On Tuesday night, Kansas defeated the West Virginia women’s basketball team for the second time in six days, winning by a score of 74-63.
West Virginia (11-12, 4-9 Big 12) has now dropped four straight games in an untimely part of the season. Kansas (18-5, 9-4 Big 12) is heating up at the right time, as they have now won six consecutive games.
The main story of the evening was Jayhawks’ junior guard Zakiyah Franklin. Franklin, who scored 17 points in Kansas’s win in Morgantown last Wednesday, had her way with the Mountaineers again. Franklin led the way with 25 points while shooting 10-for-17 in the effort.
In the first quarter, Kansas was able to grab an early advantage, as they took an 18-16 lead. Zakiyah Franklin scored 10 of her 25 points in the first quarter and did not miss a shot in that period.
In the second quarter, Kansas did a good job maintaining their early advantage. While WVU had six different scorers in the second quarter, Kansas still outscored the Mountaineers 17-12 in the quarter. The Jayhawks took a 35-28 lead into halftime.
In the third quarter, Kansas’s offense exploded. The Jayhawks shot 9-for-12 from the field and 8-for-8 from the free throw line as a team in the quarter, scoring 29 points. The team’s leading scorer, Holly Kersgieter, scored all eight of her points in the third quarter, along with Zakiyah Franklin adding seven more points.
While WVU scored a game-high 19 points in the third quarter, it was not enough to keep up with the Kansas’s offense. The Jayhawks were now up 64-47 with only a quarter to play.
In the fourth, WVU scored 16 points with JJ Quinerly and Esmery Martinez both making two shots, but the damage had already been done. Kansas didn’t need to do much scoring to seal the win in the fourth, but Zakiyah Franklin and Aniya Thomas helped wrap things up. Both players made two shots in the quarter and put the game out of reach for the Mountaineers.
Kansas won the game 74-63 with the help of a successful offensive attack. The Jayhawks shot 53% as a team from the field and shot 13-for-17 from the foul line. Kansas was led by Zakiyah Franklin, who had 25 points, and Aniya Thomas who netted 12 of her own. Kansas also got five or more points from four other contributors to help the scoring stay consistent
As for West Virginia, JJ Quinerly and Esmery Martinez led the way. Quinerly, who scored 22 points against the Jayhawks in Morgantown, put up 16 points while shooting 6-for-15 from the field. Martinez scored 12 points and shot 6-for-19 from the field.
West Virginia now moves to 11-12 on the season with a losing streak of four games. The Mountaineers will take on Texas on Sunday at noon from the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown, WV.
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