Jayhawk fans returned to Allen Fieldhouse for an early look at the KU women’s and men’s basketball teams during the annual Late Night in the Phog on Friday evening.
“Under the direction of 11th year head coach Brandon Schneider, the (women’s) team returns its top six scorers from last season, including All-Big 12 selections S’Mya Nichols, Elle Evans, and Regan Williams,” according to a KU Athletics news release. “The Jayhawks also welcome the No. 7 recruiting class in the country for the 2025-26 season, highlighted by five-star prospects Jaliya Davis and Keeley Parks.”
“… This will be the first look at the 2025-26 KU’s men’s team that features returners Flory Bidunga, Jamari McDowell and Elmarko Jackson,” the release continued. “Self welcomes eight newcomers to the KU squad, featuring freshman Darryn Peterson, the top-rated recruit in the nation, and four upperclassmen transfers — Melvin Council Jr., Jayden Dawson, Nginyu ‘Gee’ Ngala, and Tre White. Peterson, the third No. 1 ranked national recruit to play for Self at Kansas, joining Andrew Wiggins and Josh Jackson, is surrounded by a talented freshmen class this year, including Kohl Rosario, Paul Mbiya, Bryson Tiller, Samis Calderon and Corbin Allen.”
In a changeup this year, there was no musical artist during the show. Instead, students were invited to an after party featuring dueling DJs.
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The women’s team will face the Fort Hays State University Tigers in an exhibition game at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 29 at Allen Fieldhouse. See their full schedule at this link.
The men’s team has an exhibition game coming up at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 24 in Louisville, Kentucky. See the season schedule at this link.
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Carter Gaskins (he/him) has been a photographer for The Lawrence Times since April 2021. He has also been a photographer for 10-plus years in photojournalism and sports.
Check out more of his work at Gaskins-Photography.com. See his work for the Times here.
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