LAWRENCE, Kan. – The 40th annual Late Night in the Phog, presented by HyVee, energized a packed Allen Fieldhouse Friday night, kicking off the men’s and women’s basketball seasons.
Late Night featured a performance by Grammy award winner Lil Jon, along with various competitions, scrimmages from both basketball teams and an electric crowd.
The Kansas cheerleaders kicked off the night with an electrifying performance, showcasing impressive flips and stunts that amped up the crowd’s energy. Following their routine, women’s basketball head coach Brandon Schneider took the stage, delivering a spirited message to fire up fans and encourage their support for the team this season.
“We are a program still on the rise,” said Schneider. “We have big dreams, we have the talent and we have the work ethic. Since March, we’ve added new players to the team, and they have been extremely fun to coach.”
The 2024-2025 women’s basketball team was introduced and they joined the Rock Chalk Dancers to deliver an entertaining dance performance, helped KU students compete in a skills competition and then moved into a ten-minute warm-up before starting a scrimmage.
The Crimson Team got off to a quick start with Freddie Wallace sinking a three-pointer from the top of the key, followed by Zoe Canfield adding another from beyond the arc to keep the momentum rolling. The practice squad fought back, hitting consecutive threes of their own to close the gap to 19-13 with just over four minutes left in the period. A clutch three-pointer from the practice squad narrowed the Crimson Team’s lead even further, bringing it to 19-16 with 2:19 remaining.
Danai Papadopoulou responded with a strong layup under the basket, extending the Crimson Team’s lead to 21-16 as the clock wound down. The Blue Team kept the pressure on, cutting the lead to just two points in the final minute. With 25 seconds left, the Crimson Team grabbed a crucial rebound and quickly pushed the ball down the court. Brittany Harshaw then nailed a three-pointer to secure the victory, with the Crimson Team holding on for a close 26-24 win over the practice squad.
Following the women’s basketball scrimmage, head men’s basketball coach Bill Self spoke to the crowd about the exciting season ahead. The crowd roared as the men’s basketball team was introduced.
“We’ve had the best tipoff in all of college basketball right here,” Self said. “You fans are the reason guys come here and why we win so many games. We owe it to you for putting us in this position year in and year out to win conference championships, and this year, to play for a national championship.”
The men’s team moved into a dodgeball competition, performed with the Rock Chalk dance team and then moved into a five-minute warm-up before their team scrimmage.
In a tightly contested scrimmage, the Blue Team struck first, with Rylan Griffen scoring the opening basket, followed by a layup under the basket by Justin Cross. The Crimson team struggled early but finally got on the board with a two-pointer from Jamari McDowell. Blue extended their lead with an impressive dunk by Flory Bidunga, assisted by Zach Clemence, putting them up 6-2. Crimson started to fight back as KJ Adams earned his first points, cutting the deficit to two. A key rebound by Hunter Dickinson led to a dunk by Adams, assisted by Zeke Mayo, bringing Crimson within striking distance. Dickson followed up with back-to-back dunks, bringing the score to 13-8 with just under ten minutes remaining.
With 7:30 left in the game, Crimson trimmed Blue’s lead to one after a layup by Rakease Passmore, eventually taking their first lead with another dunk from Adams. Blue responded with a strong and-one layup by Bidunga, making the extra free throw to regain the lead, 16-15. The scrimmage remained tight, with Blue holding onto a one-point lead at 2:11, but Noah Shelby hit a clutch three-pointer to shift momentum. A dunk from Passmore tied the game at 23-23 with just over a minute to play. Bidunga sealed the game for Blue with a final basket, securing a 30-26 victory.
The last competition of the evening was Bill Self‘s $10,000 shot.
KU students had a chance to win $10,000. Self allowed each student to choose a basketball staff member or a former player to make the half-court shot.
Both students chose Brennan Bechard, Director of Men’s Basketball Scouting, to take the shot. The first student, Ally Carrier, a freshman from Denver, Colorado, won $5,000 after Bechard’s shot hit the rim. The second student, Levi Hager, a freshman from Abilene, Kansas, walked away with $10,000 when Bechard sank the half-court shot.
To wrap up the night, Lil John took center stage and gave an electrifying performance for fans and spectators.
