KU basketball captures first Big 12 road win at Colorado -- without Bill Self

Shreyas Laddha, The Kansas City Star on Jan 21, 2026

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Darryn Peterson couldn’t help but laugh. Then, he shrugged his shoulders.

His Tuesday night was a struggle: He twisted his ankle. He faced constant double teams.

And yet, Peterson, the Jayhawks’ freshman sensation, banked in a 3-pointer to put his team up nine over Colorado with 2:09 left.

It wasn’t planned, but it was fitting enough — both for Peterson and the Jayhawks. Neither played to their full capabilities, but they dug deep for a gritty road win in Boulder, Colorado.

No. 19 Kansas defeated Colorado 75-69 late Tuesday night at CU Events Center. The Jayhawks (14-5, 4-2 Big 12) have now won four straight against the Buffaloes.

Melvin Council led the Jayhawks with 18 points, while Tre White posted a double-double with 17 points and 15 rebounds.

The Jayhawks also had a new face leading the way on the coaching staff.

Assistant Jacque Vaughn served as acting head coach and coached his first-ever college basketball game Tuesday. Head coach Bill Self didn’t make the trip to Boulder after he was taken to LMH Health on Monday after feeling “under the weather.”

Self appears to be doing well and is now at home, per a KU Athletics spokesperson.

Peterson, who is continuing to manage his cramping issues, played 16 minutes in the second half, but he did exit after appearing to roll his ankle. He stepped on a defender’s foot and fell to the ground. Broadcast cameras caught him in visible pain on the bench.

He did return after that point, though, and finished with 16 points.

The Jayhawks, meanwhile, had control for much of the game. KU led by eight at multiple points in the first half and went into the break leading 40-38. Colorado had the deficit at four with under four minutes to play in the second half, but the Jayhawks did enough to escape with a win.

Up next for KU: The Jayhawks head on the road again to face in-state rival K-State on Saturday.

Until then, here are three takeaways from Tuesday’s game:

A difficult game for Darryn Peterson

Darryn Peterson largely had a night to forget in Boulder. It started in the first half.

The freshman struggled to find space to create easy shots. Peterson has the rare ability to make difficult shots with little separation, but he struggled against the Buffs. Peterson had nine points on 3-for-9 shooting in the first 20 minutes.

It wasn’t much better in the second half. The Buffaloes sent a number of smart double-teams that made Peterson uncomfortable, while he didn’t get much help from teammates flashing to the ball on several occasions.

After he twisted his ankle, he didn’t look very comfortable. He finished with 16 points on 6-for-15 shooting. He did bank in the big 3 — which essentially sealed the game — but went 2-for-5 on his other shots in the second period.

KU’s defense starts slow but arrives

For years, Bill Self’s KU basketball teams have strategized to leave opposing players open from 3 — if they generally shoot a low percentage — to dare them to shoot.

That’s had mixed results so far. In KU’s two Big 12 road losses, opposing teams have taken advantage, at least for a half.

That was the case again Tuesday. The Buffs had no problem taking open 3-pointers. In the first half, Colorado shot 6-for-14 (42.9%) from 3.

That strategy worked in KU’s favor in the second half. The Buffs struggled to make their shots and went 3-for-17 (17.6%) from distance in the period.

As a whole, Colorado shot 35.7% from the field, including 29% on 3-pointers.

Flory Bidunga provided big minutes late

Flory Bidunga played arguably his best game of the season Friday against Baylor. Thus expectations were sky-high entering Tuesday.

He didn’t live up to it early. He was almost a complete non-factor in the first half. Bidunga had two points on 0-for-1 shooting. He grabbed five rebounds in 17 first-half minutes.

But when KU needed him in the second half, Bidunga stepped up. With Peterson hurting and KU’s offense struggling, Bidunga hit a number of timely buckets. He also had a couple of big blocks that prevented easy Colorado buckets.

Bidunga had nine points on 4-for-4 shooting in the second half. Each point helped stave off the Buffs, who kept hanging around.

He finished with 11 points, nine rebounds and four blocks.

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