How the Kansas Jayhawks beat UCF in opening round of Big 12 women’s hoops tourney
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Kansas advances to face Colorado after 56-35 win fueled by team effort.
- Jaliya Davis posts 10 points, 11 rebounds and spaced minutes after four fouls.
- Jayhawks outrebound UCF and get 29 bench points to offset poor shooting.
The Kansas Jayhawks played through shooting woes and turnovers to beat UCF 56-35 in the first round of the Big 12 Women’s Basketball Tournament on Wednesday evening at T-Mobile Center.
KU’s win, culminating a first round consisting of four Wednesday games, ended around 10 p.m. and was a true team effort: Nine of 10 available Jayhawks scored.
Big 12 Freshman of the Year and Blue Valley North grad Jaliya Davis led the way with 10 points and 11 rebounds, her third double-double of the season. Davis played through foul trouble, sitting for spells after collecting four infractions.
The No. 11-seeded Jayhawks next face No. 6 seed Colorado on Thursday at 8 p.m. KU lost to the Buffaloes in overtime to start the month of February.
“It probably wasn’t what the fans paid for, from an offensive perspective,” Kansas coach Brandon Schneider said of his Jayhawks’ opening-round performance. KU ranks second in the conference in field goal percentage. “For us to shoot it as poorly as we did, I don’t think we had great rhythm.”
Said Davis, KU’s talented guard, “I don’t think I really performed how I want to perform today, but (I) just came out of those jitters.”
KU played Missouri in a Border War non-conference game in November at T-Mobile Center, somewhat foreshadowing the Big 12 tournament’s intense atmosphere.
“First game I played (in the Big 12 tournament),” Davis said of Wednesday’s experience and what comes next, “so just being able to go out there tomorrow and do my thing.”
KU ended a slow-moving, methodical first quarter against UCF with an 8-0 run and 17-10 lead. Olathe North grad Sania Copeland and Brittany Harshaw made back-to-back 3s for the Jayhawks during that stretch.
Kansas continued its run into the second quarter, going up 24-10 before UCF countered with a five-point run of its own. KU took a 27-17 lead into halftime without hitting a shot in the last six minutes of the second quarter.
The shooting struggles continued into the third quarter, with the Jayhawks hitting just five of 17 shots for 12 points in the period. The Golden Knights were worse, though, shooting 3-of-15 as KU built a 13-point lead, 39-26.
The Jayhawks pulled away in the fourth quarter, leading by as many as 21 points to ensure their advancement to the next round in Kansas City.
The Jayhawks used a 2-3 defensive zone to limit UCF’s offense and save their legs for a potential five-day stay at the Big 12 tourney, Schneider said. The players were dissatisfied with their shooting and focused on playing good defense when shots weren’t falling.
“I think that we did that tonight, but I mean, obviously it’s frustrating,” senior guard Elle Evans said. “We know our shots are going to fall eventually.”
Evans was a spark off the bench, recording eight points, including two 3-pointers, while grabbing two rebounds.
“It might not be tonight,” Evans said, “but it’ll be tomorrow. So (we’re) just staying confident but also focusing on the defensive end.”
UCF sophomore guard Summer Yancy, a Lee’s Summit North grad, tallied four points and three rebounds against KU.
Kansas shot just 35% from the floor (32% from 3-point range) but outrebounded UCF 47-27. KU also got 29 points off its bench, plus 20 second-chance points, while holding the Golden Knights to 25% shooting overall and a paltry 11% from 3-point range (2 of 19).
Schneider was proud of his bench players. He knows he’ll need the whole team to keep competing hard if they’re going to stick around through Sunday’s championship game.
“When we have success, it’s not just Jaliya and S’Mya (Nichols),” Schneider said.
Nichols, a first team all-conference selection and Shawnee Mission West grad, collected six points, three rebounds and four assists, hitting just one shot from the field Wednesday night.
“We’re not gonna win games at this level ... relying on those two,” Schneider said. “So it’s great to see other people step up and contribute.”
This story was originally published March 4, 2026 at 10:31 PM.
