Kansas Hosts ‘Jayhawks For A Cure,’ Cowgirls Saturday

Kansas vs. Oklahoma State
Date Saturday, Feb. 7
Time 7 p.m.
Location Lawrence, Kan.
Arena Allen Fieldhouse
Series Kansas leads, 31-29
Television Jayhawk TV Network/ESPN3
Radio Jayhawk Radio Network
Live Stats KUAthletics.com
Notes Kansas
Oklahoma State
Big 12
Stats at a Glance KU OSU
Record 13-10, 4-6 13-8, 3-7
Rankings
Points/GM 64.2 66.9
FG% 44.0 44.3
Rebounds/GM 36.2 40.3
Assists/GM 14.5 16.4
Blocks/GM 4.0 4.7
Steals/GM 6.1 9.7

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas looks to spark another win streak against Oklahoma State on Saturday, Feb. 7 in its seventh annual ‘Jayhawks for a Cure’ game. The contest marks the first meeting between the two teams for the 2014-15 season and is slated for 7 p.m., inside Allen Fieldhouse. The game will air on the Jayhawk Television Network/ESPN 3, as well as on the Jayhawk Radio Network. Tickets to the game start at $5 and for every fan in attendance, a $1 will be donated. Additionally, head coach Bonnie Henrickson will donate an extra $1 for every KU student in attendance.
 
ABOUT THE JAYHAWKS
Kansas returned home after a two-game road swing to knock off Texas Tech, 71-67, for the second time this season (2/4) and is looking to continue the momentum with a win against Oklahoma State. Just a season ago, the Cowgirls went undefeated against the Jayhawks and have won the past five meetings against Kansas. KU will be looking for its first win versus OSU since Jan. 28, 2012. Against Texas Tech (2/4), five Jayhawks posted double figures for the first time since the 2013-14 season; Chelsea Gardner at the helm with 19 points.
 
Gardner is averaging a team-high 16.2 points per game, the third-best average in the league, while shooting 55.1 percent from the field. Senior guard Natalie Knight has stayed consistent for the Jayhawks connecting on 38.4 percent of her shots from beyond the arc. She is second the team with 12.4 points and 4.0 assists per game. Knight has scored in double figures in all but four games this year, while Gardner has posted 19 games this season with 10 or more points. Guards Chayla Cheadle and Asia Boyd tallied strong performances against the Lady Raiders, both scoring in double digits with 10 points each. It was Boyd’s 11th game this season to accomplish the feat and Cheadle’s seventh.
 
Freshman guard Lauren Aldridge is making an impact in KU’s lineup averaging 7.7 points per game, as she too scored in double figures against Texas Tech with 13. Aldridge has started every game this season at point and is fifth in the conference in assists per game with 4.4. She has played the most minutes (769) among the Jayhawks in 2014-15. Cheadle led the squad with 15 points at Kansas State (1/11) and is connecting on 35.6 percent of her shots from long range. Sophomore forward Jada Brown is the final member of Kansas’ starting lineup. The Las Vegas, Nevada native is grabbing 3.0 rebounds per contest, which is fifth-best on the team. She is also averaging 1.9 points per game in 23 starts.
 
The Jayhawks are averaging 64.2 points per game with a +3.3 scoring margin over their opponents. KU is shooting 44.0 percent from the field, while holding its opponents to shooting 37.7 percent. Kansas has connected on 36.9 percent of its attempts from the three-point line, which is the best mark in the Big 12. The Jayhawks are averaging 36.2 rebounds, 14.5 assists, 6.1 steals and 4.0 blocks per game.
 
KANSAS FAST BREAKS
• Three or more Jayhawks have netted double-figure scoring performances in 17 of Kansas’ 23 games this season. KU had four reach double-digit scoring in three-straight games and in a total of eight contests. Senior forward Chelsea Gardner has scored 10 or more points in 19-of-23 games in 2014-15, while senior guard Natalie Knight has also contributed double figures in all but four games this season. For the first time this season, Kansas had five players in double figures against Texas Tech (2/4).
• For the first time in nearly 14 years, the Jayhawks shot 67 percent from three-point range on a minimum of 10 attempts against Incarnate Word (12/4), connecting on 8-of-12 shots from beyond the arc. It marked the highest completion rate from three since Dec. 2, 2000, when Kansas went 8-for-11 (72.7 percent) against St. Joseph in Allen Fieldhouse. KU followed that with a 7-for-11 effort from the three-point line against then-No. 10 Cal (12/7).
• KU has limited its opponents to 37.7 percent shooting from the field this season. The Jayhawks have held three opponents to less than 30 percent shooting, including holding the Cal Golden Bears to 25 percent from the field. Cal averaged 90 points coming into the match-up (12/7) and KU kept the Bears under 40 points. KU’s defense has held seven opponents to under 50 points.
• Kansas’ all-time record is 783-560 while the program has an all-time conference record of 241-255. Head coach Bonnie Henrickson is 342-226 all-time and 184-164 at KU.
• Gardner, a Preseason All-Big 12 selection, joined the 1,000-point club after scoring 24 points in the season opener against South Dakota (11/16). Knight has 975 career points and needs 25 more to join Gardner in the 1,000-point club, which she is on pace to reach by the end of February. It would mark the first time since 2012-13 that multiple Jayhawks have reached the 1,000-point milestone in the same season.
• Rookie Lauren Aldridge is one of two freshmen in the Big 12 Conference starting at the point guard position. The Marshfield, Missouri native is fifth in the league in assists per game with 4.4 and is in the top 10 in the Big 12 in assist-to-turnover ratio (seventh, 1.5).
 
SCOUTING THE COWGIRLS
Oklahoma State comes into Lawrence with a 13-8 overall record and a 3-7 mark in the Big 12. After losing four in a row, the Cowgirls snapped their losing streak with a 63-62 win in Ames, Iowa against Iowa State. OSU is now looking to bounce back after losing to Baylor at home, 52-69.
 
Junior guard Brittney Martin leads the team with 12.7 points and 8.3 rebounds per game behind a 44.0 field goal percentage. In all, four Cowgirls are averaging double figures. Next up is senior forward Liz Donohoe, who chalks up 11.6 points per game. She is followed by sophomore guard Roshunda Johnson and LaShawn Jones, who average 11.5 and 10.5 points per game, respectively. Jones grabs the second-most boards for OSU with 6.2 rebounds per game.
 
Collectively, Oklahoma State is averaging 66.9 points per game with a +12.0 scoring margin over its opponents, while connecting 44.3 percent of shots from the field. The Cowgirls are making 35.7 percent of attempts taken behind the three-point line, and they average 16.4 assists per game. Defensively, OSU grabs 40.3 rebounds, 9.7 steals and blocks 4.7 shots per game.
 
SERIES BREAKDOWN
Record
Kansas leads the overall series, 31-29, but is tied up with Oklahoma State in Lawrence, 12-12. KU’s last win in Lawrence over the Cowgirls was on Jan. 22, 2006.
 
Overview
Kansas will face OSU for the first time this season after losing both contests to the Cowgirls during the 2013-14 campaign. Oklahoma State has won the past five meetings between the two teams. Kansas’ last victory over OSU was on Jan. 18, 2012.
 
Last Time Out
Chelsea Gardner scored 25 points to lead the floor while adding 11 rebounds for her ninth double-double of the 2013-14 season and 14th of her Kansas career. CeCe Harper (15), Asia Boyd (13) and Natalie Knight (12) all joined Gardner in the double-digit point club. Markisha Hawkins helped by grabbing a new career-high eight rebounds. Despite these efforts, Kansas fell in the final seconds, 76-74, to Oklahoma State in Stillwater on Feb. 5, 2014.

A SPARK OFF THE BENCH
The Jayhawks’ bench is providing a spark offensively in 2014-15 and is averaging 20.2 points per game. Kansas’ bench has scored in double figures in 21 of 23 games this year, including a season-high 49 against Iona (11/30). KU’s bench has scored 20 or more points on 11 occasions. Senior Asia Boyd is one of the first players head coach Bonnie Henrickson calls upon off the bench and she is the Jayhawks’ third-leading scorer with 9.8 points per game.
 
THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
Kansas is set to play 19 games in the comfort of Allen Fieldhouse in 2014-15, 12 of which come during the non-conference slate. KU is 11-4 at home this season, while the Jayhawks compiled a 9-8 mark in Allen Fieldhouse in 2013-14. KU has a record of 131-62 (.686) in Allen Fieldhouse under head coach Bonnie Henrickson and an all-time home record of 405-163 (.715).

UP NEXT
The Jayhawks head out on the road again for a midweek match-up against West Virginia on Tuesday, Feb. 10 at 6 p.m. (CT), inside WVU Coliseum. Kansas would sweep the 2015 series against the Mountaineers with a victory in Morgantown next week.

KUAthletics.com: The official online source for Kansas Athletics, Williams Education Fund contributions, tickets, merchandise, multimedia, photos and much, much more.