Krysten Boogaard, second from left, and Aishah Sutherland, right, lead a dance performance by the KU women's basketball team during Late Night.

It was her second Late Night, but freshman guard Angel Goodrich hopes what follows this year’s Late Night scrimmage in the Phog will play out a little better than it did last year.

She was forced to sit out all of last season as a medical red shirt due to an ACL injury.

Despite the nerves that come with running through the fieldhouse tunnel, Goodrich was anxious to get back in front of the Jayhawk faithful on Friday night.

“It felt great to step on to the court and finally getting to run up and down,” Goodrich said.

“It was a joy getting to see all the fans all together. It was a great feeling.”

Kansas coach Bonnie Henrickson was just as excited for Goodrich’s return, but acknowledged there was still work that needed to be done.

“She wasn’t as aggressive as I hoped she’d be … but it’s good for her to get back and for the crowd to see her again,” Henrickson said.

As for the scrimmage, Henrickson agreed that while it’s hard to get in a rhythm with just five minutes, she would have liked to have seen more shots fall.

“Some years we dance better than we play, and I think we might have danced a little bit better than we played tonight,” Henrickson said.

If nothing else, Goodrich already has one victory under her belt — her dance squad came away with the win in the women’s team’s American Idol skit.

Her group won the fans’ approval, judged by applause, with its routine to M.C. Hammer’s “U Can’t Touch This,” complete with shiny gold outfits and hammer pants.

That beat out the other groups’ performances to Beyonce’s “Single Ladies,” led by Sade Morris in a long blonde wig, and Danielle McCray’s flock of zombies, dancing to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.”

If things go as planned, that dance floor camaraderie will translate to the basketball court, and Goodrich aims to be ready next time she runs through the tunnel.

“Late Night’s a great night to have fun, but now it’s the beginning of the season so we’ve got to come in and work on everything in practice — just work hard every day.”