games to try and add to our resume, and I hope we have proved that we are worthy of being selected into the NCAA Tournament."
Kansas Coach Brandon Schneider
Despite trailing 10-4 in the early minutes, the Kansas offense came to life and used a 6-0 lead to tie the game. Holly Kersgieter and Zakiyah Franklin, who combined for 11 points in the quarter, combined for a 5-0 run to close the quarter as KU took a 17-16 lead at the end of one. The Jayhawks extended the lead to 39-33 at halftime as the pace of play picked up and Chandler Prater got going with 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting. KU’s defense also held TCU to just three points over the final 4:46, outscoring the Horned Frogs 11-3 in that stretch.
Kansas pulled away from TCU in the third quarter, hitting 9-of-13 field goal attempts and outscoring the Horned Frogs 24-10 to build a lead of 20 at 63-43, with 10 minutes to play. Prater had seven points in the quarter, eclipsing her career high in the process, while Mayberry, Kersgieter and Taiyanna Jackson had five apiece. The Jayhawks again extended the lead in the fourth quarter, outscoring TCU 21-18 for the final margin of 84-61.
Prater led the Jayhawks with 24 points on 10-of-15 shooting, while adding four rebounds and five assists. Mayberry had 18 points and four assists while Franklin added 16 points and Kersgieter had 14. Kersgieter and Jackson tied for team-high honors with nine rebounds apiece, as Jackson had seven points and four blocked shots as well.
With her four blocked shots, Jackson now has 89 for the year, which is the second-most in school history. She now has the two best single-season block totals after finishing with 95 last season.
The Jayhawks shot better than 50 percent from the field for the second-straight game, hitting 32-of-59 field goals for 54.2 percent shooting for the game. KU also set a new season high with 22 assists and forced 15 TCU turnovers. Kansas had a 21-to-12 edge in points off turnovers and outscored the Horned Frogs 44-to-26 in the paint.
Up Next
Postseason play begins with the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship, which will be played on March 9-12 at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The bracket will be announced by the league office following the conclusion of all regular season contests.
