With just under two minutes to play in a tight away game, the last thing you want to see is your star player go out with an injury. While on the night, the perceived “star” was St. Bonaventure Melvin Council Jr., who finished the overtime 77-76 win over the NC State Wolfpack with a startling 36 points. The nation knew that Darryn Peterson was always going to magnetize crowds with his dynamic play.
Peterson was on pace to do so again. After a rare first half where things weren’t clicking, Peterson notched 12 points on a smooth 5-8 mark until his hamstring hindered him from the final minutes of regulation and all of the ensuing overtime period.
Following the thriller, head coach Bill Self spoke on Peterson’s exit.
Self said he thought Peterson was "getting tight" in his hamstring.
— Henry Greenstein (@HenryGreenstein) December 14, 2025
"He said he needed to come out. He's experienced this every game that we played. I was happy that he got that far, that deep into the game."
TNT pundits Jamal Mashburn and Jalen Rose raised a concerning possibility for the former five-star.
"I would really seriously consider shutting it down..."@jamalmashburn and @JalenRose weighed in on Darryn Peterson's lingering hamstring injury 👀 pic.twitter.com/DbgvkzrO5X
— TNT Sports U.S. (@TNTSportsUS) December 14, 2025
The No. 19 Kansas Jayhawks do not hit the floor until Tuesday, as they welcome Towson to Allen Fieldhouse. Kansas then takes on Davidson six days after leaving plenty of room for Peterson to heal, before Big 12 play opens up against UCF on January 3rd.
As of writing, both Davidson and Towson rank 120th and 140th in the KenPom, respectively, proving that Peterson’s absence should not be a massive miss, especially considering how well Kansas did without the guard in the Players Era Championship, with three massive wins and a third-place finish.
This season, when on the court, Peterson has shown every bit of his potential for a top spot in the draft. Peterson has averaged 19.3 points per game on a strong 52.8% field goal rate with 3.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.3 steals to follow along.
Peterson’s career-high so far came in Kansas 87-74 loss to the No. 25 UNC Tar Heels. Peterson scored a smooth 22 points, but UNC’s 58 points in the second half carried them away in the final period.