{"id":7323,"date":"2026-01-03T21:52:54","date_gmt":"2026-01-03T21:52:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/friscotimes.org\/?p=7323"},"modified":"2026-01-05T22:14:06","modified_gmt":"2026-01-05T22:14:06","slug":"ucf-delivers-upset-of-no-17-kansas-in-big-12-opener","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/friscotimes.org\/?p=7323","title":{"rendered":"UCF delivers upset of No. 17 Kansas in Big 12 opener"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n<\/p>\n

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Dec 2, 2025; Lawrence, Kansas, USA; Kansas Jayhawks head coach Bill Self reacts to play against the UConn Huskies during the second half of the game at Allen Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images <\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n
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Jordan Burks drained a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 41 seconds left, Riley Kugel converted a three-point play, and UCF opened Big 12 play with an 81-75 upset of No. 17 Kansas on Saturday afternoon in Orlando, Fla. <\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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After Burks broke a 72-tie, the Jayhawks (10-4, 0-1 Big 12) later got three free throws from Tre White (14 points, 11 rebounds) to trim it to 76-75 with 16.2 seconds remaining. <\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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Kugel (19 points) iced it with a layup and was fouled on the play, making the free throw for the 11th straight win for the Knights (12-1, 1-0), whose fans stormed the court after the second home victory over the Jayhawks in three seasons.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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Themus Fulks totaled 16 points, four rebounds and three assists. Burks scored 14 as UCF held a 38-30 edge in points in the paint.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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The Jayhawks welcomed the return of Darryn Peterson, who netted a career-high 26 points – all in the first half — in 23 minutes, but the freshman sensation played just five minutes in the second half when UCF made its push. <\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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Melvin Council Jr. scored 20 points, all in the second, but it was not enough as Kansas lost for the first time in five games. <\/p>\n<\/section>\n

<\/p>\n

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Kugel energized the crowd right away with a vicious block of Peterson’s layup, and Fulks then went coast-to-coast for the game’s first points. However, Peterson sank a three from the wing and put Kansas up 10-7 with 16:22 left. <\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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The Jayhawks inched away by making 5 of 8 treys in the first seven minutes for a 21-15 edge, with Peterson hitting a trio, but UCF went on a 15-5 run capped by Kugel’s long ball at 6:48. <\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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Peterson and Elmarko Jackson canned baskets for the visitors to bring Kansas back to 37-36, but Fulks’ pull-up jumper put the Knights ahead 44-41 at the break.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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In his first half back after a nine-game absence due to cramping, the 6-foot-6 Peterson was a handful as he made a major impact, scoring 23 points in 18 first-half minutes. <\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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After falling behind seven in the second half’s first two minutes, Kansas rallied back to trail just 52-51 with 14:20 left after Council’s three-point play. He then tied it at 56 with a deep shot at 13:54.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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Burks’ three-ball just past the halfway point increased UCF’s advantage to 65-59, but a 9-0 run capped by Council’s layup evened it at 70 with three minutes to play. <\/p>\n<\/section>\n

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–Field Level Media<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dec 2, 2025; Lawrence, Kansas, USA; Kansas Jayhawks head coach Bill Self reacts to play against the UConn Huskies during the second half of the game at Allen Fieldhouse. Mandatory…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":34,"featured_media":7324,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[485,2156,1719,1626,8290,7176],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nUCF delivers upset of No. 17 Kansas in Big 12 opener - Frisco Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Deadspin | UCF delivers upset of No. 17 Kansas in Big 12 opener\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/friscotimes.org\/?p=7323\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"UCF delivers upset of No. 17 Kansas in Big 12 opener - 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