Thursday night’s 8-point, 6-rebound outing in a Big 12 tournament loss to Colorado was, statistically, one of the least productive games of a sensational year by Kansas freshman Jaliya Davis.
But it did nothing to distract her teammates from talking about all of the good that came before it during Davis’ Big 12 Freshman of the Year campaign.
“She didn’t look like a freshman at all,” KU senior Lilly Meister, who brought 96 games of experience in the Big Ten with her to KU for her final season. “She had an amazing year for us and she just always kept working hard and I think she does a good job of trying to find other ways to help the team even when the shots aren’t falling.”
On Tuesday, Davis became the first player in KU history to earn women’s Big 12 Freshman of the Year honors. She also landed on the first team all-Big 12 squad on the heels of a power conference record nine consecutive freshman of the week honors.
“I think it’s something that, being around her so much, we’re not surprised. But if you take a step back and look at it you really realize, holy crap that’s insane. I’m super-proud of her effort. She brings it every second, every possession and I’m excited to see her continue to grow.”
— KU senior Elle Evans on freshman forward Jaliya Davis
At the end of the regular season, Davis ranked second in the Big 12 in scoring, averaging 21.5 points per game in Big 12 contests while shooting a league-leading 63.6% (136-214) from the floor.
She had scored in double figures in all 21 games she appeared in until Thursday night, with 13 games of 20+ points, including 13 during Big 12 play.
Davis finished the regular season tied for seventh in school history in 20-point games in a season and that mark also ranks fifth all-time among Big 12 freshmen.
Davis ended the regular season with 419 points in 20 games, good for an average of 21 points per game. Her scoring total ranked fourth in school history by a freshman and put her on pace to become just the second freshman in Big 12 history to average more than 20 points per game for a season.
“It’s incredible to be on a team with that,” KU senior Elle Evans told R1S1 Sports on Thursday night. “I think it’s something that, being around her so much, we’re not surprised. But if you take a step back and look at it you really realize, holy crap that’s insane. I’m super-proud of her effort. She brings it every second, every possession and I’m excited to see her continue to grow.”
Fellow-freshman Libby Fandel, who started 20 games for the Jayhawks this season, including the last 14 in a row, said watching someone in her class explode on the scene the way Davis did this season was nothing short of remarkable.
Asked what aspect of Davis’ season impressed her the most, Fandel didn’t hesitate to answer.
“I think just her confidence,” she said. “It’s amazing how good she is and how many records she’s broken. It’s been really cool. And I love cheering her on. Seeing her do that really helps me to learn from that, too.”
Ever the competitor, and one who’s not afraid to show it, Davis, for her part, was only mildly impressed by all that she accomplished this season and the accolades that came along with it.
“It means a lot,” she said of the freshman of the year honor. “But it’s really a team effort. They all look for me every single day and really pushed me to be better.”
To that end, it was only appropriate then to find out where Davis learned she had added another Big 12 freshman of the week award to her haul during the final couple of months of the regular season.
“Most of the time it was my team that told me about it,” she said, smiling. “That was fun. I think it was cool just being able to see that every Monday, go on my phone and see all the (awards) that came in. I think we learned a lot this season.”
Understanding that, Meister said, will be a big key to the Overland Park, Kansas native’s continued development as her career moves forward.
“Teams are gonna guard her different ways, and she’s gonna learn how to adapt to that,” Meister said. “I think the sky’s the limit for her and I’m excited to see what she’s gonna do.”
Evans said she was not worried in the least about Davis’ ability to handle whatever teams throw at her for one key reason.
“I think she’s actually really smart, like in school,” Evans said with a laugh when asked to share something that people might not know about Davis. “She’s gonna be an engineer, and she actually does her homework.”
While Evans and Meister will be done as Davis’ teammates when the current season ends — KU likely will earn a postseason opportunity in the next couple of weeks, but an NCAA Tournament bid is likely a long shot — Fandel couldn’t help but smile when asked about the thought of putting to use in the future what the two of them, along with KU’s other underclassmen, learned this season.
“It’s awesome to think about how much we can improve in four years and what we can become,” Fandel said. “This is just the start.”
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