2003-04 Men's Basketball Recap
4/15/2004 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
2003-04 Final Year End Recap and Notes
2003-04 Final Year End Player Biographies and Records
The 2003-04 Creighton men’s basketball season will long be remembered for a team with a 12-0 start, the school’s seventh consecutive postseason appearance and school-record crowds during the first season of the brand-new, $291 million, Qwest Center OMAHA™.
Creighton’s season opened in grand fashion as the club moved a mile east into the magnificent Qwest Center OMAHA. A crowd of 12,255 fans, including close to 80 alumni, were on hand as Creighton drilled San Diego, 79-44. CU continued its strong start by winning each of its next three games by 20 or more points to improve to 4-0 heading into the annual showdown with Nebraska.
In front of a state-record crowd of 15,561 fans, Creighton closed the first half on a 10-0 run and picked up a 61-54 victory over the Cornhuskers. It was Creighton’s fifth straight win over their in-state rival, and stretched their home win streak to 22 games.
Creighton’s first road trip showed the team’s toughness, as they rallied from eight points down in the final five minutes to beat Fresno State, 70-62 in overtime. The Bluejays got to overtime when they went the length of the floor in the final five seconds and found Nate Funk, who drilled a trey at the buzzer to send it to the extra session.
CU would return home to beat Arkansas-Little Rock, followed by an impressive road win at Wyoming to head into the holiday break with an 8-0 record.
With starting point guard Tyler McKinney sidelined by an eye infection, CU returned from the break by beating SMS to open the MVC season. The Jays then hit the road and earned a rare sweep at Bradley and Illinois State, improving to 11-0 and cracking the Top 25 rankings for the second straight season.
A Jan. 11 win over Drake pushed CU’s record to 12-0, the team’s best start since the 1942-43 club opened 16-0. CU’s 12-game winning streak was its longest since 1973-74, but was snapped on Jan. 14 at eventual MVC Tournament champion Northern Iowa.
Creighton brought a 17-2 record into its Feb. 7, nationally televised showdown with Southern Illinois. SIU would escape with a narrow 61-60 win, snapping CU’s school-record 28-game home winning streak that had ranked third nationally.
Creighton would take a 19-4 record into the final nine days of the regular season. CU fell in another ESPN2 broadcast at Kent State on Bracket Buster Saturday, then dropped road games at #16 Southern Illinois and SMS.
The Bluejays would lick their wounds and celebrate Senior Day with a 75-61 victory over Wichita State, ensuring the school’s sixth straight season with at least 20 wins.
Creighton’s bid for a third straight MVC Tournament crown was derailed in the quarterfinals of the MVC Tournament when SMS knocked off the Jays, 84-75.
A NIT bid offered a home rematch vs. Nebraska and would serve as the team’s seventh straight postseason bid. Creighton appeared in control with a nine-point lead in the final five minutes, but the Huskers topped the Jays by a 71-70 score, ending the season.
The nation’s only quartet of fifth-year seniors -- Joe Dabbert, Brody Deren, Mike Grimes and Michael Lindeman -- closed their careers with a 96-31 record and four postseason appearances.
Deren earned accolades as a first-team all-MVC pick while also gaining USBWA all-District honors. Lindeman would be named Prairie Farms/MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Funk ended the campaign as the team’s top scorer (11.1 ppg.) and passer (2.7 apg.). Sophomore transfer Johnny Mathies would start the final 21 games of the year at point guard in place of McKinney, who received two corneal transplants on his right eye in the weeks after the year.
Radio Broadcast Information
KOMJ (“Magic” 590 AM) broadcasted all of Creighton’s men’s basketball games. The games were also webcast live at www.magic590.com. T. Scott Marr did play-by-play, while Kevin Sarver, Dan Kolder and Travis Justice took turns in the analyst role.
The Coaches
The dean of Missouri Valley Conference coaches, Creighton’s Dana Altman (Eastern New Mexico, 1980) finished his 10th year as head coach of the Bluejays. He owns a 195-109 (.641) mark at CU and a career record of 278-176 (.612) in his 15th year as an NCAA Division I head coach.
Creighton’s all-time winningest coach, Altman has been named conference, regional, district or national coach of the year in 10 of his 19 years as a head coach at all levels. The 2001 and 2002 MVC Coach of the Year was a finalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year Award in 2003. Additionally, Altman has led Creighton to five NCAA Tournaments and his teams have played in the postseason in 10 of the past 13 years. He was assisted by Greg Grensing, Len Gordy and Darian DeVries.
Creighton’s NIT History
Creighton played in its seventh National Invitation Tournament in 2004, and now owns a 2-7 all-time record in its appearances.
Both of Creighton’s NIT wins came during the 1941-42 season. Creighton beat West Texas State 59-58 in the first round, lost to Western Kentucky 49-36 in the semifinals by a 49-36 score and defeated Toledo 48-46 in the consolation game.
Creighton’s Last Game Recap
Nate Johnson hit a driving lay-up with 12 seconds left to lift Nebraska past Creighton, 71-70, in opening round action of the NIT. The Cornhuskers’ win snapped Creighton’s five-game winning streak in the series.
NU closed the first half with a 10-1 spurt and led 36-29 at the break thanks to a 22-9 rebounding edge.
Creighton went ahead 51-49 with 11:21 left on a three-pointer by Nate Funk. The Jays remained in the lead, going up by as much as 65-56 with 6:26 left on a three-pointer by Kellen Miliner. However, CU would miss its final seven shots from the floor the rest of the way.
Johnson sank two free throws with 1:41 to play to make it a three-point game. CU then turned it over while bringing the ball upcourt, and John Turek’s offensive putback made it 68-67 with 1:32 to go.
NU would regain the ball with 23 seconds left and Johnson hit a running lay-up over Funk and Joe Dabbert with 12 seconds left.
CU brought the ball upcourt and found Funk, but his jumper from the left elbow was blocked by Jake Muhleisen as time expired, setting off a wild Nebraska celebration.
Postseason x 7
Creighton has made either the NIT or NCAA in seven consecutive seasons, which is tied for the second-longest streak of postseason bids in MVC history.
The longest streak in MVC history was a 10 straight from 1966 to 1975 by Louisville. The only other MVC school to make the postseason seven straight years was Southern Illinois, which did it from 1989-95.
According to STATS Inc., the only 20 schools to make the postseason in each of the last seven years are Arizona, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan State, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Stanford, Syracuse, Temple, Utah, Wake Forest and Xavier.
Altman In The NIT
Creighton coach Dana Altman made his fourth appearance in the NIT, and second with the Bluejays. Altman owns a 4-5 record in the NIT and 0-2 mark at Creighton. Below is a list of the games his teams have played in:
Date Result
03/16/04 Nebraska 71, at Creighton 70
03/11/98 at Marquette 80, Creighton 68
03/30/94 Siena 92, Kansas State 79 (in New York)
03/28/94 Vanderbilt 82, Kansas State 76 (in New York)
03/24/94 at Kansas State 115, Fresno State 77
03/22/94 at Kansas State 66, Gonzaga 64
03/17/94 at Kansas State 78, Mississippi State 67
03/23/92 at Notre Dame 64, Kansas State 47
03/18/92 at Kansas State 85, Western Kentucky 74
MVC Matches Postseason High
With two NCAA Tournament teams (Southern Illinois and Northern Iowa) and a pair of NIT squads (Creighton and Wichita State), this marked the 10th time in MVC history that four men’s teams have qualified for the postseason in the same season.
Valley Sent Top Two Dancing, Again
For the sixth straight season, the Missouri Valley Conference sent at least two teams to the NCAA Tournament. The league has now sent multiple squads to the “Big Dance” in nine of the last 11 seasons. With the at-large selection of league champ Southern Illinois this season, 11 straight MVC regular-season champions have reached the NCAA Tournament.
Recent NIT History for the MVC
The MVC has not won a game in the NIT since 2000, when both Southern Illinois and SMS advanced to the second round. Wichita State fell in 2003 and both Bradley and Illinois State lost in 2001. No MVC schools competed in the 2002 NIT. Both Creighton and Wichita State fell in NIT action in 2004.
The last MVC school to win the NIT championship was the 1982 Bradley team that beat American, Syracuse, Tulane, Oklahoma and Purdue en route to the title.
The MVC has had three women’s teams reach the Final Four of the WNIT (held at campus sites) in recent seasons. This year’s Creighton women’s team won the WNIT, last year’s Creighton’s women’s team lost in the semifinals to eventual champion Auburn, while the 1999 Drake club lost to eventual champion Arkansas.
Against Postseason Teams
Creighton finished with a 3-6 record against teams that qualified for the postseason this season, including a 1-3 mark vs. NCAA clubs and a 2-3 record vs. NIT foes. Below is a breakdown on those results:
Date Opponent CU Result Tourney
12/10/03 Nebraska W 61-54 NIT
01/14/04 at Northern Iowa L 73-82 NCAA
01/21/04 at Wichita State L 62-77 NIT
02/04/04 Northern Iowa W 58-47 NCAA
02/07/04 Southern Illinois L 60-61 NCAA
02/21/04 at Kent State L 55-70 NIT
02/24/04 at #16 Southern Illinois L 60-68 NCAA
03/01/04 Wichita State W 75-61 NIT
03/16/04 Nebraska L 70-71 NIT
Largest Home Crowds
Creighton’s overflow crowd of 15,561 vs. Nebraska on Dec. 10 was the largest crowd to ever see a basketball game in the state of Nebraska. In fact, that crowd of 15,561 would have made Qwest Center OMAHA the 12th-largest city in the state of Nebraska that night.
The top nine home crowds in school history have all come this season. In fact, the team’s home attendance average of 12,016 fans per game exceeds the previous single-game school record of 11,214 fans on Jan. 29, 1970 vs. New Mexico State. CU has played 12 straight home games in front of crowds of 10,800 fans or more.
Largest Home Crowds, Creighton History
Att. Opp. Result Date
15,561 Nebraska W 61-54 12/10/03
14,372 Southern Illinois L 60-61 02/07/04
14,313 Illinois State W 72-63 01/24/04
14,183 SMS W 59-54 12/30/03
13,483 Nebraska (NIT) L 70-71 03/16/04
13,353 Drake W 78-67 01/11/04
12,255 San Diego W 79-44 11/22/03
11,624 Indiana State W 69-65 02/18/04
11,360 Evansville W 72-53 01/17/04
11,214 #5 New Mexico St. W 72-68 01/29/70
Largest Crowds, State of Nebraska History
Att. Schools Site Date
15,561 Creighton-Nebraska Omaha 12/10/03
15,038 Nebraska-Oklahoma St. Lincoln 2/7/81
15,003 Nebraska-Oklahoma Lincoln 2/28/81
14,999 Nebraska-Colorado Lincoln 2/3/79
14,912 Nebraska-Kansas St. Lincoln 2/8/78
Largest Crowds in MVC History
The Dec. 10 crowd of 15,561 also ranks as the third-largest ever at a current MVC school. Northern Iowa owns the top two crowds, both wins over Iowa more than 12 years ago. Creighton’s crowd of 14,372 vs. Southern Illinois on Feb. 7 was the largest crowd to ever see a regular-season MVC contest among current league members.
It’s worth noting that Louisville owns the all-time MVC record for a conference game with 17,661 vs. Cincinnati on Feb. 22, 1969.
Largest Crowds, MVC Teams, Home Game History*
Att. Home Team Road Team Date
22,797 Northern Iowa Iowa 1/3/90
19,042 Northern Iowa Iowa 12/10/91
15,561 Creighton Nebraska 12/10/03
14,372 Creighton Southern Illinois 2/7/04
14,313 Creighton Illinois State 1/24/04
14,183 Creighton SMS 12/30/03
13,913 Evansville Kentucky Wesleyan 3/13/60
*current league members only
Largest Crowds To See Creighton Play Ever
The 15,561 fans to see Creighton beat Nebraska ranks as the eighth largest crowd to see Creighton play at any location since 1967, according to available records. It was also the third-largest audience to see a CU win all-time.
10 Largest Crowds To See Creighton Play Since 1967
Att. Schools Result Date
22,013 #24 Auburn vs. CU% L 69-72 03/16/00
21,525 #13 Illinois vs. CU$ L 60-72 03/17/02
20,850 #15 Florida vs. CU$ W 83-82 (2ot) 03/15/02
18,686 CU @ #15 BYU L 68-96 12/11/71
16,437 CU @ #3 DePaul L 57-83 02/09/81
15,957 CU @ #15 UNLV L 59-90 12/23/87
15,703 Wichita St. vs. CU# W 70-69 03/09/03
15,561 Nebraska @ CU W 61-54 12/10/03
15,500 CU @ Iowa L 77-83 12/01/90
15,274 CU @ Saint Louis L 56-83 12/10/94
%NCAA Tournament in Minneapolis, Minn.
$NCAA Tournament in Chicago, Ill.
#MVC Tournament in St. Louis, Mo.
Deren, Funk Earn All-MVC Accolades
Creighton had a pair of players honored by the Missouri Valley Conference. Senior center Brody Deren was named a first-team all-MVC pick, while sophomore guard Nate Funk was an honorable-mention choice. Creighton has now had a first-team all-MVC pick in four straight seasons, the longest active streak in the league.
Deren Named All-District Pick By USBWA
Senior center Brody Deren has been named an All-District 6 pick by the United States Basketball Writers Association. Deren is joined on the team by Wayne Simien and Keith Langford of Kansas, Tony Allen and John Lucas of Oklahoma State, Nate Johnson of Nebraska, David Gruber of Northern Iowa, Curtis Stinson of Iowa State and Ricky Paulding and Arthur Johnson of Missouri.
This isn’t the first time the national writers have honored Creighton. Last season, Kyle Korver was named the USBWA District 6 Player of the Year while head coach Dana Altman was named USBWA District 6 Coach of the Year. Korver was also an all-district pick as a junior.
Funk Did It All
Sophomore guard Nate Funk joined some elite company by leading Creighton in points scored (322) and assists (78). In doing so, he was one of just seven sophomores nationally to lead a postseason club in those categories, joining an elite list that included Carl Krauser (Pittsburgh), Anthony Roberson (Florida), Tim Smith (East Tennessee State), John Gilchrist (Maryland), Francisco Garcia (Louisville), Daniel Horton (Michigan).
Since 1970, the only other Creighton players to lead the team in scoring and assists for an entire year are Kyle Korver (2001-02), Matt Petty (1992-93) and Kevin McKenna (1979-80). Both Korver and McKenna played in the NBA after their days at Creighton.
Mathies Counting By Fours
Sophomore guard Johnny Mathies converted the rare four-point play twice in the final weeks, both coming against SMS. Mathies first did it on Feb. 28th in Springfield, Mo., then repeated the feat at the MVC Tournament on March 6th vs. the Bears. Since the start of last season the only other Creighton players to finish a four-point play were Kyle Korver and Kellen Miliner, who have each done it once.
A Ton Of Points
With 1,984 points this season, Creighton fell 16 points shy of reaching the 2,000-point barrier for the eighth straight season. This year’s 68.4 points per game average is the squad’s lowest in the run of seven straight postseason appearances. The Bluejays had not averaged less than 70 points per game since 1996-97.
Year W-L Points PPG
2003-04 20-9 1,984 68.4
2002-03 29-5 2,688 79.1
2001-02 23-9 2,421 75.7
2000-01 24-8 2,325 72.7
1999-00 23-10 2,410 73.0
1998-99 22-9 2,357 76.0
1997-98 18-10 2,100 75.0
1996-97 15-15 2,024 67.5
1995-96 14-15 1,931 66.6
1994-95 7-19 1,588 61.1
Totals 195-109 21,828 71.8
Cornea Transplant For McKinney
Junior point guard Tyler McKinney missed most of this season and is expected to miss all of next year after undergoing a cornea transplant on March 5th at University Hospital in Iowa City, Iowa. McKinney underwent a second cornea transplant surgery on April 1st.
McKinney’s transplant was necessitated after a rare case of acanthamoeba caused the vision in his right eye to slip to 20/300.
The disease first started to bother him in mid-November and evolved to the point that he missed CU’s Dec. 30th game against SMS. After playing in games on Jan. 5th and Jan. 7th, McKinney returned to the sidelines and did not practice or play after that.
Deren Jumps To Success
Senior center Brody Deren ended the season by winning 11 straight jump balls dating back to his loss on the opening tip of the Feb. 1 game at Evansville. Deren’s streak of 11 straight wins is second only to his stretch of 17 straight jump ball wins during his sophomore season.
Creighton controlled 68-of-89 of jump balls since Deren broke into the starting line-up early in his sophomore campaign. The Bluejays won 68 of those games.
Seniors Leading The Way
Creighton’s senior class scored 48 percent of the teams’ points this season while also hauling 62 percent of the rebounds. Below is a breakdown by class of some key categories:
Category Sr. Jr. So. Fr.
Points 962 (48%) 328 (17%) 636 (32%) 58 (3%)
Rebounds 560 (62%) 90 (10%) 182 (20%) 69 (8%)
Assists 149 (38%) 81 (21%) 148 (37%) 17 (4%)
Steals 75 (38%) 36 (18%) 73 (37%) 11 (6%)
Blocks 89 (79%) 4 (4%) 8 (7%) 12 (11%)
Minutes 2686 (46%) 1002 (17%) 1794 (31%) 393 (7%)
Long Tall Distance Shooter
Senior center Joe Dabbert owns the unique distinction of being the tallest Creighton player to ever convert a three-point basket. The 6-11 center made six career three-pointers. Dabbert was one inch taller than previous record-holder Doug Swenson, who played at CU from 1997-99.
Lindy A Semi-Finalist For Excellence Award
Creighton forward Michael Lindeman is one of 10 semi-finalists nationwide for the 2nd Annual Creamland Dairies Collegiate Basketball Award of Excellence. The award is presented by the Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau (ACVB) and honors college seniors for their athletic and academic achievement, as well as their community involvement.
The 10 semi-finalists for the award were as follows: Timmy Bowers (Mississippi State), Mo Finley (UAB), James Gillingham (Bradley), Tommy Gunn (Middle Tennessee State), Adam Hess (William & Mary), Michael Lindeman (Creighton), Adam Mark (Belmont), Jameer Nelson (St. Joseph’s), Jason Parker (Tulsa) and Jake Sullivan (Iowa State).
This year’s award was won by Mark at an awards dinner on April 13 in Albuquerque, N.M.
Four Out Of Six Isn’t Bad Either
Even though Creighton was disappointed with its quarterfinal round exit at the MVC Tournament, that doesn’t mean they aren’t a force to be reckoned with at Arch Madness.
Creighton owns four league tournament titles in the last six years. On a national basis, the only schools that can claim this are Duke (5), Gonzaga (5), Kentucky (4), Creighton (4) and Winthrop (4).
Jays Tie MVC Record With Sixth 20-Win Year
With its win over Wichita State on March 1st, Creighton reached the 20-win plateau for the sixth consecutive season. In the 97-year history of the Missouri Valley Conference, only three teams had done this previously in six straight years. Those schools were Cincinnati (1957-58 to 1962-63), Bradley (1956-57 to 1961-62) and Oklahoma A&M (1943-44 to 1948-49).
According to STATS Inc., the only 16 schools to win 20 games in each of the last six seasons are Arizona, Charleston, Connecticut, Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kent State, Kentucky, Maryland, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Stanford, Syracuse and Xavier.
First Or Second Streak Alive
Creighton defeated Wichita State on the final night of the regular-season to ensure a three-way tie for second place in the MVC. This marks the fourth consecutive season that CU has finished either first or second in its league and made the postseason.
The only eight teams to finish first or second in their league and make the postseason each of the last four years are Duke, Illinois, Kansas, Kent State, Creighton, Stanford, Kentucky and Gonzaga.
Senior Night Swan Song
Creighton’s nation-best quartet of fifth-year seniors combined for one of their most dominating performances in their 75-61 Senior Night victory over Wichita State on March 1st.
The Bluejay senior class combined for 50 points, 28 rebounds, 10 assists and five blocked shots. The point, rebound and assist totals were all season highs for a single game this season.
The production was a tremendous upgrade from CU’s Feb. 28 loss two days earlier at SMS, where the seniors combined for just 10 points, 14 rebounds, three assists and a blocked shot in a 70-46 setback. The seniors’ 10 points in that game were a season-low.
Below is a comparison of the performances of the Creighton seniors this year:
Creighton Seniors, Combined Stats
Opponent, Date Pts. Reb. Ast. Blks.
Nebraska, 3/14 28 15 6 4
SMS, 3/6 34 22 4 1
Wichita State, 3/1 50 28 10 5
SMS, 2/28 10 14 3 1
So. Illinois, 2/24 31 24 4 2
Kent State, 2/21 26 16 5 2
Indiana State, 2/18 42 18 9 4
Drake, 2/14 32 25 5 4
Bradley, 2/11 36 20 6 3
So. Illinois, 2/7 36 22 3 0
Northern Iowa, 2/4 37 20 5 3
Evansville, 2/1 17 11 2 4
Indiana State, 1/28 27 22 9 2
Illinois State, 1/24 36 17 7 4
Wichita State, 1/21 24 18 4 3
Evansville, 1/17 36 14 6 5
Northern Iowa, 1/14 35 14 3 2
Drake, 1/11 31 27 8 7
Illinois State, 1/7 28 15 6 3
Bradley, 1/5 40 27 5 4
SMS, 12/30 28 22 3 4
Wyoming, 12/22 43 19 1 4
Ark.-L.R., 12/20 42 24 7 1
Fresno State, 12/13 49 19 2 3
Nebraska, 12/10 31 11 6 1
Delaware State, 12/6 26 10 6 3
Bethune-Cook., 12/3 30 22 2 2
St. Bona., 11/29 46 24 8 6
San Diego, 11/22 31 20 4 1
Average this year 33.2 19.3 5.1 3.1
Accomplished Class
In the last four years, CU has gone 96-31 and won two MVC regular-season titles and a pair of MVC Tournament crowns. They have also appeared in three NCAA Tournaments and the NIT, while also stretching the school’s record run of consecutive postseason appearances to seven. They’ve also been part of the most successful team in school history (29-5 in 2002-03) and were nationally ranked in each of the past two seasons. The quartet helped Creighton go 57-5 at home in the last four seasons.
Lindeman A Barometer
Senior forward Michael Lindeman was a good indicator of Creighton’s success (or lack thereof) throughout his career.
Creighton was 22-2 in the 24 career games that Lindeman scored 10 points or more, including a 6-0 mark this season.
In Creighton’s last three wins, Lindeman scored 35 points, an average of 11.7 ppg. In Creighton’s last five losses, he averaged just 1.0 ppg., including scoreless outings in the team’s last four losses.
Below is a comparison of Lindeman’s numbers this season:
Result FG’s 3FG’s FT’s PPG
In 20 Wins 51-104 16-32 27-37 7.3
In 9 Losses 9-37 5-16 3-4 2.9
More Double-Digit Info
Creighton’s current team owns a perfect 7-0 record when an individual scores 20 points or more. The Bluejays are also a collective 144-37 (.796) when a player scores in double-figures.
When They Score 10+ Points, CU’s Record Is...
Name W L Win. Pct.
Jimmy Motz 2 0 1.000
Michael Lindeman 22 2 .917
Tyler McKinney 8 1 .889
Brody Deren 37 6 .860
Kellen Miliner 11 2 .846
Mike Grimes 26 9 .743
Joe Dabbert 17 6 .739
Nate Funk 16 7 .696
Johnny Mathies 5 4 .556
TOTAL 144 37 .796
When They Score 20+ Points, CU’s Record Is...
Name W L Win. Pct.
Michael Lindeman 2 0 1.000
Kellen Miliner 2 0 1.000
Brody Deren 1 0 1.000
Nate Funk 1 0 1.000
Johnny Mathies 1 0 1.000
TOTAL 7 0 1.000
Making The Extra Pass
All 10 Creighton players to see time in Creighton’s March 1st win over Wichita State recorded at least one of CU’s 19 assists. How rare is that You’d have to go to Dec. 3, 1992 (a 69-58 loss to Iowa State) to find the last time every Bluejay player in the line-up recorded at least one helper.
Slow Starters
One reason that Creighton went 3-7 in its last 10 games is that they continued to start slow out of the gate. CU trailed at the first media timeout in eight of its last 10 contests.
In last year’s 29-5 campaign, CU outscored its opponents 318-216 in the opening five minutes of games and trailed just five times in 34 games at the 15:00 mark of the first half.
This season, the Jays owned a 217-188 edge in the first five minutes of the game.
Attendance Record Broken
With 14,372 fans vs. Southern Illinois on Feb. 7, Creighton shattered the school record for home attendance in a season. The Bluejays attracted 192,258 fans, obliterating last year’s mark of 140,174 total home fans.
The Jays averaged 12,016 fans per home game, a figure more than CU’s previous largest single-game home crowd in history.
Among current schools, the league record for average home attendance had been 10,738 by Indiana State during Larry Bird’s senior campaign of 1978-79. Louisville averaged 13,674 fans in 1974-75 to set the MVC mark.
CU Home Attendance, Most Fans Since 1967-68
Year G Attendance Average
1. 2003-04 16 192,258 12,016
2. 2002-03 17 140,174 8,246
3. 1982-83 17 134,042 7,885
Leading The Charge!
Led by 11 from Joe Dabbert, Creighton took 38 charges this season. While respectable, that is 21 fewer than the 59 charges they took in last year’s 29-5 campaign.
Name 2002-03 2003-04 Change
Johnny Mathies n/a 6 +6
Jimmy Motz redshirted 5 +5
Brody Deren 5 7 +2
Kellen Miliner 0 1 +1
Michael Lindeman 2 1 -1
Nate Funk 3 1 -2
Joe Dabbert 13 11 -2
Tyler McKinney 9 1 -8
Graduated Players 10 n/a -10
Mike Grimes 17 5 -12
Total 59 38 -21
Miliner Named To MVC’s All-Bench Team
Junior guard Kellen Miliner was named to the Missouri Valley Conference all-Bench team. Creighton has now had at least one representative on the all-Bench team in six of the last seven seasons. Miliner averaged 9.8 points per game and paced the team in three-pointers made (50).
Miliner was joined on the all-Bench team by Illinois State’s Trey Guidry (captain), Wichita State’s Aaron Hogg and the Southern Illinois tandem of LaMar Owen and Jamaal Tatum. MVC coaches named Owen as the league’s Sixth Man of the Year in separate balloting.
Deren Comes Up Just Short
Senior center Brody Deren finished his college career just 32 points shy of reaching the 1,000 point mark in his career. Deren scored 85 points as a freshman at Northwestern and scored 883 points the last three seasons at Creighton.
Tolliver Stands Tall
True freshman Anthony Tolliver had his most productive game of the season on Feb. 28 at SMS. The Springfield, Mo. native logged a career-best 19 minutes and turned in a season-high five rebounds and added four points to go with a blocked shot.
Lindeman, Deren Are Scholar-Athletes Again
Creighton seniors Michael Lindeman and Brody Deren each were named to the Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete First Team, as voted on by the league’s sports information directors.
Deren owns a 3.665 GPA in Exercise Science and was voted on the first-team for the third straight campaign.
Lindeman owned a 3.947 GPA in Finance as an undergraduate and is currently pursuing his MBA. This is the second straight season he was a unanimous selection. At the MVC Tournament banquet, Lindeman was also honored as the Prairie Farms/MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
More Academic Honors For Seniors
Michael Lindeman and Brody Deren both were repeat honorees for the I-AAA Athletic Directors Association Scholar-Athlete teams, which were announced on April 1st. The duo claimed two of the 10 spots on the men’s team.
Rule of 70
Creighton is 138-32 all-time under Dana Altman and 40-2 in the last two seasons when holding opponents under 70 points. Both setbacks in that 42-game stretch came against Southern Illinois this season.
Losing Streaks Rare
Creighton’s back-to-back-to-back losses at Kent State, at Southern Illinois and at SMS marked the first time CU had suffered three consecutive setbacks since falling in four straight games from Dec. 23, 1999 to Jan. 6, 2000. Creighton finished fourth in the MVC with an 11-7 record that season but got things together in March to win the MVC Tournament that year.
Perhaps more impressively, Creighton owns just 14 losses since March 18, 2002, a span of more than 24 months.
Creighton finished with losing records in both February (4-5) and March (1-2), their first back-to-back losing months since losing marks in March (0-1) and November (1-2) of 1997.
Team Scoring Funk
Creighton was led in scoring by sophomore guard Nate Funk’s 11.1 points per game. The last time Creighton failed to produce a player averaging at least 12.0 points per game was 1957-58, when Jim Berry’s 11.3 average paced the squad. Berry would later become an assistant coach at Creighton and head coach at MVC rival Northern Iowa.
Starting Lineups Seem Set
Creighton has used just four different starting line-up combinations in the last 79 games. One of those line-up changes was a one-game switch to accommodate CU’s Senior Night last year.
Creighton’s current starting five of Johnny Mathies, Nate Funk, Michael Lindeman, Mike Grimes and Brody Deren has been together to start each of the last 21 games.
49 games (42-7) Jan. 9, 2002- March 20, 2003 McKinney, House, Lindeman, Korver, Deren
1 games (1-0) March 3, 2003
McKinney, House, Bowden, Korver, Deren
8 games (8-0) Nov. 22-Dec. 22, 2003
McKinney, Funk, Lindeman, Grimes, Deren
21 games (12-9) Dec. 30, 2003-Present
Mathies, Funk, Lindeman, Grimes, Deren
The 40 Percent Rule
Drake shot 38.1 percent vs. Creighton on Feb. 14, but managed a double-overtime win, snapping a CU streak of 19 straight wins when holding the opposition below 40 percent from the field. Since coming to Creighton, Dana Altman’s is 85-10 when holding opponents under 40 percent, including a 72-5 record in the last eight seasons and 59-3 mark in the last six seasons.
Altman & Opponent Field Goal Percentages
Year Under 40 % Season Mark W-L
2003-04 8-1 .428 20-9
2002-03 10-0 .435 29-5
2001-02 9-1 .435 23-9
2000-01 10-1 .428 24-8
1999-00 11-0 .433 23-10
1998-99 11-0 .450 22-9
1997-98 8-1 .428 18-10
1996-97 5-1 .438 15-15
1995-96 8-4 .410 14-15
1994-95 5-1 .455 7-19
Totals 85-10 -- 195-109
Bench Carries The Load
Last year the Creighton bench outscored its opponents 1,009-500, and this year’s team is following the same path. Creighton outscored the bench of its opponents by a hefty 725-597 margin this season.
The Bluejay reserves outscored San Diego’s entire team by a 47-44 count in CU’s season-opener on Nov. 22.
Creighton’s bench has scored in double-figures in 118 consecutive games dating to a nine-point performance on Dec. 19, 2000 at Tulsa.
McKinney Loss Makes A Difference
After going a perfect 10-0 with Tyler McKinney in the line-up, CU went 10-9 in the games the junior point guard missed. Without McKinney, CU’s scoring margin dropped by 15.4 points per game, the team forces 5.6 fewer turnovers and Nate Funk takes over the team lead in scoring at 11.4 ppg. Below is a quick summary of those numbers:
With Tyler Without Tyler
W-L 10-0 10-9
Scoring Offense 71.8 66.6
Scoring Defense 55.1 65.3
Scoring Margin +16.7 +1.3
Reb. Margin +4.0 +1.1
FG% .470 .444
3FG% .391 .382
FT% .702 .695
Assists/Game 14.5 13.2
Turnovers/Game 13.7 13.4
TO’s Forced/Game 17.9 12.3
Steals/Game 8.1 6.0
Most Points Deren 11.9 Funk 11.5
Most Rebounds Deren 7.2 Deren 6.3
Most Assists McKinney 3.9 Funk 3.2
Most Blocked Shots Dabbert 1.2 Deren 1.1
Most Steals Mathies 1.8 Mathies 1.2
Selling Out For Creighton
Last season Creighton played nine of its last 10 regular-season games in front of virtual (93% capacity or more) sellout crowds. This season. CU has had one home sellout (Nebraska) and played before four virtual sellouts on the road (at Wichita State, Drake, Kent State and Southern Illinois).
Most Wins, Last Two Years
Creighton owns 49 wins in the last two seasons to rank among the nation’s most successful programs. Since the start of 2002-03, only 11 schools have more wins than Creighton.
‘02-03 ‘03-04 Next Total
Wins Wins Game Wins
Kentucky 32 27 -- 59
Pittsburgh 28 31 -- 59
Duke 26 31 -- 57
Stanford 24 30 -- 54
Kansas 30 24 -- 54
Connecticut 23 31 -- 54
Syracuse 30 23 -- 53
St. Joseph’s 23 30 -- 53
Oklahoma State 22 31 -- 53
Gonzaga 24 28 -- 52
Texas 26 25 -- 51
Creighton 29 20 -- 49
Southern Illinois 24 25 -- 49
Utah 25 24 -- 49
Arizona 28 20 -- 48
Dayton 24 24 -- 48
A March Tradition
Creighton entered this season as one of 17 teams nationally to have played in the NCAA Tournament each of the last five years. The select company, listed alphabetically, also includes Arizona, Cincinnati, Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan State, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Stanford, Texas and Wisconsin.
Creighton had also been one of just seven schools to win 22 or more games and reach the NCAA Tournament in each of the last five years, joining Arizona, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas and Kentucky.
Five Straight Trips Rare
Creighton’s run of five straight NCAA Tournaments from 1999-2003 had been matched just one time previously by a MVC school. Cincinnati played in six straight NCAA Tournaments between 1958-63, including national titles in 1961 and 1962. Oscar Robertson played at Cincinnati from 1958-60.
CoSIDA Academic All-District Picks
Fifth-year seniors Michael Lindeman and Brody Deren were named to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-American Third Team. With their accolades, they became the first Creighton teammates to ever be named Academic All-Americans.
Lindeman, who earned second-team honors last season, joins former baseball player Dan Lawler (1999, 2000, 2001) as the only Creighton student-athletes to repeat Academic All-America honors.
The only other Academic All-Americans in Creighton men’s basketball history are Paul Silas (1964) and Rick Apke (1978).
Both men were also named to CoSIDA’s Academic All-District VII First Team on Feb. 19th. It was Lindeman’s third consecutive year being honored, while Deren is also a repeat selection from 2003.
Creighton has now had a player named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District team in six straight years, including Joel Templeman (1998), Ryan Sears (1999, 2000, 2001), Lindeman (2002, 2003, 2004) and Deren (2003, 2004).
Double-Digit League Wins
Creighton picked up its 10th league win of the season on Feb. 11 vs. Bradley. It marks the eighth consecutive season that the Bluejays have won 10 or more MVC games. In the 97-year history of The Valley, the only other league school to previous win 10 league games or more in eight straight seasons was Missouri, which did it from 1915-16 to 1922-23.
In those eight seasons, Creighton owns a 99-45 league record, which is easily the best in the MVC.
Last 8 Years, MVC Records
School MVC W-L All Games W-L
Creighton 99-45 174-75
Southern Illinois 93-51 155-92
SMS 87-57 150-104
Illinois State 75-69 131-110
Bradley 74-70 118-121
Evansville 68-76 113-126
Wichita State 67-77 118-119
Indiana State 61-83 109-126
Northern Iowa 58-86 97-123
Drake 38-106 74-152
It’s Miliner Time!
Kellen Miliner’s 22-point game against Bradley was a career-high for the junior guard. In fact, it was the most points scored in any Division I college game by any current member on the team.
Miliner’s previous best was a 20-point performance at Evansville on Feb. 1st. Miliner added to his strong play of late with 17 points at Drake on Feb. 14. Miliner finished second on the team lead in league play with 10.9 points per game.
Double Overtime Defeat
The most played rivalry in MVC history had never gone to such lengths, as Feb. 14 marked the first double-overtime game in the 132 game history between Creighton and Drake.
In fact, prior to the Feb. 14 78-73 double-overtime loss at Drake, Creighton had won eight consecutive double-overtime games, as seen below:
Creighton’s Last 10 Double-Overtime Games
Date Winner Loser Score
02/04/04 at Drake Creighton L 78-73
03/15/02 Creighton #15 Florida! W 83-82
11/27/01 at Creighton #17 W. Kentucky W 94-91
01/04/93 at Creighton Montana W 84-78
02/10/91 at Creighton SMS W 91-87
02/17/90 at Creighton Wichita State W 103-95
01/16/90 Creighton at Iowa State W 99-94
12/08/89 Creighton Western Michigan# W 98-87
02/04/88 at Creighton Tulsa W 94-92
03/01/86 at Wichita St. Creighton L 64-69
! NCAA Tournament in Chicago, Ill.
# Mazzio’s Pizza Classic in Springfield, Mo.
‘W’inning Edge
Creighton’s men’s and women’s basketball teams have been nearly unbeatable at home in recent seasons, going a combined 103-12 in the last four seasons. In fact, prior to February, 2004, the men and women hadn’t both lost a home game in the same month since February, 2000. Creighton has not been swept by a MVC team in both men’s and women’s play during the same season since SMS did it in 1996-97.
Creighton’s Home Records, Last Four Years
Year Men Women Combined
2003-04 14-2 12-1 26-3
2002-03 17-0 13-1 30-1
2001-02 12-3 11-1 23-4
2000-01 14-0 10-4 24-4
TOTALS 57-5 46-7 103-12
Unlucky Number 73
If there’s an unlucky number for Creighton, it would have to be the number 73. Creighton has scored exactly 73 points in three of its last 10 losses and five of its last 16 setbacks.
Including Feb. 14th, Creighton has lost five straight games when scoring exactly 73 points. The Jays’ last win when scoring exactly 73 points was a 73-56 win over Bradley on Feb. 13, 2000.
Korver Third At NBA Three-Point Contest
Former Creighton start and current Philadelphia 76ers rookie Kyle Korver became the first rookie to ever compete in the Three-Point Contest held in conjunction with the NBA All-Star Game.
Korver took third place behind champion Voshon Lenard (Denver) and Peja Stojakovic (Sacramento). Last year Korver finished second to Butler’s Darnell Archey at the Three-Point Shootout at the Final Four in New Orleans.
Korver, who finished his Creighton career (1999-2003) tied for sixth in NCAA history with 371 career three-pointers, led the NBA with 4.41 three-pointers per 48 minutes, way more than Stojakovic’s 3.53 that ranked second.
For the year, he also ranked 22nd in the NBA in three-point percentage (39.1 percent). He averaged 4.5 points and 1.5 rebounds in 11.9 minutes per game. He came off the bench in all 74 games he appeared in.
Five-Figure Crowds
The NIT crowd vs. Nebraska of 13,483 on March 16th marked the 17th time this season that Creighton has played before 10,000 fans or more this season, extending a new school-record. Creighton is 24-9 in its last 33 regular-season games played before 10,000 fans or more. Additionally, CU is 19-2 in its last 21 regular-season games played before crowds of 11,000 fans or more.
Comparing Seasons
Below is a comparison of the last two seasons:
2002-03 2003-04
W-L 29-5 20-9
Scoring Offense 79.1 68.4
Scoring Defense 64.8 61.8
Scoring Margin +15.3 +6.6
Reb. Margin +1.6 +2.1
FG% .498 .453
3FG% .390 .385
FT% .693 .698
Assists/Game 16.9 13.6
Turnovers/Game 13.6 13.5
Turnover Margin +3.5 +0.7
Steals/Game 8.3 6.7
Most Points Korver 604 Funk 322
Most Rebounds Korver 217 Deren 191
Most Assists McKinney 141 Funk 78
Most Blocked Shots Deren 56 Two with 32
Most Steals Korver 50 Mathies 41
What’s Your Twenty
Creighton has started 14-6 or better after 20 games for the seventh consecutive season. Here’s a look at Creighton’s record after 20 games in the 10 seasons under Dana Altman.
Year First 20 W-L Final W-L Postseason
2003-04 17-3 20-9 NIT
2002-03 18-2 29-5 NCAA
2001-02 14-6 23-9 NCAA
2000-01 14-6 24-8 NCAA
1999-00 14-6 23-10 NCAA
1998-99 14-6 22-9 NCAA
1997-98 14-6 18-10 NIT
1996-97 10-10 15-15 ---
1995-96 11-9 14-15 ---
1994-95 6-14 7-19 ---
ESPN2=Close Games
Creighton’s two ESPN2 games this season combined to have 14 ties and 30 lead changes. That continues a trend of back-and-forth contests when the Jays appear on national TV. In Creighton’s last five regular-season appearances on ESPN or ESPN2, there have been 31 ties and 53 lead changes.
Gender Equity Equals Excellence
Creighton is one of five schools with men’s and women’s basketball teams that have won 20 or more games in each of the last three seasons. Joining the Bluejays in this elite group are Connecticut, Duke, Stanford and Texas.
Snapped Streaks
A number of extended streaks were snapped in Creighton’s 61-60 home loss to Southern Illinois on Feb. 7. CU had won 40 straight games when holding opponents under 70 points, 28 straight at home, 28 straight when outrebounding opponents, 10 straight on ESPN or ESPN2 and six straight games decided by a single point.
In the Creighton-Southern Illinois rematch on Feb. 24th, SIU again bucked the odds. Once again, SIU was outrebounded and scored less than 70, but once again they emerged victorious.
Birds of Prey
Creighton has lost just five home games in the last four seasons. Following each setback, Creighton took out its frustration in its next home game.
Creighton has followed each of its last five home losses with wins in their next home game by an average of 31.8 points, including victories by 56, 33, 27, 25 and 18 points.
To the school scheduled to open Creighton’s home schedule in 2004-05, beware! Creighton ended the 2003-04 season with a one-point home loss to Nebraska.
Home Loss Next Home Game
L 70-71, Nebraska TBA (2004-05 season opener)
L 60-61, S. Illinois W 74-56, Bradley
L 75-73, Drake W 106-50, Texas-Arlington
L 79-77, S. Illinois W 83-56, Northern Iowa
L 72-65, Xavier W 90-65, Miss. Valley State
L 92-83, S. Illinois W 102-69, Evansville
Four Seniors....One Of A Kind
According to research by UAB sports information director Aaron Jordan, Creighton was the only men’s basketball team in the country to boast four fifth-year seniors. Both UAB and Arkansas have three fifth-year seniors. Creighton’s fifth-year seniors are Joe Dabbert, Brody Deren, Mike Grimes and Michael Lindeman.
Senior Citizens
Creighton’s fifth-year seniors stepped up in the team’s 58-47 win over UNI on Feb. 4th. The quartet scored 37 of the team’s points (63.8 percent) and grabbed 20 of the club’s 35 rebounds (57.1 percent). For the season, CU’s fifth-year seniors averaged a combined 33.2 points and 19.3 rebounds per game.
Halftime Leads Can Be Dangerous
Including Feb. 7, each of the last three meetings in Omaha between Creighton and Southern Illinois have seen the team with the halftime lead ultimately lose the game. SIU overcame a 14-point halftime deficit on Feb. 3, 2002 to win 79-77 on a pair of last-second free throws. Last year, Creighton trailed by 13 in the first half and 45-37 at the intermission before rallying to win 85-76.
This season, CU lost 61-60 after leading 29-28 at the break. The Jays had won 16 straight games when leading at the break before Feb. 7. CU is 71-9 in the last four years when leading at the half, including a 46-4 home record in such contests. Two of those home losses (and three overall) were vs. the Salukis after wasting halftime leads.
Last Three Years, SIU at Creighton
Date Half Score Final Score
2/3/02 CU 48-34 SIU 79-77
1/18/03 SIU 45-37 CU 85-76
2/7/04 CU 29-28 SIU 61-60
Long-Distance Streaks Alive...Barely
Creighton’s two three-point baskets vs. Northern Iowa on Feb. 4 were a season-low, but were enough to keep alive a pair of impressive streaks. The Jays have made at least two three-point baskets in 326 consecutive games, including every game under the direction of coach Dana Altman. The last time they had just one three-pointer was a 74-70 win over Florida A&M on Dec. 22, 1993.
Overall, Creighton has made at least one trifecta in 336 straight games since a 59-53 loss at Illinois St. on Feb. 20, 1993 when Rick Johnson was coach.
He Shoots, He Scores
Mike Grimes ranks as Creighton’s all-time leader in field goal percentage at 61.1 percent and led the Valley this season at 59.1 percent.
Earlier this year had a 14-for-15 stretch over four games from Nov. 29-Dec. 10. Grimes also had a streak of 11 straight field goals that was snapped with an 0-for-2 showing vs. Northern Iowa on Feb. 4.
20/20 Backcourt
In Creighton's first 17 games of the season, Johnny Mathies had the team's top individual scoring effort with 20 points vs. Drake on Jan. 11. On Feb. 1 at Evansville, Nate Funk had a career-high 21 points while Kellen Miliner chipped in with a career-best 20 points off the pine. The Jays hadn't had multiple 20-point scorers since Jan. 13, 2002 when Kyle Korver and Terrell Taylor each scored 20 points in a 76-72 win at SMS.
In Case You Were Wondering
With an 84-10 home record since Jan. 20, 1998 and streaks of 28 and 20 straight home victories, home losses have been few and far between. In fact, Creighton has not lost consecutive home games since falling 59-58 to SMS on Dec. 29, 1999 and 75-67 to #19 Tulsa on Jan. 12, 2000.
Home Win Streak Reached 28
Before a Feb. 7 loss to Southern Illinois, Creighton had won 28 consecutive home games, passing the school record of 20 set two seasons ago. Creighton’s last home loss had come vs. Feb. 25, 2002 in the regular-season finale vs. Drake. Below is a list of Creighton’s five longest home winning streaks all-time.
Longest Creighton Home Win Streaks
# Dates Snapped By
28 Nov. 17, 2002-Feb. 4, 2004 Southern Illinois
20 Feb. 28, 2000-Dec. 16, 2001 Xavier
18 Feb. 14, 1961-Dec. 17, 1962 St. Mary’s (CA)
16 Feb. 5, 1959-Dec. 2, 1960 Saint Louis
15 Feb. 3, 1979-Jan. 19, 1980 #1 DePaul
We Must Protect This House
Despite a March 16 home loss to Nebraska, Creighton is still 58-5 (.921) in its last 63 home games and 84-10 (.894) at home since Jan. 20, 1998.
In fact, since the start of the 2000-01 season, Creighton is 24-2 in non-conference home games, falling only to Xavier (Dec. 22, 2001) and Nebraksa (March 16, 2004).
A Bunch of Homers
A total of 271,017 Creighton fans were in the house during CU’s 28-game home winning streak. In those contests, the Bluejays won by an average of 18.9 points per game. Fifteen of the games were decided by 20 points or more, while just seven were decided by single digits. Below is some interesting numbers about the long home winning streak:
Category Games
Wins 28
MVC wins 14
Games Decided by 20 or More 15
Games Decided By 9 or Less 7
Games Decided By 5 or Less 2
Overtime Games 1
Largest Lead 56 (11/17/02 vs. UT-Arlington)
Largest Deficit 17 (2/12/03 vs. SMS)
Points Scored 2,241 (80.0 ppg)
Points Allowed 1,712 (61.1 ppg)
Fans Filing In
Creighton ranked 29th nationally with an average home attendance of 11,918 per game. Kentucky led the way with 22,710 fans per home contest.
Home Attendance, Nationally
Team G Attendance Average
1. Kentucky 13 295,227 22,710
2. Syracuse 17 371,018 21,825
3. North Carolina 14 291,223 20,802
4. Louisville 15 291,643 19,443
5. Maryland 16 287,200 17,950
6. Wisconsin 15 257,130 17,142
7. Indiana 13 214,331 16,487
8. Kansas 14 228,200 16,300
9. Illinois 13 208,935 16,072
10. Memphis 15 231,481 15,432
11. BYU 13 198,906 15,300
12. Marquette 18 275,241 15,291
13. Arkansas 16 236,676 14,792
14. Michigan State 14 206,626 14,759
15. New Mexico 18 264,227 14,679
16. N.C. State 16 233,223 14,576
17. Arizona 15 218,418 14,561
18. Ohio State 15 217,817 14,521
19. Fresno State 17 232,663 13,686
20. Connecticut 18 243,876 13,549
21. Tennessee 17 228,248 13,426
22. Wake Forest 15 197,950 13,197
23. Iowa 14 181,680 12,977
24. Dayton 18 226,738 12,597
25. Cincinnati 15 185,258 12,351
26. Missouri 14 171,928 12,281
27. Minnesota 17 207,878 12,228
28. South Carolina 17 204,760 12,045
29. Creighton 16 192,258 12,016
30. Oklahoma 17 204,041 12,002
Perfect 10
With the Jan. 24 home win over Illinois State, Creighton assured itself of an eighth consecutive season of 10 or more home wins. The school record for consecutive 10-plus home win seasons is an incredible 12 straight from 1969-70 to 1980-81.
Hot Half Saves The Day
Creighton shot an incredible 16-of-20 (80 percent) in the second half of its Jan. 24 win over Illinois State. According to STATS Inc., CU’s 80 percent accuracy that half was tied for the best performance in the country this year for a team with at least 20 attempts (St. Peters, Jan. 3, 20-25 in 1st half). The best half in NCAA history was North Carolina’s 16-of-17 (94.1 percent) shooting vs. Virginia on Jan. 7, 1978.
Creighton’s hot half also is tied for the fourth-best half in MVC history, and the best ever in a league game. It’s worth noting the Bluejays shot 13-of-16 in the second half of a 83-74 win over Iowa State on Dec. 10, 1983, as seen below:
Best FG Percentage In A Half, MVC History
Pct. Team (Half) Opp. Date
.822 Bradley (1st) Chicago State 11/26/91
.814 Drake (2nd) Arkansas State 2/15/74
.813 Creighton (2nd) Iowa State 12/10/83
.800 Creighton (2nd) Illinois State 1/24/04
.800 Drake (2nd) Hawaii Pacific 11/30/86
.789 Drake (2nd) Wichita State 2/20/69
Second Half Team
Creighton’s March 1 win over Wichita State ensured a winning record in the second half of the league slate. Creighton owned a 7-2 record at the midway point of the league slate, and were 5-4 after the break. It marks the 17th straight time that it has been .500 or better in either the first or second-half of the league season.
Here’s how Dana Altman’s club’s have fared by halves of the MVC season since his arrival:
Year 1st Half 2nd Half
2003-04 7-2 5-4
2002-03 8-1 7-2
2001-02 8-1 6-3
2000-01 5-4 9-0
1999-00 5-4 6-3
1998-99 6-3 5-4
1997-98 5-4 7-2
1996-97 5-4 5-4
1995-96 4-5 5-4
1994-95 3-6 1-8
Total 56-34 (.622) 56-34 (.622)
Time On Their Side
With its Jan. 28 win in Terre Haute, Creighton accomplished the rare feat of winning in all four time zones in the continental US this season. CU also owns wins in the Central time zone (10-0 at home), the Mountain time zone (at Wyoming) and the Pacific time zone (at Fresno State). CU hadn’t won in the four different time zones within the continental US during the same season since 1971-72 when Eddie Sutton’s club won games in San Jose, CA; Albuquerque, NM; Omaha, NE and Cleveland, OH.
The Season For Charity
For the year, CU made 69.8 percent of its shots at the free throw line, while opponents shot just 64.9 percent at the stripe and an even worse 61.0 percent in MVC action. Five MVC opponents shot less than 50 percent at the stripe in a game vs. the Jays this year.
Ranking Information
Earlier this year, CU became the first MVC team to crack the AP poll in consecutive seasons since Tulsa did it in 1983-84 and 1984-85. CU was ranked 24th the week of Jan. 12 by the Associated Press.
The Jays were also tabbed 23rd the week of Jan. 5, 20th the week of Jan. 12th and 24th the week of Jan. 19 by the coaches poll.
Last season Creighton entered the AP poll for the first time since the 1975 season with a No. 23 ranking on Dec. 9. Creighton was ranked as high as 10th in the Jan. 20, 2003 Associated Press poll, the best ranking in program history.
Creighton finished 15th in the final regular season editions of both the AP and USA Today/ESPN coaches polls and was ranked the final 15 weeks of the regular-season in both polls.
Balanced Attack
One undeniable strength to this season’s 20-9 record was the tremendous depth and balance on the Creighton squad. Seven players averaged between 5.9 and 11.1 points per game and eight players averaged between 17.9 and 27.3 minutes per contest. The Bluejays were led in scoring by seven different players, and both assists and rebounding by six different men each.
They Know How To Win
Creighton has been able to win close games down the stretch thanks to an extremely experienced group of players who have known nothing but success.
Creighton is 96-31 (.756) in the last four seasons and the current players own a combined 617-196 record (.759) in games they’ve appeared in at Creighton. Below is a chart of CU’s active players, accompanied by the team’s record in games that player has appeared in:
Name W L Win. Pct.
David Finklea 17 0 1.000
Tyler McKinney 62 14 .816
Nate Funk 49 14 .778
Kellen Miliner 48 14 .774
Mike Grimes 93 29 .762
Joe Dabbert 96 31 .759
Brody Deren 72 23 .758
Michael Lindeman 92 31 .748
Jimmy Motz 37 13 .740
Johnny Mathies 20 9 .690
Anthony Tolliver 18 9 .667
Quincy Henderson 13 9 .591
Total 617 196 .756
Altman Earns National Coaching Honor
Creighton head coach Dana Altman won the Jim Phelan Mid-Season Coach Award, an award given annually by collegeinsider.com to the league’s top coach at the midseason point. Despite the graduation of seniors Kyle Korver, Larry House and DeAnthony Bowden from last year’s team that finished 29-5, the Bluejays owned a 9-0 record on Dec. 31 when the award was announced.
Altman has now been named conference, regional, district or national coach of the year in 10 of his 19 years as a head coach at all levels. The 2001 and 2002 MVC Coach of the Year was a finalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year Award in 2003.
Winning On The Road Too
Creighton owns a 6-6 record this year away from home while playing at some of the nation’s toughest venues. All six schools Creighton has beaten owned an all-time home winning percentage of 65 percent or better in that facility entering this year, as seen below:
School Venue All-Time W-L Pct.
Fresno St. Save Mart Center* 406-128 .760
Wyoming Arena-Auditorium 231-70 .767
Bradley Carver Arena 221-74 .749
Illinois State Redbird Arena 146-55 .726
UNI UNI-Dome 240-118 .670
Wichita St. Levitt/Koch Arena 513-186 .734
Indiana St. Hulman Center 277-144 .658
Evansville Roberts Stadium 532-183 .744
Drake Knapp Center 78-70 .527
Kent State Memorial Athletic Ctr. 406-236 .632
Southern Illinois SIU Arena 386-131 .747
SMS Hammons Center 327-87 .790
*Fresno State now plays at the brand new Save Mart Center after going 406-128 in 36 years at Selland Arena
Another Double-Digit Winning Streak
Creighton’s 12-0 start was its 13th stretch of 10 straight wins or more all-time. It was also Creighton’s longest winning streak since Tom Apke’s 1974-75 club won 14 straight. The school-record streak is 32 straight wins, set over the course of CU’s first four seasons of organized basketball.
Creighton’s Longest Win Streaks, All-Time
W’s Dates Coach NCAA/NIT
32 1917-1920 (dates unknown) Mills & Kearney Didn’t exist
17 Mar. 25, 1942 -Mar. 4, 1943 E. Hickey NIT
16 Jan. 31, 1928-Jan. 23, 1929 A. Schabinger Didn’t exist
14 Jan. 2-Feb. 22, 1975 T. Apke NCAA
13 1924-25 (dates unknown) A. Schabinger Didn’t exist
13 1916-17 (dates unknown) T. Mills Didn’t exist
12 Nov. 22, 2003-Jan. 11, 2004 D. Altman NIT
12 1921-22 (dates unknown) A. Schabinger Didn’t exist
Days of Thunder
Creighton has lost each of its last five Saturday games after a streak of eight straight Saturday wins was snapped on Feb. 8th by Southern Illinois. CU has also won 10 straight games on Sunday and nine straight on Monday’s.
Day of Week Streak Last Loss
Sunday Won 10 2/3/02 vs. Southern Illinois
Monday Won 9 2/25/02 vs. Drake
Wednesday Won 4 1/21/04 at Wichita State
Friday Won 1 3/15/01 vs. Iowa
Tuesday Lost 2 3/16/04 Nebraska
Thursday Lost 2 1/23/03 at Evansville
Saturday Lost 5 2/28/04 at SMS
Defense Rules
Prior to surrendering 82 points at Northern Iowa on Jan. 14, Creighton had held its first 12 opponents this season to 67 points or less. The Bluejays had not held 12 straight foes to 67 or less since a 19-game stretch from Jan. 31-Dec. 20, 1949 when Duce Belford was the coach.
The Bluejays have won 28 straight games when holding opponents to 50 points or less since Jan. 7, 1993. The Jays haven’t lost a game when holding a foe under 45 points since Jan. 13, 1986. CU had also won 19 straight games when holding its opponents under 40 percent from the field before that streak was snapped on Feb. 14 at Drake.
McKinney McInjured
Creighton point guard Tyler McKinney’s streaks of 74 straight games and 62 straight starts came to an end when he missed the Bluejays’ Dec. 30 victory over SMS. McKinney has been bothered with vision problems and came off the bench at both Bradley and Illinois State. McKinney did not play or practice after January 7th.
Point, Counterpoint
With Tyler McKinney sidelined, Johnny Mathies averaged 7.9 points and has made just 33 turnovers in a starting role. Below is a chart comparing the first 21 starts at point guard for Mathies and recent predecessors McKinney and Ryan Sears.
First 21 Games as Starting Point Guard
Name Pts. Ast. TO W-L
Mathies 166 38 33 12-9
McKinney 135 54 19 16-5
Sears 227 100 45 15-6
Rocky Mountain High
Creighton’s tallest player, 6-11 Joe Dabbert, kept his tradition of playing well in high altitude games when he poured in a career-high 19 points vs. Wyoming (elevation 7720). Dabbert, who hails from Bailey, Colo. (elevation 9500) had 10 points at Wyoming as a freshman and 10 points in last year’s NCAA Tournament game vs. Central Michigan that was played in Salt Lake City, Utah (elevation 6900). He also scored six points as a sophomore in a game at BYU.
Television Stars
Seventeen of Creighton’s 29 games were on television this season, with Creighton’s MVC Tournament and NIT runs also appearing on television. Creighton owned an 14-3 record on television last year and was 8-9 on TV this season. However, they are 27-2 since the start of last year in games not on television, including a 12-0 record this year.
Seven Straight Years Of Seven Game Streaks
Creighton’s 12-0 start gave the Bluejays at least a seven-game win streak for the seventh straight season and eighth time overall under Dana Altman. Each streaking team advanced to the postseason.
Creighton’s Longest Win Streaks Under Dana Altman
W’s Dates Postseason That Year
12 Nov. 22, 2003-Jan. 11, 2004 NIT
11 Jan. 27-March 3, 2001 NCAA
10 Nov. 17-Dec. 29, 2002 NCAA
9 Jan. 21-Feb. 16, 1998 NIT
9 Nov. 22-Dec. 21, 1999 NCAA
7 Feb. 17-Mar. 11, 1999 NCAA
7 Dec. 6, 2000-Jan. 2, 2001 NCAA
7 Jan. 9-Jan. 30, 2002 NCAA
Deren On The Double
Center Brody Deren entered the season with just one career double-double (Nov. 27, 2001 vs. #17 Western Kentucky). However, he had three double dips in his senior campaign.
Deren had 14 points and 11 rebounds in Creighton’s Dec. 20 win over Arkansas-Little Rock. Deren doubled his fun two weeks later with 15 points and a career-high 14 rebounds at Bradley on Jan. 5. Deren’s third double-double of the year (and fourth of his career) came on Feb. 24 at #16 Southern Illinois when he finished with 13 points and 13 rebounds.
Exclusive Company
With Creighton’s Dec. 10 win over Nebraska, seniors Joe Dabbert, Mike Grimes and Michael Lindeman joined Kyle Korver as the only players in Bluejay history to beat Nebraska four straight years. In fact, Dabbert, Grimes and Lindeman were also on a fifth team that beat Nebraska the year they redshirted. A two-time All-American, Korver was a part of four CU victories from 1999-03.
Fresno Done In By Funk
Creighton won a pair of games in the final seconds this season, both on the road.
Sophomore Nate Funk drained a three-pointer as time expired in regulation to send Creighton’s game at Fresno State to overtime, where it later won 70-62. Down three with 5.1 seconds left, Creighton went the length of the floor to find Funk, who had time for a pump-fake and dribble before draining his shot.
On Jan. 7 at Illinois State, sophomore Johnny Mathies made 1-of-2 free throws with 1.4 seconds left to break a 55-55 deadlock and give the Jays a 56-55 win.
These heroics bring to mind some other buzzer beaters in recent seasons:
March 15, 2002: Terrell Taylor’s three-pointer with 0.2 seconds left in double-overtime lifts Creighton to an 83-82 win over #15 Florida in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Feb. 17, 2002: Tyler McKinney drives the length of the floor and hits a driving lay-up with 0.4 seconds left to beat Wichita State, 69-67.
Feb. 6, 2002: Tyler McKinney drains two free throws with 6.8 seconds left to lead Creighton to a 64-63 road win at Indiana State.
Teammates Win MVC Scholar Awards
Creighton senior Brody Deren was named the MVC/Prairie Farms Scholar-Athlete of the Week on Dec. 4, Jan. 8, Jan. 15 and Jan. 22 this season. Deren owns a 3.665 student in exercise science and he is a three-time member of the MVC’s Scholar-Athlete first team. He has now been awarded MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Week laurels eight times in his career.
His teammate, Michael Lindeman, earned MVC/Prairie Farms Scholar-Athlete of the Week laurels for Dec. 17. Lindeman owned a 3.947 GPA before graduating in May, and is currently pursuing his MBA. Lindeman had 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting vs. Fresno State. Lindeman repeated his MVC/Prairie Farms Scholar-Athlete of the Week laurels on Dec. 30 and Feb. 13 and has now won this award five times in his career.
Pepperoni or Sausage
Godfather’s Pizza sponsors a promotion giving free pizza to fans with ticket stubs after any Creighton home game where the Bluejays score 70 or more points. With 60 points vs. SIU on Feb. 7 and 58 points vs. UNI on Feb. 4, Creighton finished under 70 points in consecutive home games for the first time since January of 2000. The Jays have scored 58 or more in its last 112 home games since Dec. 29, 1996.
3-0 The Way To Go
Creighton has now started 3-0 (or better) each of the last six seasons. Each of the 3-0 starts under Dana Altman have been culminated in a postseason tournament appearance at the end of the year.
Leading From Start To Finish
Of the 805 minutes of game action in its 20 wins this year, Creighton was behind for just 126:05 of that time (1:56 vs. Bethune-Cookman, 4:40 vs. Nebraska, 27:52 at Fresno State, 2:20 vs. Arkansas-Little Rock, 26:01 vs. SMS, 25:05 at Illinois State, 0:10 vs. Drake, 17:35 vs. Illinois State, 1:39 at Indiana State, 2:07 at Evansville, 14:51 vs. Northern Iowa, 1:03 vs. Indiana State and 0:46 vs. Wichita State).
Last year the Bluejays led from start to finish in 10 different games last season, something they did seven times this year. All told, Creighton has not trailed in 17-of-63 (27.0 percent) of games dating to the start of last season.
Creighton’s largest deficit this season was 28 points (58-30) at SMS on Feb. 28.
Automatic At The Stripe
Michael Lindeman’s streak of 32 consecutive free throws came to an end when he missed his first attempt vs. Bethune-Cookman on Dec. 3. Lindeman’s streak stretched over 18 games dating back to a miss in the game at Evansville on Jan. 23. Lindeman’s 32 straight at the stripe surpassed his former roommate, Kyle Korver, for Creighton’s longest streak since 1980, and is tied for the sixth-longest in MVC history.
Consecutive Free Throws, MVC History
60 Blake Ahearn, SMS Dec. 20, 2003-Feb. 14, 2004
48 Marcus Wilson, UE Dec. 1, 1996-Feb. 2, 1997
44 Vince Greene, ILS Jan. 28, 2004-Present
44 James Gillingham, BU Feb. 8-25, 2003
35 Aaron Zobrist, BU Dec. 27, 1996-Jan. 27, 1997
32 Mike Lindeman, CU Jan. 23-Nov. 29, 2003
32 Blake Ahearn, SMS Nov. 17-Dec. 20, 2003
28 Kyle Korver, CU Jan. 27-Mar. 15, 2001
28 Kevin Ault, SMS Jan. 21-Feb. 15, 1998
Tough Times Bring Out The Best In The Birds
Trailing SMS by 10 early in the second half on Dec. 30, Creighton found itself in some rare territory. The Bluejays have not lost at home by double-digits since Jan. 3, 1996, a span of 125 home games.
Since the start of last season, Creighton is 6-8 when facing double-digit deficits. CU overcame big deficits last year vs. Southern Illinois (13), TCU (16), SMS (17) and Wichita State (13) and this year vs. SMS (10) and at Illinois State (12).
CU’s most amazing comeback nearly took place in an NCAA Tournament loss to end last year. The Jays trailed Central Michigan by 26 with 16:24 left and closed the gap to two in the final minute, only to lose 79-73.
Goodbye Civic, Hello Qwest Center OMAHA
Creighton’s Nov. 9 overtime win over Nebraska-Omaha served as the first college game in Qwest Center OMAHA, the city’s new $291 million facility they share with Nebraska-Omaha hockey.
Last year, Creighton ended a long run at the Omaha Civic Auditorium. Creighton first played at the Civic in 1955 and moved there full-time for the 1961-62 season. The Jays owned an all-time record of 432-155 at the Civic, including an 100-28 mark under Dana Altman.
The Civic was home to five regular-season MVC champs and eight MVC Tournament champions in the last 26 years.
Fans Returning....And Then Some
Creighton ended last season’s magical 29-5 campaign with six straight home sellouts (9,377) at the Omaha Civic Auditorium. This year, the Jays have increased their season ticket base from approximately 5,200 to over 8,900, an increase of nearly 70 percent.
Altman Approaching Coaching Legends
Dana Altman continues to approach some of the coaching greats in MVC history in a pair of categories. Altman’s 195 wins at Creighton are seventh in league history while his 112 triumphs in conference games have him fourth in league history. Here is those lists:
MVC Coaches--Most Wins In Conference Games
Wins Coach School(s)
1. 187 Henry Iba Oklahoma A&M
2. 163 Eddie Hickey Creighton & St. Louis
3. 126 Phog Allen Kansas
4. 112 Dana Altman Creighton
Coaches--Most Wins As MVC Member--All Games
Wins Coach School(s)
1. 486 Henry Iba Oklahoma A&M
2. 337 Eddie Hickey Creighton & St. Louis
3. 225 Rich Herrin Southern Illinois
4. 220 Ralph Miller Wichita State
5. 211 Maury John Drake
6. 197 Joe Stowell Bradley
7. 195 Dana Altman Creighton
Deren & Dabbert Denying Opponents
Creighton’s center tandem of Brody Deren and Joe Dabbert hold the top two spots on the MVC’s active shot-blocking list. In fact, Deren is one of three players in school history to have more than 700 points and 100 blocked shots at Creighton, joining Benoit Benjamin and Chad Gallagher, who both played in the NBA.
Creighton Blocked Shots Since 1979-80
Blk. Name Years Points
411 Benoit Benjamin 1982-85 1,575
183 Chad Gallagher 1987-91 1,983
138 Brody Deren 2001-Present 883
109 Doug Swenson 1997-99 683
104 Joe Dabbert 2000-Present 685
79 Adam Reid 1994-97 250
76 Livan Pyfrom 1999-01 302
59 Rodney Buford 1995-99 2,116
58 Kyle Korver 1999-03 1,801
58 Mike Grimes 2000-Present 791
Deren Moves Up MVC List
Creighton center Brody Deren’s 138 career blocked shots rank ninth in MVC history. Below is that list, which is headed by former Bluejay Benoit Benjamin:
Blk. Name School Year
411 Benoit Benjamin Creighton 1982-85
209 Antoine Carr Wichita State 1979-83
183 Chad Gallagher Creighton 1987-91
180 Donald Powell Bradley 1984-88
168 DeCarsta Webster Indiana State 1975-78
167 Danny Moore SMS 1996-99
158 Ashraf Amaya Southern Illinois 1989-93
154 Adebayo Akinkunle Bradley 1994-98
138 Brody Deren Creighton 2001-Pr.
134 Mike VandeGarde Illinois State 1990-94
Johnny On The Spot
With 13 points vs. San Diego and 10 points vs. St. Bonaventure, junior college transfer Johnny Mathies became the first Bluejay to score at least 10 points in his first two games since Doug Swenson opened with a pair of 10 point showings in 1997-98.
Jays Ink Three Recruits
Creighton signed three post players during the fall signing period, as Steve Smith, Dennis Howard and Dane Watts signed National Letters-of-Intent to join the Bluejay program. Smith is a 6-11 center from Sioux Falls, S.D., Howard is a 6-7 forward at Northeastern Junior College who hails from Fort Worth, Texas, and Watts is a 6-9 forward from Warrensburg, Mo.
Bluejays Still Have Five Iowans
Kyle Korver may have graduated, but Creighton still has five Iowans on this season’s team, including four starters. This year’s Creighton’s team includes five players that hail from the state of Iowa, Brody Deren, Tyler McKinney, Michael Lindeman, Nate Funk and Pierce Hibma. Hibma, CU’s new Iowa native hails from Korver’s hometown of Pella.
Creighton Moved To 12-0 For Third Time
Creighton earned the Bluejays’ third 12-0 start in 86 years of basketball before falling at Northern Iowa on Jan. 14. Below is a list of Creighton’s most successful starts all-time:
Start Year Final W-L First Loss
16-0 1942-43 16-1 Washington & Jefferson
13-0 1916-17 18-2 Dubuque
12-0 2003-04 20-9 at Northern Iowa
11-0 1917-18 11-0 - - -
10-0 2002-03 29-5 at #19 Xavier
10-0 1918-19 10-0 - - -
Back-to-Back 10-0 Starts
Creighton’s 12-0 start this year, combined with its 10-0 opening a year ago, made Creighton just the fourth program in MVC history to open 10-0 in consecutive seasons. The only previous occurrence in the last 80 years was Larry Bird’s Indiana State teams. Below is that complete list:
10-0 Starts, Back-to-Back Seasons, MVC History
School Year (Wins), Year (Wins)
Indiana St. 1977-78 (13), 1978-79 (33)
Kansas 1908-09 (19), 1909-10 (12)
Missouri 1919-20 (17), 1920-21 (17), 1921-22 (13)
Creighton 2002-03 (10), 2003-04 (12)
History Of MVC’s Best Starts
In the history of the Missouri Valley Conference, only 19 teams had opened the season 12-0, including this year’s Creighton club. The last club to start better than 12-0 was the 1983-84 Tulsa team that opened 15-0 and finished 27-4.
In case you’re wondering, the most wins by an MVC school to start the season is 33, done by Larry Bird’s Indiana State team in 1978-79.
Recapping Last Season
Creighton finished last season with a 29-5 record, a fifth consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament and won its fourth MVC Tournament in the last five seasons.
Some of last season’s highlights included CU’s first national-ranking in 25 years, a 10-0 start, a win over Notre Dame en route to the Guardians Classic title and a school-record 29 wins.
Kyle Korver was named second-team All-American and a finalist for several National Player of the Year awards, while Dana Altman was named District Coach of the Year and a finalist for National Coach of the Year.
NBA Players x 2
Creighton boasts a pair of players that started the year in the NBA this season, as both Kyle Korver (‘03) and Rodney Buford (‘99) found themselves on opening-day rosters. Korver was drafted 51st overall by the New Jersey Nets and sold minutes later to the Philadelphia 76ers. Buford was taken 53rd overall in the 1999 draft by the Miami Heat and is now with the Sacramento Kings.
Overtime News
Creighton has not lost an overtime game at home since Feb. 17, 1996 ...The Jays are 38-39 all-time in regular-season overtime games and are 8-1 in double-overtime since a March 1, 1986 loss at Wichita State.
Blackwell Leaves Team
Freshman guard Tim Blackwell has left Creighton and enrolled at classes at UMKC. Blackwell played in three games, averaging 3.0 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.7 assists in 8.0 minutes per game. The Cameron, Mo. native was diagnosed with a bulging disc in his back on Dec. 18 and was expected to miss the rest of the season.
Canada Trip Recap
Creighton used its foreign-trip exemption to play five exhibition games in western Canada from Oct. 18-24. In addition to the extra games, CU also was allowed 10 practices prior to leaving, a key factor in the development of CU’s inexperienced players.
Creighton went 4-1 on the trip, defeating British Columbia (83-62), Trinity Western (82-79), Vancouver EA Sports All-Stars (102-76) and Simon Fraser (90-53) but falling to Victoria (80-72). Sophomore guard Nate Funk led Creighton with 16.4 points and 5.0 assists per game on the voyage, while senior post players Brody Deren (13.0 ppg.), Mike Grimes (11.8 ppg.) and Joe Dabbert (11.2 ppg.) also averaged double-digits points.
Ticket Information
Fans were able to purchase single-game tickets to Creighton home games at Qwest Center OMAHA Box Office, the Omaha Civic Auditorium Box Office, all Ticketmaster locations (Baker’s, Younkers), Ticketmaster online at http://www.ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster and charging by phone at (402) 422-1212. Most available tickets cost is $10 for adults and $6 for youth ages 3-18 (children two and under are free).
Shuttle Service To Qwest Center OMAHA™
Metro Area Transit and Creighton University partnered to provide shuttle bus service from the CU campus to Qwest Center OMAHA for all men’s basketball home games this season. The service was available to all fans, not just Creighton students. Round-trip cost was 50 cents for Creighton students with identification; $1.00 for adults and 50 cents for children under the age of 12.
The shuttle started one-hour before tip-off and at least two buses continued to operate the route during the game. The four designated stops for pick-up around the CU campus are: 24th and Cuming (farside/southbound); 24th & California (nearside/southbound); 20th & Cass (nearside/eastbound) and 18th & Cass (nearside/eastbound by the CU Soccer Field).
The shuttle will then go eastbound on Capitol Avenue and then go north up 10th Street for drop-off at the Qwest Center OMAHA Arena entrance. The route is designed for each shuttle driver to make a roundtrip every 15 minutes. Following the game’s conclusion, the shuttle will start at the Qwest Center OMAHA Arena entrance on 10th Street and loop the original route with the first of four stops at 24th & Cuming.
