WICHITA, Kan. – Olivia Hamlin and Sydney Benally combined for 38 points as BYU rallied past Kansas 70-67 Monday afternoon at Charles Koch Arena to punch its ticket to the WBIT Championship game.
In a game that BYU trailed by five with 10 minutes to go, the Cougars flipped the script in the fourth, outscoring Kansas 24-16 to turn the five-point deficit into a three-point win. BYU controlled the glass, outrebounding the Jayhawks 37-33, and created separation with a 13-2 run down the stretch.
Hamlin led all scorers with 23 points, knocking down four 3-pointers while shooting 8-of-12 from the field. The freshman sparked BYU’s fourth-quarter surge, scoring in transition and from deep to help shift momentum. Hamlin also finished with an assist, a block and a rebound.
With the win, the Cougars have now won four postseason games in the same season for the first time in program history and will play for their first postseason tournament championship on Wednesday.
Benally added 15 points with four made triples, delivering key shots late, including back-to-back threes that pushed BYU’s lead to 63-56 with 3:49 remaining.
Delaney Gibb finished with 12 points, seven rebounds and six assists, facilitating the offense down the stretch and scoring a key basket to extend the lead in the final minute.
Lara Rohkohl anchored the paint with nine points, a game-high 14 rebounds and six blocks in the win. Bolanle Yussuf added six points, two rebounds and two steals off the bench in the win.
First Quarter
Kansas opened on an 8-0 run before Gibb got BYU on the board with a driving floater. Early blocks from Rohkohl and Hamlin helped BYU settle in defensively as Kansas led 8-2 at the 4:48 media timeout.
The Cougars answered with a 9-0 run behind back-to-back buckets from Yussuf and a 3-pointer from Benally to take an 11-10 lead. Kansas responded at the line, but Gibb knocked down a step-back 3 to put BYU back in front. The teams traded baskets late, with Rohkohl converting at the line before Kansas evened the score at 15-15 heading into the second quarter, marking the first time this season BYU entered the second tied.
Second Quarter
BYU and Kansas traded baskets early in the quarter, with a pull-up jumper opening the scoring for the Cougars. Rohkohl provided a spark inside with an offensive putback and a finish on the block, off a feed from Gibb, to keep BYU within one possession.
The Cougars stayed within striking distance behind free throws and a 3-pointer before Benally tied the game at 28 with a pull-up jumper with 2:01 remaining in the half. Kansas answered with a late push, using an and-one and a jumper to take a 31-28 lead into halftime.
Third Quarter
BYU opened the half with a bucket off a turnover, as Gibb found Rohkohl to cut into the deficit. The Cougars briefly took the lead behind a jumper from Cannon and a corner 3 from Hamlin, but Kansas answered each time as the teams traded baskets throughout the quarter.
Hamlin knocked down another 3 to tie the game at 38, marking her 15th game with three or more made triples, and Benally later gave BYU a 41-40 lead with a corner 3 off a pass from Gibb. After a back-and-forth stretch, BYU led 44-42 at the 4:20 media timeout.
The Jayhawks closed the quarter on a strong run at the free throw line to take a 51-46 lead into the fourth.
Fourth Quarter
Gibb opened the quarter with a driving finish and added two free throws to pull BYU within one before Olivia Hamlin took over. Hamlin went coast-to-coast to give the Cougars the lead and followed with a 3-pointer off a turnover to push BYU ahead 54-51.
After Kansas briefly regained momentum, Hamlin knocked down another 3 to put BYU back in front, and Gibb found Benally for back-to-back triples to extend the lead to 63-56 with 3:49 remaining.
BYU used a 13-2 run to create separation, capped by a layup from Gibb to make it 67-58 with under a minute left. The Cougars held off a late Kansas push at the line, sealing a 70-67 win to advance.
Up Next
The 26-11 BYU Cougars will take on the 4-seed Columbia in the WBIT Championship game on Wednesday at 5 p.m. MT. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2, with Krista Blunk and Tabitha Turner on the call. Jason Shepherd will have radio play-by-play on BYU Radio 107.9, byuradio.org and the BYU Radio App.