LAWRENCE — This year’s Late Night in the Phog event allowed Kansas women’s basketball to showcase its roster for the upcoming 2025-26 season on Friday, Oct. 17, through a scrimmage and more.
Here are a few takeaways from what Jayhawks coach Brandon Schneider saw during the event inside Allen Fieldhouse.
Kansas women’s basketball is a cohesive unit
Although the event itself is just a quick snapshot of where the program’s at, Schneider outlined he hopes it’s something that allowed the chemistry his group has to shine through. It’s clear, from Schneider’s perspective, how much his players like each other. That was evident during the scrimmage.
Kansas, as a program, is coming off a 16-14 overall record that saw it miss out on the NCAA tournament. Its time during this past season’s Big 12 Conference tournament didn’t last all that long, either. Expectations are much higher for this group this upcoming season, both in the Big 12 and nationally, given the return of junior guard S’Mya Nichols and the noteworthy freshman class.
Elle Evans’ 3-point shooting stands out
Senior guard Elle Evans finished the night with 11 points for the Crimson team, which won 24-22 against the Blue team. She hit all four of her shots, including going 3-for-3 from behind the arc. She led all scorers during the scrimmage.
Schneider, though, didn’t come across as surprised in the least. He pointed out how well Evans, who shot 42.1% from behind the arc last season, has shot 3s in the past. He expects her to be one of the better 3-point shooters in the nation this season.
Keeley Parks gets to enjoy Late Night in the Phog as an athlete
Schneider noted he and freshman guard Keeley Parks joked that day about how she’d been to numerous Late Night in the Phog events, maybe seven or eight, as a fan before this one. So, this year was an opportunity for her to enjoy it as a Kansas athlete. Schneider can understand how there’ll be a lot of nerves for athletes like Parks in that moment, but again hoped they were all able to enjoy themselves.
Parks, of course, is a part of the freshman class that has a lot to do with how high expectations are for the Jayhawks this season. She’s one of three 247Sports Composite five-star prospects in the class of 2025 who joined the program during the offseason. The other two are freshman forward Jaliya Davis and guard Libby Fandel.
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He was the 2022 National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.