Allen Fieldhouse was rocking on Monday night, officially letting everyone know that college basketball is back and the Jayhawks are ready to make a big comeback. Kansas secured its 53rd straight home-opener win, which means Bill Self remains undefeated in home openers as the Jayhawks' head coach.
While it might have been a slower start than fans would have liked, with the Jayhawks allowing Fordham to stick around a little too long, Self's squad still got the overwhelming blowout win they wanted. With some late additions to the roster and a couple of freshmen as starters, the slow start made sense, especially with this team still working to gel.
Even with the slow start, there were a lot of great things to see with this team, and a few issues as well. The good thing is that Kansas walked away with the win and some good momentum to start the season.
1. Tre White is back like he never left Lawrence
Tre White is one of three Kansas players returning to Lawrence for a fifth season under a preliminary injunction from an Indiana court that blocks the NCAA from restricting his final year of eligibility. Even though White got a bit of a late start with the Jayhawks, you never would have known it from his performance against Fordham.
White was the Jayhawks' leading scorer with 22 points, going an impressive 3-for-5 from beyond the arc and 9-for-12 shooting. White was also active on the board with five rebounds and only one turnover. As the 2025-2026 season went on, White became a huge part of Self's starting five, and it looks like he is picking up where he left off.
2. Turnovers are the biggest problem after just one game
With it being the first game, we don't want to overreact to any weaknesses, but the turnovers can't be overlooked. Kansas has 17 turnovers compared to Fordham's 15, which is something Self is going to want to clean up going forward.
Some of the turnovers were due to miscommunications, bad decisions, or just simply losing the ball on the dribble. Surprisingly, Tyran Stokes and Melvin Council Jr. led the way with four turnovers each, not something you want from two guys who handle the ball quite a bit. This is something the Jayhawks can get away with against teams like Fordham, but not in Big 12 play, and not in the postseason.
3. Leroy Blyden Jr. could make a play for Taylen Kinney's starting role
Five-star freshman Taylen Kinney got the start for the Jayhawks, as predicted, but Toledo transfer Leroy Blyden Jr. could make a play for the spot this season. With both Kinney and Blyden as true point guards, Self didn't have them on the court at the same time too often, and the two actually split time fairly evenly.
The biggest difference between the two was that Blyden was knocking down shots that Kinney wasn't taking. Blyden finished the night tied as the second-leading scorer for the Jayhawks with 15 points, but also set up his teammates with three assists. Even Self felt Blyden was one of the best players on the court for Kansas, which could create a battle for the point guard position with Kinney this season.
4. Kansas isn't missing Flory Bidunga's rebounding skills
When Flory Bidunga made the decision to enter the transfer portal after two seasons at Kansas, there was a sense of the Jayhawks losing a big presence in the paint and on the boards. Well, not anymore after Kansas outrebounded Fordham 50-33. It is even more impressive to see Kansas win the defensive rebounding battle 35-18, working to not allow many second chances to the Rams.
Rebounding was pretty evenly spread, with Utah transfer Kenaue Dawes leading the way with nine. The other big men, like Christian Reeves and Trey Kaufman-Renn, both had five each. Stokes actually led the starters with seven rebounds, showing his ability to get up and find the ball off the board.
So, while Kansas did lose a big presence at the basket with Bidunga leaving, it looks like they found even better ones to replace him.
5. Tyran Stokes is as good as advertised
There was a lot of hype for the No. 1 overall prospect in the Class of 2026, and Stokes delivered on his first official debut with the Jayhawks. While he may not have led the team in scoring, Stokes was 5-for-7 from the floor, hit one shot from beyond the arc, and went 4-for-7 from the free-throw line to give him 15 points on the night.
Stokes was great on the boards with seven rebounds and even had his first career block, which came on a great defensive play. It took some time for Stokes to get going, not scoring his first basket until about six minutes into the game, but once he got comfortable, he took off.
The turnovers are definitely something to watch, but for his first official college basketball game, Stokes proved to be as good as advertised, and now it's time to see how he does against some tougher competition.
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