‘Jeopardy!’ Host Ken Jennings Calls Returning Champ Allegra Kuney a ‘Strong Presence’

Will two-day Jeopardy! champ Allegra Kuney make it a three-peat? The Ph.D. candidate from New Brunswick, New Jersey, returned to the podium on Friday, November 7, hoping to add to her $65,001 haul, but she’d have to fend off judicial law clerk Mason Hendrix and doctoral student Larisa Mount, both eager to break her streak and grab the Jeopardy! title for themselves.

The day before, Kuney hit a milestone with her win, and host Ken Jennings complimented the winner at the beginning of the game. “Yesterday, our two-game champion, Allegra Kuney, ended the game with the highest correct final Jeopardy wager we have seen all season and the second highest final score all season as well. She also responded correctly to 26 clues for the second game in a row, meaning she’s a consistently strong presence here on the Alex Trebek stage.”

The game kicked off with the first clue in the category “I Wanna Put on My Bougie Shoes” for $600: “For high-end footwear, try the Bing or Azia styles of shoes bearing the name of this Malaysian-British designer.” Hendrix buzzed in with the correct answer, “Who is Jimmy Choo?” and got control of the board.

Kuney found the first Daily Double under “Around New York City” for $800. She made a true DD with a wager of $1,200 on the clue, “When the smell of orchids gives way to lion sweat, you’re going from the New York Botanical Garden to this neighbor facility.” With the answer, “What is the Bronx Zoo?,” Kuney brought her total up to $2,400.

By the time of the break, Kuney was in the lead with $3,800, while Mount was in second with $600, and Hendrix stood in third place with $200.

After the break, Mount chatted about living most of her life overseas, mostly in Qatar and China as a teacher. Hendrix revealed he was three weeks out from taking the bar exam when he found out he was going to be on Jeopardy! (Spoiler: He passed.) On the other hand, Kuney shared her compulsion for touching hot hibachi grills when she was a kid (and apparently, as an adult).

By the end of the first round, Kuney was sitting pretty with $4,400, while Mount came in second with $600, and Hendrix fell behind to -$400.

In Double Jeopardy, Hendrix began the round with “Laying Down the Latin Law Lingo” for $1,200: “In 2025, law firm Skadden, Arps agreed to provide $100 million in this type of service for the good of Trump-approved clients.” With the correct answer of pro bono, Hendrix got out of the red and brought his total up to $800.

After a bit of a heated round, Hendrix found the second DD under “African Figures” for $800. Standing at -$1,200, Hendrix bet $2,000 to get out of the red. The clue read, “Hippo, an ancient port on the coast of North Africa, was home to this saint in the fifth century.” Hendrix incorrectly guessed, “Who was St. Leo?” “Sorry, no. St. Augustine was from Hippo,” said Jennings. Hedrix’s total fell to -$3,200.

Kuney found the third and final DD under “Fiction Science” for $1,200. ” With a total of $12,200, she bet $2,500 on the clue: “The narrator of this story puts a drop of oil on the quartz rod of his title device, hops in the saddle, and hours just zoom by.” With her answer, “What is the time machine?” Kuney brought her total up to $14,700.

By the end of the round, Hendrix had -$400 and didn’t qualify to move on to Final Jeopardy while Kuney had a massive lead over her competitor, Mount, with $15,500 to her $4,000.

The Final Jeopardy clue was in the category of “1960s Movies”: “Producer Arthur Jacobs told Rod Serling he’d win an Oscar for his script for this; Serling asked instead for a crate of bananas.” Mount wrote “What is…hi mom $ dad!” and wagered her entire pot on the salutation. Kuney wrote the correct answer, “What is Planet of the Apes?” Adding $4,500 to her pot, Kuney’s new total was $20,000, with $85,001 across the three days.

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