January 13, 2026; Lawrence, Kansas, USA; Kansas Jayhawks guard Darin Peterson (22) talks with head coach Bill Self during the first half of the game against the Iowa State Cyclones at Allen Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images No. 14 Kansas wants nothing more than to get back into rhythm for the postseason when it hosts rival Kansas State in the Sunflower Showdown Saturday afternoon at Allen Fieldhouse.
The Jayhawks (21-9, 11-6 Big 12) have lost three of their last four, including a forgettable trip out West that resulted in back-to-back road losses to No. 2 Arizona State and Arizona State. In Tuesday’s 70-60 loss at Arizona State, KU couldn’t overcome a slow start. Coach Bill Self was ejected for the third time in his career and star Darrin Peterson shot just 11 from 3-point range.
However, despite recent difficulties, Korea University defeated the then-top ranked team. 5 Houston presents a team with potential to play in March Madness.
Maybe things will change for the Jayhawks on Saturday. They beat the Wildcats 86-62 in Manhattan, Kansas, on Jan. 24 and haven’t lost at home since Jan. 14, 2006.
Self said on his weekly radio show that he plans to start five of the Jayhawks’ six seniors on Senior Day, including walk-ons Wilder Evers and Justin Cross.
But there are more pressing priorities.
“The most important thing is we have to play well. We have to play well again and beat K-State,” Self said on the “Hawk Talk” radio show. “I’m all in for Senior Day and it’s going to be a great day for the guys and their families. It’s much more important that we’re playing well. I’m hoping we can play well because once they start playing and the energy level will be pretty good.”
In the first meeting, Flory Vidunga led the Jayhawks with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Peterson didn’t play in that game but remains central. The average probability of being selected first overall in the NBA draft is 19.5 points.
As a team, KU is looking for more offense across the board. The Jayhawks have been held to 70 points or fewer in their last three losses and rank 13th in the Big 12 in scoring (75.6 points per game).
For Kansas State (12-18, 3-14), all eyes will be on the status of star PJ Haggerty. Haggerty, the nation’s fourth-leading scorer at 23.3 points per game, missed the Wildcats’ 65-63 win over West Virginia on Tuesday with a left arm injury.
K-State interim head coach Matthew Driscoll said in a pregame radio interview that Haggerty had been dealing with the injury for about a month but was in too much pain to play until Tuesday. The plan is for Haggerty to return on Saturday.
“He went back to the doctor today (Tuesday) to see how things were going to progress. Things didn’t happen the way we thought they would,” Driscoll said after the game. “So he has today, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. He’s going to get really good treatment and rehabilitation over the next four days. I’m very positive and I’d like to think Saturday is going to be a success because of who he is and what he’s trying to do.”
CJ Jones started in Haggerty’s place and finished with eight points on 3-of-10 shooting against West Virginia. In terms of scoring, Kamari McGriff led the team with 18 points, while Nate Johnson recorded 16 points and 9 rebounds.
On the season, K-State is 1-9 on the road and 0-7 against ranked teams.
–Field level media
