Men's Basketball Opens 92nd Season With No. 21 Dayton
11/11/2009 3:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Next Game
Creighton opens its 92nd season of basketball on Saturday when it faces No. 21 Dayton.
The teams will square off at University of Dayton Arena (capacity 13,266) in Dayton, Ohio, in a game that starts at 12:05 pm Central (1:05 pm Eastern).
Creighton Bluejays at #21 Dayton Flyers
University of Dayton Arena (13,266) • Dayton, Ohio
Radio: KXSP 590 AM, www.bigsports590.com
Television: WHIO (Ohio); Cox 2 (Omaha)
Series History: Dayton leads, 6-4
Last Meeting: Creighton won 77-59 in Omaha, Neb., on Dec. 10, 2008
Radio Broadcast Information
KXSP (“Big Sports 590” AM) will broadcast all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2009-10 season. The audio is also webcast live at www.bigsports590.com. T. Scott Marr and former Bluejay Nick Bahe will call the action.
For all home games, KMTV sports director Travis Justice will host a call-in show focusing on the Bluejays, that leads into the pre-game show on KXSP. Justice will also take calls after the game, also on Big Sports 590.
Television Broadcast Information
Saturday's game will be broadcast by WHIO in the Dayton market, with that feed simulcast in Omaha on Cox Cable channel 2.
Mike Hartsock will do the play-by-play, while Derrick Dukes is the analyst.
Coordinates for the game is as follows:
GALAXY 17 (Ku) 91° WL
Dig 13 - Ch B
12:30-16:00 ET - Approx. 30
UL14255.5 (V)
DL11955.5 (H)
Intelsat America (800)631-3562
Bandwidth: 9 MHz
FEC: QPSK ≤
Data Rate: 8.447974 Msps
Symbol Rate: 6.1113
Video Webcast Available
Dayton will be offering a free video webcast of Saturday's game through its website at http://www.daytonflyers.com.
Fans should then click on the All-Access link in the upper right corner and select from the menu of live events.
Live Stats Information
All Creighton basketball games will have live stats this season. Fans can go to http://www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats tab on the left-hand side of the page for the exact link.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton went 2-0 during the exhibition season, with a 94-69 victory over Missouri Western State on Nov. 4 and a 93-77 triumph over Nebraska-Omaha four days later.
The Bluejays return eight lettermen and three starters from last year's team that went 27-8 and made a 12th straight postseason appearance.
Junior P'Allen Stinnett is the leading returning scorer (12.5 ppg. last year) and is a preseason all-MVC pick for the second straight year. He scored 20 points against MWSU.
Other starters that are returning are senior forward Justin Carter (8.1 ppg., 5.5 rpg.) and junior center Kenny Lawson Jr. (8.5 ppg., 4.8 rpg., 1.7 bpg.). Carter, however, was injured in the second half of CU's second exhibition and could miss 2-4 weeks with a knee injury.
Other key contributors from last season that return are Cavel Witter (7.7 ppg.), Antoine Young (4.9 ppg.), Kaleb Korver (3.7 ppg.), Casey Harriman (3.6 ppg.) and Chad Millard (3.0 ppg.).
Among the top newcomers to watch are Wayne Runnels, Darryl Ashford, Josh Jones, Andrew Bock and Ethan Wragge.
Scouting No. 21 Dayton
Dayton went 27-8 last year and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, where it beat West Virginia before falling to Kansas. UD returns four starters and 12-of-14 lettermen from that squad.
Dayton has been selected to win the Atlantic 10 Conference, garnering 33 of 57 first-place votes to outpace Xavier. The Flyers are also ranked in both preseason polls, as they are No. 21 in the Associated Press poll and No. 22 in the USA Today/ESPN poll.
Wooden Award candidate Chris Wright leads the Flyer attack. He averaged 13.3 points and 6.6 rebounds per game last winter en route to second-team all-conference plaudits, and is a preseason all-Atlantic 10 pick this year.
Senior teammate Marcus Johnson is a second-team preseason all-conference choice. Johnson averaged 11.8 points and 3.1 rebounds per contest in 2008-09.
Dayton won exhibition games over Ferris State (88-73) and Northern Kentucky (71-61). Mickey Perry headed five players that averaged in double-figures with 13.5 ppg.
The Coaches
The dean of Missouri Valley Conference coaches, Creighton's Dana Altman (Eastern New Mexico, 1980) enters his 16th year as head coach of the Bluejays. He owns a 309-160 (.659) mark at CU and a career record of 392-227 (.633) entering his 21st year as a 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 24 years as a head coach at all levels. The 2001 and 2002 MVC Coach of the Year was a finalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year Award in 2003. 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 12 straight seasons. He is assisted by Brian Fish, Darian DeVries and Todd Eisner. Mike Jones is the team's graduate manager.
Dayton is coached by Brian Gregory, who owns a 125-68 record entering his seventh season as a head coach. Gregory has led UD to three postseason appearances and remains the only first-year head coach to win the Maui Invitational. Gregory came to Dayton after serving as an associate head coach at Michigan State. He is assisted by Billy Schmidt, Jon Borovich and Cornell Mann.
The Series With Dayton
Dayton leads the all-time series with Creighton by a 6-4 margin, including a 4-1 lead in Dayton.
The teams have alternated wins and losses in its past four meetings, including Creighton's 77-59 win at Qwest Center Omaha last December 10th.
Creighton head coach Dana Altman is 2-1 against Dayton and 2-1 against Brian Gregory.
Exhibition Recap
Creighton won both its exhibition games, topping Division II schools Missouri Western State 94-69 and Nebraska-Omaha 93-77.
Creighton had five players average in double-figures during the exhibition season, led by P'Allen Stinnett's 16.0 ppg. Also scoring in double-figures was Wayne Runnels (12.5 ppg.), Kenny Lawson Jr. (12.0), Darryl Ashford (11.0) and Casey Harriman (11.0).
The Bluejays dished out 47 assists on its 69 baskets, led by Antoine Young's 13 assists without a turnover.
Jays Against Ranked Foes
Creighton is 18-113 all-time against teams that are ranked in the AP poll, including a 7-15 mark under Dana Altman. Saturday's opponent, Dayton, is No. 21 in this week's AP poll.
Creighton last played a ranked team on March 8, 2008, falling to No. 20 Drake 75-67 in St. Louis, Mo.
Creighton's last win over a ranked team came March 4, 2007, when it beat No. 11 Southern Illinois, also in St. Louis.
Much more information on Creighton's history vs. ranked teams can be found later in this packet, as well as page 164 of the Creighton media guide.
Altman vs. Ranked Teams
Dana Altman is 7-15 against ranked teams since coming to Creighton. CU beat #18 Oklahoma State (Dec. 20, 1998), #23 Iowa (Nov. 27, 1999), #17 Western Kentucky (Nov. 27, 2001), #25 Northern Iowa (Jan. 31, 2006) and #24 Xavier (Dec. 9, 2006) at home and #15 Florida (March 15, 2002) and #11 Southern Illinois (March 4, 2007) at neutral sites.
Dayton is ranked No. 21 in this week's AP poll and 22nd in the coaches poll.
Altman's seven wins against ranked teams are a school record for a CU coach, two more than Eddie Sutton's win total (5-18).
When he was at Kansas State, Altman went 6-18 against ranked teams. Notably, on Jan. 17, 1994, Altman's unranked K-State team beat then-No. 1 Kansas, 68-64 in Lawrence.
Rank Performance on the Road
Creighton is 2-62 all-time on the road against ranked teams, including 24 straight losses. CU's last road win over a ranked team came on Jan. 28, 1978, when it beat Larry Bird's #13 Indiana State club.
Creighton also beat sixth-ranked Marquette team starring Maurice Lucas on the road on Feb. 9, 1974.
Did You Know???
Did you know that the Creighton-Dayton match-up on Saturday features a combined 54 wins from last season? That's the most of any match-up nationally for a 2009-10 season opener, as seen below:
Combined Wins, 2009-10 Season Openers
Total Home Team/Wins Opp./Wins
54 Dayton/27 Creighton/27
53 Missouri/31 Tenn.-Martin/22
53 Butler/26 Davidson/27
51 Memphis/33 Jackson State/18
51 Weber State/21 Utah State/30
50 Auburn/24 Niagara/26
Opening With A Big Game, Again
Did you know that Saturday's Creighton at Dayton game is the nation's only season-opener that features two teams that got votes in the preseason USA Today/ESPN Top 25 poll? Dayton was ranked 22nd in the preseason poll, while Creighton received seven votes.
Last season Creighton's opener against New Mexico featured that opening week's only scheduled match-up among two teams that both received three votes or more in the Associated Press preseason poll.
Against A Ranked Team In The Opener?
Creighton is 1-1 all-time when opening its season against a ranked opponent. The Jays lost to No. 8 Kansas State in the 1964-65 opener, but defeated the No. 10 Wildcats a season later in 1965-66.
Season Opener History
Including last year's win over New Mexico, Creighton owns a sparkling 77-14 record (.846) on opening day, including 12 straight wins. The Jays are 14-1 (.933) under Dana Altman in season-openers, with the only setback being an 85-77 decision at Wyoming to open the 1996-97 campaign.
Creighton has won seven of its last nine season-openers by 20 or more points. Even after including last year's close win over New Mexico, the Jays have outscored foes by an average of 83.2 to 52.1 in the last nine openers.
Below is a list of the nation's longest active winning streaks in season-openers, as researched by Creighton Sports Information:
Longest Active Win Streaks, Season-Openers
Streak School 2009-10 Opener
31 Iowa Texas-San Antonio, 11/15
24 #24 Clemson Presbyterian, 11/13
19 Xavier Youngstown State, 11/13
18 Florida Stetson, 11/15
17 Oregon Winston-Salem State, 11/13
15 N.C. State Georgia State, 11/12
15 Wake Forest Oral Roberts, 11/13
14 Arkansas Alcorn State, 11/13
14 Oklahoma St. Seattle, 11/14
13 LSU Louisiana-Monroe, 11/13
12 Creighton at #21 Dayton, 11/14
12 #8 West Virginia Loyola (Md.), 11/15
12 Pittsburgh Wofford, 11/13
Another Opener, Another Comeback
In 2007 Creighton trailed by 17 early in its season-opener against DePaul, only to beat the Blue Demons 74-62 behind 23 second-half points from P'Allen Stinnett.
Last season, Creighton trailed New Mexico by 16 with 10:17 left and by nine with 3:30 left before using a late 17-0 run to top the Lobos, 82-75. Stinnett had 21 of his career-high 30 points in the second half against the Lobos.
Ohio Connections
Creighton freshman Ethan Wragge was born in Sandusky, Ohio.
Creighton has not had a player who attended high school in the state of Ohio since Cincinnati native Brett Angner suited up for the Jays from 1999-2001.
Hello, World
Creighton has several players who could make their Division I debut on Saturday, including Darryl Ashford, Andrew Bock, Matt Dorwart, Josh Jones, Wayne Runnels, Derek Sebastian and Ethan Wragge.
Below is a look at how Creighton's current players have done in their regular-season debut in a Division I uniform.
Name Pts. Reb. Ast. Stl. Min.
Stinnett 23 4 3 3 26
Carter• 8 5 2 2 30
Witter 7 0 3 1 14
Harriman 5 3 0 1 14
Lawson Jr. 3 5 1 1 11
Korver 2 1 1 1 8
Millard (@UL) 2 0 0 0 5
Young 0 0 1 1 10
P'henomenal Debut x 2
P'Allen Stinnett's 23 points in 2007 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 last 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.
Below is a list of how Stinnett's debut compares with some other notable names in Bluejay history.
Name, Yr. Pts. Reb. Ast. Stl. Min. Result
Stinnett, 2007 23 4 3 3 26 W 74-62
Tolliver, 2003 0 1 2 0 7 W 79-44
Funk, 2002 3 5 4 1 21 W 106-50
Kyle Korver, 1999 2 2 0 1 10 W 70-62
Buford, 1995 3 4 0 0 19 W 63-59
Harstad, 1987 4 5 1 1 21 L 49-70
Gallagher, 1987 10 3 0 0 37 L 49-70
Benjamin, 1982 14 4 1 0 22 W 98-54
McKenna, 1977 14 3 7 ? ? W 95-66
Harmon, 1971 21 7 ? ? ? W 74-62
C. Baptiste, 1969 24 17 ? ? ? W 84-62
Portman, 1966 9 ? ? ? ? W 78-76
Silas, 1961 22 29 ? ? ? W 85-51
Gibson, 1954 19 ? ? ? ? W 66-51
Quick Starts Key To Playing in Postseason
Creighton has started off 3-0 (or better) in 10 of the past 11 seasons, including last year. The 2006-07 team that started 2-1 is the lone exception in that time.
Each of Creighton's 3-0 starts under Dana Altman have been culminated in a postseason tournament appearance at the end of the year.
Thanks in large part to the quick starts to open the year, Creighton has not taken the floor with a losing record since December 3, 1997 when it faced Grambling. Saturday will mark the 380th game in a row the Jays have played with a record of .500 or better.
More Debut News
Some more facts of interest about players making their Bluejay debut.
The last player to start their first game at Creighton was then-junior Justin Carter, who started last year's opener against New Mexico.
The last freshman to start his first game at CU was Ryan Sears in 1997. Sears started all 124 games of his Bluejay career and remains the MVC's all-time leader with 283 steals.
CU's best opening-day effort in history would have to be the way Creighton Hall of Famer Bob Harstad began his senior season. Harstad went 13-for-13 from the floor and 12-for-13 at the line to score 38 points against Texas-San Antonio on Nov. 30, 1990.
The most rebounds on opening day in Creighton history is 30, which Paul Silas snared on Dec. 1, 1962 at La Salle. Silas also had 22 points and 29 rebounds in his varsity debut on Dec. 1, 1961.
Good Defense, A Good Sign
Creighton held Mississippi Valley State to just 42 points in its Nov. 13, 2006 season-opening triumph. Each of the last nine 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 NCAA
November Reign
Creighton is 37-5 in regular-season November games since the start of the 1998-99 campaign.
Dana Altman is 29-0 in November home games at Creighton. CU's last home loss in November came in 1989, when it fell to Coppin State on Nov. 27.
Atlantic 10 vs. Missouri Valley
Creighton went 2-0 against the Atlantic 10 Conference last season, defeating Saint Joseph's 69-58 in Philadelphia on Dec. 6 and Dayton 77-59 in Omaha on Dec. 10.
The Jays have won four in a row versus the A-10 and are 8-2 in their past 10 match-ups with A-10 foes. That moves Creighton to 9-5 under Dana Altman against Atlantic 10 Conference foes, including a 2-1 mark vs. Dayton.
The MVC owns an 18-8 record against the Atlantic 10 in the past six seasons and has not had a losing mark against the A-10 since 2002-03.
Home, Road Win Streaks Collide
Dayton went 18-0 at home last year and has won 20 straight home games since last losing at UD Arena to rival Xavier on Feb. 24, 2008. That 20-game home win streak ranks tied for fifth-longest nationally, trailing only Kansas (41), Utah State (34), Cornell (21) and Siena (21).
In addition, junior standout Chris Wright has never played in a home loss, going 28-0 in home games with the Flyers.
On the other hand, Creighton has won its last five true road games for the first time since winning five straight from Jan. 13-Feb. 13, 2002.
Creighton has not won six straight true road games since Jan. 2-Feb. 15, 1975.
Lawson Jr. Comes Up Big
Junior center Kenny Lawson Jr. needed to play just 20 minutes to produce 20 points and seven rebounds on 8-of-11 shooting against Nebraska-Omaha last Sunday.
The big man's career high for a regular-season game is 16 points, done Jan. 20, 2009 at Evansville.
Dorwart Dandy In Extended Time
After playing just 11.5 seconds in the first exhibition game, redshirt freshman walk-on Matt Dorwart had the crowd buzzing when he checked in with 4:33 left in the first half against Nebraska-Omaha last Sunday.
He would make an immediate impact by grabbing a defensive rebound five seconds later. On his second offensive possession, Dorwart would bank in a three-pointer from the top of the key to a loud cheer. The next trip down, Dorwart made a three-pointer from the right corner, bringing the crowd to its feet. His attempt at a natural hat trick just missed when his subsequent three-point attempt the following possession went in-and-out. Dorwart would also take a charge in the second half.
In 8:25 of game action on Sunday, Creighton outscored UNO 25-12 with Dorwart on the floor. In the other 31:35 without him, the Jays outscored UNO just 68-65.
Double-Digit Comebacks
Including four times last season, Creighton has won after overcoming a double-digit deficit 30 times in the last 10 seasons.
Below is a list of those comebacks, listed by size of the margin overcome:
Overcoming Double Digit Deficits, Last 10 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
03/18/09 Bowling Green 14 W 73-71
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
02/24/09 at Missouri State 13 W 65-59
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
02/01/09 Missouri State 10 W 75-51
Looking To Fill Dotzler's Shoes
Just like he did four years ago at Bellevue (Neb.) West High School, Antoine Young is looking to fill the shoes of four-year starting point guard Josh Dotzler.
In two exhibition games this fall, Young tied for the team lead with three steals, and had 13 assists without a turnover.
Last year Dotzler led the MVC in steals (70) and steals per game (2.0 spg.) while ranking fourth in the nation with a 3.46/1 assist/turnover ratio.
Exhibition Fans A'Plenty
The paid crowd of 15,099 on Nov. 4 marked the largest attendance in school history for an exhibition game, just ahead of the 15,048 from last year. Below is the top five exhibition crowds Creighton has hosted:
Five Largest Exhibition Crowds, Creighton History
Att. Opponent Result Date
15,099 Missouri Western CU 94-69 11/04/09
15,048 Central Missouri CU 78-65 11/09/08
14,706 Nebraska-Omaha CU 93-77 11/08/09
13,861 Nebraska-Omaha CU 73-56 11/08/06
13,543 EA Sports CU 88-75 11/01/07
Preseason MVC Poll
Creighton has been picked second in the preseason poll of MVC coaches, SID's and media. Northern Iowa was a near-unanimous pick to win the league, garnering 38-of-39 first-place votes and 389 points overall.
Creighton was second with 336 points and the remaining first-place vote.
Illinois State (299), Southern Illinois (272) and Wichita State (216) rounded out the upper half of the league.
In sixth was Bradley (208), where it was followed by Indiana State (173), Drake (105), Missouri State (92) and Evansville (55).
Creighton junior guard P'Allen Stinnett is one of six men on the preseason all-MVC team. It's Stinnett's second straight year earning such an accolade. He's joined on the team by UNI's Kwadzo Ahelegbe and Adam Koch, SIU's Tony Freeman, Drake's Josh Young and preseason MVC Player of the Year Osiris Eldridge from Illinois State.
Recent Exhibition History
Creighton is 35-6 since 1987 in home exhibition games, including a 26-3 record with Dana Altman as head coach, thanks to nine straight victories. The only team to beat Altman in an exhibition setting has been Global Sports, which merged six years ago and changed their name to EA Sports.
Creighton MBB Exhibition Scores Since 1987
Date Score
11/16/87 Creighton 82, DTV Charlottenburgh 77
11/13/88 Creighton 75, Turkey 66
11/10/89 Creighton 92, Athletes in Action 70
11/16/89 Brazil 93, Creighton 90
11/06/90 Creighton 89, Athletes in Action 82
11/15/90 Creighton 89, Russian Ukraine Nat. Team 71
11/05/91 Creighton 90, Ukraine National Team 89
11/19/91 Creighton 87, Ath. Fighting Substance Abuse 77
11/16/92 Creighton 82, Cuban National Team 73
11/24/92 Creighton 93, Lee Jeans 86
11/19/93 Central Army Sports Club 92, Creighton 91
11/23/93 Team Pella 115, Creighton 99
11/15/94 Creighton 80, Dutch National Team 80 (OT)*
11/21/94 Creighton 88, Fort Hood 78
11/14/95 Creighton 77, Poznan 68
11/20/95 Creighton 76, Athletes in Action 66
11/11/96 Creighton 75, Hungary Select 60
11/17/96 Creighton 90, Dream Builders 70
11/05/97 Creighton 93, Lucenec-Slovenia 56
11/09/97 Creighton 97, Pella Windows 86
11/04/98 Creighton 96, Bulgaria 61
11/08/98 Creighton 80, Team Pella 77
11/09/99 Global Sports 77, Creighton 73
11/17/99 Creighton 75, Pella Windows 68
11/05/00 Global Sports 82, Creighton 74
11/12/00 Creighton 74, Nebraska-Omaha 53
11/06/01 Creighton 62, Nebraska-Omaha 53
11/13/01 Creighton 95, Global Sports 80
11/05/02 Creighton 75, Nebraska-Omaha 72
11/10/02 Creighton 83, Global Sports 61
11/09/03 Creighton 72, Nebraska-Omaha 66 (OT)
11/16/03 Global Sports 66, Creighton 65
11/11/04 Creighton 78, EA Sports 48
11/06/05 Creighton 74, EA Sports 67
11/13/05 Creighton 116, Nebraska-Kearney 82
11/02/06 Creighton 80, EA Sports 76 (OT)
11/08/06 Creighton 73, Nebraska-Omaha 56
11/01/07 Creighton 88, EA Sports 75
11/09/08 Creighton 78, Central Missouri 65
11/04/09 Creighton 94, Missouri Western State 69
11/08/09 Creighton 93, Nebraska-Omaha 77
*Creighton wins by forfeit when Dutch refuses to begin second overtime.
The Four-Point Play
Few plays in basketball are as rare as the four-point play, which happen only when a player is fouled while making a three-point shot and then hits the ensuing free throw.
On Nov. 4th against Missouri Western State, P'Allen Stinnett pulled off that rare feat with 13:17 left in the second half.
Creighton has not had a player convert a four-point play in a regular-season game since Johnny Mathies vs. Evansville on Jan. 22, 2006.
Newcomer Report
SIx players made their exhibition debut in a Creighton uniform on Nov. 4th against Missouri Western State as Andrew Bock, Wayne Runnels, Darryl Ashford, Ethan Wragge, Derek Sebastian and Matt Dorwart combined for 35 points and 10 rebounds and seven assists in a combined 68 minutes of action in the Jays 94-69 triumph.
Below is a look at the last six years and how Creighton's newcomers have produced in their exhibition debuts:
2009
Bock/Runnels/Ashford/
Wragge/Sebastian/Dorwart
35 pts., 10 reb., 7 ast., 68 min. (W 94-69)
2008
Carter/Jones/Young
15 pts., 8 reb., 3 ast., 47 min. (W 78-65)
2007
Woodfox/Witter/Stinnett/Millard/Korver/
Harriman/Walker/Brandt
48 pts, 14 reb., 8 ast, 102 min. (W 88-75)
2006
Bahe/Miles/Morrison/Lawson Jr.
16 pts., 11 reb., 3 ast., 59 min. (W 80-76)
2005
Porter/Bishop/Dotzler/Nengsu
11 pts., 4 reb., 5 ast., 55 min. (W 74-67)
2004
Day/Howard/Hibma/Watts
25 pts., 10 reb., 6 ast., 64 min. (W 78-48)
Who Are These Guys?
Creighton returns three starters (Justin Carter, Kenny Lawson Jr., P'Allen Stinnett) from last year's team that finished 27-8.
Creighton's roster contains players who made 106 starts a year ago, a significant increase over the 83 starts that the team returned at this point last winter and the most since the 2006-07 team that was also the program's most recent to reach the NCAA Tournament.
Returning Returning Starts Final
Year Starters From Previous Year W-L
2009-10 3 106 ???
2008-09 3 83 27-8
2007-08 1 44 22-11
2006-07 4 120 22-11
2005-06 4 134 20-10
2004-05 2 58 23-11
2003-04 3 101 20-9
2002-03 5 159 29-5
2001-02 2 65 23-9
2000-01 3 90 24-8
1999-00 3 84 23-10
1998-99 3 84 22-9
1997-98 4 72 18-10
1996-97 4 126 15-15
1995-96 4 100 14-15
1994-95 2 52 7-19
1993-94 3 73 7-22
1992-93 2 64 8-18
1991-92 2 51 9-19
1990-91 4 132 24-8
1989-90 4 127 21-12
1988-89 4 123 20-11
1987-88 3 83 16-16
1986-87 2 65 9-19
1985-86 1 48 12-16
1984-85 4 124 20-12
1983-84 3 72 17-14
1982-83 3 77 8-19
1981-82 2 78 7-20
1980-81 4 112 21-9
10 Conference Wins x 13
Last season's Creighton team extended its MVC record by winning 10 or more league games for a 13th 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 other current school with at least 13 straight years of 10 or more league wins is Kansas (15).
20 Overall Wins x 11 Years = MVC History
Creighton is the only school in the 103-year history of the Missouri Valley Conference to post 11 straight 20-win campaigns, a figure it reached last season on Feb. 11 with a win over Bradley. No other Valley school has ever put together more than six straight 20-win seasons.
Creighton is one of six teams nationally with 20 or more wins in each of last 11 seasons. That list consists of Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas and Syracuse.
Postseason x 12
Creighton has made either the NIT or NCAA in 12 consecutive seasons, the longest streak of postseason bids in MVC history. It is two more than the 10 straight from 1966 to 1975 by Louisville.
The only 12 schools to make the postseason in each of the last 12 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 12 straight postseason appearances in both men's basketball and men's soccer.
Altman Among These Leaders
Creighton head coach Dana Altman ranks tied for 10th nationally in Division I wins at his current school with 309. The 11 coaches on this list have combined for 12 national titles and 26 Final Four appearances.
Rk. W-L Name, School Years
1. 799-288 Jim Boeheim, Syracuse 33
2. 760-215 Mike Krzyzewski, Duke 29
3. 557-205 Jim Calhoun, Connecticut 23
4. 418-229 Gary Williams, Maryland 20
5. 371-321 Fang Mitchell, Coppin State 23
6. 367-233 Bob McKillop, Davidson 20
7. 364-263 Bob Thomason, Pacific 21
8. 336-137 Tom Izzo, Michigan State 14
9. 314-261 Dave Loos, Austin Peay 19
T10. 309-160 Dana Altman, Creighton 15
T10. 309-126 Billy Donovan, Florida 13
Tenure? He's Got 16 Years
Dana Altman is the dean of MVC coaches, as he enters his 16th season as head coach at Creighton. His 16 years at CU ranks 15th-longest nationally among active head coaches at one school. Below is that list:
Yrs. Name, School
33 Jim Boeheim, Syracuse
31 Dave Bike, Sacred Heart
29 Mike Krzyzewski, Duke
27 Don Maestri, Troy
25 Greg Kampe, Oakland
23 Rick Byrd, Belmont; Jim Calhoun, Connecticut; Ron “Fang” Mitchell, Coppin State; Vann Pettaway, Alabama A&M
21 Bob Thomason, Pacific
20 Bob McKillop, Davidson; Gary Williams, Maryland
19 Dave Loos, Austin Peay
16 Kirk Speraw, Central Florida
15 Dana Altman, Creighton; Ron Hunter, IUPUI; Rick Scruggs, Gardner-Webb
14 Tom Izzo, Michigan State; Phil Martelli, Saint Joseph's, Scott Nagy, South Dakota State; Fran O'Hanlon, Lafayette
27 Wins in 2008-09
Creighton tied for 15th nationally with 27 wins in 2008-09, and were one of 24 schools with 27 or more wins last season.
Last season Creighton became the only school from a top-10 league to ever win 26 or more games by Selection Sunday and not receive an NCAA Tournament bid.
Wins Schools
34 North Carolina
33 Memphis
31 Missouri, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Connecticut,
Michigan State
30 Duke, Villanova, Oklahoma, Utah State
28 Gonzaga, Saint Mary's, Syracuse
27 Creighton, Davidson, LSU, Charleston, Siena Dayton, Purdue, Penn State, Kansas, Xavier
Record Breaking Attendance
Creighton attracted 302,676 home fans last season, a figure that was the most in the 103-year history of the MVC.
The Jays also set an MVC record in average attendance. Creighton averaged 15,930 fans (12th nationally), just ahead of the 15,909 average from 2006-07.
2008-09 Attendance Leaders
Rk. School Average
1. Kentucky 23,012
2. Syracuse 21,044
3. North Carolina 21,035
4. Tennessee 20,483
5. Louisville 19,397
6. Wisconsin 17,230
7. Maryland 17,048
8. Memphis 16,933
9. Kansas 16,350
10. Marquette 16,200
11. Arkansas 16,043
12. Creighton 15,930
13. Illinois 15,498
Highest Season Home Attendance, MVC History
Home Att. School Year
302,676 Creighton 2008-09
276,000 Creighton 2007-08
236,313 Creighton 2005-06
222,728 Creighton 2006-07
192,258 Creighton 2003-04
191,440 Louisville 1974-75
Highest Average Attendance, MVC History
Avg. Att. School Year
15,930 Creighton 2008-09
15,909 Creighton 2006-07
15,333 Creighton 2007-08
13,901 Creighton 2005-06
13,674 Louisville 1974-75
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. Nine of his last 12 teams have finished either first or second in The Valley's regular-season race. Two of the four that didn't won the MVC Tournament.
The Bluejays won the MVC in 2000-01 and tied for the title in 2001-02 and 2008-09. 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 12 Years
1st Place 2000-01
Tied for First 2001-02 (won MVC Tourn.), 2008-09
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
Army of Iowans
Every Creighton team since 1988-89 has had at least one Iowa native, and this season is no exception.
Creighton had two 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 juniors 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 477 straight games. That streak dates to a Feb. 5, 1994 win against Wichita State.
Long-Distance Streak Alive
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in a league-best 501 straight games since a 59-53 loss at Illinois State on Feb. 20, 1993. That's the longest active streak in the MVC.
Altman Passing Coaching Legends
Dana Altman continues to pass some of the coaching greats in MVC history in two categories. Altman's 309 wins at Creighton are third in MVC history, while his 172 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 entered the MVC Hall of Fame last March in conjunction with Arch Madness.
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. 309 Dana Altman Creighton
MVC Coaches--Most Wins In Conference Games
Wins Coach School(s)
1. 187 Henry Iba Oklahoma A&M
2. 172 Dana Altman Creighton
3. 163 Eddie Hickey Creighton & St. Louis
Qwest To Be The Best
Entering the 2009-10 season, Creighton has played 100 regular and postseason contests at Qwest Center Omaha all-time in six seasons at the facility.
The Bluejays own an 84-16 (.840) record all-time at the facility, including a perfect 18-0 figure on Wednesday's, a 6-0 mark on Thursday's and a 1-0 mark on Friday's.
Creighton has outscored its opponents 7,406-6,241 in games at Qwest Center Omaha, an average margin of 11.7 points per game. The 16 losses have been by a combined 87 points (5.4 ppg.). Creighton has led wire-to-wire 19 different times.
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 leads the MVC overall with 210 wins in the decade, as well as nine postseason appearances:
MVC Standings (2000-01 to end of 2008-09)
MVC only All Games
Team W L Pct. W L Pct.
Creighton 115 47 .710 210 82 .719
Southern Illinois 118 44 .728 202 93 .685
Northern Iowa 84 78 .519 156 125 .555
Missouri State 85 77 .525 157 126 .555
Wichita State 83 79 .512 156 127 .551
Illinois State 75 87 .463 146 131 .527
Bradley 78 84 .481 154 137 .529
Drake 69 93 .426 135 138 .495
Indiana State 50 112 .309 107 168 .389
Evansville 53 109 .327 101 163 .383
Postseason Appearances by MVC Teams
(Since 2000-01)
Team NCAA NIT CBI CIT Total
Creighton 5 4 0 0 9
Southern Illinois 6 1 0 0 7
Bradley 1 2 1 1 5
Wichita State 1 3 1 0 5
Northern Iowa 4 0 0 0 4
Missouri State 0 3 0 0 3
Illinois State 0 3 0 0 3
Drake 1 0 0 1 2
Evansville 0 0 0 1 1
Indiana State 1 0 0 0 1
Dance Regulars
Creighton is one of 20 schools to have appeared in multiple NCAA Tournaments during each of the past five decades.
Multiple NCAA Appearances, Last 5 Decades
Team 60's 70's 80's 90's 00's
Arizona State 4 2 2 2 2
BYU 2 3 5 5 7
Creighton 2 3 2 2 6
DePaul 2 3 9 2 2
Duke 4 2 7 9 10
Kansas 3 4 6 10 10
Kentucky 6 7 9 8 9
Louisville 4 6 8 7 7
Marquette 3 9 3 4 6
North Carolina 3 6 10 10 8
Princeton 7 2 4 6 2
Providence 3 5 2 3 2
Temple 2 3 5 10 4
Texas Tech 2 2 2 2 4
UCLA 7 10 5 10 8
Utah 3 3 3 7 6
UTEP 4 2 6 2 2
Villanova 3 4 8 6 5
Weber State 2 6 2 2 2
Western Kentucky 4 4 4 3 5
Piling Up The Points, and Wins
Creighton has won 53 straight home games when scoring 68 points or more since Feb. 5, 2005.
Creighton has won 64 straight games when scoring 72 points or more at all sites dating to Jan. 29, 2005.
The Bluejays have won 67 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.
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
Coat, Food Drives A Success
The generosity of some Creighton Basketball fans has paid big dividends for the Siena Francis House over the past three weekends. More than 675 pounds of food and around 250 coats were collected in separate events connected with Bluejay basketball.
The food drives took place on both Oct. 24 and Oct. 31 as part of the open practices hosted at D.J. Sokol Arena in the Wayne and Eileen Ryan Athletic Center. Fans were invited to bring canned goods or other perishable items prior to both events. More than 675 pounds of food were collected.
Last Sunday (Nov. 8) as part of the team's exhibition game against Nebraska-Omaha, fans could exchange new or slightly used coats for two tickets to Creighton's regular-season home opener on Nov. 17 against Florida A&M. Around 250 coats were gathered. Nu-Trend Cleaners then donated to the cause by cleaning of all coats before they were delivered to the Siena Francis House on Monday.
The Siena Francis House is Nebraska's largest shelter, serving homeless men, women and children for over 30 years.
Ticket Information
Single-game tickets for the 2009-10 season went on sale on October 26th at 10 am.
Fans can purchase tickets in advance at Qwest Center Omaha Box Office, Ryan Athletic Center, all Ticketmaster locations (Baker's, Younkers), Ticketmaster online at http://www.ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster and charging by phone at (800) 745-3000. 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). Tickets for the Dec. 6 Nebraska game will be $20 for adults and youth.
For more information, call the Creighton Ticket Office at (402) 280-JAYS.
Last Season Recap
Creighton went 27-8 and won a share of the MVC regular-season title for the first time since 2001-02. The Jays were then selected to the NIT, where it defeated Bowling Green before falling to Kentucky.
Senior Booker Woodfox was named MVC Player of the Year after averaging 15.8 points and ranking second nationally with 47.6 percent marksmanship from three-point range.
Fellow senior Josh Dotzler led CU in assists and led the MVC in steals while earning a spot on the Valley's All-Defensive Team.
Justin Carter returns after leading Creighton with 5.5 rebounds per contest, while P'Allen Stinnett is the team's top returning scorer after scoring at a 12.5 points per game clip.
Creighton averaged an MVC-record 15,930 fans per game last season, 12th-best nationally.
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 fifth time in the seven-year existence of the award, Creighton University has been recognized with the 2008-09 MVC All-Academic Award. Bluejay student-athletes posted a 3.32 cumulative grade-point average over the 2008-09 academic calendar. Creighton previously shared the award in 2003-04, and were the outright winners in 2004-05, 2006-07 and 2007-08.
Creighton had three men's basketball players earn Dean's List (3.50 GPA or better) accolades last year.
Shuttle Service Provided Again
Chief Bus will provide complimentary shuttle service from the Creighton University 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 Blues Alumni Grill (outside the 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 convention center 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 convention center entrance on 10th Street and loop the original route with the first of three stops at 24th & California Streets.
