LAWRENCE, Kan. — For the first time in program history, the Gaels traveled out to Lawrence, Kansas to take on the unbeaten Jayhawks. Saint Mary's was greeted to over 4 inches of snow on game day, but both offenses were hot inside the Allen Fieldhouse. A seesaw affair saw one final tilt towards Kansas as the Jayhawks survived a scare from the Gaels and won by a final of 86-81. 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 

• Quarter 1 | The Gaels got out to a strong start after falling behind 5-2 after a pair of early buckets made by the Jayhawks. Over the next three minutes of play, Saint Mary's went onto a 12-0 run, starting with an equalizing three from Sam Simons that tied it at 5-5 with 7:44 remaining. The next four buckets all went in for the Gaels, with Emily Codding hitting a pair, and Claire Ferguson hitting another, and Taycee Wedin knocking one down from distance, and suddenly the Gaels led 14-5 halfway through the opening stanza. The big lead was short-lived, however, as Kansas found its rhythm late in the first quarter, closing it on an 8-0 and tying the game at 19-19 when the first quarter horn sounded.
• Quarter 2 | Codding notched double-figures early in the game with her first basket of the second quarter, which gave the Gaels a 21-19 advantage, while ending the run from Kansas at the end of the first. But as was the case in the first quarter, the second quarter was defined by a long run, this time from Kansas. Once Saint Mary's went up 24-23 on a layup from Ferguson, the Jayhawks went on a 15-4 run over 5:30 to pull out to a 38-28 advantage. The Gaels were able to get some momentum back before the end of the half, capping off back-to-back scoring possessions with a Simons jump shot, but Saint Mary's still trailed 41-34 at the intermission.
• Quarter 3 | Simons got the second half started successfully with Simons going down low and fighting off her defender for a tough layup, trimming the deficit to five. The Gaels defense shined early, holding the Jayhawks to just 2-9 shooting early, and this allowed Saint Mary's to climb back from down ten in the second quarter. Madeline Holland gave the Gaels their first lead of the second half at 45-44 with 5:31 remaining. The back-and-forth affair in the third continued, with the Jayhawks and Gaels trading buckets but pulling ahead by as many as seven with 1:21 remaining. A late layup by Codding made it 58-55 Kansas before the start of the fourth quarter.
• Quarter 4 | It became clear early in the fourth that Codding was determined to take over for the Gaels, knocking down a three early in the quarter that made it 61-60. The three-pointer gave her 22 at the time, a new career-best. She wasn't done there, knocking down another shot from beyond the arc to put the Gaels up 67-66 with 5:30 remaining. Wedin got involved with the hot shooting from distance as she gave the Gaels an 8-0 run from a three-pointer and then it became a 70-68 advantage. In the final minute, Kansas tied the game at 79-79 and got a huge three from Aniya Thomas to put the Jayhawks up 82-79. The Gaels had possessions to try and tie the game but a few costly turnovers ended any chance at drawing even again.

 
NUMBERS TO KNOW
 

• 0: The number of three-pointers Saint Mary's took in the second quarter, the first time this year they have not taken a shot from distance in a quarter.
• 27: The new career-best for Codding, who went 12-16 from the floor. She also added 12 rebounds, three assists, three blocks, and a steal.
• 12: The rebound margin in favor of the Gaels, who won the battle against a Jayhawks team that didn't have the best post depth.
• 17: Free throws made by Kansas, versus just seven for the Gaels.

 
COMING UP
 
The Gaels will push out a little further away from home on this road trip as they participate in the UCF Tournament on December 20-21, first taking on the hosts, UCF, on December 20 at 11:30 A.M. PST.
 
#GaelsRise – For ticket information to all home basketball games, call the SMC Ticket Office today at 925-631-4689 or click the ticket link here to purchase your seats now.