© Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The Kansas basketball team took down No. 1 Arizona in Lawrence on Monday. Unfortunately, much of the conversation heard in the postgame was not focused on the upset.
Darryn Peterson missed another contest as a late scratch. Flu-like symptoms were cited as a rumor swirled to paint a picture of lacking commitment.
The Jayhawks hosted the undefeated Wildcats in Allen Fieldhouse. Peterson was not on the injury report.
The most important note from this list is who is NOT on the list: Kansas star Darryn Peterson, who has played 35 and 34 minutes in his last two games, respectively, after dealing with cramps over the last few weeks that held him back at times.
It’s fair to say that Peterson is the healthiest he’s been since stepping foot on campus in Lawrence and will be a full go tonight against the Wildcats.
Minutes before the opening tip, it was learned that he’d be unable to go. Bill Self said he was ill. Luckily, the team wouldn’t need him.
Kansas erased an 11-point second half deficit to win the game, 82-78. Forward Flory Bidunga led the way with a 23-point, 10-rebound double-double.
The loss was Arizona’s first in conference play, allowing the Jayhawks to move to within one game of first place in the Big 12 standings. It was the team’s biggest victory of the year.
Off-court storylines, however, were top of mind in the postgame press conferences.
Why didn’t Darryn Peterson play?
“We thought he’d go,” said Bill Self. “I thought adrenaline would kick in and he would go. He was out there at shootaround. But you could just tell he didn’t feel great.”
Kansas believed Peterson would start. He went out for warmups, but decided he wasn’t at 100%.
The late scratch was newsworthy given Peterson’s injury history. It was also notable due to his absence from the injury report.
“We knew it was 50/50 yesterday that he wasn’t [or was] going to be able to play,” the coach also said about his availability.
He told media that the guard was held out of practice the day prior. In doing so, he indirectly admitted to lying about his pregame status.
Bill Self admitting to lying on the injury report! If he’s 50/50, he has to be listed.
(I think Bill is covering for him) https://t.co/KLTq17wrh4
— Jason Scheer (@jasonscheer) February 10, 2026
Big 12 reporting states that a player’s status must be “designated as available, probable, questionable, doubtful, or out during the week.”
It also reads that “game day designations are available, game time decision, or out.”
There was no indication that Peterson’s availability was in doubt. Given Self’s admission about an inability to practice on Sunday, most believe he should’ve been ruled, at the very least, a game time decision on the injury report.
Sideline rumor sparks debate.
A game worker sitting courtside was filmed texting a supposed injury scenario prior to tipoff. That message read, “So he’s sick and he didn’t tell anyone in practice and Bill said, ‘Don’t half a– it if your gonna play, if not sit.’
“DP said, ‘F— it, I’m out.'”
That claim would rid Bill Self of potential blame related to reporting. If Peterson did not tell coaches of his sickness, he would have no way of knowing he’d miss the game.
Self, however, stated differently in his postgame interview. It makes the situation all the more confusing.
A Kansas athletic administrator took to social media after the fact to back Self’s story.
Senior Associate AD Strategic Communications Daniel Berk posted on X in response to the initial viral video. He attempted to clear up some of the speculation surrounding Darryn Peterson’s absence.
The person texting in this video is a contracted crew worker who handles official stats during the game for ESPN. He does not work for KU and is not affiliated with the athletic department in any way. He has no inside information and was speculating. We are handling internally.
Berk appeared to refute the ESPN crew worker’s assertion. Kansas is defending Peterson.
In doing so, they are accepting Bill Self’s account of what transpired in regard to the illness. If the guard was truly 50/50 as of Sunday and into Monday, he should’ve been listed on the injury report.