Kansas City, Mo. — As well as the Iowa State women shot in the first round conference game against Texas A&M Wednesday, they shot that bad in their second round contest against Kansas Thursday.

The Cyclones shot 40 percent from the field, but probably more importantly, ISU shot only 35 percent from behind the arc and hit just 11 of their 21 attempts from the free throw line, the team’s second worse performance of the season.

The win makes for the eighth time in 12 years that Kansas has reached the conference finals. The Jayhawks will face Texas Tech who knocked off Oklahoma State in the other semi-final game Thursday.

“They call it basketball for a reason, and if the ball isn’t going in the basket you’re going to struggle,” Coach Bill Fennelly said. “We didn’t do that tonight and that was the story for us.”

In the second half, Kansas seemed to snag every loose ball while crashing the offensive boards. The Jayhawks took a 33-31 lead with 18 minutes to play and never relinquished it. ISU hit four three-pointers and made 9 free throws out of 18 attempts in the second half.

They were the leading three-point and free throw shooting team in the conference this season.

“We just didn’t step up and make (free-throws) and we have made them all year,” Janel Grimm said. “They were playing extremely hard and going after every loose ball. It was either just a case of us not being in the right place at the right time, or they just wanted it more.”

During the season, the Cyclones made 75 percent of their free throws, with Jayme Olson leading the way at nearly an 80 percent clip. She only sank four of nine Thursday.

“When your playing a good team, your best have to off-set their best, your role players have to off set their role players and you have to hit your free throws and we didn’t do any of that,” Fennelly said.

Monica Huelman, Amanda Bartz and Erica Haugen, who played key roles in the Texas A&M victory with nearly 20 points combined, came up with a total of just six against the Jayhawks.

“We just didn’t get anything out of that fifth spot,” Fennelly said. “We really struggled looking for combinations of people to score.”

Stacy Frese, who led the team with 20 points and six assists, also struggled in the second half. She was continuously double-teamed by an aggressive Kansas defense.

Frese hit five of 13 three-point attempts to give her 95 on the season, setting a new school record. Tara Gunderson held the old record set in the 1995-96 season at 93.

It was the third time in three weeks the two teams had played, with the Jayhawks winning twice. ISU won 69-49 in Ames after losing 58-65 at Kansas.

“It was easier to practice for (ISU) because their personnel was fresh in our mind which made it easier for us to prepare,” Kansas guard Jennifer Jackson, who finished with 20 points, said.

After being behind by as many as eight points, ISU clawed back within four with 5:56 remaining after a Frese three. The Jayhawks kept their composure and hit five of their last seven freethrows to seal the win.

To start the half, Kansas went to their star Lynn Pride, who was held scoreless in the first half.

The first-team all-conference selection made four three-pointers in Kansas’ first 10 possessions. Kansas scored on six total. Pride finished with 15 points.

The first half was a sloppy affair.

Neither team had its usual shooting touch, both hitting just 10 of their 30 attempts. Fortunately for the Cyclones, they did hit six three pointers, but for just 38 percent. ISU owned a 28-25 half-time advantage.

Olson was the most consistent shooter, making four of her six attempts for 11 points. She finished the game with 19 points and five boards. Not one Jayhawk reached double figures in the first half.

For the first time of the season, Megan Taylor played like a freshman.

The Big 12 Freshman of the Year was just one for nine from the field for just three points. She was two of 11 for the game and finished with seven points. It was the first time in 14 games that she didn’t score in double figures, the seventh occasion of the season.

Megan didn’t play well tonight,” Fennelly said. “She has played great all season long and her worst game just came at a bad time. This team would not have 24 wins without her. This is the first time in her career that she has had to deal with this, and she will be fine.”

Grimm, who scored 13 points the night before, sat much of the first half on the bench with two fouls. She picked up two more questionable fouls in the second half, but avoided her fifth and once again finished with 13.

ISU is now 24-7, the best record in school history. The Cyclones will find out on Sunday where and when they will play in the NCAA tournament.