KU basketball survives late scare from Cal Baptist: 3 takeaways from NCAA opener
Bill Self finally had enough.
The KU basketball coach watched and watched from the sideline. His team was on the verge of total collapse as he burned a timeout with 1:06 to play.
The Jayhawks led by 20 at the half over No. 13 seed Cal Baptist. And they led by 26 before the first media timeout of the second period.
Then, they took their foot off the gas.
The Lancers went on a late 18-2 run. Kansas scored two points over eight-plus minutes of game time. Suddenly, the margin was down to six.
Welcome to March Madness.
“They say ‘survive and advance,’” Self said postgame, “and that’s what we did.”
The No. 4 seed Jayhawks escaped with a 68-60 win over Cal Baptist on Friday night at Viejas Arena, but this game put a scare into the favorites late. Cal Baptist star Dominique Daniels Jr. missed a layup, then a jumper with 22 seconds left, and the Jayhawks could finally breathe.
That is, until they meet No. 5 seed St. John’s in the Round of 32 on Sunday.
Freshman phenom Darryn Peterson led KU with 28 points (11-for-24 shooting), adding two steals. Senior guard Tre White added 12 points and seven rebounds. No other Jayhawks hit double-digit points.
“Oh, super fun. The goal was just to win, and we did that,” Peterson said. “I’m happy for myself and the team.”
This game started ugly, but the Jayhawks built a 38-18 halftime lead on the back of their defense. They were shooting just 40% from the field, but had held their opponent to 21.9% shooting in that time.
KU led by 20 as late as the eight-minute mark in the second half. The Jayhawks did not score again until the 5:43 mark. Their next points after that came with 13 seconds to play.
“We made enough plays to advance, and certainly couldn’t be more thrilled to have an opportunity to play again on Sunday,” Self said.
Up next: Kansas faces St. John’s in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Tipoff is 4:15 p.m. Central on CBS.
Until then, here are three takeaways from Friday’s game.
Paul Mbiya was a surprise for KU
After the Jayhawks started the game shooting 2-for-15, coach Bill Self rolled out a brand-new lineup.
“We were awful, and layups, layups, too,” Self said.
Elmarko Jackson, Jamari McDowell, Tre White and Bryson Tiller took the floor — with Paul Mbiya, who averages 4.1 minutes per game, at the five.
That was the first time that group shared the floor all season, but there were some major positives. And the biggest may have been Mbiya’s top performance of the season.
Mbiya finished with eight points, a career high, adding three rebounds and a block. The Jayhawks outscored the Lancers by 19 in his first-half minutes, and they did so while giving key players in the frontcourt some time on the bench.
They may be glad for that rest come the second round against St. John’s.
Mbiya played 16 minutes, his most of the season by five.
“Paul’s a big body, and I thought he was great,” Self said. “Darryn was probably our best player tonight. But Paul was probably our second-best player tonight. I thought he was great.”
KU’s defense was suffocating
The Jayhawks’ calling card all season has been their defense. That was no different on Friday night, and the numbers were borderline unbelievable.
To start the game, Cal Baptist scored one point in three minutes. From the 16:30 mark to the 12-minute mark, Cal Baptist scored two points. And the Lancers scored just two points in the last four minutes of the half.
It took the Lancers immense effort to get any shot off early on. At least until Daniels, who erupted for 25 points (20 in the second half) heated up.
The Jayhawks closed off driving lanes to the paint and contested almost everything, and that’s how they built their lead.
For the game, Cal Baptist shot 35.9% from the field, 23.5% from 3. Without Daniels, the team combined to make just 16 field goals and no 3-point shots.
Darryn Peterson set a KU tournament record
All eyes were on freshman Darryn Peterson heading into this game. He told The Star at the Big 12 Tournament that he finally felt 100% healthy for the first time this season.
Both teams were tight to start the game, but Peterson was the one who caught fire first. After missing an assortment of layups and floaters — he was 0-for-6 early — he went on a torrid scoring run. He hit the types of shots very few players, if any, in college basketball can make, and he made it look effortless.
At halftime, Peterson was up to 15 points, going 6-for-8 after his 0-for-6 start.
His 28 points for the game set a Bill Self-era record as the most-ever by a Jayhawk freshman in the NCAA Tournament.
This story was originally published March 20, 2026 at 11:44 PM.
