No. 14 Kansas to Face OSU or TCU in Big 12 Quarterfinal Thursday

LAWRENCE, Kan. – No. 14 Kansas (22-9, 12-6 Big 12) enters the 2026 Big 12 Tournament as the No. 3 seed and will play its quarterfinal game on Thursday, March 12, at 8:30 p.m. CT (ESPN2) against the winner of the No. 14 Oklahoma State versus No. 6 TCU contest. The OSU-TCU game will be played on March 11 at 8:30 p.m.

KU has won 15 postseason league tourney titles, including 11 in the Big 12 era, with its last in 2022. KU (11), Iowa State (6), Oklahoma State (2), and Houston (1) are active league members with Big 12 tournament titles. Since the Big 12's inception in 1996-97, Kansas is 50-15 in the league tournament. KU is 22-4 in the quarterfinals, 15-6 in semifinals and 11-4 in finals. NOTE: KU's 2018 title and three wins were later vacated.

Kansas is coming off a 104-85 win against Kansas State on March 7. The victory marked KU's 43^rd-consecutive win on Senior Day, a streak that started in 1984.

Kansas is No. 19 in the NET, which is fifth in the Big 12. KU's eight Quad 1 wins are tied for second most in the league and tied for seventh most nationally. Arizona is first nationally with 14.

Kansas is averaging 76.5 points per game and has a plus-7.2 scoring margin. KU pulls down 38.8 rebounds per contest. KU averages 14.7 assists, 5.5 steals, and 5.9 blocked shots per contest. KU leads the Big 12 in field goal percentage defense at 38.7%, which is fifth nationally, and three-point field goal percentage defense at 30.0%, which is 17th nationally. KU also leads the Big 12 in blocked shots (5.9), which is sixth nationally.

An All-Big 12 Second Team and All-Freshman Team member, freshman guard Darryn Peterson leads Kansas with a 19.9 scoring average. After his 27 points against Kansas State (3/7), Peterson has nine games of 20 or more points. He has made 53 threes in 20 games played this season. Peterson is on most every national player of the year watch list.

Senior guard Tre White is coming off back-to-back double doubles and has seven double-doubles on the season. After his 23 points and 11 rebounds against Kansas State (3/7), White is averaging 14.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per contest. White leads Kansas with 54 threes made and with 116 free throws made. White's 86.6 free throw percentage ranks second in the Big 12.

The Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, All-Big 12 First Team and All-Defensive Team selection, sophomore center Flory Bidunga is on the Naismith Trophy Late-Season List, the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watch List, and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year top 10. He scores 13.8 points per contest and leads KU with 9.0 rebounds per outing. Bidunga has a team-best 12 double-doubles for the season, which is second in the Big 12. Bidunga leads the Big 12 with 84 blocked shots, which is second nationally. His 2.71 blocks per game are also second nationally and leads the league and his 64.4 field goal percentage leads the Big 12 and is 10th nationally. At 13.8 ppg, 9.0 rpg, and 2.7 bpg, Bidunga is the only player in NCAA Division I to average more than 13.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocked shots per game.

The Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, All-Newcomer Team and All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection, senior guard Melvin Council Jr. is averaging 13.4 points per contest. He leads Kansas with 160 assists and with 34 steals. Council is sixth in the Big 12, 36th nationally, with a 2.78 assist-to-turnover ratio. Council recorded his second double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 assists against Kansas State (3/7).

Redshirt-freshman forward Bryson Tiller averages 8.3 points and 6.1 rebounds per contest. Tiller is second on the team with 43 blocked shots and has started 28 games this season for KU.

Redshirt-sophomore guard Elmarko Jackson (4.7 ppg, 22 steals), redshirt-sophomore guard Jamari McDowell (3.6 ppg, 28 threes), freshman Kohl Rosario (3.1, 15 threes), and senior guard Jayden Dawson (2.2 ppg, 12 threes) round out the KU regulars.

UP NEXT
A Kansas win in the Big 12 Tournament quarterfinals would advance KU to the semifinals for the 22nd time in Big 12 history and the 39th time in conference postseason tournament history. The Jayhawks are 23-15 all-time in conference tourney semifinals, including 15-6 in the Big 12 era (since 1997). Should it happen, Kansas' Big 12 semifinal contest would be March 13, at 8:30 p.m. CT, at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri. The contest would be televised on ESPN or ESPN2.

University of Kansas Athletics

No. 14 Kansas to Face OSU or TCU in Big 12 Quarterfinal Thursday

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Players Mentioned

Flory Bidunga

Melvin Council Jr.

Jayden Dawson

Elmarko Jackson

Jamari McDowell

Darryn Peterson

Kohl Rosario

Bryson Tiller

Tre White

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