Kansas continues homestand with Oral Roberts

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Kansas women’s basketball continues its five-game homestand to start the 2018-19 season with a matchup against Oral Roberts on Tuesday, Nov. 13 at 7 p.m., inside Allen Fieldhouse. The game will air on ESPN+ and the Jayhawk Radio Network.

In honor of Veterans Day, all members of the armed forces will receive $5 admission to the game against the Golden Eagles with proper identification. 

QUICK HITS

• For the 40th time in program history, Kansas has started out 1-0 after defeating UMKC, 67-55, in its season opener.
• In their first game of the season, the Jayhawks dominated inside the paint, scoring 36 of their 67 paints inside the lane.
• KU’s defense limited UMKC to just 26.5 percent shooting from the field, marking the fourth time in the last two season to hold an opponent to under 30 percent shooting.
• In her first game of her senior season, Austin Richardson notched her second career double-double after recording 14 points and 12 rebounds against UMKC (11/7).
• Sophomore Bailey Helgren began the season with two career highs after recording nine rebounds and five blocks against UMKC (11/7).
• After netting eight points in the season opener, Kylee Kopatich is 13 points away from becoming the 29th Jayhawk to join the 1,000 point club

THIS DAY IN KU WOMEN’S BASKETBALL HISTORY
Record on Nov. 13: 2-1
Kansas is playing on Nov. 13 for the fourth time in program history and the fourth time since 2011. In 2011, Kansas defeated Western Michigan, 76-64, to start the season. Angel Goodrich scored nine of Kansas’ first 16 points to help the Jayhawks overcome a close first half.

SCOUTING THE GOLDEN EAGLES
Oral Roberts enters Tuesday’s with a 1-1 start to the season after losing to No. 13 Iowa, 90-77, in its last outing. Heading into the 2018-19 season, the Golden Eagles were picked to finish the year in fourth place in the Summit League by the conference coaches. Sophomore guard Maya Mayberry collected preseason honors after being named to the Preseason All-Summit Second Team selection. Mayberry is averaging 12.0 points per game, while shooting 33.3 percent from the field. Redshirt-senior guard Lakota Beatty leads the squad with 18.5 points per game, shooting 54.2 percent from the floor.  

NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT
Kansas’ senior-heavy roster has garnered some national attention, as the Jayhawks are receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches’ Top-25 Poll ahead of the 2018-19 season. KU received 14 points in the preseason poll, voted on by The USA TODAY Sports Board of Coaches made up of 32 head coaches at Division I institutions. This marks the first time since the 2013-14 season that Kansas has received votes in the coaches’ poll.

YEAR OF THE SENIOR
The Jayhawks return seven seniors to the 2018-19 roster, accounting for 46.6 percent of the total roster. Kansas has the largest senior class in the Big 12 Conference this season with the next closest Big 12 school having four seniors. The Jayhawks boast the largest senior class in KU history since the 2008-09 season when Kansas had eight seniors on the roster.

RELYING ON RETURNERS
Kansas is going to rely heavily on its experienced players this season with 10 players from a season ago returning to the Jayhawk roster. Kansas returns 93.8 percent of scoring from the 2017-18 season as well as its leading scorers from the last two seasons with Lyons (14.8 ppg) from the 2017-18 season and Jessica Washington (17.1 ppg) from the 2016-17 season.

1,000 POINT CLUB
Senior guard Kylee Kopatich is quickly approaching the 1,000 point mark with 987 points with the Jayhawks. Just 13 points shy of the accomplishment, Kopatich will become the 29th Jayhawk in Kansas women’s basketball history to join the 1,000 point club. Additionally, senior guard Jessica Washington is just 54 points away from scoring 1,000 points in her college basketball career. Washington scored 451 points at the University of North Carolina and has scored 495 points in just one season with the Jayhawks, bringing her collegiate total to 946 points.

D-D-D-DEFENSE
Kansas’ defense continues to get better under head coach Brandon Schneider’s watch. The Jayhawks opened the season with a victory over UMKC and limited the Kangaroos to shooting just 26.5 percent from the floor, marking the fourth time in program history to hold an opponent to under 30 percent shooting in the last two seasons. KU forced 14 turnovers in its first contest of the season, converting those turnovers into 12 points for the Jayhawks.   

UP NEXT
Kansas continues its five-game homestand against Alabama A&M on Sunday, Nov. 18 at 2 p.m. inside Allen Fieldhouse. Fans can watch all of the action on the Jayhawk Television Network/ESPN+ or listen on the Jayhawk Radio Network. 
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