Darryn Peterson Reacts to Not Getting the Ball in Crunch Time as Kansas Avoids Upset Loss

Darryn Peterson wasn't sweating his lack of touches in crunch time as Kansas had to hold on for a 68-60 win over California Baptist in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Friday.

Despite not taking a shot over the final 4:18 in the second half, Peterson told reporters it's "fine" because the Jayhawks were able to get the victory.

"I happened to not touch it," Peterson said of the final minutes. "It's fine, though. I'm happy we won."

California Baptist Lancers-Kansas Jayhawks Highlights

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Kansas, the No. 4 seed in the East Region, looked like it was going to cruise to an easy victory. Head coach Bill Self's team led by as many 26 points early in the second half.

The lead was still at 20 with under eight minutes remaining. Cal Baptist went on a 16-4 run over the remainder of the game and at one point got within six at 66-60 with after Martel Williams' layup with 1:20 left to play.

Kansas was able to hold on for the win, but the late-game offense was described by Self as "brutal" and was frustrated when plays called for Peterson didn't go the way they were drawn up.

"Out of a timeout, we got a couple of plays to get the ball to Darryn, and we'd throw it to somebody else and they're face guarding him, and we didn't get it back," Self told reporters after the game.

Peterson, the projected No. 2 pick in the 2026 NBA draft by B/R's Zach Buckley, was terrific overall with 28 points on 11-of-24 shooting in the game. His 37 minutes tied a season-high previously set last week in the Big 12 tournament quarterfinals against TCU.

But his final basket came with 5:43 remaining to put Kansas up 66-52. His biggest contribution after that point was an assist on Tre White's dunk in the final seconds to seal the win.

Even though the offense didn't flow the way Self would have preferred, one encouraging sign has been Peterson's availability.

Since playing 18 minutes against Oklahoma State on Feb. 18, Peterson has averaged 32.3 minutes per game in eight starts. He set a season-high on Friday in field-goal attempts (24) and tied his season-high in field goals made (11). His four three-pointers made were his most since Feb. 21 against Cincinnati.

The Jayhawks need Peterson to be the main engine for their offense if they want to have a deep tournament run. Their next game is against St. John's on Sunday at 5:15 p.m. ET.