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Kansas Women's Basketball vs. Colorado

For the first nine games of Big 12 Conference play the dominant Danielle McCray that terrorized nonconference opponents with her dynamic play remained a distant memory. The sophomore guards’ points per game and shooting percentages both dropped off as the Jayhawks struggled to replicate the form that gave them 11 victories in their first 13 games.

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Kansas Women's Basketball vs. Colorado

Turns out the old McCray didn’t disappear, she was just waiting for the right time to emerge. Wednesday night against Colorado, McCray poured in 24 points and ripped down 10 rebounds to lead Kansas to its third conference victory.

“McCray was the best I’ve seen her all year,” Colorado coach Kathy McConnell-Miller said. “She was just really effective. Her line looks good, obviously you do not want five turnovers, but everything else was solid. She was a difference maker tonight.”

Much of McCray’s offensive success can be credited to her ability to get inside and draw contact. Since the conference season began the talented sophomore hadn’t surpassed four foul shots in a single game. Against the Buffaloes she was 8-11 from the charity stripe.

McCray found her touch from the field as well. Her seven field goals are the most she’s made in conference play and only one less than her season high. She said she tried to be more aggressive and take on more of the offensive load.

“When I went in, I just tried to be aggressive and tried to draw the contact as well as finish it,” McCray said.

With McCray drawing the defenses focus, freshman center Krysten Boogaard and junior guard Ivana Catic found more room to operate. Boogaard finished with 16 points and eight rebounds while Catic added 10 points and four assists.

Catic said having a confident and aggressive McCray made the whole team better and made her own job distributing the ball easier.

“That’s as good as it gets,” Catic said. “You know there’s somebody who knows how to read a screen and come off of it. It’s really good. I don’t have to think about much except for getting her the ball.”

Coach Bonnie Henrickson said she thought McCray’s energy was a catalyst for her team’s play. In addition to her double-double, McCray contributed four assists, three blocks and three steals. Henrickson said both she and assistant coach Kyra Elzy saw the performance coming based on McCray’s intensity and focus in practice.

“She was more aggressive off the dribble, off the catch, to the boards and she was able to get the free-throw line tonight,” Henrickson said. “She was able to manufacture some points at the free-throw line tonight. We really fed off of her and tonight she was more aggressive and more vocal.”

—Edited by Jared Duncan