Flory Bidunga Named to Weekly Big 12 Starting Five After Impressive Outings

Flory Bidunga has had an impressive couple of weeks for the Kansas Jayhawks. With these performances, he was added to this week's Big 12 Starting Five.

Nov 26, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Kansas Jayhawks forward Flory Bidunga (40) reacts in the second half against the Tennessee Volunteers in the 2025 Players Era Festival third place game at MGM Grand Garden Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Despite a questionable start to the season, sophomore Flory Bidunga appears to have made the leap everyone was hoping for. He is coming off a stellar week in the Players Era tournament and, as a result, was added to the Big 12 Starting Five of the Week for the second time this season. 

To say this is much deserved is an understatement. Bidunga has shown immense improvement on the floor, as he is averaging 15.8 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game while shooting 62.8% from the field. 

At first, it seemed Bidunga struggled against great competition after putting up 23 points against Green Bay and 25 points against Princeton, but only putting up a quiet 8 against UNC. That assumption would be quickly shut down when the Jayhawks faced off against the Duke Blue Devils in the Champions Classic.

The 6-foot-10 big man looked composed, adding 14 points and 6 rebounds to the stat sheet. Bidunga had very few issues getting to his spots and finding the bottom of the net with his shots. Although the Jayhawks fell short, it was clear the Jayhawks had found a second scoring option. Bidunga is here to play.

Since then, Bidunga has continued to impress and come up big for the Darryn Peterson-less Jayhawks. 

Tomorrow night, the Jayhawks will face off against the UConn Huskies in a highly talented contest. 

Luckily for the Jayhawks, they are coming off a battle-tested tournament in Las Vegas that helped them best prepare for this game, and the Congo native showed out. 

Bidunga started off Feast Week with a phenomenal performance against Notre Dame. He stuffed the stat sheet with 18 points, nine rebounds, and five blocks. He even added a few highlight plays, one being a block at the top of the key when switched on to a guard, and transitioning with an and-one finish on the other side of the floor.

This play would continue in a win against Syracuse, where he would add a smooth double-double with 13 points, 14 rebounds, and two blocks.

Then, of course, came the Tennessee game. The Jayhawks were not expected to win this game, trailing by 12 points at one point in the second half, but would ultimately come back. Bidunga added 13 points, seven rebounds, and three blocks. 

It is clearly shown that Bidunga looks more comfortable in the post, as he has been very consistent with his hook shot and a barrage of dunks, and is also continuing to wreak havoc on the defensive side.

Peterson is expected to return for the big game against UConn tomorrow night, but his absence seemed to be a blessing in disguise. The team was longing for a second scoring option, and quickly found one in the much-improved sophomore.