Locked On Jayhawks - Daily Podcast On Kansas Jayhawks Football & Basketball - THE RETURN: Kansas Jayhawks Darryn Peterson is BACK, Missouri Matchup ELEVATES Stakes

Episode Date: December 5, 2025

Kansas Jayhawks get a major boost as potential NBA top pick Darryn Peterson returns for the heated showdown vs. Missouri. Can Peterson’s comeback propel Bill Self’s squad to elite status and unlock new offensive firepower for the Jayhawks?Derek Johnson breaks down Peterson’s likely impact, the shifting dynamics for Melvin Council, Flory Bidunga, and Tre White, and whether rust or role adjustments could slow KU in this rivalry clash. Key topics include Missouri’s defensive vulnerabilities, KU’s offensive struggles without Peterson, and the broader implications for Big 12 and NCAA tournament ambitions. Plus, spotlight on KU volleyball’s NCAA sweep and women’s basketball’s bounce-back win as both programs aim for postseason runs.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Omaha SteaksSave big on unforgettable gifts with Omaha Steaks. Visit https://OmahaSteaks.com for 50% off site-wide and an extra 20% off select favorites during their Cyber Sale.And for an additional $35 off, use promo code COLLEGE at checkout. Aura FramesFor a limited time, save on the perfect gift by visiting https://AuraFrames.com to get $35 off Aura’s best-selling Carver Mat frames - named #1 by Wirecutter - by using promo code COLLEGE at checkout. GametimeToday's episode is brought to you by Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONCOLLEGE for $20 off your first purchase. Terms and conditions apply.FanDuelToday's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Football season is around the corner, visit the FanDuel App today and start planning your futures bets now.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

He's officially back, barring a setback. Darren Peterson to return against Missouri. You are Locked on Jayhawks, your daily podcast on the Kansas Jayhawks, part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day. What's going on? Derek Johnson here, another bonus episode of Locked on Jayhawks because it's good news. Darren Peterson is going to be playing. in the Missouri game, at least the comments.

The comments leave a little bit of an out, but certainly make you think that is the case for the 6-foot-6 freshman who is averaging 21 and a half points per game and is the likely number one pick in the NBA draft. We're going to break that all down, what it means for Kansas, both in the short term for this game against your biggest rival, what it means in the long term for KU,

and then we'll finish up a little on KU Volleyball, who won an NCAA tournament game and a little KU Women's Basketball update as well. All right, let's get right there with the Darren Peterson. news. So this was what Bill Self told the media. He said he should, this is the exact quote, he should be available unless he has a setback before game time. Now that that back half of the part, unless he has a setback before game time, like I said, it does leave a little bit of an out because now if Peterson doesn't wind up playing, they're just going to be like, well, I told

you if he had a setback before game time, he's not going to play. But realistically, that is the unwritten. That is the the unsaid, the unspoken for every player. I mean, a guy who's not hurt right now. Like, Jamari McDowell is available on Sunday barring a setback in pregame. That applies to him as well. So the fact that he is saying that about Darren Peterson tells me the expectation is Peterson is going to play. Like theoretically, you know, Curtis Townsend will be an assistant coach barring when he's getting off the bus, he rolls his ankle and needs to go, you know, get ankle surgery before the game. I don't mean to like say anything bad about somebody.

but like you know what I mean like the out that he is leaving is more of the in case something weird happens you would not make this announcement if you're Bill Self or not answer it that way because here's the thing do you think Bill Self is probably annoyed by all these questions about Darren Peterson I probably think he is now it is the right thing he needs to be asked about it it is the thing that is on everybody's mind but I'm just saying like from him personally he's probably annoyed by it and he's probably annoyed by the hey if if like you have certain people kind of like there have been a lot of kU fans who have gone to games this year and have been a little upset that Darren Peterson you know they wound up going to the game and then they find out you know during the

game or before the game or or on their way to the game or whatever that he's not going to play and you know that's unfortunate for them that the you know you spent this time and money to do that so for bill self to announce this on Friday before the game on Sunday he doesn't want the egg on his face of, oh, all of a sudden Peterson doesn't play Sunday. Now everybody's mad at him for getting their hopes up that, especially for a neutral site game that isn't in Allen Fieldhouse, that you maybe spend extra money to go to a rivalry game, a game that's in a neutral site. Like, he doesn't want that. So the reason he is saying, like, this to me is the comment of him being 100%. He said earlier this week, he's 95%. This to me tells you that he is 100%. Right. At least that's

what it tells me. And as far as the short-term impact, this game what it means for Kansas against Missouri. I mean, for one, Kansas already was going to come in as the favorite. Now you're adding the potential number one pick in the NBA draft. Obviously for Kansas, this is a game you should win. Now, there is the rust factor, so to speak, right? Like, will Darren Peterson be rusty at all? And it's not just Darren Peterson. It's the team has gotten used to playing with each other and everybody having a specific role. Obviously, for the long term, it is by far in KU's best interest for Darren Peterson to return. But you do wonder, is there going to be a one or two game, you know, on ramp, so

to speak, for Darren Peterson, where it does take a game or two for everybody to get comfortable again with their roles because Peterson now having the ball more in his hands. What does that mean for Melvin Calder? You know, it just has an impact on everybody. Like Flory, maybe a few less offensive possessions, right? Defensively, guys might be checking different people. There's just some slight differences that they're going to have to get used to. That said, I do think if they were to be.

Yukon, this probably becomes more of a conversation. But with how we just saw it in the second half offensive against Yukon, I think it probably lessens the conversation of, oh, are they going to have to shake any rust off or guys getting into new roles? That probably gives you enough in that Yukon game to kind of be like, yeah, they could have really used Darren Peterson and what his role would have been on this team. But obviously it's a big impact for KU and obviously it's a big positive for KU. That is the ultimate duh here. And when you look at Missouri's defense so far this year, the amount of shots that teams are taking, from the mid-range is pretty high.

They are in the 20th percentile in field goal attempt percentage defensively in the mid-range. Sounds like a lot of hubbub. What does that mean? It means that basically they are in the bottom fifth of college basketball at preventing mid-range shots.

And I say it that way, like they're probably more content, giving up mid-range shots. We just know analytically, like that's not as good of a shot. But that's where Darren Peterson comes in. He's a very good mid-range player. And so against a Missouri team

that, you know, if they are able to, put you in more of a half court situation. Kansas couldn't do anything against Yukon. They're going to be able to do things now against Missouri because you have Darren Peterson. And obviously there is a conversation of, okay, is there going to be a minutes restriction for Darren Peterson in this game, right? Is he going to be at 20 minutes? Is he going to be at 25 minutes? Then again, if he's 100%, then like either you're 100% or you're not with this injury is how Bilsuff has played it. So if you are 100%, why can't you play 30 minutes? But yeah, I don't know.

Maybe it will be, at least from a conditioning perspective, maybe he will be on a little bit more of a minute's restriction. And obviously the ideal situation for KU is you win by enough that you don't need him to be on the floor for more than, yeah, 25 minutes or whatever, it ends up kind of being for KU. But it's obviously a big positive for Kansas on the offensive end that we just saw the Yukon game. I think it's a helpful thing on the defensive end, though, too. You look at Missouri, they've got a pretty big team.

And Peterson adds more height, adds more wingspan. And then on top of it all, what does Missouri do? They force steals, they force turnovers, they get easy buckets off the steals and turnovers. adding another ball handler into the fold with Peterson is super helpful as well into this matchup. So I think there's a lot of things that are super helpful. And then when you look at the timing of all of this, I think it really makes sense. You play Missouri, then you don't play again until the following Saturday with NC State. Then you have like two buy games toward the end of the year.

But I think it's like KU has four games left between right now and January 3rd. That's it. four games between now and January 3rd when they start Big 12 play. So if ever there were a time to get a guy back into the swing of things with some extra days off between games, this would kind of be it. All right, let's talk about more of the long-term impact of having Peterson back. This is Locked on Jayhawks. Today's episode of the show is brought to you by Omaha Steaks.

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Thanks again for joining us here on Locked on Jayhawks, a little bonus episode as Darren Peterson. Going to be back for KU against Missouri. Now long term, what kind of impact does this have? Peterson looked so good through his first two games, 21 and a half points per game. He obviously for a Kansas team that is in dire need of some more offensive punch. Like we look at it right now and Kansas is top 20 right now on Ken Palm, which is pretty impressive given they have been without Peterson for all but two games. But the big reason why is they're top 10 on defense. They're just 58th right now on Ken Palm on the offensive end of the floor.

And we look back to past years under Bill Self. Now the previous two seasons, not great on the offensive end. either. They were 52nd in 2025. They're 59th to finish the year in 2024. Before that, the previous lows, you have to look at 54th in 2021. And then you got to go all the way back to 2006 when they were 50th. They're 58th right now. But once you get Peterson back, that is such a game changer for this offense overall. He gives them a almost like get out of jail free card, I guess, would be one way of putting it in terms of like some. those late shock clock situations, which right now, I really like Melvin Counsel as a player,

but that is not the forte of Melvin Counsel as much. He's been stepping up to try to do it. Marco's been stepping up to try to do it at times. Trey White's been stepping up to try to do it. And those possessions now, instead of it being in those situations that are going to be a little less of a, I don't know, high percentage shot, I guess would be the best way of putting it. it's now a situation where you're getting your best player who is a player who can shoot shots with like fully I mean I think back to some of those mid-range shots that he made there was one against Green Bay it was like the end of the half where he hits kind of a fall away well contested and then the one where he hits against North Carolina in the mid-range where he's like kind of following away in the mid-range and gets fouled and gets an and one out of it like those are plays that you're not exactly getting and so it's just those Those things are such a difference to have a guy with the ability to do that. It's also the standpoint of like, he opens up the game for everybody else on the floor, right? Because now all of a sudden, the best defender might be checking Darren Peterson on the other team, right?

Or at least they should, or at least the best perimeter defender, right? And now that that's happening, now you have instead of your best defender being on, I don't know, Melvin Council or Trey White, maybe it's on Peterson. And now that makes things a little easier on white. I also think we've seen the last two games. Florey is just 9 of 24 from the floor. They've been doubling him or they've had a bunch of bigs that they can throw at them. Well, that gets a little tougher to double if you have Darren Peterson on the outside. And now you can run pick and rolls with Peterson and Florey.

And, you know, if it's a pick and roll with counsel, maybe you say, okay, we're going to, we're going to help a little extra on Flory. You can't do that with Peterson. So like, it is going to make things a lot easier on the rest of the team. And if I look at the games that KU played without Darren Peterson. So since the North Carolina. game, right? KU's O rating during that span is 49th percentile. So they're basically a nationally average offense, the 93rd percentile on the defensive end. They're just 22nd percent on pace right

now. They haven't been able to play as fast offensively because you don't have that go-to threat with Darren Peterson. And you look at it, they're 41st percentile during that span, an effective field goal percentage. They are 20th percent down three-point percentage. Right now in the games without Peterson, they're only shooting 29.4 percent from three-point range. Well, Peterson's your best three-point shooter. So it has a long-term impact on improving the offense, obviously. Now when you look at it too, it's the ceiling razor for this team. Like the difference of beating a Yukon, we saw it on full display. I mean, Kansas actually probably still could have beat Yukon even without it. But like, the difference of having to Darren Peterson is beating a Yukon. And yes, you could say Terris

Reid was out for Yukon. But like, if Reid's back and Peterson's back, I think I'm picking Kansas to win that game. You did beat Tennessee without Peterson. Tennessee is a good team. I don't know that Tennessee is like an elite elite team yet, right? And also you could have the standpoint of like, if you play Tennessee 10 times, how many without Peterson do you win? How many do they win, right? Maybe they win six or seven of them when you're without Darren Peterson. When you have Darren Peterson, I think Kansas maybe wins more than half of them, right? And so that is so crucial that is the ceiling razor. I think we've seen without Peterson. This team's floor is actually okay. This team's floor is going to be a quasi top 25 team.

With Peterson, that's where the ceiling comes in and they can potentially be a really dain. dangerous team for other teams to play against. All right, let's finish up a little KU. Women's volleyball, got a big NCAA tournament win, KU won's basketball, got a big bounce back as well. Today's episode of the show is brought to you by Fandual Sportsbook, and you can get in on all of the college basketball action, which it's a loaded weekend ahead, college football action.

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I also want to know. I mean, I don't know, maybe this isn't a great bet because he's missed so many games. But Peterson's plus 2,500 to win the wooden award. You can get all those over at Fandwell. Right now, Fandual has given new customers $300 in bonus bets when your first $5 bet wins. So just head over to fandwell.com, sign up, play your game with Fanduel. It's the official sports betting partner of the NBA and the Lockdown Podcast Network. Thanks so much for joining us here on this bonus episode.

And thank you for making Lockdown the number one sports podcast network that is out there. Okay, so obviously big news that Darren Peterson. It was some good news earlier this week for KU Women's Volleyball, I guess just last night, as they hosted in the NCAA tournament, the four seed trying to get through. and they took down a high point relative ease, a straight sweep for KU volleyball. So now they're going into the second round, this is 23 and 10 season.

They've had a really good year and year one under Matt Ulmer. This is what becomes really interesting now. Tonight, Friday night at 6 o'clock, they're hosting Miami. And KU over the last couple years has fallen in the second round of the NCAA tournament, even hosting, right? And they've had tough matchups along the way. They hosted a Penn State team

that probably could have been seated a couple years ago and lost at a tight five-setter. they lost last year to a Florida team that was a six seed, KU was the three seed, and had this one girl who was just like, I don't know, like all-American, like unbelievable stud that kind of carried the day. Now you're hosting again. This is a bit of a younger team than those previous ones,

but I think the talent level is really high that Matt Olmer has put together. And what will be interesting to me is we think back to all of those early season five set losses for KU, right? You go back to the beginning of the year, they're playing all these ranked opponents, they're playing tough teams. They're losing in five sets, to Penn State and Wisconsin and Creighton.

These are all like top 15 teams. They're losing in five sets to a top 20 Purdue team. They're losing in five sets to a top 10, Arizona State team and on and on and on, right? And now that this team has grown up a little bit more, now that this team is a little bit older, now that this team has all this talent, can it come together and can it push them over the hump a little bit to get them back to the Sweet 16 for the first time since I want to say it was 22? Was it 21 or 22 that they made it? They were up in Creighton and kind of upset a couple teams to get through.

Can they get through and then have a potential meeting with Nebraska, the one seed in the Sweet 16? So I'll be certainly watching that one on Friday night against Miami. KU Women's Basketball, not a nice bounce back. They lost both games in their tournament last week, but they played Northwestern, and this was a road game for them. Northwesterns ranked 107th on Bartorvich, so not the best Power 5 team, but it is a road power five game for KU, and they took care of business. They won the game by 12 points.

They're now 7 and 2. KU's in the top 55 on Bart Torvik at this point in time. But, you know, it was a great game from Reagan Williams, by the way, 22 points for Williams. But this is kind of similar a little bit for the KU men's team right now, for the KU women's team, just in terms of you're missing one of your best players, right? And Julia Davis still did not play in this game. She's been hurt right now, and I don't know what the status of her is kind of long term. But if they can get her back, I still think this is an essential.

CAA tournament team. But good to win one on the road against powerful opponent even without her. All right, that'll do it for this episode of Lockdown, Jayhawks. You can find our show anywhere. You get your podcast, including on our YouTube page where you can like and subscribe to the show. See you Sunday for a KU Missouri recap.