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LAWRENCE, Kansas — Riding a run of three losses in the previous four games and hosting the nation's leading rebounder in BYU's Lauren Gustin, Taiyanna Jackson seemed to take that personally for Kansas women's basketball.
The Kansas senior poured in 25 points, a career-best 22 rebounds and five blocked shots as Kansas pulled away from BYU 67-53 Wednesday night at Phog Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kansas.
Freshman S'Mya Nichols added 17 points and four rebounds for the Jayhawks, who improved to 11-9 with a 4-5 record in conference play after outrebounding the Cougars 47-29 with 36 points in the paint and seven blocked shots.
Kailey Woolston poured in a career-high 26 points on 8-of-14 shooting, including six 3-pointers, and Lauren Gustin added 10 points and 10 rebounds for BYU, collecting her 20th double-double in 22 games as she fouled out with 15 seconds remaining.
Amari Whiting supplied 10 points, five rebounds and six assists for the Cougars (12-10, 2-7 Big 12).
"Knowing their best player was Lauren, and us being able to shut her down and force her to take some tough shots, we were locked in," Jackson told the ESPN+ broadcast after the game. "We wanted it, and we needed the dub."
Twin having herself a NIGHT 🔥
— Kansas Women's Basketball (@KUWBball) February 1, 2024
25 PTS with 4:00 remaining in Q4. pic.twitter.com/7SoggcuTUw
BYU opened up just 2-of-11 from the field, until Whiting's bank shot with 1:33 left in the first quarter pulled BYU within 10-8. But the Cougars shot just 3-of-13 from the field before the quarter break and Kansas outscored BYU 10-6 in the paint to take a 12-8 early advantage.
After a lengthy delay for a bat flying around Allen Fieldhouse, Woolston forced a turnover to Kaylee Smiler, who found Gustin for a bucket to start a 7-0 run that pulled the Cougars within one, 20-19 on Woolston's 3-pointer with 3:43 left in the half. But BYU was held to just one field goal the rest of the way as Kansas shot 5-of-10 from the field and 3-of-5 from the free-throw line en route to a 26-21 halftime lead.
Both teams shot less than 40% from the field before the break, with the Jayhawks' 39 leading the Cougars' 31, including an equal 1-of-8 from 3-point range. Jackson led all scorers with 14 points and nine rebounds in the first half.
Gustin is an all-time rebounder, the Cougars' career leader in boards after breaking Tina Gunn Robison's record that hod stood for four decades. But on Wednesday night, Jackson looked like the all-timer.
"We've got to get back to work," BYU coach Amber Whiting said. "We really let Jackson have a night, and we can't let that happen. We've got to go back to work at home, and figure out how to flip the script."
2⃣6⃣ POINTS @KaileyWoolston
— BYU Women's Hoops (@byuwbb) February 1, 2024
Link to watch👉https://t.co/ci4dG1ZAzLpic.twitter.com/6cZChNdxNb
Woolston knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers with just under six minutes remaining to pull the Cougars within five, 51-46, as the freshman who leads the conference in 3-point shooting caught fire late.
The former Deseret News Ms. Basketball shot 6-of-9 from 3-point range, her 11th game in 13 outings with double-figure scoring. But her 3-pointer with 2:02 remaining was the visitors' only made field goal in the final 4:13 until a 3-pointer by Lauren Davenport that was only cosmetic.
BYU returns home riding a two-game losing skid, and three of the Cougars' last four after pushing No. 2 Kansas State to the brink, when the team hosts West Virginia at 4 p.m. MST Saturday (ESPN+).
