WBB vs Kansas: Lost momentum and the lead in the fourth quarter, only 5 points in overtime

Opponent: 8-seed Kansas (20-12, 11-7 Big 12)

NCAA Tournament Round of 64

Result: Loss, 81-72

Record: 9-seed, 20-14, 9-9 B1G, end of season

Date:  3/23, neutral site (USC)

Starters: Laila Phelia, Lauren Hansen, Jordan Hobbs, Cameron Williams, Elissa Brett 

• Cam starting over Evans to potentially match up better with the size of Taiyanna Jackson

Injuries/inactives: 

• Sollom, Crockett, Brown, Taylor Williams, and Kampschroeder all dressed but did not play
  • During one of her interviews this week, KBA said Taylor Williams has been “unavailable for the last little bit”, but did not specify a reason

1st quarter:

• Cam Williams intercepted a ball in transition that was meant for Jackson down low
• Phelia got Michigan’s first points at the end of the shot clock by getting to the free throw line and elevating for a basket that bounced around the rim before falling
• Brett drew Michigan level at 5 with an open corner three when Hansen made the extra pass
• Cam Williams got three shots against Jackson, but missed all three and went to the bench. On Evans’ first attempt, she couldn’t get a shot up and traveled
  • Phelia got out in transition on the next possession and drew a blocking foul on Jackson, then sank both free throws to tie it again. Jackson went to the bench for two minutes
• Evans found Brett cutting to the hoop for what would have been a nice assist, but Brett missed. Evans got the offensive rebound and laid it in
• Taiyanna Jackson almost had a steal when she deflected a long inbounds pass, but the ball went out of bounds
• A low-scoring first quarter saw both teams playing tight defense and forcing difficult shots. Michigan held a one point lead thanks to 6 points from Phelia

2nd quarter: 

• Kansas hit a three to open the quarter, but Hansen answered with one of her own coming off a screen
• S’Mya Nichols scored her first points on a curling drive towards the baseline. She drew contact from Phelia and finished the three point play
  • Nichols committed her second foul by making contact with Woodson as she brought the ball up the floor and went to the bench
• Michigan forced a shot clock violation when Hansen jumped on the ball to cause chaos. Michigan never gained full possession, but avoided the jump ball until the clock ran out
• Cam Williams started 0-5, but finally drew a foul down low and hit both free throws
• Jackson got her second foul during an inbounds when Cam Williams ran into her. Michigan went to Williams again on the ensuing inbounds and sank her first shot of the day
• Evans hit a nifty reverse layup when she received the ball on the opposite side of the basket, took one dribble to cross under the basket, and used the rim to cover her shot
• Kansas shot 5-7 before the media timeout to take a 4 point lead, but Hobbs got Michigan back within 1 with a  high arcing three. On the next possession, Michigan took the lead thanks to an Elissa Brett three
• Phelia committed her second foul defending a Kansa player outside the three point line, but stayed on the floor until the last minute of the half
• Kansas pulled down an offensive rebound to get the last shot of the half, but lost it when Papadopolou set an illegal pick, giving Kansas’ backup big 3 fouls
• Kansas started strong in the second quarter, going up by as much as 6, but Michigan finished on a 14-5 run to take a three point lead into the break. Michigan also caused foul trouble for Kansas in this quarter, sending both Nichols and Jackson to the bench for the last five minutes of the half.

3rd quarter: 

• Jackson and Nichols both came back on the floor to start the second half
• Hansen hit a three from the top of the key to start the half and take a 6 point lead
• Kansas jumped a long pass to create a turnover, but Hobbs got it back by drawing a charge on the attempted layup
• Brett tried to hang a third foul on Nichols by getting in front of a drive, but it was called a block
  • A couple possessions later, Brett tried again and drew the charge, but Nichols stayed on the floor
• Cam Williams hit two short jumpers over Jackson to help Michigan maintain their lead
• After Michigan missed three straight attempts from deep, Cam Williams tracked down the offensive rebound in the corner and got it out to Hansen at the top of the key. After a few passes, Cam received the ball down low from Evans and hit the layup
  • On the next possession Evans hit her signature 1 three-pointer of the game from the corner. She is averaging just over 1 attempt per game from deep this season and has hit 9 of them
• With a minute left in the quarter, Michigan was up 7 and Ryan Cobbins drove at Evans and hit a bucket. The whistle blew and it looked like it would be a three point play until the ref punched the other way for a charge
• Phelia hit a floater over Jackson’s outstretched hand to take a 9 point lead into the fourth quarter
• Michigan’s offense matched their second quarter effort with 21 points behind red hot shooting from Cam Williams and held Kansas to just 15 points

4th quarter: 

• Hansen scored Michigan’s first points of the quarter by getting out in transition and driving along the baseline for a layup
• Cam Williams committed two fouls in the first three minutes of the fourth quarter and went to the bench with four fouls
• Evans received the ball in the post and rotated to the open side of the basket for a layup that put Michigan up 10 points with six minutes left
• Kansas went on a 6-0 run to cut the lead to four points, but Phelia took the ball and drove into the lane through traffic to regain a six point lead
• When Kansas hit a three to cut the lead to three points, Brett answered with a three of her own when both she and Evans were left unattended at the top of the key
• Brett committed her fourth foul when Jackson pulled down an offensive rebound and went back up. With two and a half minutes left, Brett stayed on the floor and was joined by Cam Williams
• KBA took a timeout and drew up a play that saw Phelia drive into an open lane to make it a five point lead. Kansas brought the ball across half court and took a time out of their own
• Jackson hit a quick bucket down low and Kansas went to a full court press on the inbounds, delaying Phelia and almost forcing a backcourt violation. Kansas’ pressure paid off when Phelia failed to get a shot off before the shot clock ran out to send the ball the other way with just over a minute left and the lead at three points
  • On the following possession, Brett drew a charge on Nichols to get the ball back and give Nichols her fourth foul
• Phelia held the ball to bleed the clock and did draw an off ball foul to put some extra time on the shot clock. However, she again committed a shot clock violation after an airball and gave Kansas the ball back with 17 seconds left
  • Kansas wasted no time when Franklin hit a three with 12 seconds left
  • Michigan called timeout so KBA could set up the last shot of the game
• Hansen missed a three at the buzzer to send it to overtime
• Kansas put together their best offensive quarter to tie the game after going down 10 with six minutes left. Kansas finished the game by outsourcing Michigan 19-10

Overtime:

• Kansas took the lead on a long outlet pass to Jackson for a layup
• Cam Williams fouled out on an entry pass to Jackson with three and a half minutes left
• After Michigan fell down by 5, Hansen hit Michigan’s first shot of overtime to cut it to three
• Jackson created a turnover when she disrupted a pass intended for Evans. The ref gave the ball to Michigan, but on review it was ruled the Evans touched it last and the ball went to Kansas with a 5 point lead and two minutes left
• Kansas missed a quick three to give the ball back, but Phelia couldn’t hit the shot on her drive
• Down 6, Brett missed a three, but Phelia rebounded it under the hoop and got it to Hansen in the corner who hit her attempt from deep
• After Kansas missed their first shot, Jackson pulled down an offensive rebound and got it to Nichols who drove, hit the shot, drew the foul on Evans, and completed the three point play to make it a 6 point lead again
  • This was Evans’ fifth foul as well
• Michigan lost the inbounds and fouled Kansas to finish the game

Notable stats:

• Cam Williams had 18 points on 7-14 shooting before fouling out in overtime
• Phelia had 16 points on 6-14 shooting and 4-6 from the free throw line
• Four Kansas players finished with 14 points or more, led by Zakiyah Franklin with 22

Overall: 

• Michigan looked ready to run away with the game in the fourth quarter, but Cam Williams got called for two quick fouls and took Michigan’s momentum with her to the bench. Michigan only managed 10 points after that, including three misses in the last minute and fifteen seconds, any of which could have won the game. 

Up next:

• KBA has set a new standard at Michigan with six straight NCAA tournament appearances, but will need to have a great offseason to improve on that excellence.
• Thankfully Taylor Williams and Cam Williams both have their Covid years available and hopefully both stay, but we’ll see. If they do, Michigan will return a ton of depth, including their leading scorer (Phelia), senior Jordan Hobbs, and junior Chyra Evans. Improvement from any combination of Kampschroeder, Crockett, Brown, or Woodson would be appreciated
• Best incoming class of KBA’s career: Syla Swords, Olivia Olson, Te’Yala Delfosse, Aaiyana Dunbar, and Mila Holloway
• Also, we probably have a while to wait, but be on the lookout for verbal commits in the class of 2025, as those should come in before the next season starts in November. For reference, in the 2024 class, Olson’s commit came first in September ‘22, Swords in May ‘23, then the last 3 all in September ‘23.