Men's Basketball Hosts Missouri State on Sunday at 2 pm
1/30/2009 1:45:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Next Game
Creighton (16-6, 6-4 MVC) closes out a three-game homestand with a Sunday afternoon game against Missouri State (9-12, 2-8 MVC).
The game will be played on Sunday, Feb. 1 at Qwest Center Omaha (17,272) in Omaha, Neb., and tip at 2:05 pm.
Missouri State Bears at Creighton Bluejays
Qwest Center Omaha (17,272) ? Omaha, Neb.
Radio: KXSP 590 AM, www.bigsports590.com
Television: NET-1 and NET-HD
Series History: Creighton leads 27-22
Last Meeting: Creighton won 88-67 on Feb. 19, 2008 in Omaha, Neb.
Radio Broadcast Information
KXSP (“Big Sports 590” AM) will broadcast all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2008-09 season. The audio is also webcast live at www.bigsports590.com. T. Scott Marr and Jimmy Motz will call the action.
Sunday's game will also air on Sirius satellite radio channel 122.
For all home games Big Sports 590 afternoon host Matt Perrault will host a call-in show focusing on the Bluejays, that leads into the pre-game show. Perrault will also take calls after the game, also on Big Sports 590.
Television Broadcast Information
Sunday's game against Missouri State will air statewide on NET and NET-HD (Cox Channel 12 and 712 in Omaha). Kevin Kugler and Nick Bahe will announce.
Broadcast outlets still needing coordinates will need to contact NET for authorization. Out-of-town sports bars and homes will not be granted permission and won't have the necessary hardware to receive the equipment.
The game will also be broadcast back in Springfield, Mo., on Mediacom. Don West and Don Lucy will handle that broadcast.
Video Webcast Available
A free video webcast of Sunday's game will be available. Fans can go to http://netnebraska.org/television/stream/flash.html to view the NET-HD broadcast on-line.
Live Stats Information
All Creighton home basketball games will have live stats this season. Fans can go to www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats tab on the left-hand side of the page.
Scouting Creighton (16-6, 6-4 MVC)
The preseason favorites in the Missouri Valley Conference have won 13 of their past 17 games and are 16-6 overall, including a 6-4 league mark, and is tied for third place in the conference standings.
Senior guard Booker Woodfox leads the team with 16.2 points per game. His MVC-leading 89.2 percent accuracy rate from the free throw line ranks 15th nationally. He also ranks second nationally in three-point percentage at 47.2 percent among players with 2.5 makes per game or better.
Also scoring in double-figures is sophomore guard P'Allen Stinnett (13.0 ppg., 1.7 spg.). Stinnett is a preseason all-Valley pick after sweeping MVC Freshman and Newcomer of the Year honors last season.
Senior point guard Josh Dotzler owns an MVC-best 49 steals, while sophomore big man Kenny Lawson Jr. tops the Valley with 34 blocked shots.
Creighton shoots 43.7 percent from the floor, 39.3 percent from three-point territory and is also making 76.3 percent of its shots from the line.
The Bluejays return 10 lettermen and three starters from last year's 22-11 team that made an 11th straight postseason appearance, reaching the second round of the NIT.
Scouting Missouri State
Missouri State owns a 9-12 overall record and is tied for ninth in the MVC standings with a 2-8 league mark.
MSU is paced by senior forward Chris Cooks, who leads the team 12.9 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. Cooks also leads the team with 24 steals and is second with 51 assists.
Four other players average between 9.0 and 9.8 points per game; Spencer Laurie (9.8), Wade Knapp (9.3), Will Creekmore (9.1) and Kyle Weems (9.0).
The Bears are 1-7 on the road this season, with the lone win coming at Central Michigan on Nov. 17th.
MSU averages 60.9 points per game while allowing 61.7 per contest. The Bears shoot 39.4 percent from the floor, 31.8 percent from three-point range and 68.0 percent at the line while being outrebounded by 1.0 carom per contest.
The Coaches
The dean of Missouri Valley Conference coaches, Creighton's Dana Altman (Eastern New Mexico, 1980) is in his 15th year as head coach of the Bluejays.
He owns a 298-158 (.654) mark at Creighton and a career record of 381-225 (.629) in his 20th year as a NCAA Division I head coach when you add four seasons at Kansas State and one at Marshall. Tack on four years at the junior college level and Altman's overall record as a college head coach is 504-249 (.669).
Creighton's all-time winningest coach, Altman has been named national, conference, regional or district coach of the year in 10 of his first 23 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. In March, 2007, Altman was named a coach on the MVC's All-Centennial Team.
Additionally, Altman has led Creighton to seven NCAA Tournaments and his teams have played in the postseason in 11 straight seasons. He is assisted by Brian Fish, Darian DeVries and Todd Eisner. Nick Bahe is the team's graduate manager.
Missouri State is coached by Cuonzo Martin (Purdue, 2000), who is 9-12 in his first year as a head coach. Martin was previously a star player and assistant coach at Purdue and played four years professionally. He is assisted by Steve Woodberry, John Harris and Kent Williams.
Series History vs. Missouri State
Creighton has won the last five meetings to claim a 27-22 lead over Missouri State in the series. The Bluejays own a 15-3 record against MSU in Omaha, including wins in seven of the last eight encounters.
Creighton has won 20 of the last 27 games with Missouri State, and seven of its last 11 wins have been by six points or less.
Dana Altman is 21-14 against Missouri State but has never faced Cuonzo Martin.
A complete series history against Missouri State can be found on page 10 of this release.
Last Game Recap
Justin Carter had a career-high 17 points and P'Allen Stinnett scored all 13 of his points in the final nine minutes as Creighton defeated Indiana State, 73-62, on Tuesday night before 15,542 fans at Qwest Center Omaha. Antoine Young (12 points) and Booker Woodfox (17) also scored in double-figures for Creighton, while ISU was paced by 16 points and seven assists from Harry Marshall.
Suits And Sneakers Awareness Weekend
Coaches vs. Cancer “Suits and Sneakers Awareness Weekend,” a collaborative initiative of the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and the American Cancer Society, is slated for the weekend of Jan. 30 ? Feb. 1, 2009.
Participating NABC-member coaches, including the Creighton staff, will wear sneakers instead of dress shoes with their usual game attire during weekend games to demonstrate their support for the Society and the fight against cancer. As well, fans are encouraged to wear sneakers to games to demonstrate their support.
Thanks to the dedicated efforts of college and high school coaches across the country, Coaches vs. Cancer participants have raised nearly $45 million since 1993 to help the Society fund groundbreaking cancer research, provide up-to-date cancer information and education, advocate for public health policies that benefit communities, and deliver services that improve the quality of life for patients and their families. Additional information is available at http://www.cancer.org/coaches.
Super Sunday
After not playing opposite any of the first 35 (XXXV) Super Bowl's, Creighton will play on the same day as the nation's largest sporting event for the fourth time this decade.
CU fell to Southern Illinois (79-77) in 2002 on Super Sunday, and rallied to beat TCU (89-79) in 2003. In CU's most recent game on Super Bowl Sunday, Creighton won at Evansville, 74-70 in 2004.
Creighton on Super Bowl Sunday, All-Time
Super
Date Bowl # CU Result SB Champ
02/03/02 XXXVI SIU 79, CU 77 Patriots
01/26/03 XXXVII CU 89, TCU 79 Buccaneers
02/01/04 XXXVIII CU 74, UE 70 Patriots
Jays Reach 10 Home Wins, Again
Tuesday's win over Indiana State was Creighton's 10th home win this season. Creighton has now won 10 or more home games in 13 straight seasons, setting a school-record.
Creighton previously won 10 or more home games in 12 straight seasons from the 1969-70 season to the 1980-81 campaign.
Attendance Remains Strong
Creighton has attracted 192,763 fans heading into Sunday, a figure that ranks fourth in the 102-year history of the MVC. The only marks that are higher are the previous three Bluejay seasons.
The Jays are also on pace to set an MVC record in average attendance. Creighton is averaging 16,064 fans currently, just ahead of the 15,909 average from 2006-07.
Highest Season Home Attendance, MVC History
Home Att. School Year
276,000 Creighton 2007-08
236,313 Creighton 2005-06
222,728 Creighton 2006-07
192,763 Creighton 2008-09
192,258 Creighton 2003-04
191,440 Louisville 1974-75
Highest Average Attendance, MVC History
Avg. Att. School Year
16,064 so far Creighton 2008-09
15,909 Creighton 2006-07
15,333 Creighton 2007-08
13,901 Creighton 2005-06
13,674 Louisville 1974-75
Carter Carries Jays
Junior Justin Carter had one of his best all-around games Tuesday in Creighton's victory over Indiana State.
Carter had career-highs with 17 points, four steals and two blocked shots. He also tied his previous best with eight rebounds.
Carter has taken over the team lead with 107 rebounds and ranks third with 38 assists while playing the power forward position.
Carter has started each of his first 22 games at Creighton. The last player that could say that was Ryan Sears, who started all 28 games as a freshman in 1997-98. Sears would go on to start all 124 games of his Bluejay career.
Consec. Starts To Open CU Career, Last 15 Years
Starts Name Years
124 Ryan Sears 1997-2001
59 Edward St. Fleur 1995-1997
42 Tad Ackerman 1994-1996
22 Justin Carter 2008-Present
Ball Control
Creighton point guards Josh Dotzler, Antoine Young and Cavel Witter have done an admirable job of taking care of the ball in the past two games, combining for just one turnover in that span.
The trio combined for seven assists in 60 minutes of action without a turnover in the win over Indiana State. One game earlier against Drake, Dotzler had the trio's lone turnover in 55 combined minutes.
Witter and Young have both played turnover-free ball in the past two games, the first time either man has played consecutive games without a turnover for Creighton.
7-Up
Creighton went 7-for-7 from the field in the final seven minutes of its win over Indiana State, getting four baskets from P'Allen Stinnett and one each from Booker Woodfox, Antoine Young and Kenton Walker.
Creighton has shot 67-for-126 in the final seven minutes of regulation in its 16 wins this season, good for 53.2 percent. That figure includes Stinnett shooting 14-of-14 from two-point range, and the team shooting 25-of-57 (43.9 percent) from three-point range.
On the other hand in the final seven minutes of its six losses, Creighton is 16-of-54 from the field (29.6 percent) and 5-of-26 from three-point range (19.2 percent). Stinnett is 0-for-9 from the field in the last seven minutes of CU's six losses this season.
Altman Passing Coaching Legends
Dana Altman continues to pass some of the coaching greats in MVC history in two categories. Altman's 298 wins at Creighton are third in MVC history, while his 164 triumphs in regular-season conference games are second-most in league history.
Both men above him, Henry Iba and Eddie Hickey, are in the Basketball Hall of Fame. Hickey will be entering the MVC Hall of Fame this March in conjunction with Arch Madness.
MVC Coaches--Most Wins In Conference Games
Wins Coach School(s)
1. 187 Henry Iba Oklahoma A&M
2. 164 Dana Altman Creighton
3. 163 Eddie Hickey Creighton & St. Louis
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. 298 Dana Altman Creighton
Second Half Turnaround?
Creighton fans are hoping this season turns around like the 2000-01 campaign did. That season, like this one, saw the preseason favorite Bluejays drop to 5-4 at the midway point after a loss on Jan. 24th.
The 2000-01 team would post a win on Jan. 27th to start an 11-game win streak that helped carry the team to the MVC regular-season title and eventual at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament.
Future Game Times?
Below is the timeline for the selection processes for the 2009 ESPNU BracketBusters event on Friday-Saturday, February 20-21 and the Wildcard Weekend of Saturday, Feb. 28 on Fox and ESPN2.
For BracketBusters, ESPN will announce the television pairings for the 13-telecast package ? six games on ESPN2, five games on ESPNU and two games on ESPN360 ? on Monday, February 2. The actual dates, times and networks for those match-ups, though, will not be announced until Monday, February 9.
In terms of the Wildcard Weekend, ESPN will make its men's basketball selection on Thursday, February 5 for the Saturday, February 28 telecast. That game is slated to tip at 1:05 p.m. Central on ESPN2.
Once ESPN selects its telecast for that date, the league ? working in conjunction with Fox Sports Midwest ? will make its men's basketball selection on February 5 for its February 28 telecast at 7:35 pm. Central on Fox Sports Midwest, Fox Sports Indiana, Fox Sports Kansas City and Comcast SportsNet Chicago.
All five men's games on February 28 ? Drake @ Bradley; Evansville @ UNI; Illinois State @ Creighton; Missouri State @ Indiana State; Wichita State @ Southern Illinois ? are eligible for consideration by ESPN and Fox Sports Midwest.
Sunday Drive
Creighton is 6-1 on Sunday afternoon games at Qwest Center Omaha, and each of the past three games have been quite memorable for Bluejay fans.
CU's only Sunday afternoon game this season was the season-opening 82-75 win over New Mexico on Nov. 16. In that contest, the Jays used a 17-0 run in the final 3:30 to overcome a late nine-point deficit.
Last season's Sunday afternoon games were a 72-53 win over Southern Illinois and a 90-84 overtime win over Saint Joseph's. The win over SIU snapped a four-game home losing streak to the rival Salukis, while the victory over the Hawks saw the Jays overcome a four-point deficit in the final minute of regulation.
Below is a list of Creighton's Sunday afternoon games all-time at Qwest Center Omaha.
Sunday Afternoon Games, Qwest Center History
Date Score
11/16/08 Creighton 82, New Mexico 75
02/10/08 Creighton 72, Southern Illinois 53
12/09/07 Creighton 90, Saint Joseph's 84 (OT)
01/08/06 Creighton 82, Drake 69
01/22/06 Creighton 77, Evansville 58
12/11/05 Creighton 70, Nebraska 44
01/09/05 Southern Illinois 69, Creighton 63
Room To Board
The rebound differential between Creighton and its opponent has stood at 10 or larger in 13 of the 22 games to date.
The Jays have won the boards by 10 or more four times (going 3-1), but lost on the glass by double-digits on nine occasions (going 5-4).
In the nine games that the rebound discrepancy has been a single-digit, CU is 8-1.
Over .500 Again
Creighton has been better than .500 in either the first or second-half of the league season in 27 straight trips through the league, including the first half this year.
Creighton's 27 consecutive halves above .500 in league play is easily the Valley's longest active streak, far ahead of Illinois State (3), Drake (3), Northern Iowa (2) and Bradley (2).
Here's how Dana Altman's clubs have fared in the various halves of the MVC season since his arrival:
Year 1st Half 2nd Half
2008-09 5-4 1-0 so far
2007-08 5-4 5-4
2006-07 6-3 7-2
2005-06 7-2 5-4
2004-05 5-4 6-3
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 84-51 (.622) 80-47 (.630)
Home Cooking
Creighton is 40-10 at home all-time at Qwest Center Omaha in MVC games (.800), compared to a 24-26 (.480) road record in the MVC during that stretch.
Only five MVC visiting schools (DU, ILS, MSU, UNI, SIU) have ever won a game in the six-year old Qwest Center Omaha. In fact, four Valley schools have not won a game in Omaha since the decade started.
Below is a look at Creighton's current home winning streaks over current league foes:
Opponent CU Streak Last Opp. Win in Omaha
Bradley Won 10 1/17/98
Drake Lost 2 1/24/09
Evansville Won 9 1/04/99
Illinois State Lost 1 12/29/07
Indiana State Won 10 1/04/99
Missouri State Won 3 2/05/05
Northern Iowa Lost 1 1/6/09
So. Illinois Won 2 1/20/07
Wichita State Won 16 2/22/92
Big Shot Booker Strikes Again
Creighton's Booker Woodfox drained a go-ahead three-pointer with 21.4 seconds left in overtime against Southern Illinois on Jan. 14th. It was the second time in as many seasons that Woodfox hit a go-ahead three-pointer in the final 30 seconds of a one-point win, as he hit a game-winner to beat Oral Roberts with 26.5 seconds left last season.
Fellow teammate P'Allen Stinnett hit five different shots on Jan. 14th that gave CU the lead against Southern Illinois and now has 14 go-ahead baskets this year, matching Kenny Lawson Jr.'s team-best 14.
Below is a list of Creighton's baskets that gave them a lead this season, as well as baskets that gave the team the lead for good.
Gave CU Lead Got Lead Last
Name Lead For Good 2 Minutes
Kenny Lawson Jr. 14 3 0
P'Allen Stinnett 14 5 1
Booker Woodfox 12 4 1
Justin Carter 7 2 0
Antoine Young 5 0 0
Chad Millard 3 1 0
Kaleb Korver 2 1 0
Cavel Witter 2 0 0
Casey Harriman 2 0 0
Josh Dotzler 1 0 1
Kenton Walker 1 0 0
Woodfox From Distance
Booker Woodfox has made a three-pointer in 18 straight games, a streak that began on Nov. 25, 2008 at UALR. The last CU player with a three-point streak that long was Johnny Mathies, who compiled a trey in 20 consecutive games from Dec. 22, 2004 to Feb. 28, 2005.
Cardiac Kids
Creighton's win over Southern Illinois on Jan. 14th marked the seventh time in the past two seasons that Creighton won in which it trailed or had been tied at some point in the final minute, but first time this season.
Five of those seven wins came at home, and three of the games featured a go-ahead three-pointer in the final 30 seconds.
Margin Opponent Date
-5 Bradley 3/1/08
-4 Saint Joseph's 12/9/07
-4 Southern Illinois 1/14/09
-3 Rhode Island 3/18/08
-2 at Oral Roberts 2/23/08
-1 Wichita State 2/2/08
Tie at Missouri State 1/5/08
Lawson's Blocked Shot Streak Lives On
Sophomore center Kenny Lawson Jr. owns a league-high 34 blocked shots. Lawson has a blocked shot in 20 of CU's 22 contests this season. Lawson owns 62 career blocked shots, moving him into 10th on CU's all-time list.
Most Blocked Shots, CU History, Since 1979-80
Blk. Name Years
411 Benoit Benjamin 1982-85
183 Chad Gallagher 1987-91
138 Brody Deren 2001-04
136 Anthony Tolliver 2003-07
109 Doug Swenson 1997-99
104 Joe Dabbert 2000-04
79 Adam Reid 1994-97
76 Livan Pyfrom 1999-01
75 Jeffrey Day 2004-06
62 Kenny Lawson Jr. 2006-Pres.
59 Rodney Buford 1995-99
Blocking Bookends
Sophomore post men Kenny Lawson Jr. and Kenton Walker are both among the MVC leaders in blocked shots, albeit in two different categories.
Lawson's 34 blocked shots for the season are one more than his closest competition, Bradley's David Collins.
Walker's 14 blocked shots in league action are second in conference-only games, one behind Collins.
Creighton's last player to lead the league in blocked shots for an entire season is Brody Deren, who had 56 swats during the 2002-03 season when he was also a sophomore.
Team of the Decade?
Below is the records for each MVC school since the start of the 2000-01 season, ranked by overall winning percentage. Creighton and Southern Illinois lead the MVC with 199 overall wins in the decade. A win on Sunday would give Creighton 200 wins in the past nine seasons.
MVC Standings (2000-01 to 1/28/09)
MVC only All Games
Team W L Pct. W L Pct.
Creighton 107 47 .695 199 80 .713
Southern Illinois 115 39 .747 199 86 .698
Missouri State 84 70 .545 155 118 .568
Northern Iowa 79 75 .513 148 120 .552
Wichita State 78 76 .506 148 122 .548
Bradley 75 79 .487 146 130 .529
Illinois State 70 84 .455 139 125 .527
Drake 67 87 .435 132 130 .504
Evansville 50 104 .325 97 156 .383
Indiana State 45 109 .292 100 164 .379
Let's Start With Dotzler
Josh Dotzler has started each of Creighton's last 56 games, winning 38 of those starts. The streak dates back to the final contest of the 2006-07 campaign and is the longest active string in the Missouri Valley Conference.
For his career, Dotzler has made 83 starts, with CU winning 56 of them (67.5 percent).
Toe The Line
Creighton has also shot the ball well from the free-throw line, moving up to 11th nationally with its 76.3 percent rate from the charity stripe. That's even more impressive when you consider CU's 379 free throw makes are also 11th nationally.
Creighton and Kentucky are the only teams in the country to rank in the top-12 in both free-throw makes and free-throw percentage.
Most Free Throw Makes, Nationally
Rank Team GP FTM FTA Pct.
1. Wyoming 20 434 586 74.1
2. Niagara 21 408 563 72.5
3. North Carolina 20 401 537 74.7
4. Oklahoma 21 394 581 67.8
5. Kentucky 21 391 495 79.0
6. UTEP 20 390 550 70.9
7. Marquette 20 389 543 71.6
Xavier 20 389 575 67.7
9. Vermont 21 384 544 70.6
10. Florida Gulf Coast 23 382 547 69.8
11. Creighton 22 379 497 76.3
12. Connecticut 20 378 552 68.5
Best Free Throw Percentage, Nationally
Rank Team GP FTM FTA Pct.
1. UC Davis 20 313 384 81.5
2. Kentucky 21 391 495 79.0
3. Southern Utah 21 336 426 78.9
4. Utah 20 339 430 78.8
5. Green Bay 22 341 433 78.8
6. Washington State 20 219 279 78.5
7. Michigan 21 271 347 78.1
8. Loyola (Md.) 22 363 467 77.7
9. Utah Valley State 18 300 387 77.5
10. Maryland 20 273 353 77.3
11. Creighton 22 379 497 76.3
12. Drake 22 342 451 75.8
More Free Throw Notes
Creighton has made 202-of-258 free throws in the past 11 games, good for 78.3 percent.
The Bluejays have made at least 75 percent of its free throw attempts in 11 of the past 14 games, while incredibly, its opponents have not reached 75 percent in any game during that time.
CU is shooting a remarkable 79.3 percent at the line away from home this winter.
Creighton has had a better free throw percentage than its opponent 16 of the past 18 games, and 19-of-22 games overall this year.
Below is some recent free throw trends:
Cashing In At The Line
Booker Woodfox 52-56 last 15 games (92.9%)
Cavel Witter 32-37 last 12 games (86.5%)
Kenton Walker 17-21 last 10 games (81.0%)
One of Two
Creighton ranks tied for ninth nationally with 188 three-pointers made and is 13th with its 39.3 percent marksmanship from three-point territory.
On a national basis, the only other schools to be in the top-13 of both categories is Oklahoma State.
Most 3-Point Field Goal Makes, Nationally
Rank Team GP 3FG 3FGA 3Pct.
1. VMI 19 257 693 37.1
2. Eastern Kentucky 21 217 568 38.2
3. Liberty 22 206 575 35.8
4. Davidson 20 202 527 38.3
5. Oklahoma State 19 197 472 41.7
6. Troy 21 194 543 35.7
7. UNC-Wilmington 22 192 551 34.8
8. Belmont 19 189 532 35.5
9. Creighton 22 188 478 39.3
Illinois State 21 188 483 38.9
11. Portland State 20 187 505 37.0
12. Hartford 22 183 540 33.9
13. Michigan 21 182 559 32.6
14. Green Bay 22 179 441 40.6
Best 3-Point Field Goal Percentage, Nationally
Rank Team GP 3FG 3FGA 3Pct.
1. California 21 139 292 47.6
2. Oklahoma State 19 197 472 41.7
3. Cornell 18 143 349 41.0
IPFW 21 143 349 41.0
5. Austin Peay 20 156 382 40.8
6. Green Bay 22 179 441 40.6
7. North Dakota State 20 143 355 40.3
8. New Mexico State 21 145 362 40.1
9. Notre Dame 19 176 440 40.0
10. UC Irvine 20 133 335 39.7
11. Marist 22 165 416 39.7
12. Portland 21 163 411 39.7
13. Creighton 22 188 478 39.3
14. Southern Illinois 21 132 336 39.3
Step Right Up Young Man
Antoine Young scored 27 points in his first 16 games with Creighton, but has since exploded to score 53 points over the past six games.
That includes 13 points at Bradley and 12 points against both Indiana State and Wichita State.
Young delivered the best game of his fledgling career on Jan. 10th at Bradley. Young had a career-best 13 points while adding two assists and a team-high two steals in 21 minutes.
Young, who had entered the contest 0-for-11 from three-point range, also went 2-for-2 from downtown in the victory.
Fish Gets Call From Hall
Creighton University assistant coach Brian Fish has been named to the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame Silver Anniversary Team. He and 16 other former Indiana high school basketball standouts will be honored at a dinner on March 25 in Indianapolis.
Fish will be the just the seventh graduate in Seymour High School history to be honored. To qualify for the honor, a player must have graduated high school 25 years ago.
Fish still holds Seymour career records for charges taken (42), free throws made (390) and free throws attempted, ranks second with 1,400 points and is fourth with 128 steals, 505 field goals made and 1,112 field goals attempted.
Altman Records 500th Win
Creighton head coach Dana Altman picked up his 500th win as a college head coach at all levels on New Year's Eve against Indiana State.
Altman owns a career record of 504-249 in 24 years as a head coach at the Division I and junior college levels. Altman owns 29 wins at Southeast Junior College (1982-83), 94 wins at Moberly Junior College (1983-86), 15 wins at Marshall (1989-90), 68 wins at Kansas State (1990-94) and 298 victories at Creighton (1994-Present).
Comparison To Past Years After 22 Games
Below is a comparison after 22 games of this year's team to that of last year's team, as well as the memorable 2002-03 squad that finished 29-5, and the 2000-01 team that also started 16-6 but would win the MVC regular-season title, with season-bests in bold:
Statistic 2008-09 2007-08 2002-03 2000-01
W-L Record 16-6 16-6 20-2 16-6
MVC W-L 6-4 7-5 10-1 8-4
FG% .437 .459 .518 .436
3FG% .393 .385 .402 .343
3FG/Game 8.5 8.6 8.6 7.2
FT% .763 .718 .682 .698
Reb. Margin -3.3 +3.5 +1.8 +1.8
Assists 299 333 399 323
Turnovers 284 328 295 308
Blocks 84 71 90 74
Steals 181 178 201 202
PPG Scored 73.7 72.1 82.8 73.1
PPG Allowed 65.0 62.2 64.6 64.5
Woodfox Automatic At The Line Too
Not only has Booker Woodfox been lights-out from the field, but it's carried over to the free-throw line. Despite one of the nation's most unique pre-shot rituals, Woodfox drained a Creighton-record 36 straight free throws from Dec. 6-Jan. 3rd.
The 36 straight makes is four more than the previous Creighton record set by Michael Lindeman. The streak was seventh-longest in MVC history, and the longest in five years by a league player not named Blake Ahearn (Ahearn holds six of the 12 best streaks in MVC history).
For the season, Woodfox leads the MVC with 89.2 percent marksmanship from the line (74-83).
Most Consecutive Free Throws Made, MVC History
60 Blake Ahearn, MSU (12/20/03 - 2/14/04)
60 Blake Ahearn, MSU (12/19/04 - 2/28/05)
57 Vince Greene, ILS (1/18/04 - 11/30/04)
51 Blake Ahearn, MSU (12/15/05 - 1/29/06)
48 Marcus Wilson, Evansville (12/1/96 - 2/2/97)
44 James Gillingham, BU (2/8/03 - 2/25/03)
36 Booker Woodfox, CU (12/6/08 - 1/6/09)
35 Aaron Zobrist, Bradley (12/27/96 - 1/27/97)
34 Blake Ahearn, MSU (12/22/06 - 1/24/07)
32 Michael Lindeman, CU (1/23/03 - 12/3/03)
32 Blake Ahearn, MSU (11/17/03 - 12/20/03)
32 Josh Young, DU (11/19/08 - 12/12/08)
P For 3
Sophomore guard P'Allen Stinnett drained a three-pointer on the first possession of both halves, as well as a double-clutch banked trey at the first-half buzzer, en route to shooting 6-of-8 from three-point range at Indiana State on Dec. 31. The six three-pointers was a career-high for Stinnett, who opened his career with five three-pointers in the second half of a 2007 win over DePaul.
Stinnett is one of seven players on the current roster who have made three or more three-pointers in a game during their Bluejay career.
A Perfect December
Creighton went 9-0 in December, closing out a perfect month with a Dec. 31 win at Indiana State. This marks Creighton's first-ever unbeaten month when playing nine games or more. Creighton's last previous undefeated December came in 2003-04, when the team went 7-0.
Nine-Game Win Streak Ended
Creighton had its longest win streak in nearly five years end when its nine-game win streak was snapped on Jan. 3rd at Illinois State.
The Bluejays have had at least one five-game win streak in 12 straight seasons, and 19 such streaks overall in the 15-year tenure of Dana Altman. Since 1988-89, the Bluejays have made the postseason all 14 previous times they've had a five-game winning streak in a season, but missed the postseason all six times they haven't.
Below is a list of Creighton's longest win streaks under Dana Altman.
Creighton's Longest Win Streaks Under Dana Altman
W's Dates Postseason?
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
9 Dec. 2-31, 2008 ? ? ?
They Hit How Many?
Creighton drained 15-of-24 three-point attempts in its road win at Indiana State on Dec. 31st. The 15 three-pointers were tied for third-most ever, and the most by the Jays since they set a school and MVC record with a 20-of-30 display from downtown in a Feb. 19, 2005 win over Chattanooga.
Among games that Creighton has made 10 or more three-pointers all-time, Creighton's 62.5 percent shooting behind the arc was fourth-best in history, and its best since the 20-for-30 (66.7 percent) against Chattanooga.
Creighton is 20-0 under Dana Altman when making 10 or more three-pointers and 54 percent or better of those attempts from downtown.
Creighton has made 10 three-pointers or more eight times this season, making at least 40 percent of its tries in seven of those contests.
Heating Up December
Booker Woodfox was red-hot from the field in the nine games played in December. Woodfox scored 180 points in 219 minutes in nine December games, all Bluejay wins. Woodfox shot 58-for-99 from the floor in that time (58.6 percent), including 35-of-60 (58.3 percent) from three-point land. Woodfox also hit 29-of-31 free throws (93.5 percent) in December.
Leading Scorer, Again
Booker Woodfox led Creighton in scoring during seven straight games from Dec. 6-28, averaging 21.3 points per game in that time. In Dana Altman's 15-year tenure, Creighton's only longer streak was by Rodney Buford, who twice had eight straight games.
Consec. Games as Leading Scorer, Under Altman
Games Name Dates
8 Rodney Buford Jan. 27-Feb. 17, 1997
8 Rodney Buford Feb. 23-Dec. 2, 1998
7 Rodney Buford Jan. 2-20, 1997
7 Booker Woodfox Dec. 6-28, 2008
What A Year!
Booker Woodfox showed his shooting proficiency during the entire calendar year of 2008. His accuracy from the field, three-point line and free-throw line all jumped by 12 percent or more, while his scoring average has jumped 8.7 points per game when compared to his 2007 figures.
Below is a comparison of his first 11 games from last year (the year 2007), compared to his games since the calendar turned to 2008 and now 2009.
Statistic 2007 2008 2009
Games 11 36 7
FG-FGA 19-56 167-338 28-74
FG% .339 .494 .378
3FG-3FGA 12-33 88-182 14-40
3FG% .364 .484 .350
FT-FTA 8-12 83-99 24-28
FT% .667 .838 .857
Rebounds 17 103 10
Rebounds Per Game 1.5 2.9 1.4
Assists 12 50 2
Turnovers 11 34 6
Points 58 505 94
Points Per Game 5.3 14.0 13.4
Book It!
Booker Woodfox is 58-of-123 (47.2 percent) from three-point range this season.
For his career, he is 114-of-255, which computes to 44.7 percent, just behind the school-record figure achieved by noted marksman Kyle Korver. The only previous player in CU history to shoot better than 44.2 percent from three-point range in their career was two-time MVC Player of the Year Korver, who made 45.3 percent from downtown while hitting 371-of-819 from long-range.
Creighton's 3-Point Percentage Leaders, Career
(Minimum 100 Attempts)
Pct. Name, Years 3FGM-FGA
.4530 Kyle Korver, 1999-03 371-819
.4471 Booker Woodfox, 2007-Present 114-255
.4415 Rod Mason, 1986-88 132-299
.4404 Nerijus Karlikanovas, 1998-00 48-109
.4306 Michael Lindeman, 2000-04 62-144
.4293 Duan Cole, 1987-92 176-410
.4065 Nate Funk, 2002-07 200-492
.4053 Matt West, 1996-00 92-227
.4051 Matt Petty, 1989-93 143-353
.4017 Darin Plautz, 1989-91 94-234
Woodfox's 58 three-point baskets are tied for 35th-most nationally. Woodfox is one of 80 players nationally who made 52 or more three-pointers through games of Jan. 29th, but one of two men from that group to hit 47.0 percent or more of those attempts.
Heavy Lumber For Woodfox
Booker Woodfox had a career-high in several categories during CU's 69-58 win at Saint Joseph's on Dec. 6. Woodfox had career-highs with 29 points, nine field goals and seven three-pointers while also matching his previous best with seven rebounds.
The seven three-pointers by Woodfox were the most by a Creighton player since Nate Funk made seven trifectas at Nebraska on Nov. 18, 2006.
Additionally, he was the first player in Creighton history to make at least seven three-pointers while shooting 75 percent or better from behind the arc in the same game. Below is a list of Creighton players to make seven treys in a game.
Creighton's Most 3-Pointers Made, Single-Game
3FG-A Name, Opponent Date
9-14 Kyle Korver vs. Evansville 01/15/03
8-13 Tad Ackerman at Drake 01/23/95
8-15 Terrell Taylor vs. Florida 03/15/02
8-13 Kyle Korver at Xavier 12/31/02
7-12 Gary Swain vs. Nebraska-Omaha 12/11/86
7-10 Ryan Sears vs. Wyoming 12/06/97
7-11 Kyle Korver vs. Notre Dame 11/26/02
7-15 Kyle Korver vs. Fresno State 02/22/03
7-11 Nate Funk at Nebraska 11/18/06
7-9 Booker Woodfox at Saint Joseph's 12/06/08
Woodfox Was MVC Player of the Week #2
Senior guard Booker Woodfox was named State Farm MVC Player of the Week on Dec. 29 after averaging 22 points in three wins. He was 21-34 from the floor (61.8 percent), 11-19 from three-point range (57.9 percent) and perfect in 13 free throw attempts.
Woodfox opened the week by averaging 25 points to earn MVP honors in two wins at the Las Vegas Classic, including 26 points against DePaul. The Lewisville, Texas, native closed out his week with a team-best 16 points in a 12-point win over Wichita State.
It was the second time in December that Woodfox was honored (also Dec. 8th).
Woodfox Named MVC Player of the Week
Creighton University guard Booker Woodfox was named the Missouri Valley Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week on Dec. 8th. Woodfox, a senior guard from Lewisville, Texas, was the third different Bluejay to win the award in the first four weeks of the season (joining P'Allen Stinnett & Cavel Witter).
Woodfox scored 43 points in 44 minutes while averaging 21.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game as Creighton posted a pair of double-digit victories against NCAA Tournament teams from a year ago. He made 14-of-20 shots from the field (70 percent), including 10-of-14 from three-point range (71.4 percent) while also making 71.4 percent (5-7) of his shots at the line.
Woodfox had a career-high with 29 points in CU's win against Saint Joseph's while also tying his personal-best with seven rebounds. He drained 9-of-13 shots overall, including 7-of-9 tries from three-point territory. Woodfox became the only player in CU history to make at least seven three-pointers while converting 75 percent or more of his attempts from long-range in the same game.
Woodfox began his week with 14 points in 17 minutes of a 24-point win over Mississippi Valley State, hitting 5-of-7 shots from the floor and 3-of-5 from downtown.
This was the first time Woodfox has been named MVC Player of the Week, though he did earn three MVC Newcomer of the Week accolades last season.
MVC Preseason Poll
For the second time in three years, Creighton has been picked to win the Missouri Valley Conference in a preseason poll of coaches, beat writers, SID's and play-by-play men.
Creighton was picked first on 36 of the 39 ballots to earn 386 of a possible 390 points. Last year's favorite, Southern Illinois, earned two first-place votes and totaled 322 points for second place, just ahead of Illinois State, which garnered 309 points and the lone remaining first-place vote. Rounding out the rest of the poll was Drake (274), Bradley (219), UNI (186), Indiana State (137), Evansville (122), Wichita State (105) and Missouri State (85).
The preseason all-MVC team is headlined by preseason player of the year Osiris Eldridge (Illinois State). Joining Eldridge on the first team are P'Allen Stinnett
(Creighton), Bryan Mullins (Southern
Illinois) and the Drake tandem of Jonathan Cox and Josh Young.
Honorable-mention picks include the Bradley pair of Theron Wilson and
Andrew Warren, as well as the Evansville duo of Shy Ely and Jason
Holsinger.
Steal Leader
KenPom.com, a college basketball website dedicated to statistics, ranks Creighton guard Josh Dotzler among its best defenders. The site calculates that Dotzler earns a steal on 6.2 percent of all defensive possessions that he's in the game for, the nation's second-best rate.
The same website ranks Booker Woodfox 10th in offensive rating, a calculation of a player's offensive efficiency from two-point range, three-point range and the free-throw line, as well as scarcity of turnovers per minute played.
Crowds Increase For League Action
Compared to its non-conference crowds, Creighton's attendance has increased in MVC action each of the previous eight years:
Creighton's Yearly Home Attendance
Year Non-MVC Games MVC Games Change
2000-01 7,132 7,268 +2%
2001-02 6,333 6,800 +7%
2002-03 7,401 8,996 +22%
2003-04 11,467 12,443 +9%
2004-05 9,926 12,207 +23%
2005-06 13,404 14,343 +7%
2006-07 15,471 16,153 +4%
2007-08 14,544 16,122 +10%
2008-09 15,844 so far 16,372 so far +3.3%
Statistical Leaders, Nationally
Through games of Jan. 25th, Booker Woodfox ranked second in three-point field goal percentage (47.9%), 15th in free-throw percentage (89.6%) and 50th in three-pointers per game (2.8). Josh Dotzler ranked 27th with a 2.42 assist/turnover ratio and 38th with 2.2 steals per game. Kenny Lawson Jr. was 94th with 1.6 blocked shots per game, Cavel Witter's 84.4 percent free-throw percentage ranked 58th.
As a team, Creighton is ranked ninth in free-throw percentage (77.4), 17th in turnover margin (+4.1), 18th in three-point field-goal percentage (39.2) and 19th in three-point field goals per game (8.6).
Dotzler Top 10 in Assists & Steals
After seven previous games with exactly five steals in his career, Josh Dotzler had a career-best six steals on Dec. 13 against Northern Colorado. Creighton turned all six of those steals into points, scoring 13 points on its ensuing possessions.
Dotzler's 175 career steals ranks him for fourth in CU history. Dotzler's 334 career assists places him seventh in Creighton history, two ahead of current Indiana State coach Kevin McKenna from his playing days at CU.
Dotzler is one of four players in CU history with more than 150 steals and 300 career assists, joining Ryan Sears, Duan Cole and Latrell Wrightsell.
Steals (Since 1979-80)
Stl. Name Years
283 Ryan Sears 1997-01
195 Rodney Buford 1995-99
186 Duan Cole 1987-92
175 Josh Dotzler 2005-Pres.
172 Kyle Korver 1999-03
Assists (Since 1970-71)
Ast. Name Years
570 Ryan Sears 1997-01
549 Ralph Bobik 1971-74
458 Randy Eccker 1974-78
430 Tyler McKinney 2001-05
418 Vernon Moore 1981-85
382 Duan Cole 1987-92
334 Josh Dotzler 2005-Pres.
332 Kevin McKenna 1977-81
Army of Iowans
Every Creighton team since 1988-89 has had at least one Iowa native, and this season is no exception.
Creighton has three 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 Dustin Sitzmann (LeMars) and sophomores Casey Harriman (Ida Grove) and Kaleb Korver (Pella).
Other past notable Iowans include Kyle Korver and Pierce Hibma (Pella), Ryan Sears (Ankeny), Brody Deren (Harlan), Tyler McKinney (Urbandale), Nate Funk (Sioux City) and Michael Lindeman (Iowa Falls).
Creighton has played at least one Iowa native in 464 straight games. That streak dates to a Feb. 5, 1994 win against Wichita State.
Big Blue Wave
Eleven different players are averaging 11.6 minutes per game or more this season for Creighton, with no player seeing more than 25.8 minutes per game.
Creighton has had at least 10 players average 10.7 minutes per game or more in each of previous three seasons, as well.
Creighton has not used anyone for more than 32 minutes in any regulation-length game this year. By comparison, eight individuals throughout the MVC average 32 minutes per game or more.
Trio Reaches 500 Points in Year Two
Sophomore P'Allen Stinnett became the 12th player to score 500 or more points in their first two seasons at Creighton under Dana Altman.
However, the only one to do it in fewer than the 40 games Stinnett needed is CU's all-time leading scorer, Rodney Buford, who needed just 35 games.
Senior guard Booker Woodfox reached 500 career points in his 44th game on Dec. 22 against Fresno State, tied for third-quickest in the Altman era.
Junior guard Cavel Witter scored his 500th career point on Jan. 20th at Evansville, which was his 53rd career game.
500+Points In First 2 Years Under Dana Altman
Name Games to 500 pts. Date
Rodney Buford 35 12/7/96 vs. UNI
P'Allen Stinnett 40 12/10/08 vs. Dayton
Doug Swenson 44 1/20/99 at Evansville
Booker Woodfox 44 12/22/08 vs. Fresno St.
Kyle Korver 48 1/11/01 vs. Indiana St.
Tad Ackerman 48 2/8/96 at So. Illinois
Edward St. Fleur 49 1/30/97 at Missouri St.
Ryan Sears 51 2/14/99 at Illinois St.
Cavel Witter 53 1/20/09 at Evansville
Nick Porter 54 2/7/07 vs. Evansville
Johnny Mathies 55 2/16/05 at Wichita St.
Brody Deren 56 2/12/03 vs. Missouri St.
Terrell Taylor 59 2/17/01 vs. Wyoming
Larry House 59 2/22/03 vs. Fresno St.
Korver Adds Spark Off The Bench
Sophomore Kaleb Korver has made 24-of-46 three-point shots in his past 17 games off the bench, an impressive 52.2 percent.
Korver has not made a two-point basket since Jan. 2, 2008, and each of his last 38 field goals have been worth three points.
20 Overall Wins x 10 Years = MVC History
Creighton is the only school in the 102-year history of the Missouri Valley Conference to post 10 straight 20-win campaigns. No other school owns more than six straight.
Creighton is one of seven teams nationally with 20 or more wins in each of last 10 seasons. That list consists of Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kent State and Syracuse.
Postseason x 11
Creighton has made either the NIT or NCAA in 11 consecutive seasons, the longest streak of postseason bids in MVC history. It is one more than the 10 straight from 1966 to 1975 by Louisville.
The only 12 schools to make the postseason in each of the last 11 years are Arizona, Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan State, Oklahoma State, Stanford and Syracuse.
Creighton, which also boasts a men's soccer team with 17 straight NCAA appearances, is the nation's only school with 11 straight postseason appearances in both men's basketball and men's soccer.
10 Conference Wins x 12
Last year Creighton extended its MVC record by winning 10 or more league games for a 12th 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 12 straight years of 10 or more league wins are Stanford (14), Kansas (14) and Creighton (12).
Long-Distance Streak Alive
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in a league-best 488 straight games since a 59-53 loss at Illinois State on Feb. 20, 1993 when Rick Johnson was coach.
The Charge Chart
Creighton took 62 charges last season, with Casey Harriman and Dane Watts sharing the team lead with 17 charges taken. Over the previous six seasons, the Bluejays have averaged 48.7 per year.
So far this season, Creighton has taken 33 charges in 22 games.
Below is a list of the Creighton players that have taken charges since the 2002-03 season:
Name 2002-07 ?07-08 ?08-09 Total
Casey Harriman n/a 17 7 24
Josh Dotzler 4 5 6 15
Chad Millard n/a 7 4 11
P'Allen Stinnett n/a 5 3 8
Kenny Lawson Jr. 0 2 3 5
Justin Carter n/a n/a 3 3
Kaleb Korver n/a 0 3 3
Antoine Young n/a n/a 2 2
Kenton Walker n/a 3 1 4
Booker Woodfox n/a 2 1 3
Cavel Witter n/a 3 0 3
Dustin Sitzmann 0 1 0 1
Former Players 226 17 n/a 243
Total 230 62 33 325
Walker Nabs Double-Double
Sophomore center Kenton Walker became the only current member of the Creighton team to record a double-double, when he recorded 10 points and 10 rebounds in 20 minutes off the bench against Mississippi Valley State on December 2nd.
Walker's 10 points tied for the second-highest scoring output of his young career, while his 10 rebounds were one more of his previous career-best.
What's Your Twenty?
This was the 12th straight year that Creighton has won at least 13 of its first 20 games. Each of the previous 11 seasons it has done that, it reached the postseason. Here's a look at Creighton's record after 20 games in the 15 seasons under Dana Altman.
Creighton -- First 20 Games Under Dana Altman
Year First 20 W-L Final W-L Postseason
2008-09 15-5 ? ? ? ? ? ?
2007-08 14-6 22-11 NIT
2006-07 13-7 22-11 NCAA
2005-06 15-5 20-10 NIT
2004-05 13-7 23-11 NCAA
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 ---
Witter Named MVC Player of the Week
Cavel Witter was named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week on Nov. 25 for his work in wins against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and four-time defending Summit League champ Oral Roberts.
Witter averaged 20.0 points, 2.5 steals, 2.0 assists and 2.0 rebounds per game off the bench while leading Creighton in scoring.
He shot 68.8 percent from the floor (11-16), including 66.7 percent from three-point range (6-9) while also hitting 80 percent (12-15) at the line.
It was Witter's first career honor as MVC Player of the Week, though he did earn MVC Newcomer of the Week honors twice last season.
Sitzmann Was Scholar-Athlete of the Week
Senior guard Dustin Sitzmann was named Prairie Farms/MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Week on Nov. 26.
A senior from LeMars, Iowa, Sitzmann scored in consecutive games for the first time in his Bluejay career, as CU defeated Arkansas-Pine Bluff (82-50) on Nov. 20 and Oral Roberts (87-65) on Nov. 22.
Sitzmann, who has a 3.871 cumulative grade-point average in exercise science, made 2-of-3 shots from the field (66.7 percent). He played a combined seven minutes in the victories.
Jays Were 3-0 Once Again
Creighton's win against Oral Roberts on Nov. 22nd gave it a 3-0 start for the 10th time in the past 11 seasons. The 2006-07 team that started 2-1 is the lone exception in the past decade.
Each of Creighton's previous 3-0 starts under Dana Altman have been culminated in a postseason tournament appearance at the end of the year.
Creighton has not taken the floor with a losing record since December 3, 1997 when it faced Grambling. Sunday will be the 367th game in a row the Jays have played with a record of .500 or better.
3 Players, 20 Points, First 3 Games
Creighton had three different players score 20 or more points during its first three contests this winter. P'Allen Stinnett (30) and Booker Woodfox (26) did it against New Mexico, while Cavel Witter (25) did it against Oral Roberts.
This is the first time it's happened in Dana Altman's 15-year tenure at Creighton, as well as the first time its happened at Creighton in at least 30 years.
Double-Double Eludes Lawson
Sophomore Kenny Lawson Jr. hasn't notched a double-double in his young career, but he's been steadily getting closer.
Lawson, who had 10 points and eight rebounds at Bradley on Jan. 10, owns eight career games of at least eight points and eight boards in his career. CU has won seven of those games, outscoring foes by an average of 77.9-63.2.
Creighton is 19-4 in Lawson's career when he has five rebounds or more, but 21-13 in games he's appeared in and snared less than five caroms.
25 Points Off The Bench, Again
Cavel Witter scored 25 points off the bench in CU's Nov. 22 win over Oral Roberts.
It marked the second time in his career he's done that, as the junior guard torched Bradley for a Qwest Center Omaha record 42 points on March 1, 2008, in a double-overtime win over Bradley.
Before Witter, Creighton had not had a player score 25 points or more off the bench since March of 2002.
Television Records
Creighton is a combined 91-54 in televised games in the last seven seasons, including a 33-22 mark on KMTV-produced games (which does not include CU's record in NCAA Tournament games on KMTV). Creighton went 4-2 in games aired on KMTV in 2002-03, 6-3 in 2003-04, 4-5 in 2004-05, 5-3 in 2005-06, 6-2 in 2006-07 and 5-4 last year in KMTV-produced games. So far this year CU is 3-3 on KMTV.
The Jays are also 41-28 in games that air regionally or nationally in that time, including a 22-16 mark on MVC TV.
Creighton had 27-of-33 games on television last season. A minimum of 20 are slated for television this season, including all but two MVC games.
What A Start!
The 2007-08 MVC Sixth Man of the Year, Booker Woodfox scored 26 points in his first career start against New Mexico on Nov. 16.
Woodfox's 26 points are the most by a Bluejay in their first career start since at least 1980.
Dynamic Duo, Part II?
From 1987-91, Creighton big men Bob Harstad and Chad Gallagher were known as the “Dynamic Duo”. Both men were named MVC Player of the Year (Harstad in 1990, Gallagher in 1991) and finished their careers first and second in school history for points scored.
It's still quite early, but the Jays had quite the dynamic duo in the season-opening win over New Mexico when P'Allen Stinnett (30) and Booker Woodfox (26) both lit up the Lobos.
The current duo became the first Bluejay pair to score 25 points or more in the same game in the Dana Altman era.
CU hadn't had that happen since, you guessed it, Gallagher (29) and Harstad (26) did it against Bradley on Jan. 21, 1991.
Thirty-Point Bluejays
With 30 points on Nov. 16 against New Mexico, P'Allen Stinnett became one of six Creighton players in the Dana Altman era to score 30 points or more in a game. The other five players that did it were Cavel Witter, Nate Funk, Johnny Mathies, Kyle Korver and Rodney Buford.
Below is the list of Creighton's 30-point games since Altman became head coach:
Pts. Name Opp. Date Result
42 Cavel Witter Bradley 03/01/08 W 111-110
40 Rodney Buford Bradley 12/30/98 W 65-44
38 Nate Funk Dayton 11/26/05 W 91-90
36 Rodney Buford Illinois St. 02/05/96 L 72-74
35 Nate Funk @Wichita State 02/16/05 W 82-68
33 Nate Funk vs. Missouri St. 03/03/07 W 75-58
32 Kyle Korver @Xavier 12/31/02 L 73-75
32 Johnny Mathies Drake 01/08/06 W 82-69
31 Kyle Korver Evansville 01/15/03 W 93-56
30 Rodney Buford Southern Illinois 02/05/98 W 91-73
30 Rodney Buford @Northern Iowa 12/30/97 W 83-75
30 Rodney Buford Missouri State 02/15/97 L 82-88
30 P'Allen Stinnett New Mexico 11/16/08 W 82-75
Stinnett Named MVC Player of the Week
Creighton sophomore P'Allen Stinnett claimed MVC Player of the Week honors Nov. 17. Stinnett scored 21 of his career-high 30 points in the second half of a 82-75 come-from-behind victory over New Mexico while also adding four rebounds, an assist and a steal.
This was his second career MVC Player of the Week accolade, as he also won the award last season on Feb. 11, 2008. Stinnett also picked up three MVC Newcomer of the Week honors last year en route to sweeping Valley Newcomer and Freshman of the Year laurels.
P'henomenal Debut x 2
P'Allen Stinnett's 23 points last year against DePaul were the most by a Bluejay in their first game since Cyril Baptiste scored 24 points on Dec. 1, 1969 against Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
Stinnett's 30 points in this year's opener were the most by a Creighton player in the season lid-lifter since Bob Harstad scored 38 points against Texas-San Antonio on Nov. 30, 1990.
Piling Up The Points, and Wins
Creighton has won 47 straight home games when scoring 68 points or more since Feb. 5, 2005.
Creighton has won 55 straight games when scoring 72 points or more at all sites dating to Jan. 29, 2005.
The Bluejays have won 65 consecutive games when scoring 80 points or more, dating to Feb. 19, 2000.
Creighton has also won 44 straight games when scoring 90 points or more, dating to Jan. 11, 1988.
Creighton has won 15 straight when scoring 100 points or more, dating to Feb. 26, 1977.
Who Are Those Guys?
Creighton also has two walk-ons practicing with the team that might suit up on but are not listed in the media guide.
No. 24 is Matt Dorwart, a 6-7 freshman forward from Sidney, Neb. Dorwart played at Sidney High School and averaged 8.0 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while shooting 38.5 percent from three-point range.
No. 40 Derek Sebastian is a 6-5 freshman guard/forward from Loveland, Colo. Sebastian played at Thompson Valley High School, where he averaged 14.8 points and 8.8 rebounds per game last year.
Turning Point?
One common theme when Creighton is successful is that they have had an advantage in “points off turnovers” in many of those contests.
Creighton was 17-4 when scoring more points off turnovers than its opponent last year. In the last five years, Creighton is 76-13 when winning this category, including an 15-3 mark this winter.
Paint Points
Since Creighton started tracking points in the paint six years ago, CU is 58-9 in games when scoring 28 or more points in the paint.
Largest...Crowd...Ever...
Creighton drew its largest crowd, a record crowd for the state of Nebraska, and a record for a league game in its win against Wichita State on Dec. 28, 2008 as 17,954 attended the game at Qwest Center Omaha. That bettered the previous Creighton single-game mark (17,607 vs. Drexel - 2/17/07).
Louisville formerly held the league's single-game attendance record for a regular-season conference game (17,661 vs. Cincinnati, Feb. 22, 1969).
Jays Among Attendance Leaders, Again
This year's Creighton team is averaging 16,064 fans per game, which puts them on pace for a league record for home attendance.
Creighton ranked 15th nationally in attendance, averaging 15,333 fans per game during the 2007-08 season.
During the 2006-07 season, Creighton ranked 13th nationally in average attendance with 15,909 fans per game.
Below is a list of the nation's attendance leaders in 2007-08, as compiled by the NCAA.
2007-08 Attendance Leaders
Rk. School Average
1. Kentucky 22,554
2. North Carolina 20,497
3. Syracuse 20,345
4. Tennessee 20,267
5. Louisville 19,481
6. Maryland 17,950
7. Wisconsin 17,190
8. Arkansas 17,148
9. Indiana 16,876
10. Memphis 16,748
11. Illinois 16,618
12. Ohio State 16,587
13. Kansas 16,409
14. Marquette 16,239
15. Creighton 15,333
16. North Carolina State 15,043
NBA Presence
Two former Creighton players have spent time on NBA rosters this season. Kyle Korver (1999-2003) plays for Utah, while Anthony Tolliver (2003-07) was with San Antonio and is currently on a 10-day contract with New Orleans.
Tolliver averaged 2.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in 10.9 minutes during 19 games with San Antonio. He was cut by the Spurs on January 7th but resurfaced in the NBA on Jan. 21st when he signed a 10-day contract with the Hornets.
Korver is averaging 8.3 points in 22.0 minutes per game off the bench for Utah. He is shooting 36.6 percent from three-point range for the Jazz.
Consistent Challengers
One of the most impressive facets of the Dana Altman tenure is how often his teams have been in the running for the MVC regular-season title. Eight of his last 11 teams have finished either first or second in The Valley's regular-season race. Two of the three that didn't won the MVC Tournament.
The Bluejays won the MVC in 2000-01 and tied for the title in 2001-02. CU was second in the MVC in 1997-98 and 2006-07, tied for second in the MVC in 1998-99, 2003-04 and 2005-06, and finished tied for third in 2004-05. The 1999-00 club was fourth in the MVC, but won the MVC Tournament.
Creighton's MVC Finishes, Last 11 Years
1st Place 2000-01
Tied for First 2001-02 (won MVC Tourn.)
2nd Place 1997-98, 2002-03 (won MVC Tourn.), 2006-07 (won MVC Tourn.)
Tied for 2nd 1998-99 (won MVC Tourn.), 2003-04, 2005-06
Tied for 3rd Place 2004-05 (won MVC Tourn.)
4th Place 1999-00 (won MVC Tourn.); 2007-08
Qwest To Be The Best
Creighton has played 93 regular and post-season contests at Qwest Center Omaha all-time. The Bluejays own a 78-15 (.839) record all-time at the facility, including a perfect 16-0 figure on Wednesday's, a 6-0 mark on Thursday's and a 1-0 mark on Friday's. The 15 losses have been by a combined 85 points.
Creighton has outscored its opponents 6,877-5,772 in games at Qwest Center Omaha, an average margin of 11.9 points per game.
The Jays have led wire-to-wire 19 different times.
?W'inning Edge
Creighton's men's and women's basketball teams have been nearly unbeatable at home in recent seasons, going a combined 209-46 in the last nine seasons. In fact, the men and women have both lost a home game in the same month just four times since March, 2000.
Creighton's Home Records, Last Nine Years
Year Men Women Combined
2008-09 10-2 7-3 17-5
2007-08 16-2 11-1 27-3
2006-07 12-2 7-7 19-9
2005-06 15-2 5-7 20-9
2004-05 11-5 12-3 23-8
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 121-18 88-28 209-46
3-Point Weapons
Creighton had nine different players that made 10 or more three-pointers last season. Five of those men made 39.3 percent or more of their attempts from long-range.
According to STATS Inc., Creighton, Duke, Marquette, New Mexico and Portland State were the nation's only teams with seven different players to own 20 or more treys. Of that group, CU was the only team with all seven players to make 24 or more three-pointers.
When shooting 40 percent or better from three-point range, Creighton has won 40-of-42 and 50 of its last 54 games.
One of the Best Programs Around
Every five years since 1997, Basketball Times has evaluated the best of the best NCAA programs -- those that have won two-thirds of their games over the previous 10 season span. The 2007 edition of the report had 29 teams that met that qualification, including Creighton.
Those 29 schools were then ranked from 1-29 on categories like 10-year winning percentage, number of active NBA players, freshman graduation rate and US News & World Report's academic peer assessment score, as well as a subjective vote of 10 panelists who judged teams based on “program cleanliness” and “head coach ranking”.
Creighton finished an impressive seventh, trailing only Duke, North Carolina, Florida, Stanford, Gonzaga and Michigan State.
Basketball Times Overall Rankings
Rk. School Avg. Ranking
1. Duke 3.7
2. North Carolina 7.5
3. Florida 8.0
4. Stanford 8.8
5. Gonzaga 10.0
Michigan State 10.0
7. Creighton 10.2
8. Kansas 10.8
9. Xavier 11.5
10. Illinois 12.0
11. Arizona 13.5
12. Connecticut 13.7
13. Syracuse 14.5
14. Butler 14.8
15. College of Charleston 15.2
Southern Illinois 15.2
Texas 15.2
18. Kentucky 16.0
Pennsylvania 16.0
20. Maryland 17.3
21. Pittsburgh 17.5
22. Utah State 18.3
23. Kent State 18.8
24. Utah 20.2
25. Cincinnati 20.5
26. Murray State 20.7
Oklahoma 20.7
28. Oklahoma State 21.0
29. Memphis 23.0
Double-Digit Comebacks at Home
Creighton has fallen behind by double-digits in 23 of its 93 all-time home games all-time at Qwest Center Omaha. In 15 of those 23 games, the Bluejays came back to win.
Creighton's incredible streak of 181 straight games without a double-digit home loss (dating to Jan. 3, 1996) was snapped on Dec. 29, 2007 by Illinois State. That had ranked as the nation's oldest streak in that obscure category.
Double Digit Deficits at Qwest Center Omaha
Date Opponent Deficit Final Score
12/30/03 Missouri State 10 W 59-54
12/04/04 High Point 13 W 79-60
12/07/04 Kent State 16 L 58-67
12/18/04 Wyoming 13 L 64-68
02/01/05 Wichita State 10 W 73-69
02/05/05 Missouri State 15 L 71-79
11/26/05 Dayton 11 W 91-90 2ot
12/18/05 Xavier 10 W 61-59
01/18/06 Bradley 12 W 80-76
01/28/06 Wichita State 19 W 57-55
02/11/06 Southern Illinois 14 L 67-74
02/22/06 Indiana State 14 W 67-62
03/20/06 Miami (Fla.) 12 L 52-53
12/30/06 Missouri State 11 W 77-74
01/20/07 Southern Illinois 12 L 57-58
02/07/07 Evansville 14 W 79-74
11/09/07 DePaul 17 W 74-62
12/29/07 Illinois State 19 L 67-80
02/02/08 Wichita State 15 W 65-63
03/01/08 Bradley 12 W 111-110 2ot
03/18/08 Rhode Island 17 W 74-73
11/16/08 New Mexico 16 W 82-75
01/24/09 Drake 14 L 62-74
Double-Digit Comebacks
Including its season-opening win over New Mexico, Creighton has won after overcoming a double-digit deficit 27 times in the last nine seasons.
Below is a list of those comebacks, listed by size of the margin overcome:
Overcoming Double Digit Deficits, Last 9 Years
Date Opponent Deficit Final Score
01/28/06 Wichita State 19 W 57-55
11/27/01 Western Kentucky 18 W 95-91 2ot
02/12/03 Missouri State 17 W 70-67 ot
11/09/07 DePaul 17 W 74-62
03/18/08 Rhode Island 17 W 74-73
11/16/08 New Mexico 16 W 82-75
02/04/06 at Drake 16 W 72-67 ot
01/26/03 TCU 16 W 89-79
02/02/08 Wichita State 15 W 65-63
02/22/06 Indiana State 14 W 67-62
02/07/07 Evansville 14 W 79-74
12/04/04 High Point 13 W 79-60
03/09/03 vs. Wichita State 13 W 70-69
01/18/03 Southern Illinois 13 W 85-76
02/04/01 at Indiana State 13 W 77-71
01/07/04 at Illinois State 12 W 56-55
01/18/06 Bradley 12 W 80-76
03/01/08 Bradley 12 W 111-110 2ot
12/30/06 Missouri State 11 W 77-74
11/26/05 Dayton 11 W 91-90 2ot
01/15/05 at Northern Iowa 11 W 67-66
11/30/04 at Xavier 11 W 73-72
03/15/02 vs. #15 Florida 11 W 83-82 2ot
12/18/05 Xavier 10 W 61-59
02/16/05 at Wichita State 10 W 82-68
02/01/05 Wichita State 10 W 73-69
12/30/03 Missouri State 10 W 59-54
Academically Tops In The MVC Too
Creighton ranks first in the Missouri Valley Conference in graduation success rate (94.7 percent) among all sports.
Also, for the fourth time in the six-year existence of the award, Creighton University has been recognized with the 2007-08 MVC All-Academic Award. Bluejay student-athletes posted a 3.30 cumulative grade-point average over the 2007-08 academic calendar. Creighton previously shared the award in 2003-04, and were the outright winners in 2004-05 and 2006-07.
Creighton had seven men's basketball players earn Dean's List (3.50 GPA or better) accolades last year, which helped the team to a 3.01 GPA overall.
Bench Points Add Up
Creighton owned 41 different double-figure scoring games last season off the bench, compared to a total of 30 during the previous three years combined. In fact, there were only four (of 33) contests in which it didn't have a double-figure scorer off the bench.
Last year's team scored 18 or more bench points in every game but one, with a low of 13.
This year, the Bluejay bench has scored 590 of the team's 1,621 points (36.4 percent).
Creighton's bench has scored 51 points in two different games this season and 41 or more three times.
This year's Creighton team has produced 20 double-digit scoring games off the bench, including 10 such efforts from Cavel Witter.
Recruits Inked
A pair of prep standouts signed letters-of-intent in November to join the Creighton men's basketball team next year.
Andrew Bock is a 6'1” guard from Eisenhower High School in Rialto, Calif. Bock averaged 18 points and eight assists per game while helping the Eagles to a 27-4 record. He was named Most Valuable Player of the Citrus Belt League last season.
Ethan Wragge (RAH-gy) is a 6'8” forward from Eden Prairie, Minn., where he attends Eden Prairie High School. He averaged 16 points and nine rebounds per game and owns the school record for three-point baskets made. He made 91 percent of his free-throw attempts last year. His team finished 19-9 last winter.
Both men will be freshmen and have four years of eligibility.
Last Season Recap
Creighton put together a second consecutive 22-11 season last fall, reaching the second round of the NIT with a team featuring nine newcomers.
P'Allen Stinnett (12.6 ppg.) swept MVC Newcomer and Freshman of the Year honors after leading Creighton in scoring, while senior Dane Watts (11.3 ppg.) led the team with 6.4 rebounds per game.
Booker Woodfox (9.6 ppg.) was named MVC Sixth Man of the Year as the leader for a bench that outscored CU's starters by 76 points for the season.
Shuttle Service To Qwest Center Omaha
The State Farm Shuttle presented by the Creighton Birdcage and State Farm Insurance will provide complimentary transportation service from the CU campus to Qwest Center Omaha for all men's basketball home games this season. The service is available to all fans, not just Creighton students.
The shuttle will start 75 minutes before tip-off and shuttles will continue to operate the route during the game.
The three designated stops for pick-up around the CU campus are: 24th & California (nearside/southbound); 20th & Cass (nearside/eastbound) and at Billy Blue's Alumni Grill (outside the new Mike & Josie Harper Center in the turnaround which is on the east side of the building).
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 three stops at 24th & California Streets.
Ticket Information
Single game tickets for regular-season home games went on sale on Nov. 11 at 10 am.
Fans can purchase tickets in advance at Qwest Center Omaha 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.
Morrison Stadium also sells tickets (in-person only) from 9:00 am-4:30 pm weekdays.
Only upper bowl seats will be available for any game and cost is $12 for adults and $8 for youth ages 3-18 (children two and under are free). For more information, call the Creighton Ticket Office at (402) 280-JAYS.
Creighton sold an MVC-record 13,615 season tickets for this year. The previous MVC record had been the 12,888 season-tickets Creighton fans bought for the 2007-08 season.
