So often, fans can hype up incoming recruits when they hear that a future star is heading their way. With a whole offseason and then some to hype them up, fans can set their expectations way too high.
When the No. 1 player in the class of 2025, Darryn Peterson, committed to Bill Self and the Jayhawks, it would be easy to overestimate just how good Peterson could be.
Yet in Friday night's exhibition against ACC side No. 11 Louisville, Peterson has taken no time in acclimating.
In the first half alone, Peterson scored a mind-boggling 24 points on an elite 8-11 shooting, including 6-9 from beyond the arc. Peterson has added a healthy three steals and one assist and one steal to go along with his team-high two turnovers.
It hasn’t just been that Peterson is scoring, but the way in which Peterson scores has been eye-grabbing. Pull up jumpers, three-pointers, in and out of contest, Peterson has been able to do it all, with ease.
Of course, this is just an exhibition, and this won’t count towards Peterson’s official stats, but this is not a walk in the park. The Cardinals are resurgent under Pat Kelsey. Kelsey managed a 21-8 record and reached a season high of No. 11 last season.
Kelsey then rang in four-star transfers Issac McKneely from UVA and Ryan Conwell from Xavier, along with Adrian Wooley, who hailed from Kennesaw State. Wooley was a rare five-star from the portal. Combine that with No. 6 player in the class of 2025, Mikel Brown Jr., all of whom have seen big minutes in the first half.
At half, Kansas is up 46-30, and Peterson’s 24 points lead all scorers, with Conwell’s 10 points coming in second.
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