Melvin Council erupts as Kansas basketball escapes with overtime win at NC State
Bill Self could not believe his eyes.
Melvin Council Jr., a career 27% 3-pointer shooter, had just made his seventh 3-pointer of the game, this time putting the Jayhawks up two points with 2:43 left in regulation.
All Self could do was put his hands on his head in total shock.
On a night when KU needed him most, Council, the self-proclaimed “Robin,” became KU’s “Batman.” He erupted for 36 points, including nine 3-pointers, in a KU road victory.
No. 19 Kansas defeated N.C. State 77-76 in an overtime thriller Saturday afternoon at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, N.C.
Now, all eyes turn to freshman phenom Darryn Peterson.
With KU leading 59-58 and 3:17 left in the second half, Peterson asked to come out of the game. He appeared to be dealing with a hamstring issue. He already missed seven games this year for a hamstring strain, and sat out the end of regulation Saturday, plus the entirety of the extra period.
Even without Peterson, overtime was a back-and-forth affair.
With 27 seconds left in the extra period, KU led 77-76. Council was fouled, and the play was reviewed for a possible flagrant foul. Council had swung his arm out and hit N.C. State’s Alyn Breed in the face, but the play was upheld as a common foul.
KU retained the ball and Council was fouled again. But he missed the front end of a one-and-one.
The Wolfpack had the ball back and Darrion Williams attempted a shot to take the lead. But the Jayhawks got a stop, and the ball ended up back in the hands of Council, who again was fouled.
And again ... missed from the line.
After strategically using timeouts to advance the ball, N.C. State had the chance to win with 1 second left. But Williams missed a 3-pointer as time expired.
The ending to regulation was equally chaotic.
With the score tied at 66-66 and 20 seconds left, KU had a chance to win. Instead, Council missed a layup and big man Flory Bidunga was unable to tip in the miss. N.C. State raced down the court, without calling timeout, and Quadir Copeland missed a floater as time expired.
While Council didn’t score late, he finished with nearly half of KU’s points, and added seven rebounds and four assists. Peterson, before exiting, chipped in 17 points and five rebounds.
Up next: The Jayhawks (8-3) host Towson on Tuesday.
Until then, here are four takeaways from Saturday’s game:
KU’s perimeter defense holds true
KU’s impressive perimeter defense was going to be tested by N.C. State’s 3-point shooting.
The Wolfpack came into the game shooting 40% from deep, while Kansas had limited opponents to 24.9% on 3-pointers.
In a battle on the perimeter, the Jayhawks’ defense prevailed.
N.C. State shot just 2-for-18 (11.1%) on 3-pointers in the first half, with the Jayhawks contesting just about every look. That defense kept the game close, while the KU offense took time to wake up.
KU shot 31.4% overall in the first half.
The Wolfpack eventually got going from deep, and shot 41.7% from 3 in the second half, but the Jayhawks got enough stops down the stretch to win.
N.C. State finished the game shooting 26.5% on 3-pointers.
Anyone but Darryn Peterson
N.C. State coach Will Wade clearly didn’t want the ball in the hands of KU’s Peterson.
Whenever Peterson had the ball, he was blitzed by North Carolina State defenders and met with timely double-teams. It led to multiple wide-open 3-point opportunities for Council, who was on fire.
In fact, Council had a big cushion each time he had the ball on the perimeter. It was clear N.C. State wanted him to shoot.
It’s hard to blame them. Before Saturday’s game, Council was shooting 18.5% on 3-pointers.
Those numbers will look different after he hit four 3s in the first half and five more in the second half and overtime. Council was the only Jayhawk to make a 3-pointer in the first half.
Slow start (and finish) for KU’s star freshman
Meanwhile, it took a while for Peterson to get going on offense. He didn’t make his first basket until about 14 minutes of game time had passed.
He finished with only five points on 2-for-6 (33%) shooting from the field in the first half.
Peterson had a much better second half. He had 12 points in 14 minutes. But he came out of the game with around six minutes left in regulation, only briefly appearing again before checking out for good.
Peterson went to the sideline and immediately put a towel over his head, showing some visible frustration.
Coach Bill Self confirmed postgame Peterson’s hamstring was giving him trouble.
Flory Bidunga deals with foul trouble
It took less than three minutes of game time for Bidunga to rack up two fouls.
Self subbed him out with about 17 minutes to play in the first half, and Bidunga didn’t return until there were about six minutes left in the half. In those 11 or so minutes without him, Kansas missed his presence on both ends.
The Jayhawks struggled to score inside, which Bidunga excels at. On the other end, KU let N.C. State get a number of open looks at the rim, without Bidunga there to patrol the paint.
Besides Peterson, Bidunga is the most important player on this KU team. His replacements can’t do what he does, and it’s why he must avoid foul trouble.
Bidunga finished with eight points, 11 rebounds, one block and one steal in 32 minutes.
This story was originally published December 13, 2025 at 7:28 PM.
