Men's Basketball Opens Old Spice Classic With No. 15 Michigan
11/23/2009 5:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Game #4 vs. Michigan • Thursday, Nov. 26, 2009 • 12:05 p.m. EST (11:05 am CST)
#15 Michigan Wolverines vs. Creighton Bluejays
The Milk House (5,500) • Orlando, Fla.
Radio: KXSP 590 AM, www.bigsports590.com
Television: ESPN2
Series History: Michigan leads, 1-0
Last Meeting: Michigan won 81-62 on Dec. 3, 1962 in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Old Spice Classic Tournament Schedule
(Home team listed second; Iona will be home team in each of its games)
Date Time (ET) Game Network
Thurs., Nov. 26 12:05 pm Creighton vs. #15 Michigan ESPN2
2 pm Marquette vs. Xavier ESPN2
6:30 pm Alabama vs. Baylor ESPN2
9 pm Florida State vs. Iona ESPNU
Fri., Nov. 27 12:05 pm Game 5: Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner ESPN
2:30 pm Game 6: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser ESPNU
5 pm Game 7: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Winner ESPN2
7:30 pm Game 8: Game 3 Loser vs. Game 4 Loser ESPNU
Sun., Nov. 29 10 am Game 9: Game 6 Loser vs. Game 8 Loser ESPNU
Noon Game 10: Game 6 Winner vs. Game 8 Winner ESPNU
5 pm Game 11: Game 5 Loser vs. Game 7 Loser ESPNU
7:30 pm Game 12: Game 5 Winner vs. Game 7 Winner ESPN2
Next Game
Creighton travels to Orlando, Fla., to open play in the Old Spice Classic. The Bluejays (2-1) will open with a game on Thursday at 12:05 pm EST (11:05 am CST) against No. 15 Michigan (2-0).
The winner of the Creighton/Michigan game will play on ESPN at Noon EST (11 am Central) on Friday versus the winner of Thursday's Marquette/Xavier game. The loser of the Creighton/Michigan game will play at 2:30 pm EST (1:30 pm Central) on ESPNU against the loser of the Marquette/Xavier game.
A complete schedule can be found above.
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.
Prior to Thursday's game vs. Michigan, Bluejay Banter hosts Tim Krueger and Heath Gunderson will host a call-in show focusing on the Bluejays, that leads into the pre-game show on KXSP.
Television Broadcast Information
Thursday's game will air nationally on ESPN2. Lou Canellis and Len Elmore will announce.
Video Webcast Information
Games airing on ESPN or ESPN2 at the Old Spice Classic will be video webcast for free on ESPN360.com in areas where ESPN360 is carried (which includes Omaha).
Live Stats Information
All Creighton 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 No. 15 Michigan
Ranked 15th nationally, Michigan is 2-0 after picking up lopsided wins over Northern Michigan (97-50) and Houston Baptist (77-55) so far.
The Wolverines boast a pair of players averaging more than 20 points per game, DeShawn Sims (22.0 ppg., 8.0 rpg.) and Manny Harris (21.5 ppg., 10.5 rpg.).
Five other players average between 5.0 and 9.5 points per game.
Michigan is averaging 87.0 points per game and allowing just 52.5 per contest. The Wolverines also shoot 46.2 percent from the floor, 35.8 percent from long-range and 75.0 percent from the floor while outrebounding teams by 3.5 caroms per contest.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton is 2-1 this season, falling at No. 21 Dayton (90-80) on Nov. 14 before beating Florida A&M (78-53) on Nov. 17 and UALR (80-65) on Nov. 22nd.
The Bluejays return eight lettermen and three starters from last year's team that went 27-8 and made a 12th straight postseason appearance.
Creighton has five men averaging in double-figures, as Darryl Ashford (12.7 ppg.) and P'Allen Stinnett (12.7) are tied for the team scoring lead. Also in double-figures are Cavel Witter (10.3), Kenny Lawson Jr. (10.0) and Ethan Wragge (10.0).
Despite the plethora of returning veterans, it has been CU's five newcomers that have opened some eyes in the early going. The five newcomers have combined to score 108 of CU's 238 points (45.4 percent).
Junior forward Wayne Runnels (6.7 ppg., 7.3 rpg.) leads CU on the glass, with Lawson (6.0 ppg.) not far behind.
Creighton averages 79.3 points per game and shoots 45.6 percent from the floor. It holds opponents to 69.3 points per game and 41.3 percent shooting, though opponents own a +1.7 rebounding margin.
The Coaches
The dean of Missouri Valley Conference coaches, Creighton's Dana Altman (Eastern New Mexico, 1980) is in his 16th year as head coach of the Bluejays. He owns a 311-161 (.659) mark at CU and a career record of 394-228 (.633) in 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.
Michigan is coached by John Beilein, who owns a record of 33-36 in three years with the Wolverines and 584-354 in 32 years overall as a head coach. Beilein has previously been a head coach on the Division I level at West Virginia, Richmond and Canisius. He is assisted by Jerry Dunn, Mike Jackson and John Mahoney.
The Series With Michigan
Michigan won the only previous meeting with Creighton, 81-62, on Dec. 3, 1962.
Creighton head coach Dana Altman is 3-3 against the Big Ten Conference, but has never faced Michigan.
In Altman's only meeting against John Beilein, Beilein's West Virginia team ousted Creighton, 63-61, in the first round of the 2005 NCAA Tournament in Cleveland.
ESPN All-Access
Creighton's current basketball team features four men that have helped out with ESPN's coverage of the Men's College World Series, held annually in Omaha at Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium.
Kaleb Korver, Casey Harriman, Antoine Young and Chad Millard have all held roles that includes setting up the announcer's booth, serving as grips, working with the camera men that venture into the crowd and other assorted duties.
The CWS returns to Omaha for a 61st consecutive year from June 19-29 and will once again be seen on ESPN and ESPN2.
Bright Lights, Big Wins
Creighton is 27-10 in its last 37 games on ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU, and will be making its first appearance of the year on the World Wide Leader on Thursday.
In these 37 ESPN-affiliated appearances, Creighton is 26-3 when scoring 62 points or more, but just 1-7 when scoring 61 points or less.
Creighton is 8-1 since March 1, 1999 on ESPN (The Original).
Below is CU's recent results on the ESPN family of networks:
Date Opponent Score Network
3/23/09 Kentucky L 63-65 ESPN
02/28/09 Illinois State W 74-70 ESPN2
02/21/09 George Mason W 76-63 ESPNU
02/14/09 at Southern Illinois W 82-60 ESPN2
01/20/09 at Evansville W 79-57 ESPNU
03/21/08 at Florida L 54-82 ESPN2
03/18/08 Rhode Island W 74-73 ESPNU
02/23/08 at Oral Roberts W 65-64 ESPN2
02/19/08 Missouri State W 88-67 ESPNU
02/10/08 Southern Illinois W 72-53 ESPNU
02/05/08 Northern Iowa W 74-50 ESPNU
01/26/08 at Southern Illinois L 44-48 ESPN2
01/15/08 at Northern Iowa W 68-59 ESPN2
02/24/07 Wichita State W 71-54 ESPN2
02/17/07 Drexel L 58-64 ESPN2
02/13/07 Northern Iowa W 66-55 ESPNU
02/10/07 at Southern Illinois L 68-72 ESPN2
12/30/06 Missouri State W 77-74 ESPN2
12/06/06 at Dayton L 54-60 ESPNU
02/18/06 Fresno State W 67-62 ESPN
02/14/06 at Wichita State L 61-62 ot ESPNU
01/31/06 Northern Iowa W 63-55 ESPNU
03/07/05 vs. Missouri State W 75-57 ESPN
02/12/05 at Southern Illinois L 67-71 ESPN2
02/09/05 Northern Iowa W 83-82 ESPN2
02/21/04 at Kent State L 55-70 ESPN2
02/07/04 Southern Illinois L 60-61 ESPN2
03/10/03 vs. Southern Illinois W 80-56 ESPN
02/22/03 Fresno State W 67-66 ESPN2
01/18/03 Southern Illinois W 85-76 ESPN2
03/04/02 vs. Southern Illinois W 84-76 ESPN2
02/23/02 at Bradley W 80-64 ESPN2
02/17/01 Wyoming W 84-72 ESPN
02/10/01 at Southern Illinois W 77-63 ESPN
03/06/00 vs. Missouri State W 57-45 ESPN
02/07/00 at Colorado State W 78-67 ESPN
03/01/99 vs. Evansville W 70-61 ESPN
Jays Against Ranked Foes
Creighton is 18-114 all-time against teams that are ranked in the AP poll, including a 7-16 mark under Dana Altman. Thursday's opponent, Michigan, is No. 15 in this week's AP poll.
Creighton is 2-9 all-time against teams ranked No. 15 nationally, having beaten Florida in 2002 and New Mexico State in 1991, both in NCAA Tournament play.
Creighton last played a ranked team on November 14th, falling at No. 21 Dayton 90-80 in Dayton, Ohio.
Creighton is 5-21 all-time at neutral sites against ranked teams.
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 7-16 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.
Michigan is ranked No. 15 in this week's AP poll and 15th 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.
A Thanksgiving With the Bluejays
Here's how a Thanksgiving Day with Bluejay Basketball alumni might go.
It would start with a Jule Farmer (1957-58), who would catch a turkey and put it in the Daryl Stovall (1978-82). Add in some Jim Berry (1955-59) and Cornell Smith (1973-77) and you'll be ready to eat.
For dessert, have some James Pietro (1971-74) before you decide to Dustin Sitzmann (2006-09) on a Donald Davenport (1993-95) for an afternoon snooze.
That way, you'll have time to wake up early on Black Friday and head to Ryan Sears (1997-2001), where you can buy some Johnny Mathies (2003-06) CD's and listen to him singing about Chris Chestnut's (1995-98) Roasting on an Open Fire.
A First For Everything
After opening with No. 21 Dayton on Nov. 14th, Creighton will play No. 15 Michigan on Thursday.
It marks the first time in school history that Creighton will face two ranked teams in November of the same season.
A Rare Basketball Feast
In 1941, Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed a bill officially establishing Thanksgiving, to be held the fourth Thursday each November.
Since then, Creighton has never played on Thanksgiving Day.
Lawson Adds Some Stuffing
With Thursday being Thanksgiving and all, it's only fitting that last year's leading shot blocker in the Missouri Valley Conference will be in action to add some “stuffing”.
Kenny Lawson Jr. was named to the MVC's All-Defensive Team in 2008-09 after pacing The Valley with 56 blocked shots and 1.6 rejections per game.
This season Lawson tops Creighton with five blocked shots, which also ties him for the MVC lead.
Back-to-Back Days = Wins
One of the benefits to Dana Altman's frequent substitution patterns is that it keeps plenty of fresh legs on the bench. That strategy works best when Creighton enters tournament play requiring them to play on back-to-back days.
Since the start of the 1998-99 season, Creighton owns 17-0 record on the first day of events they have played back-to-back games in. They are 14-3 in the second day of back-to-back games, and 6-2 when playing on a third-straight day. The Jays have won three games in three days at six of the last 11 Missouri Valley Conference Tournaments. They have also won back-to-back games four different times in Guardians Classic action without a loss and once in Las Vegas at the Las Vegas Classic.
CU's only setbacks in these situations have been MVC Tournament semifinal losses in 2001 (Indiana State), 2008 (Drake) and 2009 (Illinois State), and setbacks in the finals of the Energia Systems Thanksgiving Tournament in November of 2000 and at Hawaii in the Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic finals in December, 2006.
In Tournament Play?
Creighton is 19-7 in regular-season tournaments under Dana Altman. The Jays have reached the championship game in each of its past six tournament appearances, including titles in the Guardians Classic in both 2002 and 2004 and the Las Vegas Classic crown in 2008.
At Neutral Sites?
Creighton is 79-60 (.568) all-time at neutral sites, including a 36-19 (.655) mark under Dana Altman. Altman owns a 34-12 (.739) record in neutral site games that have not been part of the NCAA Tournament.
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.
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).
Jesuit Basketball Spotlight
Friday's matchup between Creighton and either Marquette or Xavier will be part of the nationwide Jesuit Basketball Spotlight project, using Jesuit basketball to raise awareness of Jesuit education. Creighton and Marquette and Xavier are Jesuit schools.
The Jesuit Basketball Spotlight project highlights more than 90 games this season between men's and women's teams from the 28 Jesuit colleges and universities across the United States. Each of the 28 is dedicated to strong academics and teaching women and men to serve others and live a faith that does justice.
The spotlight project includes awareness announcements during these designated games
and during gamecasts on radio and television; and other awareness opportunities.
Jesuit, Catholic colleges and universities in the United States have more than 200,000 students currently and more than 1.7 million living alumni. The Jesuit educational mission began in Europe approximately 500 years ago.
Interviews with school staff on this subject are available and can be arranged through the Creighton Public Relations Office.
For more information on Jesuit higher education in the United States, go to: www.ajcunet.edu.
Doubling Up From The Start
Darryl Ashford and Ethan Wragge both scored 11 or more points in each of their first two games at Creighton.
Prior to this season, Creighton hadn't had a player open their career with two or more games of 11 points or more since junior college transfer Edward St. Fleur had 16 points, then 17 points, to start the 1995-96 campaign.
Ashford's 38 points rank as the fourth-best three-game start in Dana Altman's 16-year tenure, while Wragge's 30 points are tied for the seventh-most. Wragge's total is tied for second-most by a freshman under Altman, trailing only the 41 put up by current Bluejay P'Allen Stinnett in 2007-08.
In case you are wondering, the most points under Altman in a newcomer's first four games is 54 by Stinnett in 2007-08.
Most Points, First Three Games Under Dana Altman
Pts. Name, Class Year
41 P'Allen Stinnett, Fr. 2007-08
41 Brody Deren, So. 2001-02
39 Edward St. Fleur, Jr. 1995-96
38 Darryl Ashford, Jr. 2009-10
34 Johnny Mathies, So. 2003-04
33 Tad Ackerman, Jr. 1994-95
30 Ryan Sears, Fr. 1997-98
30 Ethan Wragge, Fr. 2009-10
Tripling Up From The Start
Ethan Wragge has been filling up the hoop from long-range, making seven three-pointers in his first two games.
That was the best two-game start to a career since Dana Altman has been at Creighton, and tied the school record previously held by Matt Roggenburk.
Roggenburk and Wragge are also the only players to make at least three trifectas in their first two games.
Most 3FG's, First Two Games at Creighton
3FGs Name, Class Year
7 Matt Roggenburk, Fr. 1986-87
7 Ethan Wragge, Fr. 2009-10
6 Tad Ackerman, Jr. 1994-95
6 P'Allen Stinnett, Fr. 2007-08
Runnels Rebounds Into History
Junior transfer Wayne Runnels became the first Creighton player in 40 seasons to grab nine or more rebounds in each of his first two games as a Bluejay.
Believe it or not, that 1969-70 season saw three different men open their careers with consecutive games of nine or more rebounds.
Cyril Baptiste had five straight such games, Denny Bresnahan had three such games and Nate Stephens had at least two such games to begin their Creighton career.
November Reign
Creighton is 39-6 in regular-season November games since the start of the 1998-99 campaign.
Dana Altman is 31-0 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.
Creighton has averaged 81.77 points per November home game under Altman, scoring at least 68 points in all but one contest.
Newcomers Shine
Creighton had three newcomers score in double-figures during its season-opener against Dayton. Wayne Runnels had 16 points and nine rebounds on 6-of-7 shooting, Darryl Ashford had 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting and Ethan Wragge had 11 points on 3-of-4 marksmanship.
Combined, those three men accounted for half of Creighton's 80 points at Dayton and made 14-of-19 shots from the floor (73.7 percent).
Newcomers Ashford (17), Wragge (16), Josh Jones (8) and Andrew Bock (6) combined for 47 of CU's 78 points in the win over Florida A&M on Nov. 17th.
Balanced Attack
Creighton has five men averaging double-figure point totals, with no one scoring more than 12.7 ppg. That shouldn't be too surprising since five men have scored in double-digits in two of the first three contests.
Walking Wounded
Creighton has played some of its games without three of its most experienced front line players so far.
Justin Carter has been sidelined with slightly torn medial collateral ligament in his left knee suffered Nov. 8th. That injury is expected to keep him out for 2-4 weeks.
Casey Harriman missed CU's final exhibition and first two regular-season games after a weekend 10-day span in which he battled the H1N1 virus, mononucleosis, tonsilitis, strep throat and an enlarged spleen. He estimated he'd lost close to 20 pounds and missed 10 days of practice, including several days in the hospital. He made his first regular-season appearance vs. UALR.
Senior forward Chad Millard has missed the majority of practice due to a foot injury. He made his debut in a game on Sunday against UALR.
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.
Stinnett then did it again at Dayton in the season-opener on Nov. 14.
Before Stinnett's magic, Creighton had not had a player convert a four-point play in a regular-season game since Johnny Mathies vs. Evansville on Jan. 22, 2006.
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. Young then had four assists and just a single turnover in the loss at Dayton, two assists and one turnover in the win over FAMU and two assists and a turnover vs. UALR.
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.
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
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.
Altman Among These Leaders
Creighton head coach Dana Altman ranks 11th nationally in Division I wins at his current school with 311. The 11 coaches on this list have combined for 4,935 wins, 12 national titles and 26 Final Four appearances.
Records below were through games of Sunday, Nov. 22nd.
Rk. W-L Name, School Years
1. 803-288 Jim Boeheim, Syracuse 34
2. 764-215 Mike Krzyzewski, Duke 30
3. 560-205 Jim Calhoun, Connecticut 24
4. 421-229 Gary Williams, Maryland 21
5. 374-322 Fang Mitchell, Coppin State 24
6. 367-237 Bob McKillop, Davidson 21
367-263 Bob Thomason, Pacific 22
8. 340-137 Tom Izzo, Michigan State 15
9. 316-264 Dave Loos, Austin Peay 20
10. 312-126 Billy Donovan, Florida 14
11. 311-161 Dana Altman, Creighton 16
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
Tenure? He's Got 16 Years
Dana Altman is the dean of MVC coaches, as he is in 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
34 Jim Boeheim, Syracuse
32 Dave Bike, Sacred Heart
30 Mike Krzyzewski, Duke
28 Don Maestri, Troy
26 Greg Kampe, Oakland
24 Rick Byrd, Belmont; Jim Calhoun, Connecticut; Ron “Fang” Mitchell, Coppin State; Vann Pettaway, Alabama A&M
22 Bob Thomason, Pacific
21 Bob McKillop, Davidson; Gary Williams, Maryland
20 Dave Loos, Austin Peay
17 Kirk Speraw, Central Florida
16 Dana Altman, Creighton; Ron Hunter, IUPUI; Rick Scruggs, Gardner-Webb
15 Tom Izzo, Michigan State; Phil Martelli, Saint Joseph's, Scott Nagy, South Dakota State; Fran O'Hanlon, Lafayette
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.
This year's Creighton team is averaging 15,752 fans per game so far.
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
Highest Average Attendance, MVC History
Avg. Att. School Year
15,930 Creighton 2008-09
15,909 Creighton 2006-07
15,752 Creighton 2009-10
15,333 Creighton 2007-08
13,901 Creighton 2005-06
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 480 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 504 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 311 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. 311 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
Creighton has played 102 regular and postseason contests at Qwest Center Omaha all-time in seven seasons at the facility.
The Bluejays own an 86-16 (.843) 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 7,564-6,359 in games at Qwest Center Omaha, an average margin of 11.8 points per game. The 16 losses have been by a combined 87 points (5.4 ppg.). Creighton has led wire-to-wire 21 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 212 wins in the decade, as well as nine postseason appearances, as can be seen by the numbers below through games of Nov. 22, 2009:
MVC Standings (2000-01 to Nov. 22, 2009)
MVC only All Games
Team W L Pct. W L Pct.
Creighton 115 47 .710 212 83 .719
Southern Illinois 118 44 .728 204 94 .685
Missouri State 85 77 .525 161 126 .561
Northern Iowa 84 78 .519 158 126 .556
Wichita State 83 79 .512 158 127 .554
Bradley 78 84 .481 156 138 .531
Illinois State 75 87 .463 148 131 .530
Drake 69 93 .426 136 142 .489
Indiana State 50 112 .309 110 169 .394
Evansville 53 109 .327 103 164 .386
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 55 straight home games when scoring 68 points or more since Feb. 5, 2005.
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
BCS Bracket Buster
Some of Creighton's most thrilling victories in recent seasons have been against teams from the six major college football BCS Conferences. Head coach Dana Altman is 22-20 at CU against those schools, including a 20-13 mark in the past 12 seasons.
Among CU's victims in that time have been Nebraska (nine times), DePaul (twice), Florida (twice), Iowa (twice), Baylor (twice), Oklahoma State (once), Notre Dame (once), Providence (once), Missouri (once) and Ohio State (once).
Coat, Food Drives A Success
The generosity of some Creighton Basketball fans has paid big dividends for the Siena Francis House in the preseason. 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.
On Nov. 8th 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 Nov. 9th.
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 op7erate 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.
