Kansas guard Darryn Peterson (22) turns to the bench after a late bucket against Kansas State during the second half, Saturday, March 7, 2026, at Allen Fieldhouse. Photo by Nick Krug

Kansas coach Bill Self didn’t want the rest of his team to feel left out after his six seniors had delivered their senior-day speeches on Saturday afternoon, so he took some time to highlight the remaining Jayhawks on the roster for the KU fans still in attendance.

Self went down the line through Corbin Allen and Will Thengvall, through Samis Calderon and Paul Mbiya, and eventually found his way to star guard Darryn Peterson.

Peterson, though not a senior, played what was surely his own final game at Allen Fieldhouse on Saturday — he’ll be a top-three pick in the NBA Draft this June — and delivered one of his most complete performances against the struggling Kansas State Wildcats: 27 points on 10-for-15 shooting, five rebounds and four assists.

It was routine for Peterson in terms of the ease with which he reached that high tally, but not so routine because of how rarely he got through full games with that level of production throughout the bulk of the year.

“Still yet we haven’t seen the best,” Self said, “because today you saw how easy it was when his body is feeling good, and it’s feeling better each and every week. And guys, he’s good enough to put a team on his back for two or three weeks.”

The Jayhawks, as many regular and consistent contributors as they have — Tre White and Melvin Council Jr. each had double-doubles on Saturday — may need him to do just that if they want to embark on a deep postseason run, of the kind that Self believes KU is “built to make.”

Peterson was asked postgame what it meant to hear Self discuss his ability to carry the team.

“What goes through my mind is just his belief in me after tons of ups and downs this whole entire year,” said Peterson, who has battled cramps as well as hamstring and ankle injuries and been the subject of ceaseless national media discourse. “Couple times throughout the year, I feel like the world was stacked against me, and I feel like he always had my back the majority of them. So appreciate him for that.”

He concluded by adding, “What goes through my mind: Let’s go get a championship.”

KU may only be on track for a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament in light of its recent missteps in Arizona, but it’s easier to envision the Jayhawks making a long run after seeing Peterson on Saturday.

Peterson’s various injuries this year turned him into more of a jump shooter than the prolific driver he was in high school. Against K-State, though, he went just 1-for-2 from beyond the arc — his previous season low for 3-point attempts was four — while getting to the rim at ease and drawing contact along the way, vexing any guard the Wildcats put on him and at times splitting multiple defenders.

“I still think that we’ve shown over time … that we can be inconsistent shooting the ball, so we got to make people play bad,” Self said. “But that’s the best he’s moved all year long for 40 minutes, without question. So hopefully that’s a positive moving forward.

“And you guys saw how easy it was for him, I mean, just so easy. And he didn’t even make 3s. That’s why I told him after the game, ‘Gosh dang, you turned down looks.’ I still think that his best ball’s still in front of him.”

His tenure at Allen Fieldhouse, though, is effectively behind him at this point. Peterson played nine games on James Naismith Court. His cramping issues in particular limited him until a recent string of home games against Utah, Cincinnati and Houston. In all of those, he acquitted himself well — but not as well as on Saturday.

“I’m feeling good,” Peterson said. “I think (it’s) perfect timing, if you ask me, going into the tournament, Big 12 tournament and NCAA.”

The freshman from Ohio made sure to reiterate — especially in light of a recent joke, relayed by Council, that Peterson was going to shun him for kissing the floor on senior day, which some fans used as an excuse to malign Peterson online — his affection for the program and the university.

“Everybody saying I don’t love Kansas … this is the last home game, last time I’m probably going to do this type of stuff — I love Kansas, I love everything about being here,” Peterson said. “And my team.”

Answering a question about the meaning of playing for KU and representing the program along with his senior teammates, Peterson said it was “an honor and a privilege.”

“Every time we put (the jersey) on, we got to think about people that put it on before us,” Peterson said. “We tried to do that every night — obviously we came up short sometimes, but every time we stepped out there, we were Kansas Jayhawks. We were trying to win every game, so it meant the world for us to be able to go out there and battle, for not only us but for Kansas.”

One chapter of Peterson’s career may be at an end — though he did joke, in response to “one more year” chants from Council, that he “might run it back” — but Self is still hoping for better things from him beyond the walls of Allen Fieldhouse. He said he didn’t see any sort of hesitation from the young guard on Saturday.

“So hopefully I learn that I’m going to coach it like he’s going to be like he is today every game, and he’s got to approach it like, ‘You know what, this is the bare minimum,'” Self said, “as opposed to the high point, because there’s nothing that kid can’t do if his body feels right.”