Only, Council responded with a performance that his Hall of Fame coach could only describe as "unbelievable."
The 6-foot-4 senior had career highs of 36 points and nine 3-pointers, and the Jayhawks needed every bit of it to hold off the Wolfpack 77-76 in overtime - particularly with freshman star Darryn Peterson exiting late in regulation with lingering hamstring trouble.
"We had one guy that was probably the best performer that I think that I've had on the road in my 23 years at Kansas," coach Bill Self said. "He was unbelievable. Made hard shots. They dared him to shoot, and then when he made a couple, he started looking at a big basket.
"I'm happy for our team, but especially happy for him because he put us on his back tonight."
Wade said the Wolfpack adjusted their approach to defend him more aggressively. But the damage was done, with Council building confidence on the way to having a game that Wade said would have Council "telling his grandkids about that one."
Council made 13 of 27 shots for the game, including 9 of 15 3-pointers, to go with seven rebounds and four assists in 43 minutes. He became only the fourth KU player since 1996-97 with at least 36 points in a road game, the last being Jalen Wilson (38 points) at Kansas State in January 2023. And his nine 3s were second-most in program history, trailing only Terry Brown's 11 - also against N.C. State - in January 1991.
"Man, we have a dog right here with us," Bidunga said, adding: "That's a bad man right here, I'm really impressed."
Source:
Originally published in ESPN on December 13, 2025.
