Zahna Medley scored 21 points in her last home game as a Horned Frog, but it was her 3rd point that she’ll remember most.
With that point, scored on a free-throw in the first quarter, Medley surpassed Horned Frog legend Sandora Irvin as the all-time leading scorer in TCU women’s basketball history. Irvin’s mark of 1,892 points had stood since 2005.
Of course, her other 20 points on the day were rather important, too.
Medley and fellow senior Caitlin Diaz pulled the Frogs out of a terrible offensive slump in the first quarter to come back and beat the Kansas Jayhawks 55-52 on Monday night in Schollmaier Arena.
The seniors gathered at half-court for a postgame ceremony and went to celebrate with friends and family afterwards, a reward that head coach Raegan Pebley said was well-deserved.
“These seniors have really committed a lot, and they’ve showed so much toughness and resiliency,” Pebley said. “Going through conference changes, coaching changes…they just kept getting back up.”
The Frogs were forced to get back up once again in this game, as they trailed for the vast majority of the first three quarters. They faced a 38-37 deficit heading into the fourth quarter, but a Medley 3-pointer, the 307th of her career (also a Horned Frog record), gave the TCU the lead for good.
It was an intense game all the way until the final whistle, as several TCU turnovers down the stretch and some clutch shooting from the Jayhawks made it a one-point game with 11 seconds left.
Lauren Aldridge headed to the line with a chance to convert a three-point play, but missed her free throw, and after an offensive rebound, Chayla Cheadle missed two more.
Medley closed out the game with two shots from the line. The senior, clutch until the very end, was 10-10 from the charity stripe on the night, with six of those coming in the waning moments as Kansas stopped to foul the clock.
Pebley said the performance was typical for Medley, who “didn’t even want to have to wave” when it was announced that she broke Irvin’s record.
“Records are made to be broken, and Zahna’s done such a tremendous job representing TCU,” Pebley said.
Diaz also represented the purple and white well in her last game at Schollmaier. The senior forward put up 14 points and 7 rebounds, and was 5-10 from the floor.
TCU as a team shot poorly, hitting just 32% of their attempts. However, the Jayhawks weren’t much better, as they shot 33% from the field and 54% from the free-throw line, a mark that turned out to be the difference-maker.
The first half was a defensive slugfest, with each team playing tough and physical down low. The Frogs shot just 21% in the first half, and missed several chances close to the rim.
TCU went nearly 8 full minutes without a made basket in the first quarter. After Medley’s record-tying bucket with 8:33 left, TCU missed 8 straight shots before Jada Butts hit a layup with 48 seconds remaining in the quarter. The Jayhawks held a 11-6 lead after the opening period.
“I don’t think the offense ever really got rolling,” Pebley said. “We’re a team that averages like 70-something points, and we were so far from that today.”
Luckily, TCU’s defense just happened to be throwing a block party right in front of Kansas’s goal. Carol Willie had 4 blocks in the first half alone, and the Frogs were able to limit the Jayhawks to 2 points in the paint on 23% shooting from the field in the first half.
KU found their stroke from outside, however, hitting three 3-pointers in the first half, which enabled the Jayhawks to take a 19-18 into the break.
The win moved TCU to 16-13 (8-10 Big 12) on the year. Kansas fell to 5-24 and finished without a win in conference play.
The Frogs will turn around and play Kansas again in the first round of the Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championships in Oklahoma City on Friday, March 4. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m.
