The collegiate basketball world is rapidly approaching the “third season.”
We are long past the out-of-conference slate, and the race to conference titles is quickly closing, which means that postseason basketball is almost here.
For the No. 14 Kansas Jayhawks, the 2025-26 season has seen its fair share of highs and lows, but the consensus across the nation is that this KU team has yet to fully reach its peak.
A lot can be made about peaking at the right time, and the biggest question is, “Will this iteration of the Bill Self-led Jayhawks be able to do so?”
How can Kansas persevere through the Spring in the eyes of Self?
Now, what goes into playing your best basketball in March and April varies across each collegiate program, with no two answers being the same.
In preview of Kansas’ clash against the No. 2 Arizona Wildcats, Self spoke about the biggest thing that needs to happen for this squad to be able to make a run this season.
“I think you got to do more than one thing, but I would say, have all our players 100%,” quoted the two-time NCAA title-winning coach.
“I think that's probably more important than actually breaking it down to rebounding or making shots. I think the bottom line is, have all your players available.”
Barring the injury concerns of Darryn Peterson — which is a hard thing to forget — the Jayhawks have been able to sustain a relatively clean bill of health, with Elmarko Jackson being the most-reported qualifying piece on the team.
While the situation around Peterson’s health can flip in an instant, it is worth noting that the former five-star guard has played at least 30 minutes in four of Kansas’ last six games, with a current streak of two games of 30+ minutes on the court.
The Prolific Prep alum has averaged 19.5 points, on a 47.2% rate from the field, along with 3.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.1 steals in just 27.4 minutes per game with 17 appearances so far this season.
Peterson, Jackson, and the whole KU contingent will be needed as the Jayhawks are set to take on No. 2 Arizona, Saturday afternoon inside the daunting McKale Center.
Peterson missed out when Kansas took down Tommy Lloyd’s squad in an upset 82-78 win at Allen Fieldhouse earlier this month, after being ruled out with “flu-like symptoms” minutes before tipoff.
So far this season, Arizona has lost just one game at home, that being a 78-75 loss to the No. 16 Texas Tech Red Raiders earlier this month.
According to ESPN Analytics, the Jayhawks are currently being given just an 18.9% chance of taking down the conference-leading Wildcats.
Streaming is set for 3 p.m. CT on ESPN.
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