Prater and Jackson dominate as Kansas rolls against Arizona

The Jayhawks picked up a marquee win on the season in their blowout victory over the Wildcats

Well that wasn't the game we were expecting. After a frantic first few minutes, the first half ground to a halt before the Kansas Jayhawks exploded offensively. Combine that with limiting a prolific Arizona Wildcats offense to throughout the game, and it all added up to a 77-50 victory for the Jayhawks, their largest against a ranked opponent since 1996.

Our preview noted that both of these teams had been scoring lots of points and winning big, which I had expected to lead to a fast-paced, high-scoring game. Instead, the Jayhawks played suffocating defense throughout, and Kansas started making shots and pushing their interior advantage in the second half to pull away.

The first six minutes of the game met expectations, with both teams getting up and down the court quickly and the points coming in droves. Just four minutes into the game, the team were on pace to combine for 190 points. But when action resumed after the media timeout, the defenses showed up in a big way. Both teams struggled on shots, and with the exception of a quick flurry of points from Mia Vuksic, the scoring was sparse, leading to a six-point margin for Kansas at half.

The second half saw Kansas seize control of the game thanks to a monumental effort from Chandler Prater. She scored 12 of the 26 points for the Jayhawks in the quarter, including making all 10 of her free throw attempts. She was aggressive on the offensive end, and the entire team continued to clamp down on defense. The big difference here was that defensive pressure led to shots with rebounds that allowed for quick transitions. Kansas ended the third with a commanding 21 point lead.

And then the fourth quarter came. Just as Prater dominated the third quarter, the final period belonged to Taiyanna Jackson. She was perfect from the field in the quarter, with her activity around the rim not only making it easier for her teammates to get her the ball, but it also opened up her offensive opportunities as well. And the defensive pressure started to lead to turnovers, which helped to stretch the margin even further.

The Jayhawks had the top three scorers in the game, as both Prater and Jackson had 19 and Zakiyah Franklin scored 14, tying Arizona's Cate Reese. Holly Kersgieter scored 11 points to give the Jayhawks four players in double figures on the night.

Both Jackson and Franklin had double digit rebounds, giving them a double-double in the game. Jackson added three more blocks to her tally on the season, and Franklin had 5 assists. Prater had 3 rebounds and 3 steals.

The Jayhawks are in action next on Sunday, December 11th, as they return home to host the Wichita State Shockers. Tipoff is schedule for 2pm.

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