NSAN
2009
THE UNIVERSITY DARRY KANSAN
THURSDAY, APRIL 2, 2009
KU 75, ISU 72
5B
KETBALLREWIND
*d blocked three shots before fouling out Wednesday night in the Jawhavks' 75-72 victory. She also scored 18 points and qrabbed seven rebounds.
Weston White/KANSAN
BERN (CONTINUED FROM 1B)
It's about creating a beautiful legacy, and she'll get a chance on Saturday. All she has to do is be average.
the Allen Fieldhouse air and jumped into the middle of her teammates.
McCray is in the middle of everything for Kansas. And that's exactly how she wanted it.
- Edited by Realle Roth
The junior admits she had big plans when she signed to play in
"She came to Oklahoma to do something for that program, and I feel the same way," McCray said. "I came to Kansas to be a difference-maker."
her home state, even comparing her ambitions to those of Courtney Paris at Oklahoma.
Weston White/KANSAN
our game. Boogaard was Kansas'
Weston White/XANSAN
Senior guard ivana Catic draws a charge Wednesday night against Illinois State. Catic had five rebounds with six assists in the Jayhawks 75-72 victory.
VIEW FROM PRESS ROW
ITWAS OVER WHEN ...
Junior for ward Danielle McCray grabbed her own rebound and completed a three-point play to give Kansas a 68-62 lead. Up until that point Illinois State had been cutting into Kansas' lead. But McCray's play allowed the Jayhawks to maintain a somewhat comfortable lead and re-energized the crowd inside Allen Fieldhouse.
GAMETO REMEMBER ...
Sophomore center Krysten Boogaard
More than any other Jayhawk, Krysten Boogaard's season has been filled with ups and downs. First, she was injured at the beginning of the year. Then, she struggled for large stretches during Big 12 play. Now, she's pieced together two solid performances, including 18 points and seven rebounds against Illinois State. Boogaard's inside presence allowed Kansas to maintain a lead in the second half.
Boogaard
GAME TO FORGET ...
Illinois State's Kristi Cirone.
Sure, Cirone scored 24 points, but Illinois State's leading scorer struggled to get going on offense. She made just 7-of-24 attempts and missed all six of her three-pointers. In the final game of her decorated collegiate career, Cirone certainly would have liked to play better.
Cirone
STAT OF THE NIGHT ...
12. That's the difference in turnovers between Kansas (18) and Illinois State (6). Those turnovers allowed the Redbirds to cut into the Jayhawks' lead and make the finish interesting.
Jayson Jenks
PRIMEPLAYS
FIRSTHALF
19:26 — Sophomore Krysten Boogaard secured good post position and junior Sade Morris fed it inside to her. Using the extra room provided by her four-inch height advantage over Illinois State's Ashleen Bracey, Boogaard banked it home. She finished the half with eight points on four of four shooting.
9:40 — Illinois State star Kristi Cirone caught it underneath the basket with her back to the goal, but she was able to spin it softly over her head of the glass to give the Redbirds a three point lead. The Illinois State crowd, who travelled well, reacted accordingly.
4:02 — Freshman Aishah Sutherland grabbed the post entry pass, turned and kissed it off the glass to put the Jayhawks up 25-19. At the time, it was the biggest lead of the half for either team and prompted a timeout from the Illinois State bench.
SECOND HALF
16:20 — Junior Danielle McCray drove into the paint, but she ran into a couple Illinois State defenders. It looked like she would be unable to get a shot up. But, like McCray has done all season, she drew the foul and found a way to sneak the ball in for the basket. McCray converted the three-point play to put the Jayhawks up 44-28.
9:20 — Illinois State had cut the Jayhawk lead to single-digits. Who stepped up? It wasn't too hard to guess: McCray. She held the ball for the entire possession, drove past her defender on the wing and finished the easy two.
:02 — Sutherland used her length to bother Illinois State inbounder Kenyatta Shelton, and the Illinois State desparation attempt at a game-tying three ended with the ball flying over all Redbird players and into the arms of Kansas junior LaChelda Jacobs. Jacobs tossed it to McCray, who chucked it into the air in celebration. 75-72, Jayhawks.
- Clark Goble
GAMENOTES
FANS SHOW UP
Never in coach Bonnie Henrickson's five-year tenure has Kansas played so late in the postseason. And never in that stretch have so many fans filled Allen Fieldhouse to watch Henrickson's team play. The announced crowd was 8,360, and those fans became loud as the score tightened down the stretch.
"People love basketball around here and they appreciate players who work hard and are successful around here,"coach Bonnie Henrickson.
MCCRAY NEARS WNIT
RECORD
That total marked the third consecutive game in which McCray scored at least 30 points.
Once again, junior forward Danielle McCray turned in another noteworthy performance, scoring 31 points and grabbing six rebounds.
while also moving her closer to the WNIT record books. McCray needs just seven points to become the all-time leading scorer in the WNIT.
The current scoring leader is Wisconsin's Jolene Anderson, who totaled 129 points in 2007.
LAST GAME FOR SENIORS
Saturday's championship game will mark the final game for Kansas' three seniors and junior Rebecca Feickert, who is graduating early and will not return to the basketball team.
Seniors Ivana Catic, Katie Smith and Marija Zinic will join Feickert in playing their final games in Kansas uniforms.
"I'm definitely going to have to spend some time to prepare for that but not let it influence me in a bad way," Catic said.
Jayson Jenks
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