St. John’s Upsets Kansas To Advance To Sweet 16 For First Time Since 1999

St. John’s upset Kansas in the second round of the March Madness tournament.

Although St. John’s had the better record, Kansas had the higher seed because it played in a tougher conference. This is the first time since 1999 that St. John’s will advance to the regional semifinals, also known as the Sweet 16.

Kansas tied the game with just 13 seconds left. Dylan Darling had not hit a single shot before the second quarter. However, his layup with 0.7 seconds left on the clock ended up being the game-winner for St. John’s.

Bryce Hopkins led the way for St. John’s with 18 points and seven rebounds. Zuby Ejiofor also had a strong game with 18 points and nine rebounds. Despite strong scoring efforts from Hopkins and Ejiofor, St. John’s won because of their defensive efforts, forcing Kansas into 16 turnovers. 

For Kansas, star player Darryn Peterson struggled, shooting just 5 of 15 from the field. Flory Bidunga was Kansas’ most efficient scorer, scoring 12 points on six of nine shooting. Paul Mibya had a strong defensive game off the bench, but ultimately, Kansas couldn’t get enough stops against St. John’s. 

Peterson is considered one of the top prospects in the 2026 NBA Draft class, and it’s very unlikely he stays at Kansas after this season. 

Tre White and Melvin Council, two of Kansas’ top scorers, will be graduating. Although Bidunga hasn’t declared for the draft yet, he’s a projected first-round pick. There’s a chance that Kansas could lose its top-four scorers this offseason. 

St. John’s will be taking on Duke in the Sweet 16 on March 27. Duke is the No. 1 seed in the East region and overall in college basketball. The game will be played at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.

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Article by Matthew Mendives