Kansas University women’s basketball guard Kelly Kohn had one of her best practices in weeks Monday. Finally, the lingering ankle injury seemed to be behind her.

Then she caught the flu Tuesday.

“If it weren’t for bad luck,” KU coach Bonnie Henrickson said, “Kohn wouldn’t have any luck this year.”

Not right now. But the 5-foot-9 sophomore is on her way back and could see her minutes gradually increase starting tonight when Kansas plays Iowa State at Allen Fieldhouse. Tipoff is 7 p.m., with a live telecast on Metro Sports (Sunflower Broadband channel 37).

Kohn suffered a sprained right ankle with a bone chip roughly three weeks ago. The original timetable indicated she’d be back in two to four weeks, and it seems to be a good guess.

Kohn played just four minutes against Colorado on Jan. 22, didn’t play four days later against Texas A&M and had nine minutes of post-flu action at Oklahoma on Wednesday, scoring two points in a 67-51 loss.

“I have sprained my ankle tons of times before,” said Kohn, who is completely recovered from her illness. “I thought it was going to be something I was going to bounce back from.”

But with the bone chip, it wasn’t going to be so easy.

“I could’ve recovered faster and played easier through pain with a sprain,” Kohn said. “The frustrating thing about it is the continuousness of not being able to be full-go and always feeling held back.”

Kohn’s getting there, though, and the gradual return could be a welcome sight for a team that has cracked the 60-point plateau only once in the last seven games. She’d join Danielle McCray and Nicollette Smith as KU’s top three-point threats.

But Kansas (12-8 overall, 1-6 Big 12 play) is having more personnel issues than just Kohn.

The flu bug also has hit KU’s top two scorers, McCray and Sade Morris, limiting both in practice this week. McCray played through it Wednesday and probably will again today.

Morris, meanwhile, didn’t practice Thursday or Friday and is questionable for today’s game.

“We’re hopeful that she can go,” Henrickson said, “but I don’t know how much gas she’ll have in her tank.”

¢ Emerging: Freshman point guard Chakeitha Weldon played extensively against Oklahoma on Wednesday, logging a season-high 19 minutes and picking up 10 points and three assists.

The 5-8 Weldon had played sparingly in KU’s first 19 games, but expect her minutes to stay significant going forward.

“She gives us great bounce and energy, and she’s a good defensive player on the ball,” Henrickson said. “She should get on the floor, and she needs to get on the floor and give us a little energy.”