Jordan Ziegler | @Ziggyjw4
Kansas picked up a dominating victory over Cincinnati on Wednesday night.
The Kansas Jayhawks struck first in this match with an early transition layup from senior guard Wyvette Mayberry, the early two was then followed up by a three from freshman guard S’Mya Nichols.
With the three-pointer, the Jayhawks jumped out to an early 5-1 lead. Cincinnati brought the score back within one, but a three-point and two made free throws by super-senior guard Holly Kersgieter increased the Jayhawks lead back to six.
Cincinnati and Kansas continued to trade blows back and forth until the under-five media timeout in the first quarter.
The Jayhawks went into the under-five timeout on a hot streak shooting five of their last seven from the field, which was a large factor in the 14-8 lead for Kansas. Cincinnati game out of the media timeout with no answers for the Jayhawks.
Super-senior Taiyanna Jackson went on a tear against the Cincinnati defense, Jackson’s offense plus an over four-minute scoring drought for Cincinnati led the way to a 19-10 Kansas lead.
“It’s not just her stats, but her presence also affects the game when she is on the floor,” said Kersgieter when talking about Jackson. “I’m proud that I can do that to people and it helps us a lot as a team,” said Jackson.
Senior guard Jillian Hayes hit a buzzer-beater three at the end of the first for Cincinnati, making the score 22-16 Jayhawks. This lead was due in large part to the eight points for Kersgieter and eight turnovers for Cincinnati.
The Bearcats used the end-of-quarter buzzer-beater momentum to storm back in the second quarter, bringing the score within two and forcing Kansas to take a timeout with five minutes left in the first half.
Despite the Bearcats closing the gap, they could not keep that momentum going through the rest of the quarter.
At the end of the first half, the Jayhawks were up 40-30 with Jackson leading the way in scoring at 14 points. Kersgieter drilled a three towards the end of the half to bring her to 11 points heading into the locker room.
“All it takes is one,” said Kersgieter when asked about her shooting performance on the night. “We came out hot as a team as well, so that helps to get everyone going.”
The Jayhawks came out on fire to start the second half, the 10-point lead they took into the locker room was increased to 17 at the under-five timeout in the third quarter. The 50-33 Jayhawk lead was due in large part to an almost three-minute-long scoring drought for the Cincinnati Bearcats.
Kansas continued its dominance through the rest of the third quarter, heading into the fourth with a 60-38 lead. Kersgieter was a massive factor in the Jayhawk lead as she had 18 points and two steals at the end of the third.
The Jayhawks cruised through the fourth quarter adding 15 to their lead, winning the game with a final score of 75-60.
Kansas will travel to Provo on February 17 to take on BYU at 5:00 PM in the Marriot Center.
Photo by Val Montañez, KJHK Sports Photo