No. 25 Kansas bounced back from last week's loss to North Carolina with a 77-46 rout of visiting Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Tuesday night, doing so without star freshman Darryn Peterson, who was a surprise scratch.
Jayhawks coach Bill Self said after the game that Peterson, the nation's No. 1 recruit, didn't play because of a tight hamstring.
"We didn't anticipate this but at the end of the practice [this morning], he said it was tight. So I told him no reason to go," Self told reporters in Lawrence.
Self called the move precautionary.
"I look forward to seeing him practice Thursday, at least we think that's the case," the coach said.
Kansas plays Princeton on Saturday, then has a stretch of high-profile games against the likes of No. 4 Duke, Notre Dame, Syracuse, No. 3 UConn and Missouri before Big 12 play begins.
Kohl Rosario scored 16 points to help make up for the absence of Peterson. 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 scored 21 points in his debut against Green Bay and 22 against North Carolina. He also has been dealing with cramping issues early in the season.
"It's frustrating for him, I'm sure," Self said. "And it's frustrating as a coach, too, because we don't know from day to day how he's going to be.
"It's a long season, guys. And he's too valuable to put out there and create a situation out of something that shouldn't be a situation."
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.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.