photo by: Mike Gunnoe/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas guard S'Mya Nichols celebrates making a 3-pointer against Troy during the Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament on Thursday, March 19, 2026 in Allen Fieldhouse.

Thirty-one points, three assists and two steals; 5-for-5 shooting from 3-point range; 16-for-18 from the free-throw line.

That’s what it took from Kansas women’s basketball junior guard S’Mya Nichols to propel the Jayhawks to a 79-70 first round WBIT victory over Troy in Lawrence on Thursday night.

After three quarters of action, the Jayhawks found themselves trailing by five and with momentum sitting squarely on the visitors’ side.

But Nichols did what she’s done for head coach Brandon Schneider’s program the past three seasons: She came through when it mattered.

“We struggled to make shots in the first half in particular,” Schneider said, “and we didn’t deserve to make shots because we took some awful 3s behind the press with no paint touch. That’s not a recipe for having success, especially against a press, so the one that Libby (Fandel) made was big, it’s exactly what we want.

“S’Mya, obviously, once we broke the pressure I thought, especially in the second half, did a really good job with controlling tempo and getting us into the right stuff.”

Nichols came through by scoring 13 points for the Jayhawks in the final period to catapult Kansas into the second round with energy. Her two field goals in the half, both 3-pointers, were key moments at which she brought Allen Fieldhouse and the Jayhawks to life. Her other seven points came at the free-throw line, where she broke her own single-season record for most free throws made with 219.

For the first 30 minutes of the game, Troy was in total control. The Trojans forced 19 turnovers and held a lead as big as nine points, largely due to a tough press they threw at the Jayhawks.

“We didn’t execute — credit them because they played hard and they were very disruptive, but it was obvious we hadn’t played in a long time,” Schneider said. “We didn’t execute press offense to the level that we practice at all, and in the second half I thought we did a much better job of that and ended up creating numbers and gaining an advantage behind it.”

The Jayhawks were led in rebounding by an unlikely candidate: 5-foot-10 junior guard Laia Conesa. While Conesa is no stranger to rebounds, averaging 2.6 per game this season, Conesa finished the evening with 12, with all but one coming during the rocky first 30 minutes for Kansas and helping the Jayhawks stay within striking distance.

“I thought she really played with a lot of great energy,” Schneider said. “Found her boxouts but then did a great job of rebounding down and getting into the paint, getting into the mix and doing everything with two hands. I’m really proud of her; we needed that.”

Troy put in a quick four points early before senior forward Lilly Meister got the Jayhawks on the board with an easy bucket. The Trojans tacked onto their lead, but a Nichols 3 got Kansas back within one at 6-5.

Troy brought the physicality in the first five minutes and led the Jayhawks 13-8 just past the halfway mark. Kansas turned the ball over five times during the opening minutes of the game. Freshman forward Jaliya Davis added a layup ahead of the first media break.

The Jayhawks caught up to Troy physically to end the quarter and a flurry of free throws by Nichols knotted things up at 17-17 heading into the second.

Kansas came out of the break slow, and the Trojans capitalized. Senior guard Leilani Guion started the scoring with a 3 and added two more at the line to extend Troy’s lead. The Jayhawks responded and even took the lead for a moment on a layup by Meister, but that edge only lasted for a moment.

The Trojans reclaimed the lead just before the midway mark, and Kansas floundered again. The Jayhawks turned the ball over eight times in the second quarter, including twice at a crucial moment.

Nichols had the ball with Kansas within one and got pressed and had it taken away as she was moving up the court. After an easy layup for Troy, Nichols found herself in a similar situation with defenders bearing down and they eventually stripped the ball from her hands, leading to another bucket.

Troy took the lead and the momentum into halftime at 37-32. The Jayhawks turned the ball over 15 times in the first 20 minutes, compared to eight turnovers from the Trojans.

The third quarter saw Troy keep the tempo up, with Kansas lagging behind. The Trojans struck first and built a lead as large as nine in the first three minutes, but the Jayhawks bounced back with a bucket from sophomore forward Regan Williams and a 3 from Nichols. Troy added a 3-pointer from senior guard Rachel Leggett to keep Kansas at arm’s length, and at the midway mark of the third the Trojans held a 47-41 advantage.

Things kicked up a notch down the stretch as tension rose between the two squads. After the Jayhawks cut the deficit to four with just over a minute to go, Nichols went to the ground with senior guard Kamesha Moore, with Nichols grabbing Moore as she fell and Moore pulling on Nichols’ hair. Both players were assessed a flagrant foul and play resumed.

The Trojans had the last laugh in the third on a layup from senior forward Fortuna Ngnawo and took a 54-49 lead into the final period of play.

In the fourth, the Jayhawks finally found their rhythm. Davis got things started with a layup and jumper to bring Kansas back within one but Troy responded with two from the free throw line. That set the stage for Fandel, who drained a corner 3 and tied things up at 56-56. The 3-pointer was Fandel’s first since KU took on Cincinnati back on Feb. 7 and broke an 0-for-9 streak for the Iowa product.

Kansas would reclaim the lead on a free throw by Davis and added another two after Troy head coach Chanda Rigby was assessed a technical foul for arguing with officials. The Jayhawks’ 10-0 run finally ended when Guion nailed a shot from downtown, but Nichols returned the favor on the next play to keep the Kansas lead at seven.

That lead kept growing. Nichols added another 3, and received a technical foul on the ensuing celebration, and junior guard Brittany Harshaw sank one from deep as the Jayhawks were able to hold the lead down the stretch and take home a 79-70 victory.

Kansas will stay in Lawrence and host its second-round matchup with Rice on Sunday evening. The Owls had only one loss in regular season conference play and took down Louisiana Tech in their first-round matchup on Thursday night. Sunday’s game is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at Allen Fieldhouse.

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