A Division I career-high 24 points from graduate guard Jaila Harding wasn’t enough for Wichita State women’s basketball to take down Tulsa Tuesday evening.
The Shockers got off to a hot start during their rematch with the Golden Hurricane, and Harding drained six 3-pointers. But they couldn’t make enough stops late in the game and took a 75-65 loss at Koch Arena.
WSU’s record fell to 5-18 overall and 2-8 in the American Conference, dropping the Shockers to the bottom of the league standings with eight games left in the regular season. They also dropped their third-consecutive game to Tulsa (16-6, 8-2 American).
“Coach talked to us as we were in the locker room (about how) this is the last chance for a lot of us,” Harding said. “We don’t get another year after this. So, I think towards the end of the games, we have to be more locked in and dialed in. We have to be the team that’s more aggressive. We have to be the team that’s executing and getting stops.”
Harding began WSU’s strong start, and her 24-point performance, with back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Shockers a three-point lead in the first quarter, 9-6. She moved her way into solo-third place in program history and is now eight threes away from a share of WSU’s record.
“It means the world to me. I grew up here in Wichita, so of course, it’s special,” Harding said. “I’ve always worked on my 3-point shot since I was young, so to even be towards the top of the list is just exciting.”
The Shockers’ offense hummed the rest of the opening period, making all six of their last field goals and held a 23-16 lead.
“We had the chance to either go end the first quarter up nine, or you can go up double digits if you take the last shot,” WSU coach Terry Nooner said. “We tried to attack too early, had a turnover, and then they scored right at the buzzer. So, it goes from nine to six, and I think they got a lot of momentum from that play.”
Momentum is what the Golden Hurricane got, as they started the second quarter on an 8-0 run to retake the lead, 24-23. Tulsa outscored WSU 21-8 in the period and put the Shockers in a 37-31 hole at halftime.
After shooting 60% from the field in the first quarter, WSU’s offense went cold, shooting only 24% in the second.
“They kind of mixed stuff up. We was still getting shots,” Nooner said. “They started mixing up between (man-to-man defense) and the zone, and I think we weren’t able to play as much in transition as we was in the first quarter.”
The Shockers made halftime adjustments, and a 7-0 run brought them to within two points that was capped off by another Harding three midway through the third quarter, 44-42. Tulsa responded with a 5-0 run of its own and took control.
The teams played evenly in the third, both scoring 20 points. Going into the fourth, the Shockers trailed 57-51.
With less than five minutes to play, Tulsa remained in control and pushed its lead to the decisive double digits, 66-56. Harding’s final three gave her a career-high and briefly trimmed WSU’s deficit to six, 69-63.
The Shockers were able to get the Golden Hurricane’s lead down to six points twice down the stretch but could not halt their offense as they made eight of their last 11 shots.
“We got to be able to guard the ball in crunch time and get a stop,” Nooner said. “That’s about heart, and that’s about toughness. And they had it down the stretch, and we didn’t.”
After the game, Tulsa huddled at midcourt and celebrated on the WuShock logo.
“We definitely need to take that personal,” Harding said. “That will be talked about for sure when we have our next practice. But like I said, protecting home court has got to be more important to us.”
Next up, the Shockers will travel to play Charlotte on Saturday at 3 p.m.
Box score breakdown
WSU — 23; 8; 20; 14 — 65
Tulsa — 16; 21; 20; 18 — 75
Shooting totals (fg-3p-ft)
WSU (44% – 44% – 55%)
Tulsa (49% – 35% – 86%)
Leaders
Points — WSU: Jaila Harding (24), Bre’Yon White (12), Jaida McDonald (8). Tulsa: Hannah Riddick (27), Mady Cartwright (21), Jade Clack (11).
Rebounds — WSU: Treasure Thompson (7), Jaila Harding (6). Tulsa: Hannah Riddick (6), Jade Clack (6).
Assists — WSU: Taya Davis (11), Jaila Harding (2). Tulsa: Mady Cartwright (7), Hannah Riddick (2), Alisha Peavy (2).
