LUBBOCK, Texas — Kansas guard Darryn Peterson was 3-for-12 from the field and had been largely invisible in the latter stages of the game when he hit back-to-back 3-pointers to put KU ahead with 44 seconds remaining.
The Jayhawks’ star took the air out of United Supermarkets Arena, Tyeree Bryan and Donovan Atwell missed potential game-tying attempts and KU claimed a stunning 64-61 victory over the 13th-ranked Red Raiders on Monday night.
“Coach (Bill) Self told me to go make a play,” Peterson said. “The play before, he tried a play for me. I didn’t attack. So he got a timeout and he told me to go make a play.”
Peterson, who said he completed the game without significant cramping issues and played a season-high 35 minutes, finished with 19 points to lead the Jayhawks, backed up by 16 from Melvin Council Jr. and 14 from Flory Bidunga.
“He’s got just an unbelievable ability to raise it when it counts the most, raise his level when it counts the most,” Self said. “And that’s what he did tonight.”
LeJuan Watts led Texas Tech with 19 of his own, as the Red Raiders were without star guard Christian Anderson and had JT Toppin (10 points, 5-for-18 from the field) limited by foul trouble and Bidunga’s stellar defense.
“I thought (Jaylen) Petty was great to start the game, and I thought Watts was the best player in the game up until the very end and I thought Flory and DP kind of took over,” Self said. “We had the game won and Tre makes a bad play” — the senior forward Tre White turned the ball over with KU up late, giving Tech another possession — “but we did enough to win, but we were very fortunate.”
With Anderson (19.6 points, 7.5 assists per game) suddenly out despite not having been listed on the pregame availability report, apparently due to an illness, the Red Raiders didn’t have much of a shooting touch early and opened 1-for-5 from beyond the arc.
“He’s a pro, so him being out there and another weapon, even though I thought their guys played well and a couple guys made some big-time shots, especially early — obviously we would have had to be a much better team if he was on the court,” Self said.
Added Council: “Shoutout to Petty, he was killing me at first, but I had to pick it up. Anderson is the guy that can shoot behind a screen, shoot off the dribble and stuff like that, so it changed up the game a lot.”
Watts, who attempted six of Tech’s first nine shots, put them ahead 8-7 with a 3-pointer prior to the first media timeout.
The Red Raiders continued their bombardment, attempting 12 3s in just over seven minutes of action, but KU made six of its first eight 2-point shots and battled back to briefly take the lead at 17-16. However, the Jayhawks stalled a bit offensively with both Bidunga and Peterson on the bench, and Watts backed down Jamari McDowell for a close-range shot in the post to give Tech back the lead.
Watts continued to plague the Jayhawks, slapping the ball away from Bidunga at one end to set up a give-and-go with Petty that put the Red Raiders ahead 22-17. KU responded with five straight, including a second-chance 3-pointer by Peterson off an offensive rebound by the returning Kohl Rosario, but Bryan’s timely 3 countered it in short order.
With Toppin on the bench due to his second foul, and the Red Raiders sputtering, the Jayhawks did not do much to take advantage. Bryson Tiller battled for a three-point play, but that went down as the only score for either team in a period of more than three minutes as he missed the front end of a one-and-one.
Peterson added four points before Watts made a single free throw to end a scoring drought of 4:28. Trailing 31-26, the Red Raiders got a 3-pointer they desperately needed from the previously quiet Atwell with 23 seconds remaining in the half. Peterson went 1-for-2 from the line after drawing the third foul on Tech reserve Luke Bamgboye, but the Jayhawks held just a three-point lead at the break.
Peterson and Watts led their teams in scoring with 11 and 10 points, respectively, but they needed 10 and 14 shots to get there.
Anderson returned to the floor during halftime but did not actually take the court after the break. The Red Raiders’ offense took advantage of multiple offensive rebounds and a mismatch in the post to get a bucket inside with Toppin, but didn’t do much else in the first few minutes of the second half before Atwell rounded a screen and dropped in a 3-pointer to cut it to 36-34. After a turnover by Tiller, Watts put Tech back in front with a 3 of his own.
The Red Raiders stretched their run as far as 11 straight points before Self called timeout down 42-36.
In the first six minutes of the second half, KU allowed seven offensive rebounds compared to the three Tech had secured in the entire first period.
Council accomplished something KU had rarely successfully managed and ran the fast break for a layup to cut the deficit back to two points, but Toppin responded with a quick floater.
KU trailed 47-45 out of the under-12 timeout but proceeded to allow back-to-back 3s, including one by Jazz Henderson, who was previously 1-for-2 from the field on the season.
The Jayhawks crept back in, led by Council, and White banked in a contested shot at the end of the clock to make it 59-56 with less than four minutes remaining.
“Tre was telling me, ‘It’s your time. You got to take over,'” Council said.
Added Peterson: “He’s been doing it all year. He’s Mr. Consistent right now.”
Tech went to Toppin again and again. He traveled with 1:50 to go in a three-point game, but Tiller’s leaner on the ensuing possession hit the back rim. After a challenge by Tech, the officials ruled the ball had gone out off KU, but the Red Raiders immediately turned the ball over and Peterson hit a game-tying 3. Then he pulled up for another on the next possession for good measure after a miss by Toppin.
Tech did not score for the final 2:26.
“I think it was Flory Bidunga,” Self said. “To me, there’s not a better defender, regardless of position, anywhere. He can guard one through five. He did a great job on Watts when he guarded him, and Watts killed us. And he did a great job on JT, and he can switch and guard a guard. I think Flory had a lot to do with it.”
Peterson also called Bidunga the best defender in the country.
“I mean, that’s a great matchup,” Bidunga said of limiting Toppin, last year’s Big 12 player of the year. “Really wanted to prove myself.”
The Jayhawks, who improved to 17-5 and 7-2 in Big 12 play with the road win, will return home to face Utah (9-12, 1-7 Big 12) on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. The Utes, who will be making their first trip to Allen Fieldhouse as Big 12 opponents, first have a game against Arizona State in Salt Lake City on Wednesday night.
