Bluejays Play in California on Friday

Game 5 at UC Davis • Friday, Nov. 27 • 7:00 p.m. (PST)
Creighton Bluejays at UC Davis Aggies
The Pavilion • Davis, Calif.
UC Davis Audio: www.gocreighton.com • Video: None
Series History: Creighton leads 1-0
Last Meeting: Creighton won 61-58, Dec. 20, 2008 in Omaha

• Live stats for this game and select road games can be found on the CU athletics website at www.gocreighton.com.

• No video and no Creighton audio will be available, but fans can follow the UC Davis broadcast live online via the link provided on www.gocreighton.com.

• Creighton is off to just its second 3-1 start in eight years under Jim Flanery and just its third 3-1 start in the last 13 years.

• The Bluejays are 3-for-17 (.176) from three-point range on the road this year and 36-for-80 (.450) from beyond the arc at home.

• Creighton's 28 three-pointers in its first two games this season marked the most threes in consecutive games in school history.

• CU scored 77 points in each of its first two games this year – equalling its number of games with at least 75 points scored in 34 games last season.

• This game marks Creighton's first in California since winning at San Diego State on Dec. 22, 2002.

• The Jays are 3-0 against Big West teams under Jim Flanery (UC Irvine, UC Davis, UC Riverside).

• Megan Neuvirth scored a career-high 26 points against UC Davis last year, to go along with 13 rebounds, 3 blocks and 3 steals.

Scouting the Bluejays
The Bluejays are the preseason favorites in the MVC, earning 34 of 40 first-place votes in the official Valley poll ... Creighton returns seven letterwinners and four starters from last year's team which finished 22-12 and 14-4 (2nd place) in the MVC ... The Jays advanced to the second round of the WNIT for the second straight season last year and played in the event for the fifth time in seven years ... The Jays return three of the top nine scorers in the MVC, including 2009-10 MVC Preseason Player of the Year, senior forward Megan Neuvirth ... Neuvirth, the reigning MVC Defensive Player of the Year, set a school record with 325 rebounds last year and leads all active MVC players with 739 career rebounds and 222 career steals ... Senior point guard Chevelle Herring, a second-team all-MVC honoree last year, leads the team with 12.8 points per game ... Junior guard Kelsey Woodard is 12-for-29 (.414) from three-point range this season ... Junior forward Sam Schuett has returned after a medical redshirt season in 2008-09, and is leading the team with 7.3 rebounds per game.

Scouting the Aggies
UC Davis is 2-2 on the season, 1-1 at home, including a 25-point loss to No. 2 Stanford ... The Aggies went 11-18 last year, including 7-9 in the Big West, but are picked to finish second in the conference this year ... UCD returns 86.7 percent of its scoring and 93.2 percent of its rebounding from last year, including preseason all-Big West players Paige Mintun and Haylee Donaghe ... Mintun leads the team with 12.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game ... UCD owns a minus-8.7 rebounding margin.

The Coaches
Jim Flanery (Creighton, 1987) is in his eighth season as head coach, where he has led his team to five WNIT postseason appearances and four 20-win seasons. He owns a career record of 134-93 (.590). In 2003 he became the winningest rookie coach in school and MVC history and led the Jays to the 2004 WNIT Championship. Prior to serving as CU's head coach, Flanery served as CU's top assistant for a decade.    Sandy Simpson (UC Davis, 1981) is in his 13th season at his alma mater, where he is the all-time winningest coach in school history with a 208-135 overall record (.606).

Creighton-UC Davis Series History
The Bluejays topped the Aggies 61-58 on Dec. 20, 2008 at the Omaha Civic Auditorium in the first and only meeting between the teams.

Last Year vs. UC Davis
Megan Neuvirth scored a career-high 26 points and added 13 rebounds, three steals and three blocked shots to lead the Bluejays to a three-point win. In a game which featured 13 lead changes, Neuvirth scored eight of CU's final 10 points, including a pair of clutch three-pointers down the stretch to help the Jays snap a three-game losing streak. Three-pointers by Kelsey Woodard and Neuvirth, along with a jumper from Kellie Nelson helped CU build to its largest lead of the game, up 38-30 early in the second half. The Aggies answered with the game's next nine points to take a 39-38 lead with 12:30 to go. After exchanging baskets, the Aggies held their final lead of the game up 42-41 with 11:43 left. While UCD was never on top again, it did manage to even the game three more times, including at 54 with 3:36 to go. Not surprisingly, it was Neuvirth who gave the Jays a 57-54 lead with just over three minutes to play after hitting one of her career-high four treys. After making just 2-of-13 three-pointers in the first half, CU drained 7-of-17 after halftime to get the win.

Neuvirth Has Big Games vs. Big West
Megan Neuvirth scored a career-high 26 points against UC Davis in last year's meeting, adding 13 rebounds, three steals and three blocked shots. Her 11 three-point field goal attempts were a career-high, as she made four of them to establish a career mark. She then poured in 24 points, making a career-high 10 field goals in a win over UC Riverside in the first round of the WNIT last year. She tied her career-high by making four of her five three-point attempts and added seven rebounds against UCR. In two games against Big West foes last year, she averaged 25 points and 10 rebounds, while going 19-for-37 (.513) from the field and 8-of-16 (.500) from long range.

November Reign
Creighton is 3-1 this November, and playing for just its fourth four-win November in school history. The 2007-08 team set a school record by playing seven games in November, posting a 4-3 mark in the month. The 1985-86 team went 4-1 in November and the 1984-85 squad posted a perfect 5-0 mark in the month. The Bluejays are now 15-19 in November under Jim Flanery – the only month on the calendar the Bluejays are under .500 with Flan at the helm.

Going Back to Cali
Creighton's game at UC Davis will mark its first in the state of California since defeating San Diego State, 79-72 in overtime, on Dec. 22, 2002 (after an 80-57 win at UC Irvine just two days earlier). Creighton has won its last six games against California teams, dating back to a 61-56 loss at USC on Nov. 26, 1999. Since that loss, CU owns wins over USC, SDSU (2), UC Irvine, UC Davis and UC Riverside.

Be More Pacific
The Bluejays have won their last four games in the Pacific Time Zone, winning at Oregon State, Washington, San Diego State and UC Irvine since its last loss in the time zone at USC in 1999.

Winning in the West
The Bluejays have not only been successful in its last few trips to the West Coast, but have also done well in time zones west of their own Central Time Zone. The Bluejays are 8-2 in their last 10 games combined in the Mountain and Pacific Time Zones.

Beating the Big 12
Creighton's 63-54 win over Kansas State (Nov. 23) snapped a six-game losing streak to teams from the Big 12. CU went 0-6 against Big 12 foes in 2008-09. The win was CU's first against a team from the Big 12 since topping K-State in 2007. The Jays are now 8-19 against the Big 12 under Jim Flanery.

Starting Hot
Creighton is off to just its second 3-1 start in eight years under Jim Flanery and just its third 3-1 start in the last 13 years. The Bluejays are aiming for their second 4-1 start under Flanery (2007-08). Should CU win at UC Davis, it would be just its third 4-1 start since 1994-95 – also opening 4-1 in 2000-01.

Career Milestone Updates
• Megan Neuvirth moved up two charts after Monday's win over Kansas State. She now has 222 career steals to rank fifth in school history, while her 739 rebounds have her placed sixth in CU history. She is just seven rebounds from fifth and 10 from fourth. The forward is three points shy of 900 for her career.
• Kelsey Woodard became the eighth player in school history to reach 150 career three-point field goals on Monday. With 152 treys, she now ranks seventh in school history, just two shy of former teammate Ally Thrall in sixth with 154.
• Chevelle Herring swiped her 100th career steal on Monday, after tying her career-high with four steals at Marquette (Nov. 19).

Lets Be Frank
Senior forward Katie Frank has been helpful this season. With eight assists in four games, including a career-best three helpers in each of the first two contests this year, she has already tied her single-season high of eight helpers, which she needed 31 games to reach last year. She had 13 career assists in 69 games, before her eight helpers through four games this year.

Freshman Leads MVC
Rookie Ally Jensen has made 6-of-10 three-pointers to start her career. Her three-point field goal percentage of .600 is tied for the league lead. The guard has hit at least one trey in each of her first four games at CU, while 10 of her 11 field goal attempts on the year have come from beyond the arc.

The State of Basketball in Nebraska
Creighton's starting lineup in each of its first four games has featured all Nebraska natives – the first time in recorded school history the Bluejays have started five home state players. In fact, seven of CU's 10 players on this year's roster are from Nebraska – Bellevue natives Chevelle Herring (East) and Kelsey Woodard (West), Omaha products Jasmin Corbin (Millard West) Kellie Nelson (Westside) and Sam Schuett (Millard West), along with Katie Frank (South Sioux City) and Megan Neuvirth (West Point Central Catholic).

It's Raining Threes
Creighton made 28 three-pointers in its first two games of the season – setting a school record for three-pointers in a two-game span. The previous mark also came in the first two contests of a season, when the 2004-05 team drained 27 threes (14,13) in its first two games. The Jays have now made at least 10 three-pointers in a game 37 times under Jim Flanery (since 2002-03). CU had not made at least 10 treys in consecutive games since making 12 on Jan. 4 and 11 on Jan. 6, 2008.

Is the Arc Closer at Home?
Creighton went 3-for-17 (.176) from three-point range in its first road game this year. Compare that percentage to a 36-for-80 (.450) clip from beyond the arc in its first three home games.

13 on the 13th, 15 on the 15th
Creighton made 13 three-pointers in their debut at D.J. Sokol Arena on Nov. 13 against Arkansas State and then followed with 15 triples on Nov. 15 against Davidson. Could the Jays be ready to hit 19 three-pointers on Thursday? The 13 treys were the most by the Bluejays in a season-opener since sinking 14 of a school-record 37 attempts on Nov. 19, 2004 against Northwestern. The 15 threes were just one shy of the school record, 16, set on Dec. 6, 1989.

Herring Hits 20
Chevelle Herring led all players with 20 points in CU's win over Davidson (Nov. 15), her eighth career 20-point effort. Her first seven 20-point games came last year, including four in the first eight games of the season.

Sam She Is
Junior Sam Schuett has returned to her rebounding form after missing all of last year while taking a medical redshirt because of an ankle injury. The Omaha native leads the team with 7.3 rebounds per game, including a team-high 11 boards at Marquette (Nov. 19) for her 17th career game with at least 10 caroms.

Cleaning the Glass
Creighton owned a 53-36 rebounding edge over Arkansas State (Nov. 13) in its season-opener, including an impressive 36-16 advantage in the first half. CU's 53 boards were its most in a regulation contest since nabbing 53 rebounds against Louisiana-Monroe on Dec. 10, 2005.

The Race to 1,000
There is a three-way race on the Bluejays this year to see which player can become the 20th member of the 1,000-point club. Megan Neuvirth is currently leading the charge with 897 career points, followed by Chevelle Herring's 882 and Kelsey Woodard's 829 points. No Bluejay trio has ever surpassed the 1,000 point plateau in the same season. Woodard, a junior, is aiming to become the first junior to reach 1,000 career points at CU since Angie Janis did so in 2004-05.

Solid Starts from Three
Creighton's freshmen guard duo of Jasmin Corbin and Ally Jensen fared well in their first two collegiate games, combining to go 7-for-14 (.500) from three-point range. Jensen was 4-for-7 (.571), including a 3-for-4 game against Davidson (Nov. 15), while Corbin made 3-of-7 (.429) from long range. Below is a list of the top-seven three-point shooters in school history and how they performed from distance in their first two games:

Career 3FG Leaders – First Two Career Games
Player    3FG-A (Pct.)    Career 3FG
Kathy Halligan    5-11 (.455)    309
Dayna Finch    3-6 (.500)    294
Laura Spanheimer    4-9 (.444)    250
Missy Miller    4-14 (.286)    187
Holly Sivesind    3-4 (.750)    174
Ally Thrall    1-6 (.167)    154
Kelsey Woodard    0-7 (.000)    147

The 20-20-20 Precedent
Creighton has won at least 20 games in each of its previous two seasons. Taking a look at CU history, every time the Jays have won 20 games in a season, it has come in groups of at least three – winning at least 20 in three straight years (1985-87), four straight years (1991-94), three straight years (2002-04) and now two straight (2008-09) – setting a standard for this year's team to live up to.

Welcome Home!
Creighton's season-opener marked its first regular-season home game on campus since March 7, 1992 – an 81-69 win over Wyoming in the Vinardi Athletic Center (Old Gym). The 1991-92 team played four of its 14 home games at the Old Gym.

Home is Where the Wins Are
Creighton went 12-4 at home last year and is now 75-24 (.758) at home under Jim Flanery. The Jays are now 69-20 (.775) all-time on-campus (3-0 at D.J Sokol Arena, 26-12 at Kiewit Fitness Center and 40-8 at Vinardi Athletic Center). The Bluejays played 301 of their first 428 recorded home games at the Omaha Civic Auditorium where they posted a 213-88 (.708) record. Despite all of the moving, Creighton has managed to post a 314-117 (.729) recorded home record all-time at 12 different sites.

About the New Facility
Creighton will play all of its home games at the Wayne and Eileen Ryan Athletic Center and D.J. Sokol Arena this year, a 75,600 square-foot facility which seats approximately 2,950 fans. In addition to the arena, the facility also includes a locker room, weight room and training room for the student-athletes and houses coaches' offices, meeting rooms, athletic staff offices, a media work room and much more. More information can be found on the facility in the first four pages of the 2009-10 Women's Basketball Media Guide.

Preseason Picks
The Bluejays have been picked as the preseason favorites in the MVC preseason poll as voted on by league coaches, media and sports information directors. CU received 34 of a possible 40 first-place votes and 393 of 400 points in the poll. This marks just the third time in 18 seasons as MVC members that the Jays are preseason favorites. CU was picked to win the title in 2002-03 and would go on to share the regular-season crown that year. The 1994-95 team was also picked first, but would finish fourth.

Statistically Speaking
Creighton led the MVC and ranked eighth in the NCAA with just 13.5 turnovers per game last year. CU's 56 points allowed per game were fewest in the MVC, ranked 31st in the NCAA and marked the Jays' best team defense since the 1977-78 team. The Jays also led the MVC with 226 three-pointers and a plus-1.6 turnover margin last year.

They're Back
The Bluejays return seven letterwinners and four starters, while losing just one major contributor from last season's team. Senior Chevelle Herring, senior Megan Neuvirth and junior Kelsey Woodard started all 34 games for the Bluejays last year, while senior Kelsey Crites (11) and sophomore DaNae Moore (18) split starting duties at guard, with Crites closing the year in the starting line up. Kristina Voss started 31 of the 34 games and is the only major loss from last year's team.

Schuett Returns From Medical Redshirt
The Jays also return starting forward Sam Schuett who missed all of last season after suffering an ankle injury in practice on Oct. 31. The redshirt junior led the Jays and ranked fourth in the MVC in rebounding with 6.8 boards per game as a sophomore in 2007-08. Schuett, a member of the MVC All-Freshman team in 2006-07 averages 8.1 points and 6.4 rebounds per game in her career.

Playing the Percentages
The Bluejays return 83.9 percent of their scoring from last year, including three of the MVC's top-nine scorers from 2008-09. They return 84.0 percent of their rebounding from last year – and will also welcome 2007-08 leading rebounder Sam Schuett back to the line up after a medical redshirt season. They also bring back 88.2 percent of their assists from last year.

Welcome to Creighton
The Bluejays welcome two freshmen to the team this season. Jasmin Corbin is a Omaha Millard West product, where the 5-foot-6 guard played for one season alongside redshirt junior Sam Schuett. Corbin had 10 points, making 3-of-6 three-pointers in CU's exhibition. Ally Jensen, from Ames, Iowa, attended Ballard High School, where the 5-foot-7 guard owns school records for career three-pointers (220) and steals (261).

More on Megan
Senior Megan Neuvirth, the MVC Preseason Player of the Year, was named the 2008-09 MVC Defensive Player of the Year, All-MVC First Team, MVC All-Defensive Team and MVC All-Tournament Team after leading the MVC in both steals (83) and rebounds (325).
• Her 325 boards established a school record (by 65) and ranked eighth in single-season history in the MVC.
• She was one of five players in the NCAA to rank in the top-50 in steals and rebounds per game last year.
• In addition to leading the team in steals and rebounds, Neuvirth also topped the team in assists (96), blocked shots (34) and double-doubles (9) – the most double-dimes by a Bluejay since the 1990-91 season.
• Her 222 career steals 739 career rebounds are both tops among active MVC players.

Exhibition Summary
Creighton played just one exhibition game for the third time in the last four years, but also played a closed door scrimmage at Iowa on Nov. 1. The Bluejays defeated Nebraska-Omaha, 80-57, on Nov. 5 at D.J. Sokol Arena. Kelsey Woodard's 17 points led five Bluejays in double figures, as all 10 CU players played at least 12 minutes in the game. Megan Neuvirth led the team with seven rebounds and six steals, while Kelsey Crites came off the bench to lead the Jays with five assists.

Another Tough Schedule
Creighton again plays one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the MVC, facing four Big 12 teams, a Big East squad and an Atlantic-10 foe. The Jays play host to 2009 Final Four participant Oklahoma on Dec. 20 – the third Bluejay opponent to come to Omaha this decade following a Final Four run the previous season (2001 Final Four - Missouri State, 2004 Final Four - Minnesota).

Players Mentioned

Jasmin Corbin

Kelsey Crites

Katie Frank

Chevelle Herring

Angie Janis

Ally Jensen

DaNae Moore

Kellie Nelson

Megan Neuvirth

Sam Schuett

Holly Sivesind

Laura Spanheimer

Kristina Voss

Kelsey Woodard

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