No. 25 Kansas cruises without Peterson to 77-46 rout of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) – Kohl Rosario scored 16 points to help make up for the absence of fellow freshman Darryn Peterson, and No. 25 Kansas bounced back from last week’s loss to North Carolina with a 77-46 rout of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Tuesday night.

Flory Bidunga added 12 points while Bryson Tiller and Tre White had 11 apiece for the Jayhawks (2-1), who held the Islanders (1-3) to 32% shooting while winning their 22nd consecutive nonconference home game.

Peterson, the nation’s No. 1 recruit, scored 21 points in his debut against Green Bay and 22 against the Tar Heels. He sat out Tuesday after his hamstring tightened up at shootaround earlier in the day, but coach Bill Self said he doesn’t believe the injury will keep Peterson out of the starting lineup for long.

Peterson has been dealing with cramping issues early in the season.

The Jayhawks will certainly need their prospective NBA lottery pick in the coming weeks. They have high-profile games against the likes of No. 4 Duke, Notre Dame, Syracuse, third-ranked UConn and Missouri before Big 12 play begins.

Kansas was sloppy and sluggish without Peterson in the lineup early Tuesday night, but Rosario eventually lifted the team from its malaise. He threw down a series of alley-oop dunks, then began knocking down 3-pointers, helping the Jayhawks to pull away.

They led 38-18 at the break and used a 14-0 second-half run to bury a program that was in the NCAA Tournament two years ago.

Corpus Christi’s leading scorer, Sheldon Williams, was held to eight points after going for a career-best 21 in a loss to Tarleton State last weekend. Franck Yetna led the Islanders with 11 points against the Jayhawks.

The Islanders finish a four-game road trip at Oklahoma State on Sunday.

The Jayhawks play Princeton on Saturday in their last home game until December.