Peterson, Prolific Prep win Grind Session title

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Prolific Prep guard and Kansas commit Darryn Peterson starts to drive toward the rim in a 78-72 win over DME Academy in the Grind Session tournament semifinal at Haskell Indian Nations University on Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Lawrence.

Incoming Kansas guard Darryn Peterson led his high school Prolific Prep, of Napa, California, to a 77-50 victory over Fort Erie International Academy for the championship of The Grind Session circuit on Sunday evening at Haskell Indian Nations University.

Playing before a crowd of local KU fans for the second night in a row, Peterson performed better than he had on Saturday night against DME Academy. This time, he scored 23 points on 9-for-16 shooting before exiting with five minutes remaining and the result already decided.

The 6-foot-5 combo guard scored most of his points on fearless drives to the rim through and around Fort Erie defenders, though he added one 3-pointer on four attempts for good measure.

Fort Erie, which is based out of Ontario, Canada, had defeated Utah Prep on Saturday to set up the championship matchup, preventing a potential matchup between the KU commit Peterson and his future Big 12 rival AJ Dybantsa, the consensus top player in the 2025 class who is headed to BYU next season.

KU coach Bill Self and assistant coach Kurtis Townsend were in attendance at the Coffin Sports Complex for the second night in a row. Also present at the game were current KU wing Rylan Griffen and former Jayhawk guard Tyshawn Taylor.

While Peterson leaves Lawrence a champion, this won’t be the conclusion of his high school career. Prolific Prep is set to take part in the Chipotle Nationals at Hamilton Southeastern High School in Fishers, Indiana, with a game against Long Island Lutheran set for 1 p.m. Central Time on April 3. The game will be televised on ESPN2.