Men's Hoops Plays Houston Tonight
12/22/2006 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Next Game
Creighton (5-3) plays its third road game in the last week at the 43rd Outrigger Hotel Rainbow Classic, when it takes the court to meet Houston (5-3). The winner's bracket semifinal will take place at 5 pm Hawaiian (9 pm Central).
With a win, Creighton would play the Nebraska/Hawaii winner on Saturday at 7:30 pm Hawaiian (11:30 pm Central) for the championship. With a loss, Creighton would face the Nebraska/Hawaii loser on Saturday at 5 pm Hawaiian (9 pm Central) in the third-place game of the event.
The Stan Sheriff Center (10,300) in Honolulu, Hawaii will host the action.
Creighton Probable Starters
No. Name Ht. Pos. PPG RPG Hometown
1 Isacc Miles 6-2 G 7.0 2.1 Kansas City, Kan.
10 Nate Funk 6-3 G 15.0 4.0 Sioux City, Iowa
12 Josh Dotzler 6-1 G 2.3 0.7 Omaha, Neb.
44 Anthony Tolliver 6-9 C 13.9 7.3 Springfield, Mo.
50 Dane Watts 6-8 F 8.4 6.4 Warrensburg, Mo.
Radio Broadcast Information
KXSP ("Big Sports 590" AM) will broadcast all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2006-07 season. The audio is also webcast live at http://www.bigsports590.com. T. Scott Marr and Kevin Sarver will call the action.
Television Broadcast Information
Creighton Athletics, Honolulu television station KFVE/KHNL, LeSEA Broadcasting Group in Honolulu and Cox Communications in Omaha have partnered to provide live television coverage of the Creighton's Rainbow Classic games from Honolulu.
Friday's live broadcast feed will be available in Omaha on Cox Communications channel 2 with KFVE's Jim Leahey and Artie Wilson calling the action.
Video Webcast Available
The University of Hawaii is offering a video webcast of the Creighton vs. Houston Rainbow Classic men's basketball game Friday night from Honolulu. The game is $9.95 and sign-up is available at http://www.hawaiiantelmedia.com/store/index.phpcPath=23_31. Creighton's game on Saturday night will also be available for $9.95.
Live Stats Information
There will not be live stats for any of Creighton's games at the Rainbow Classic, unless they face Hawaii on Saturday.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton is 5-3 on the season, including a 4-0 record at home, an 0-3 ledger on the road and a 1-0 mark in neutral site games. The Bluejays have beaten Mississippi Valley State (78-42), George Mason (58-56), Arkansas-Pine Bluff (74-39), No. 24 Xavier (73-67) and Valparaiso (68-43) but lost road games at Nebraska (73-61), Dayton (60-54) and Fresno State (69-54).
The Bluejays return nine lettermen and four starters from last season's team that finished 20-10. Creighton also returns star guard Nate Funk after the senior missed most of last season with a shoulder injury.
Named preseason Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year, Funk leads the team with 15.0 points per game and 16 three-point baskets. Also in double-figures is preseason all-MVC choice Anthony Tolliver (13.9 ppg., 7.3 rpg.). Tolliver also leads the team with 12 blocked shots.
Junior forward Dane Watts averages 8.4 points per game and has highs of 19 points and 12 rebounds. True freshman Isacc Miles (7.0 ppg.) owns 20 assists and nine steals against just four turnovers off the bench.
The Bluejays are holding teams to 56.1 points per game as foes have shot just 40.1 percent from the field. CU has also forced 16.9 turnovers per game.
Creighton was picked to win the MVC in a preseason poll of league coaches, SID's and media.
Scouting Houston
Houston brings a 5-3 record in Friday's game with Creighton after whipping Charlotte 68-46 on Thursday night. The Cougars enter the game ranked 10th nationally in scoring offense with 85.0 points per game. The Cougars have beaten Rhode Island, Monmouth, Grambling State, Prairie View A&M and Charlotte, and lost to Saint Louis, VCU and Arizona.
An incredible 45 percent of UH's shots this season have been from three-point range, including 35-of-58 (60.3 percent) attempts against Charlotte. Not surprisingly then, the Cougars rank second nationally with 12.1 treys per game (scoring leader VMI leads with 14.5 three's per game, MVC rival Bradley is third with 11.5). UH is also second nationally in three-pointers attempted per game at 33.1
Five Houston players average in double-figures, led by Robert McKiver's 21.5 points per contest. McKiver ranks 15th nationally in scoring average, and also leads the country with 4.25 three-pointers per contest. Oliver Lafayette averages 17.0 points per game and last year was second nationally with 3.39 steals per game.
Also making a huge difference is Dion Dowell. The Texas transfer has played in just two games since becoming eligible at the semester, and has averaged 17.0 points and 11.0 rebounds per game while playing all 80 minutes.
As a team, the Cougars shot 39.9 percent from the field, 36.6 percent from three-point range and 68.5 percent at the line. UH scores 85 points per game but yields 76.2 per contest.
The Coaches
The dean of Missouri Valley Conference coaches, Creighton's Dana Altman (Eastern New Mexico, 1980) is his 13th year as head coach of the Bluejays. He owns a 243-133 (.646) mark at CU and a career record of 326-200 (.620) in his 18th year as an NCAA Division I head coach.
Creighton's all-time winningest coach, Altman has been named national, conference, regional or district coach of the year in 10 of his previous 21 years as a head coach. The 2001 and 2002 MVC Coach of the Year was a finalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year Award in 2003. In 2004, Altman was named the Collegeinsider.com Jim Phelan National Mid-Season Coach of the Year. Additionally, Altman has led Creighton to six NCAA Tournaments and his teams have played in the postseason in nine straight seasons. He is helped by assistant coaches Brian Fish, Darian DeVries and Kevin McKenna. Jake Muhleisen is the team's graduate manager.
Houston is coached by Tom Penders (Connecticut, 1967). He owns a 44-27 record in his third year at Houston, moving his career mark to 571-388 overall in 33 years. He has coached at Tufts, Columbia, Fordham, Rhode Island, Texas, George Washington and Houston. Penders is one of a select few who has participated in both the NCAA Basketball Tournament and the College World Series, doing so as a standout point guard and centerfielder at UCONN. He is assisted by associate head coach Melvin Haralson, senior assistant coach Kevin Lewis, and assistant coach Trey Preston.
The Series With Houston
Creighton is 2-7 all-time against Houston, but the teams have never met on a neutral court. The teams played twice during the 1996-97 season, with Houston claiming a 74-73 win on Dec. 21, 1996 and a 74-72 victory on Jan. 4, 1997. The series began in 1949 with a Creighton overtime win.
In Creighton's last win over UH, Gene Harmon drilled a 30-footer at the buzzer to beat Otis Birdsong and the No. 7 Cougars, 78-77 on Feb. 17, 1973. A photo of Harmon's shot can be found on page 117 of the 2006-07 Creighton media guide.
Creighton head coach Dana Altman owns an 0-2 record all-time against Houston, and is 6-11 against current schools in Conference USA. Altman has never faced Tom Penders head-to-head.
Creighton vs. Houston
Cougars lead series, 7-2
Home: 2-3 Away: 0-4 Neutral: 0-0
Date Site W-L Score
12/14/49 at Creighton (ot) W 52-47
02/13/67 at Creighton L 80-87
02/25/67 at Houston L 73-87
02/07/70 at Houston (ot) L 77-78
03/04/70 at Creighton L 58-62
01/06/71 at Houston L 76-83
02/17/73 at Creighton W 78-77
12/21/96 at Houston L 73-74
01/04/97 at Creighton L 72-74
Last Game Recap
Nate Funk had 20 of his game-high 22 points in the second half to lead Creighton to a 68-43 win over Valparaiso in opening round play of the Rainbow Classic. Creighton led 27-20 at the break and opened the second half with a 13-2 run to put the game away. Anthony Tolliver added 11 points for CU, while Valpo was led by eight points from Shawn Huff.
Back-to-Back Days = Wins
One of the benefits to Dana Altman's frequent substitution patterns is that it keeps plenty of fresh legs on the bench. That strategy works best when Creighton enters tournament play requiring them to play on back-to-back days.
Since the start of the 1998-99 season, Creighton owns 13-0 record on the first day of events they have played back-to-back games in. They are 11-1 in the second day of back-to-back games, and 5-1 when playing on a third-straight day. The Jays have won three games in three days at five of the last eight Missouri Valley Conference Tournaments. They have also won back-to-back games four different times in Guardians Classic action without a loss.
CU's only setbacks in these situations have been a 2001 MVC Tournament loss in the semifinal round to Indiana State, and a setback to Toledo in the finals of the Energia Systems Thanksgiving Tournament in November of 2000.
Out Of His Funk
While preseason MVC Player of the Year Nate Funk hadn't shot the ball well to open the year, his second-half play on Thursday night reminded everyone what he is capable of. After taking just one shot in the first half, Funk missed a shot on the first possession of the second stanza. He then caught fire, hitting 8-of-9 attempts to finish the game, including 4-of-5 shots from three-point land. Funk had entered the game mired in a 3-of-26 (11.5 percent) drought from three-point territory over his previous five games.
Funk's 20 second-half points were the most by a Bluejay player in a half since Johnny Mathies torched Drake for 22 first-half markers on Jan. 8, 2006 en route to a career-best 32 points on the afternoon.
It was Funk's highest scoring half since scoring 21 points in the second half of a 35-point performance on Feb. 16, 2005 at Wichita State. It's worth noting that when Funk had his career-best 38 points versus Dayton on Nov. 26, 2005, he had just seven points at halftime. However, he would add 16 points in the second 20 minutes, then produce 15 additional points in the two overtime periods.
Bahe Humbug
Junior guard Nick Bahe continues to give Creighton productive minutes off the bench. Bahe had a career-high nine points on 3-of-5 shooting last night, and was also 2-of-3 from downtown.
Since moving to a reserve role in Creighton's third game, Bahe has hit 57.1 percent (8-14) of his shots from the floor (4-7 from three-point range) and added 14 rebounds, two assists and three steals and just one turnover in 67 minutes of clock.
Three's On The Way
With Houston expected to launch a barrage of three-point attempts, let's take a look at how Creighton's opponents have fared from three-point range this season.
Creighton's opponents have made 51-of-142 three-pointers this season, good for 35.9 percent.
The only three teams that have shot 32 percent or better from deep have beaten the Bluejays…Nebraska (8-14, 57.1%), Dayton (7-18, 38.9%) and Fresno State (13-30, 43.3%).
Last year, teams shot 33.2 percent from three-point range versus Creighton.
When Offense Meets Defense
Houston averages 85 points per game and ranks 10th nationally in points per game. Creighton yields just 56.1 points per game to rank 14th nationally.
In Creighton's five wins it has held foes to 49.4 points per game, including 28.8 percent accuracy from three-point range. Houston scored 78 or more points in its first six games before back to back games in the 60's.
Should the game become a shootout, Creighton fans should know one other stat. Bluejay head coach Dana Altman is 25-0 at Creighton when his teams score 90 points or more.
No Luck For The Birthday Boy
Josh Dotzler celebrated his 21st birthday yesterday, scoring four points, grabbing two rebounds and nabbing the first two steals of his season. Dotzler also dislocated fingers on both hands, on separate plays, in the game. Dotzler, who has overcome off-season knee surgery, is expected to suit up for the Jays on Friday against Houston.
Century Club For Tolliver
Friday's game against Houston will be the 100th of Anthony Tolliver's career at Creighton. He has played in all but two games since he arrived on campus, with the Jays sporting a 66-33 mark in those appearances. The preseason all-MVC center owns career totals of 672 points, 441 rebounds 91 blocked shots and 68 starts in his career thus far.
Magic Number Nine
Friday's game versus Houston will be CU's ninth game of the 2006-07 campaign.
Since Dana Altman's arrival, Creighton has won its ninth game of the season in 10-of-12 tries. Interestingly, one of those setbacks came in 1996-97 when CU fell to Houston, 74-73.
The Bluejays have won their ninth game in four straight seasons, including a 78-56 pounding of Missouri State last season.
Turnovers Minimized
Creighton had a season-low nine turnovers in Thursday's win over Valparaiso while jumping to a 27-20 lead. Last year the Jays had a season-low nine turnovers in four different games. CU's four first-half turnovers were its fewest in any half this season.
What, Me Worry
Nate Funk got into uncharacteristic foul trouble against Valpo on Thursday, drawing his third foul with 14:37 left in the second half. In Funk's esteemed career of 110 games, he has never fouled out. Just as impressively, he's finished with four fouls just four times.
In his last 65 games dating to Jan. 11, 2004, Funk has had two first-half fouls just once. That came in the 2005 MVC Tournament Championship game against Missouri State, a game CU would win 75-57.
This season, Funk actually has more steals (12) than fouls (11). He owns 96 steals and 144 fouls in his career, which has spanned 2,802 minutes entering tonight's action.
Island History
Creighton is making its third appearance in the Rainbow Classic this week, and first since 1989. Creighton went 2-1 in 1989 to take fifth place, including wins over league rival Drake and Virginia Tech. In its first appearance in 1987, it went 1-2 and took seventh place. Last night was its first opening-round win in three tries at the event.
Including last night's win over Valparaiso, Creighton is 12-9 all-time in games played in Hawaii. The Jays also went 2-1 in the 1999 Nike Classic in Honolulu, 0-2 in 1995's Hawaii-Nike Festival, 1-2 in the 1993 Big Island Invitational in Hilo, 1-1 in two games at Hawaii in 1974, and 4-0 in a 1984 road trip that saw them beat Hawaii-Hilo, Hawaii, Chaminade and BYU-Hawaii in five-day span.
Double Trouble
Anthony Tolliver (18 pts., 10 reb.) and Dane Watts (10 pts., 12 reb.) both turned in double-doubles in Creighton's game on Dec. 16 at Fresno State. It was Tolliver's third double-dime in his last four games, and eighth in his career. For Watts, it was his first career double-double, and third time he's matched his high with 12 rebounds in a contest.
The last time Creighton had two players with a double-double in the same game came on Feb. 1, 1999. In that contest, Rodney Buford had 11 points and 11 rebounds while Doug Swenson had 19 points and 10 rebounds in an 85-78 win at Southern Illinois.
Stan The Man
Tournament play at the Rainbow Classic will take place at the University of Hawaii's Stan Sheriff Center. The facility is named for former UH Athletics Director Stan Sheriff, who died in 1993, just one year before the facility opened.
Before heading to the island, Sheriff was Athletics Director at fellow MVC school Northern Iowa, where he was the driving force behind getting the UNI-Dome built. The football field in the UNI-Dome is named in Sheriff's honor.
Five Figure Crowds
Creighton hosted 15,872 fans for its Dec. 9 win over No. 24 Xavier. Not only was it the largest crowd in Creighton history, but for any basketball game in state history as well. Creighton, which ranked 20th nationally in attendance last season, is currently averaging 14,936 fans per game.
Dating to last season, Creighton had played 10 straight games (all sites) before 10,000 plus fans and 15 consecutive games before 9,000 fans or more prior to last night's paid crowd of 6,083. Creighton has played 34 straight home games before 10,000 fans or more.
Jackson Departs
Freshman guard D'Angalo Jackson has left the program with the intent to transfer. Jackson, a 6-0 guard from Milwaukee, Wis., had not suited up for any of Creighton's games to date. He was expected to redshirt after undergoing summer ankle surgery because of an injury suffered while in high school.
Second Half Run
One trait common during Creighton's last five games has been a strong surge to open the second half. Creighton opened the second half against Arkansas-Pine Bluff with a 19-0 run, opened the Dayton second half with a 15-2 spurt, and then started the second stanza against Xavier with a 9-2 flurry. At Fresno State, CU trailed by nine points at the break but scored the first four points of the second half and forced four straight missed shots by the Bulldogs. The strong play continued versus Valparaiso last night, as CU opened the second half with a 13-2 run.
Defense! Defense!
Creighton allowed just four opponents to score 70 points or more last season: Bradley (twice), Dayton, Southern Illinois and DePaul. Creighton's 60.8 average points allowed was its best since the 1973-74 club yielded just 60.6 points per game.
Creighton has given up just 56.1 points per game this season through eight games and Nebraska is the only team to score 70 or more versus the Bluejay defense.
First Half Says It All
Creighton held Valparaiso to just 20 points in the first half, continuing a trend. Through eight games, Creighton is 5-0 when the opposition scores 26 points or less in the first half. However, they are 0-3 when the foe scores 27 or more before the intermission.
Another Ranked Win
Creighton's win over No. 24 Xavier on Dec. 9 improved Creighton to 6-9 under Dana Altman against ranked teams. The six wins are a school-record for a coach, one more than Eddie Sutton's 5-18 mark against ranked foes.
The Bluejays improved to 5-2 versus ranked teams in home games under Altman, including a 2-0 mark at Qwest Center Omaha against ranked teams.
Chairman of the Board
Anthony Tolliver's 13 rebounds at Dayton tied the senior's career-high (also Feb. 22, 2005 vs. Evansville), and were the most by any Bluejay this season. CU has not had a player with 15 rebounds in a game since Ben Walker snared 15 caroms on Dec. 4, 1999 at Baylor.
All Smiles For Miles
Isacc Miles played like anything but a true freshman in the first month of his college career. Miles ranks fourth on the team with 7.0 points per game. He leads the team with 20 assists, and his nine steals are third on the club. Just as impressive, he has just four turnovers in 179 minutes of playing time.
But Can He Pitch
Creighton senior Nate Funk enters the semifinal round of the Rainbow Classic with 1,289 career points, 16th in school history. With 22 points last night, he passed Bob Gibson for 17th place on CU's all-time scoring list. Following his career at Creighton, Gibson would play one year for the Harlem Globetrotters before embarking on a Hall of Fame career as a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals.
Next on the list and within range if he goes for 20 or more points is Elton Tuttle (1,303) and Ryan Sears (1,309).
Below is Creighton's list of top scorers all-time:
Pts. Name Years
2,116 Rodney Buford 1995-99
2,110 Bob Harstad 1987-91
1,983 Chad Gallagher 1987-91
1,876 Bob Portman 1966-69
1,801 Kyle Korver 1999-03
1,682 Rick Apke 1974-78
1,661 Paul Silas 1961-64
1,654 Vernon Moore 1981-85
1,575 Benoit Benjamin 1982-85
1,526 John C. Johnson 1975-79
1,500 Kevin McKenna 1977-81
1,437 Eddie Cole 1951-55
1,369 Gene Harmon 1971-74
1,361 Duan Cole 1987-92
1,309 Ryan Sears 1997-01
1,303 Elton Tuttle 1951-54
1,289 Nate Funk 2002-Pr.
1,272 Bob Gibson 1954-57
RPI Ratings
It's beginning to look like the Missouri Valley Conference is more than a one-year wonder. After finishing a best-ever sixth in last year's conference RPI standings, The Valley is fourth so far this season through games of Dec. 21. All 10 teams were in the top 120 of www.collegerpi.com's rankings, as seen below: Wichita State (20), Southern Illinois (22), Missouri State (31), Bradley (48), Creighton (66), Northern Iowa (82), Illinois State (80), Evansville (101), Indiana State (119) and Drake (118).
Rank League Rating
1. Atlantic Coast .5971
2. Pacific-10 .5782
3. Southeastern .5762
4. Missouri Valley .5740
5. Big Ten .5687
6. Mountain West .5498
7. Big 12 .5530
8. Big East .5508
9. Mountain West .5498
10. Conference USA .5176
More Home Court Advantages
In 2004-05, the Missouri Valley Conference had a 55-8 home record in non-conference games. Last year, it was nearly as good at 53-8. Through games of Dec. 22, the MVC was a sparkling 51-1 in non-conference home games. The only setback was Evansville's five-point loss against ACC foe Miami (Fla.).
Defensive Gem
The 39 points allowed by Creighton in its Nov. 29 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff was the fewest by a Bluejay opponent in more than 20 years. The last team to score 39 points or less was Illinois State on Jan. 14, 1986, when the Redbirds tallied 35.
Dana Altman is 38-0 in his Division I coaching career when holding opponents to 50 points or less.
Below is a list of the lowest six scoring outputs by a Creighton opponent under Altman:
Pts. Opponent Date
39 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 11/29/06
40 Alcorn State 11/15/04
41 at Evansville 1/26/02
41 vs. Missouri State 3/3/01
42 Sacramento State 12/14/96
42 Mississippi Valley State 11/13/06
More Defense
Creighton held Arkansas-Pine Bluff to 24.1 percent shooting from the floor on Nov. 29. That, too, was the poorest field goal percentage by a Bluejay opponent under Dana Altman. Additional research indicates it was the lowest field goal percentage by an opponent in a game since at least the 1978-79 season.
Below is a list of all the teams to shoot less than 30 percent in a game since Dana Altman came to CU 13 years ago.
Poorest FG Pct., Opponents, Under Altman
Pct. Opponent FG-FGA Date Result
.241 Ark.-Pine Bluff 14-58 11/29/06 L 74-39
.266 CS-Sacramento 17-64 12/14/96 L 59-42
.266 Tulsa 17-64 01/17/96 L 72-59
.273 Western Illinois 15-55 11/20/00 L 96-50
.274 Nebraska 17-62 12/11/05 L 70-44
.286 Indiana State 20-70 01/05/95 L 70-63
.291 George Mason 16-55 11/22/05 L 72-52
Funk Named To Preseason Naismith List
Creighton senior guard Nate Funk is one of 50 players named to the preseason Naismith Trophy Watch List. The award is given to the nation's best men's college basketball player and handed out annually by the Atlanta Tipoff Club.
The Naismith Trophy Voting Academy will narrow its list to 30 in January before finalizing a ballot in March.
Funk is the only MVC player listed for the award, which was won last year by Duke's J.J. Redick.
Funk A Preseason All-American
A pair of media outlets have awarded senior guard Nate Funk preseason All-America honors. Foxsports.com has Funk on its preseason second-team, while the Associated Press voters named him to their honorable-mention squad. He is the only MVC player mentioned in both surveys. A year ago, Funk was a preseason third-team All-American by Street & Smith's.
Qwest To Be The Best
Creighton's has played 53 regular-season contests at Qwest Center Omaha all-time. The Bluejays own a 44-9 (.830) record all-time at the facility, including a perfect 12-0 figure on Wednesday's. The nine losses have been by a combined 42 points. CU has outscored its opponents 3,823-3,205 in games at Qwest Center Omaha, an average victory margin of 11.7 points per game.
Good Defense, A Good Sign
Creighton held Mississippi Valley State to just 42 points in its Nov. 13 season-opening triumph. That's good news, since each of the previous eight times that Creighton has held its season-opening opponent to 50 points or less, the Bluejays have advanced to the postseason. That list is seen below:
Date Opponent Score NCAA/NIT
11/30/73 Regis W 93-38 NCAA
11/27/76 St. Thomas (MN) W 79-39 NIT
11/30/90 UT San Antonio W 93-47 NCAA
11/14/98 Towson State W 93-48 NCAA
11/20/00 Western Illinois W 96-50 NCAA
11/17/02 Texas-Arlington W 106-50 NCAA
11/22/03 San Diego W 76-44 NIT
11/15/04 Alcorn State W 74-40 NCAA
11/13/06 Mississippi Valley St. W 78-42
Preseason Polls Rank Jays 19th & 23rd
Creighton was voted to a No. 19 preseason ranking in the Associated Press poll. It was CU's first preseason ranking from the AP, and the first time it had been ranked by the writers since being #24 on Jan. 12, 2004.
Creighton was the first Valley school to be ranked in the preseason Associated Press poll since Wichita State (sixth) and Tulsa (11th) were among the nation's elite in the 1981-82 pre-season top-25 poll.
Creighton was also voted to the No. 23 preseason ranking in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches poll.
For a complete rundown of Creighton's history in the Associated Press poll, see page 154 of the 2006-07 Creighton Men's Basketball Media Guide.
Preseason MVC Poll Picks Jays First
For the fourth time in the last nine years, and first time since 2002-03, Creighton has been picked to win the MVC in a preseason poll of league coaches, SID's and media.
Creighton earned 29-of-40 first-place votes and had 386 points in the voting. Southern Illinois was second with nine first place votes and Wichita State third with the two remaining votes for the top spot. Missouri State was picked fourth and Northern Iowa fifth. Rounding out the rest of the poll were Evansville, Drake, Bradley, Illinois State and Indiana State.
Creighton seniors Nate Funk and Anthony Tolliver were both named to the six-person preseason all-MVC team, joining Blake Ahearn (Missouri State), Grant Stout (Northern Iowa) and the Southern Illinois backcourt of Tony Young and Jamaal Tatum. Funk was picked as preseason Player of the Year, CU's first honoree since Kyle Korver in 2002-03.
10 Conference Wins x 10 Seasons
Last year Creighton extended its MVC record by winning 10 or more league games for a 10th consecutive season. Prior to Dana Altman's arrival, the Bluejays had 10 or more conference wins in only six different seasons all-time.
On a national basis, the only teams with at least 10 straight years of 10 or more league wins are Arizona (21), South Carolina State (13), Stanford (12), Kansas (12), Creighton (10) and Duke (10).
20 Overall Wins x 8 Years = MVC History
Creighton is the only school in the 100-year history of the Missouri Valley Conference to post eight straight 20-win campaigns. No other school owns more than six straight.
Creighton is one of 11 teams nationally with 20 or more wins in each of the last eight seasons. It is joined by Arizona, Connecticut, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kent State, Kentucky, Oklahoma and Syracuse.
Postseason x 9
Creighton has made either the NIT or NCAA in nine consecutive seasons, which is the second-longest streak of postseason bids in MVC history. The longest streak in MVC history was 10 straight from 1966 to 1975 by Louisville.
The only 17 schools to make the postseason in each of the last nine years are Arizona, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Stanford, Syracuse, Temple and Wake Forest.
Jays Were Among Attendance Leaders
Creighton finished the 2005-06 season ranked 20th nationally in average attendance with 13,901 fans per game. The Bluejays have averaged 14,936 fans per game through four home dates thus far.
2005-06 Attendance Leaders
Rk. School Total Dates Avg.
1. Kentucky 341,445 15 22,763
2. Syracuse 410,153 19 21,587
3. North Carolina 344,071 17 20,239
4. Louisville 402,963 22 18,316
5. Tennessee 269,310 15 17,954
6. Maryland 291,961 17 17,174
7. Wisconsin 274,272 16 17,142
8. Indiana 220,343 13 16,949
9. Illinois 265,888 16 16,618
10. Kansas 260,800 16 16,300
11. Ohio State 261,622 17 15,389
12. Arkansas 239,336 16 14,958
13. Memphis 297,328 20 14,886
14. Michigan State 206,626 14 14,759
15. Wake Forest 263,970 18 14,665
16. Arizona 204,213 14 14,586
17. N.C. State 260,509 18 14,472
18. Marquette 223,983 16 13,998
19. Connecticut 223,176 16 13,948
20. Creighton 236,313 17 13,901
MVC's Top Average Crowd Ever
Creighton broke the school and Missouri Valley Conference records for total home attendance in a season as well. The Jays drew 236,313 spectators in 2005-06, smashing the previous mark of 192,258 set in 2003-04.
Creighton set a new Missouri Valley Conference record for average home attendance last season. CU's average was 227 fans higher than the highest previous figure in the history of the MVC.
Ave. Att. School Year
13,901 Creighton 2005-06
13,674 Louisville 1974-75
12,016 Creighton 2003-04
12,009 Louisville 1967-68
11,839 Louisville 1966-67
Nothing Mid-Major About The Valley
The 2005-06 campaign marked the eighth consecutive season that the Missouri Valley Conference has had multiple bids to the NCAA Tournament, as four teams went dancing.
The only leagues to send at least two teams to the last eight NCAA Tourney's (since 1998-99) are the ACC, Big East, Big 10, Big 12, Conference-USA, MVC, SEC and Pac-10.
Five Out Of Eight Tourney Titles
Creighton owns five league tournament titles in the last eight years. On a national basis, the only schools that can claim this are Duke (7), Gonzaga (7), Winthrop (6) and Creighton (5).
Television Records
Creighton is a combined 51-32 in televised games in the last five seasons, including a 21-14 mark on KMTV. Creighton went 4-2 in games aired on KMTV in 2002-03, 6-3 in 2003-04, 4-5 in 2004-05 and 5-3 in 2005-06 on KMTV-produced games.
The Jays are also 22-16 in games that air regionally or nationally in that time, including a 14-10 mark on MVC TV.
A minimum of 24, and possibly 25, games are slated for television this season.
The Charge Chart
Creighton has taken 13 charges this season, including four (Tolliver, Watts, Porter, Funk) last night in the win over Valparaiso. Over the previous four seasons, CU has averaged 46.0 per year. Below is a list of the charges that have been taken in that time:
Name 2002-05 ?˜05-06 ?˜06-07 Total
Anthony Tolliver 6 17 5 28
Dane Watts 8 7 3 18
Nate Funk 5 2 2 9
Nick Porter n/a 6 1 7
Josh Dotzler n/a 4 0 4
Isacc Miles n/a n/a 1 1
Pierce Hibma 1 0 1 2
Former Players 119 9 n/a 128
Total 139 45 13 197
Army of Iowans
Every Creighton team since 1988-89 has had at least one Iowa native, and this season is no exception. Creighton has four players from Iowa on this season's team, continuing a long trend of relying on some of the Hawkeye State's top preps. CU's native Iowans this season include senior guard Nate Funk (Sioux City), junior guard Pierce Hibma (Pella), sophomore guard Dustin Sitzmann (LeMars) and freshman forward Casey Harriman (Ida Grove).
Creighton has played at least one Iowa native in 383 straight games. That streak dates to a Feb. 5, 1994 win against Wichita State when Rick Johnson was the Bluejay coach.
Nifty at 50 (Percent)
Since coming to Creighton, head coach Dana Altman's teams are 93-3 when his teams make at least half of their shots from the field. The Jays had won 51 straight games when shooting 50 percent or better, dating to a Jan. 23, 2000 game at Evansville, before falling to Southern Illinois on Jan. 9, 2005. CU's other loss in that scenario was a 73-71 overtime loss to Missouri on Dec. 1, 1996.
Creighton's 50 percent shooting effort (25-50) on Thursday against Valparaiso matched a season-high performance for accuracy, also done on Nov. 25 against George Mason when the team was 20-for-40.
Rule of 70
Creighton is 182-46 all-time under Dana Altman and 84-16 in the last five seasons when holding opponents under 70 points.
Altman is 38-0 in his Division I coaching career when holding opponents to 50 points or less.
The 40 Percent Rule
Since coming to Creighton, Dana Altman's teams are 105-12 when holding opponents under 40 percent from the field, including a 79-5 mark in the last nine seasons.
Altman Passing Coaching Legends
Dana Altman continues to pass some of the coaching greats in MVC history in two categories. Altman's 243 wins at Creighton are third in MVC history, while his 135 triumphs in regular-season conference games have allowed him to pass Phog Allen for third in league history.
Both men above him, Henry Iba and Eddie Hickey, are in the Basketball Hall of Fame.
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. 243 Dana Altman Creighton
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. 135 Dana Altman Creighton
4. 126 Phog Allen Kansas
Long-Distance Streaks Alive
Creighton has made at least two three-point baskets in 398 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 a league-best 408 straight games since a 59-53 loss at Illinois St. on Feb. 20, 1993 when Rick Johnson was coach.
Jays Ink Three Recruits
Creighton signed three players during the fall signing period that will join the program next fall.
Kaleb Korver is a 6-4 guard from Pella, Iowa, where he plays for coach Mark Core. He averaged 19.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game last year and is the younger brother of former Bluejay All-American Kyle Korver.
P'Allen Stinnett is a 6-2 guard from Las Vegas, Nev. He currently plays at Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H., for coach Jason Smith. He averaged 18.9 points per game as a senior in high school.
Kenton Walker is a 6-8 forward from San Diego, Calif., where he attends Scripps Ranch High School and plays for coach John King. He averaged 15 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks per game as a junior.
