Late Night lesson: Bill Self thinks his KU Jayhawks can be better than just ‘OK’
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- Bill Self called the 2025 Jayhawks capable but demanded unselfish play.
- Late Night attracted 15,000 fans and exposed a 2-of-15 team 3-point mark.
- Former Jayhawks attended; Zeke Mayo signed with Cleveland and teammates mingled.
Microphone in hand, Bill Self sauntered out of the northwest tunnel of Allen Fieldhouse at 7:44 p.m. on Friday, eager to talk about his 23rd Kansas Jayhawks men’s basketball team.
“Last year’s team (21-13) did OK,” Self told 12,000 or so fans at the 41st Late Night in The Phog season-kickoff event. “But OK at the University of Kansas is not good enough.”
Late Night, which started at 6:30 p.m., was held in a steamier-than-usual setting because local daytime temperatures had reached the 80s.
“This year’s team has a real chance if we like each other, if we enjoy each other, if we play well together and if we are unselfish,” Self told the audience. “We’ve got have you (pack the house at all games).
“I do love this team,” the coach continued. “This team is fun. This team is fast. This team has a blend of youthful exuberance and some veterans.”
Self introduced a batch of former KU players who attended Friday evening. Walking onto the court to mingle with his current Jayhawks before a 15-minute intrasquad scrimmage were Marcus and Markieff Morris, Thomas Robinson, Sherron Collins, Jeff Hawkins, Mario Little, Elijah Johnson, Tyshawn Taylor and former player/current KU staff member KJ Adams, as well as Zeke Mayo from last year’s team.
Self informed the fans that Mayo had earlier in the day signed a contract with the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers.
Freshman sensation newcomer Darryn Peterson scored 12 points on 6-of-12 shooting but was 0-for-4 from 3-point range. He also grabbed two rebounds in the Crimson Team’s 27-23 win over the Blue squad in a short 15-minute scrimmage to conclude the night’s proceedings.
The two teams combined to go 2-of-15 from 3-point range. Jamari McDowell and Corbin Allen were the only players to connect from beyond the arc.
Some highlights included big man Flory Bidunga twice cleaning up misses by Peterson and dropping the rebounds through the hoop and Bryson Tiller stealing the ball and passing to Melvin Council Jr. for a slam.
Also, Samis Calderon flushed a slam off a move down the baseline, while Peterson dunked to finish a strong drive to the goal. Rosario had a fierce dunk off a pass from Council, while Calderon dished to Peterson for another dunk.
“That was some good ball, wasn’t it?” Self said sarcastically. “I don’t think we’ll play that way in real games, but it was fine.
“You know, one thing is different though, that when you get bodies out there and adrenaline’s flowing, you notice how tired everybody got quick. So that was good for them, though.”
Asked if there was any element he liked during the scrimmage, Self said: “Usually I leave out of here not very happy. So at my age, I’m not going to let things that have no relevance actually bother me, but it was fine. I’m just glad that we got out of there. Nobody got nicked up.”
Jayden Dawson, who has a sore knee, did not participate in the scrimmage.
KU player introductions
The Jayhawks showed some personality during the individual player introductions at Late Night.
Freshman Kohl Rosario, who is from Miami, Florida originally, entered through the NW tunnel wearing a brown cowboy hat. He threw it in the stands after shuffling onto the court, country dancing.
“Tonight is one of the main reasons why this is the best place to play college basketball,” Self said of the atmosphere.
The women’s scrimmage, which was attended by KU coaching legend Marian Washington, marked the debut of former Blue Valley North High School standout forward Jaliya Davis, who was paired with Shawnee Mission West grad S’Mya Nichols on the Blue Team in a 10-minute intrasquad.
Nichols, a junior guard, scored four points, while freshman Davis ruled the inside with 10 points and three rebounds.
Senior guard Elle Evans, who started her career at North Dakota State, made three 3’s and scored 11 points. She hit 42.1% of her 3-point tries a year ago for the Jayhawks.
“It’s going to rain a lot in the Phog this season,” was the message on a video that showed Edwardsville, Illinois native Evans sinking some shots from beyond the arc.
This story was originally published October 17, 2025 at 10:19 PM.
