Kansas falls to No. 14 Texas

LAWRENCE, Kan. – In the second meeting of the season, a slow start was too much for Kansas women’s basketball to overcome as No. 14 Texas downed the Jayhawks, 91-73, on Saturday night inside Allen Fieldhouse.
 
Texas (19-5, 9-3) jumped out to an early double-digit lead in the first quarter and the Jayhawks were never able to close the gap, despite nearly matching the Longhorns in the final 20 minutes of action.

Defensively, there was nothing the Jayhawks could do to cool off the hot-shooting Longhorns, who finished the game shooting 63.5 percent (33-of-52) from the field.
 
While Kansas (12-10, 2-9) concluded the game shooting 43.1 percent (28-of-65) from the field, the Jayhawks’ shots weren’t falling in the first half after connecting on 29 percent (9-of-31) of their attempts.
 
KU was led by senior Kylee Kopatich, who netted a team-high 18 points, while freshman Aniya Thomas added 15 points. Meanwhile, Texas was led by junior Joyner Holmes, who netted 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field.

QUOTES
Kansas Head Coach // Brandon Schneider
On the rebounding margin:
“They are big, long and athletic. They play really hard.”
 
On the freshmen:
“I thought Aniya (Thomas) was as good as anybody we had tonight when you consider her performance on both ends. I think we have really liked what she brings to the table defensively. It is nice to see her be as aggressive as she was on the offensive end. I didn’t think that she hesitated to make the plays that we all know she can make. Brooklyn (Mitchell) is a player that from a tempo perspective can change the pace of a game. She just needs to continue to grow, mature and be a better finisher around the basket.”
 
On Brittany Franklin’s play:
“She can go get a rebound that is the biggest thing. She is still pretty raw defensively and still has a lot to continue to learn there. But right now, if you can go rebound the ball with two hands you have an opportunity to play minutes on this team.”
 
Freshman // Guard // Aniya Thomas
On her performance:
“I was just trying to get us back in the game and put points on the board. We were struggling offensively, so I was just trying to put points on the board to make the game a lot closer than it was.”
 
Senior // Guard // Kylee Kopatich
On watching Thomas be successful:
“It is great. We have so many seniors on this team and as an almost alumni, you just want to see your program continue to be successful. Glimpses like these are great to see how she can become a leader at such a young age. With plays like these and minutes like these, she has no problem doing that.”

NOTABLES

  • Freshman Aniya Thomas’ 15 points mark her second double-digit scoring effort of the season and first since she scored a career-best 17 points against Oral Roberts (11/13).
  • Senior Kylee Kopatich continues to inch closer to becoming the all-time Kansas 3-point field goal leader, sitting just 25 triples away from the accomplishment.
  • Texas’ 91 points are the second-most that the Jayhawks have allowed this season, after allowing 94 against Baylor (1/16) earlier this year.
  • For the ninth time this season, senior Christalah Lyons dished out at least five assists in a game with five dimes against the Longhorns.
  • Redshirt-freshman Brittany Franklin swatted away two blocks for the fifth time this season, tying her career-best mark.
  • Only Baylor (63.6 percent) has shot better from the field against the Jayhawks this season, as the Longhorns connected on 63.5 percent of their attempts from the floor.

UP NEXT
The Jayhawks travel to Norman, Oklahoma to take on the Sooners on Wednesday, Feb. 13 at 7 p.m., inside the Lloyd Noble Center. The game will be broadcast on Fox Sports Oklahoma and the Jayhawk Radio Network.

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