KU basketball optimistic Darryn Peterson will play against AJ Dybantsa and BYU
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- KU reports Peterson practiced limited half-court work and likely will play BYU.
- Coaches expect no setbacks before Saturday tipoff as “GameDay” covers matchup.
- Peterson and Dybantsa project as top-3 picks in the 2026 NBA Draft.
Kansas freshman men’s basketball guard Darryn Peterson, who missed Saturday’s game at Kansas State because of an ankle sprain sustained a week ago at Colorado, was able to practice some on Monday, KU associate head coach Jeremy Case reported on Monday night’s Hawk Talk radio show.
“Darryn practiced a little bit, did some half-court stuff. He’s coming along really well,” Case said of the 6-foot-6 freshman from Canton, Ohio.
KU coach Bill Self said after Saturday’s 86-62 victory over K-State at Bramlage Coliseum that Peterson should be available for Saturday’s game against BYU, a team that boasts freshman sensation AJ Dybantsa.
Tipoff will be 3:30 p.m. Central at Allen Fieldhouse for the clash between the No. 14-ranked Jayhawks (15-5, 5-2 Big 12) and No. 13 Cougars (17-3, 5-2).
“That’s what we think,” Case said Monday. “If there are no setbacks, he should be good to go.”
Case subbed for Self on Monday’s Hawk Talk show.
On Saturday, after the KSU game, Self said of Peterson: “I think he’ll play. I don’t know for a fact. I’m not a doctor. But I think he’ll play. That game will obviously mean a lot to a lot of people, and they’re terrific and ‘GameDay’ will make it extra hype (for the Peterson-Dybantsa matchup). So I don’t see any reason that he couldn’t play.
“If he played today (vs. K-State), he would have been ineffective because he couldn’t have pushed off today.”
ESPN will be bringing its “GameDay” crew to Lawrence. Rece Davis, Jay Bilas, Seth Greenberg, Jay Williams and Andraya Carter will host the hourlong show at 10 a.m. Saturday in the fieldhouse in advance of the 3:30 p.m. start, also to appear on ESPN.
BYU lost to undefeated and No. 1-ranked Arizona 86-83 on Monday night in Provo, Utah. Dybantsa scored 24 points on 6-of-24 shooting versus the Wildcats. He was 1-of-8 from 3 and 11-of-16 from the line. BYU’s Kennard Davis and Richie Saunders combined to hit 8 of 15 3s (13 of 20 shots overall) for a combined 35 points versus Arizona.
Peterson and Dybantsa, a 6-9 forward from Brockton, Massachusetts, are expected to be selected in the top 3 of the 2026 NBA Draft.
Peterson has averaged 21.6 points and 4.6 rebounds a game. He’s played in 10 of the Jayhawks’ 20 games. Dybantsa has averaged 23.6 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.9 assists a game heading into the KU contest.
Of Dybantsa, Case said: “I like him defensively. I think he’s pretty active. He’s long, and he’s so athletic, and he really tries to guard and block shots, but he’s better offensively than I thought he was. And what they do for him, they run a ton of isolation for him, and if they feel like there’s a bad defender out there, they’ll screen for him and get a switch and try to let him go to work.”
Peterson and Dybantsa have played against each other before.
Peterson scored 58 points, grabbed seven rebounds, dished five assists and hit a game-winning 3 in the final seconds of Prolific Prep’s 88-86 victory over Dybantsa’s Utah Prep squad in a Grind Session game on Feb. 8, 2025, in Atlanta. Dybantsa finished the game with 49 points, nine rebounds and three assists.
Their first matchup came in December 2024, a Grind Session game in which Peterson scored 32 points with 10 rebounds and eight assists in Prolific Prep’s 76-70 victory over Utah Prep. Dybantsa had 28 points, eight rebounds and six assists.
Case said the Jayhawks began preparing for the BYU game at Monday’s practice.
“We talked about how we think we are going to guard BYU and did some stuff on defense,” Case said, “and talked about personnel and who’s who, at least, to get the guys to start thinking about how we are going to guard. So at least they can get an idea.”
Case continued Monday: “It’s going to be a tough game. I mean they have some really good players, a good team.”
This story was originally published January 27, 2026 at 8:55 AM.
