Hunter Dickinson Becomes an NCAA Laughing Stock Following Struggles vs Creighton’s 7′1″ Giant

When Kansas Jayhawks faced off against Creighton, fans anticipated a marquee battle between two of college basketball’s elite big men—Hunter Dickinson and Ryan Kalkbrenner. Instead, the game turned into a showcase of perimeter dominance, leaving Dickinson struggling to make an impact. Creighton’s unexpected 76-63 upset over the No. 1 Jayhawks highlighted Dickinson’s puzzling performance and raised questions about what went wrong for the All-American center.

The performance, or lack thereof, was so perplexing that Randolph Childress speculated during The Field of 68: After Dark podcast that something was amiss with Dickinson. “I’m still waiting on news to come out that he got the flu or something,” Childress said.

Childress went on to further clarify the seriousness behind his statements by remarking “Because knowing him, he is a competitive ass dude. Like he’s a competitive ass kid. I know Hunter Dickinson. I know he wanted to take this matchup personal, right?  Like there’s not many times player of the year caliber bigs.  You get this type of matchup, and it was, I mean,  four shots. He just didn’t seem like, like, I’m seriously, I’m not trying to be funny. It wouldn’t shock me if they told me he had a fever or he’s sick or something like that.”

This comment came amidst widespread disappointment, with fellow analyst Kenny Frease lamenting the missed opportunity for a personal showdown between Dickinson and Kalkbrenner. “Everybody was excited for that matchup,” Frease noted during the podcast.

What was billed as a clash of dominant big men ended up being decided beyond the arc. Creighton knocked down 12 of 29 three-pointers, with Pop Isaacs leading the charge, scoring a season-high 27 points, including six three-pointers. His back-to-back threes early in the second half stemmed a Kansas rally and rebuilt Creighton’s lead to nine. Meanwhile, Kansas shot a pedestrian 8-for-23 from deep and struggled offensively throughout the game. Dickinson, a towering 7’2” presence averaging 17.9 points this season, was largely neutralized, taking just four shots and finishing with six points and eight rebounds. The Bluejays’ Kalkbrenner, in contrast, tallied 17 points and 10 rebounds despite recovering from a recent lower-body injury.

“They [Creighton] have the great equalizer,” Frease remarked. “They can shoot threes. They ended up making 12 threes. That’s the difference in the game.”

Dickinson’s Struggles Raise Questions

Kansas coach Bill Self will undoubtedly look back at the film wondering why his team failed to maximize Dickinson’s potential against Creighton. The Jayhawks managed just 28 points in the paint compared to Creighton’s 26, an area they were expected to dominate. On a night when Dickinson’s touch seemed limited, Creighton’s guards took control, exploiting Kansas’ defensive lapses and pulling away with a 13-point victory.

Adding to the narrative, Creighton outrebounded Kansas 44-31, with Kalkbrenner’s physicality proving pivotal. For Dickinson, who transferred to Kansas to contend for a championship, the performance was a rare low point.

For Creighton, the victory was monumental. Unranked and coming off three losses in their last four games, the Bluejays rallied to defeat the nation’s top team in commanding fashion. The students stormed the court at the final buzzer, celebrating a statement win that put Pop Isaacs and Kalkbrenner in the spotlight.

Kansas, on the other hand, faces critical questions about its offensive schemes and reliance on Dickinson. As Childress put it, “You get these player-of-the-year caliber matchups so rarely. For it to go like this? It’s disappointing.”

The Jayhawks will need to regroup quickly, with another challenging game against Missouri on the horizon. For now, the spotlight on Dickinson remains glaring—and for all the wrong reasons.