No. 21 Kansas is moving on after a successful Players Era Tournament in Las Vegas, where the team ended 3-0. The Jayhawks took down Notre Dame, Syracuse, and No. 17 Tennessee to secure the three-game sweep in three days.
Bill Self and his squad did this without star player Darryn Peterson. Peterson is one of the top freshmen in this class and has played only two games this season against Green Bay and North Carolina.
Peterson is dealing with a lingering hamstring issue and has been ruled OUT for this contest against No. 5 UConn. The 6-2 Jayhawks are hoping to win another upset in back-to-back games; however, they must do it without Peterson.
Self provided a short statement about Peterson missing this game.
“Darryn is not going to play tonight. He is very close. He has worked his butt off, but he is still not 100%. He is day-to-day.”
The star freshman was off to a hot start in two games. He scored 21 points against Green Bay and then followed up with 22 against UNC. He drained three triples in each of the two games and is shooting 60% on the season. Peterson has already showcased that he can be a three-level scorer in this league and is a certified NBA prospect once this campaign ends in March.
Peterson is good enough to lead Kansas to a national championship, but he must wait and make sure he is fully healthy before taking the toll of a long season.
Kansas fans are sitting on the edge of their seats waiting for a chance to watch Peterson play basketball again, and the hope is that he can return to action this weekend against a solid Missouri squad, who are currently 8-0.
