With the continued absence of 2025 five-star freshman Darryn Peterson, the Jayhawks have been scrambling to find a consistent scorer to take teh place of the elite guard. While there have been a number of wily performances from players like Bryson Tiller, Tre White, and Melvin Council Jr. The biggest step forward Kansas fans have seen this season is from sophomore Flory Bidunga.
Last season, Bidunga averaged 5.9 points per game, 1.6 blocks, 5.4 rebounds, .6 steals, and .8 turnovers. After Bidunga’s 14 points in the Jayhawks’ most recent 78-66 loss to Duke, head coach Bill Self spoke more on Bidunga’s improvement.
“I think he's got a lot better. The thing about Flo is to me is he can play really well and not score because he's so active. He can, you know, change the game with activity. But I think his off and game has gotten better, and I thought he played big tonight and he played athletic…But our guards have to do a better job of looking for him…”
This season, the 6-foot-10 forward is averaging 16.4 points per game, 7.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 2.2 blocks, and 1.4 turnovers.
Self also relayed that there are some things that Flory can still improve upon, and it is not solely due to the guards not getting the ball to Bidunga; yet, the consensus seems to show that the former five-star sophomore is growing by leaps and bounds.
Kansas vs Notre Dame Full Guide: When, where, TV, streaming, and more
This season, Bidunga has already seen two breakout games with a 23-point showing in Kansas’ season-opening 94-51 win over the Green Bay Phoenix, and a 25-point burst in the Jayhawks’ last win, a 75-57 win over the Princeton Tigers.
Earlier this month, Adam Finkelstein of CBS Sports compiled his list of prospects to watch ahead of the 2026 NBA Draft, and Bidunga was marked under the “Best of the rest tag.” As the season is still early, there are a lot of names to be filed through, but Kansas fans hope Bidungas stays atop the list.
With Peterson set to miss out during the incoming Players Era Festival, Bidunga's next chance to steal the spotlight is November 24th against Notre Dame with tipoff set for 2:30 p.m. CT.
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