photo by: Kahner Sampson/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas players Laia Conesa, left, and Danai Papadopoulou, center, help up teammate Sania Copeland after she drew a key offensive foul during the game against Penn State on Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Lawrence.

Following a season-best game in which she dropped 17 points against Kansas City, Kansas guard Sania Copeland answered the call when her team needed her most, hitting three corner 3s in a tight fourth quarter to allow the Jayhawks to just edge out Penn State with a 68-65 comeback victory on Sunday afternoon

Head coach Brandon Schneider had made a plea after last game to boost attendance at Kansas’ final nonconference game, and while the numbers weren’t exactly what he wished for them to be, the 3,275-person crowd stepped up big during crunch time.

“The fans were electric,” Nichols said. “We loved them and we really needed them in that fourth quarter, and they came through… It was loud, we couldn’t even hear our play calls.”

“I don’t think we win without them,” Schneider said. “I think our team made some plays that really energized the crowd and that helped us. They played a big role, and we’re super grateful. This is a special, special building to compete in and play in, and, you know, it’s crowds like this that provide a big boost when things aren’t going your way.”

Copeland was offensively aided by teammates Nichols and Elle Evans who scored 26 and 13 points, respectively. Brittany Harshaw, who returned from a month-long injured stint last week, played limited minutes, while Wyvette Mayberry wasn’t present in Allen Fieldhouse for the second consecutive game.

After her first game in nearly a month where she didn’t finish as the top scorer, Nichols was determined to get back in the driver’s seat, as she scored Kansas’ first seven points before an old-fashioned three-point play from Evans got the Jayhawks a 12-9 lead. Penn State’s Moriah Murray tied things up with a 3 at the other end to reach eight points in the first quarter. Regan Williams grabbed her first four points of the night on back-to-back possessions to get the Jayhawks an 18-14 lead after 10 minutes of play.

The Nittany Lions settled into a groove in the second, completely dominating with center Gracie Merkle down low as she opened things up with a three-point play. Williams and Evans kept Kansas afloat during an abysmal offensive quarter while it had no answer for Merkle or Alli Campbell on the outside on defense. Merkle and Campbell combined for 12 of Penn State’s 15 points while Williams and Evans combined for eight of Kansas’ 10 points to head into halftime down 29-28.

After a less-than-ideal conclusion to the first half, the Jayhawks came back with what was probably their worst two-minute stretch of the season. Three turnovers, three missed shots, and two fouls on Kansas’ end allowed Penn State to open the half with a seven-point run as the Nittany Lion full-court press stifled the Jayhawks. Nichols finally stopped the bleeding with a point from the charity stripe before driving for a layup to make it 36-31. Carla Osma’s first 3-pointer of the day made it a two-point game before an 11-2 run got Kansas into its largest deficit of the night at 47-36.

But after a disastrous start to the period, the Jayhawks closed out well with four consecutive free-throws before an intentional foul on Penn State led to another two points and possession, and a Nichols jumper brought Kansas into the fourth quarter, despite facing foul trouble for its bigs and a dominant performance by Merkle, with only a 51-47 deficit.

“One thing that stands out before we even got into this game is our ability to adapt,” Nichols said. “No matter who’s in foul trouble, we always have a plan for something and we’ve always worked on something in practice to help us succeed in the game. So we weren’t, like, dreading that there was foul trouble, especially in the big position, because we know how to adjust.”

“(Merkle) was getting way too deep,” Schneider said. “Some of it is credit to her and her strength and ability to get deep in that position… but I thought that we weren’t providing enough resistance. And that’s where I thought Danai (Papadopoulou) really did a good job, particularly in the fourth quarter.”

Kansas came out with some double-teams of Merkle down low, which Penn State’s Campbell benefited from as she rolled out as a trap-breaker and knocked down a couple of jumpers. The Jayhawks responded as Nichols found her long-time teammate Copeland alone in the corner as she drew in the defense and kicked it out for Copeland’s first 3-pointer of the game. A small four-point run put the Nittany Lions up 59-52 and forced Schneider’s first timeout of the quarter. The Jayhawks came out of the timeout inbounding on their own side of the floor, as Copeland inbounded to Nichols, dropped to the quarter and Nichols once again caused the defense to collapse before getting it to Copeland for another corner 3 to make it a two-score game.

“It’s a type of bond that’s unmatched,” Copeland said of her relationship Nichols, who had assists on two of her fourth-quarter 3s. “We always know where each other is, so I think consciously we’re just like connected at some point.”

A sloppy turnover and foul on the other end put Penn State back up six before Laia Conesa sank a jumper in transition to kick off a six-point Kansas run that tied things up and forced a timeout.

Out of the break, Copeland grabbed her fourth steal of the game and had an opportunity with Conesa on the fast break, but a pass that was too powerful went out of bounds to give possession back to Penn State, which took the lead on yet another Campbell jumper on the roll off of Merkle. But Copeland quickly made up for this, as Nichols once again forced a defensive collapse as she drove to the paint before kicking it out to Conesa on the wing, who made the extra pass to Copeland, who sunk her third corner 3 of the quarter to give the Jayhawks their first lead of the half, 64-63 with 36 seconds to play.

“Well, we drew up an opportunity for S’Mya to be aggressive,” Schneider said. “And, you know, she drew two, and then just made the right play, did a terrific job. And then we made an additional pass, and then Cope was shot-ready in the corner. And made a huge, a huge shot.”

After a Penn State timeout, Evans tipped a pass headed to Merkle for a KU steal and Schneider called timeout to avoid a jump ball and advance the ball.

From here, the Jayhawks immediately inbounded to their free-throw leader in Nichols, who sunk both foul shots to make it 66-63. A missed 3 and block by Copeland got the ball in Merkle’s hands, and she hit a layup to make it a one-point game with two seconds on the clock. Nichols was once fouled on the inbound after a timeout by Schneider, and sank both shots to make it a three-point game once again.

The final Penn State inbound was lobbed down the floor to no one in particular, and with a lucky bounce that hit off the backboard, time expired as Kansas clinched the fourth-quarter comeback victory 68-65.

Sunday’s win moves KU to 10-1 on the season and counts as its 15th consecutive home win. The Jayhawks will look to continue to extend that streak on Saturday as they start conference play against a gritty Baylor team that they knocked off early in conference play last season.

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