LUBBOCK, Texas – Senior Bailey Maupin scored 18 and senior Jada Malone added 15 points as the Kansas State Wildcats defeated the No. 17 Texas Tech Lady Raiders, 65-59, on Saturday afternoon at the United Supermarkets Arena.
Texas Tech (19-1, 6-1 Big 12) was led in scoring for the 10th time this season by Maupin, who made a career-high tying four three-pointers in the game. She also posted three assists and two steals against Kansas State (10-9, 3-3 Big 12). Malone shot 5-for-8 from the field (.625) for 15 points to tally her seventh double-figure scoring game of the year. The Lady Raiders forced 18 Kansas State turnovers and shot 45.0 percent from behind the arc (9-for-20).
Th game started back-and-forth as K-State hit a three on its first possession. Maupin answered right back with one of her own before the Wildcats scored a jumper. Sarengbe Sanogo made a layup to tie things at 5-all. Kansas State went ahead 7-5 on a layup, but Denae Fritz made a 3-pointer to retake the lead. Halfway through the quarter, Tech went on a 4-0 run to make it 12-10 but the Wildcats scored the next six points. The Lady Raiders ended the quarter on a 5-0 run thanks to free throws from Maupin and a 3-pointer from Fritz for the 17-16 advantage.
The Lady Raiders kept their run going, getting a three from Snudda Collins to open the second quarter. Both teams went scoreless after that until K-State got a three at the 7:13 mark. The Wildcats would follow it up scoring four of the next six points for the 23-22 lead heading into the media timeout. The Lady Raiders tied it at 23-23 with a Jalynn Bristow free throw, but K-State went on a 5-0 afterwards to force a Tech timeout. Malone connected with two free throws to close the period as Kansas State led, 30-25.
Sanogo opened the second half with a tough layup, but K-State got an offensive rebound on a missed free throw and connected with a three. Maupin would hit back-to-back triples for the Lady Raiders, then Sanogo got a monster block as Kansas State led 37-35 with 5:10 left. Malone made two more free throws to cut the Tech deficit to two, but K-State got three points on an and-one opportunity. The Lady Raiders followed this with a 7-0 run, all scored by Malone, then a block at the last second from Collins on a potential fastbreak layup as Tech led 44-42 after three.
Collins nailed a 3-pointer at the beginning of the final quarter, getting fouled on the shot and adding a free throw from it. K-State scored its first field goal at the 6:46 mark with a triple. Malone added a second-chance layup in response, but the Wildcats made one right after. Malone once again scored a jumper, however, Kansas State nailed a three to make it 52-50 with 5:18 left in the game. The Wildcats made a three out of the timeout to retake the lead at 53-52. Both teams traded points, with Tech getting a triple from Collins for the 58-57 advantage. But, K-State made a layup and some free throws to close out the game and hand Tech its first loss of the season, 65-59.
Up next, the Lady Raiders head to Provo, Utah to take on the BYU Cougars Jan. 21 at 7 p.m. MST.