Men's Basketball Hosts Bowling Green Wednesday in NIT
3/16/2009 2:45:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Next Game
Creighton (26-7) returns to the postseason for a Missouri Valley Conference-record 12th straight season when it hosts Bowling Green (19-13) in first-round action of the MasterCard National Invitation Tournament on Wednesday at 7 pm.
Qwest Center Omaha (17,272) in Omaha, Neb. will host the action.
The winner of the Creighton/Bowing Green game will face the winner of Tuesday night's UNLV/Kentucky NIT game.
That second-round game would be played in Omaha if Creighton wins on Wednesday night. If Bowling Green wins on Wednesday night, the Falcons would play a road game at the home venue of the UNLV/Kentucky victor.
Radio Broadcast Information
KXSP (“Big Sports 590” AM) will broadcast all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2008-09 season. T. Scott Marr and Nick Bahe will call the action.
The game will not be streamed on www.bigsports590.com.
Big Sports 590 afternoon host Matt Perrault will host a call-in show focusing on the Bluejays, that leads into the pre-game show. Perrault will also take calls after the game, also on Big Sports 590.
Television Broadcast Information
Wednesday's game will not be televised.
Video Webcast Information
Wednesday's game will not be video webcast.
Live Stats
Live stats for Wednesday's game will be available on-line at www.gocreighton.com. Click on the “Live Stats” tab under “Multimedia” on the left side of the home page.
All About Creighton
Founded in 1878, Creighton University is a private co-educational university located in Omaha, Neb., and one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities.
Creighton was founded on Sept. 2, 1878 at the bequest of Mary Lucretia Creighton, the widow of telegraph pioneer Edward Creighton, who included money in her will for the establishment of a school in her husband's name.
Creighton has an enrollment of 7,051, of which 4,104 are undergrads.
For the fifth consecutive year, Creighton University in 2008 is No. 1 in U.S. News & World Report's ranking of Midwest masters' universities. It is the 10th time in 12 years Creighton has been No. 1, and the 21st straight year the University has been ranked at or near the top of the magazine's “America's Best Colleges” edition. Creighton also was recognized as No. 1 in the Midwest region as a “best value,” where students get the best return on their tuition investment.
Creighton ranks 5th in PC Magazine's Top Wired Colleges, and is the only university in Nebraska and the only Catholic school in the nation recognized.
Creighton owns a student-to-faculty ratio of 12:1.
Creighton serves as the annual host institution for the NCAA Men's College World Series. June 13-24, 2009 will mark the 60th consecutive year the CWS comes to Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha.
Creighton Athletics ranked 23rd nationally in 2007-08 with a 94 percent graduation rate and has won the MVC's All-Academic Award in three of the past four seasons.
Creighton's student-athletes owned a 3.32 GPA last fall.
Famous Creighton alums include Kyle Korver, Paul Silas and Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson (who also competed in basketball and track at CU).
Scouting Creighton (26-7, 14-4 MVC)
The preseason favorites in the Missouri Valley Conference lived up to that moniker, tying for the regular-season title with a 14-4 league mark.
The Bluejays have won 11 of their last 12 and 23 of their past 28 games to improve to 26-7 overall.
MVC Player of the Year Booker Woodfox leads the team with 15.9 points per game and ought to be included in the discussion of the nation's best shooters. The senior guard leads the nation in three-point percentage (48.9 percent) and ranks 17th nationally in free-throw percentage (87.6 percent).
Also scoring in double-figures is sophomore guard P'Allen Stinnett (12.3 ppg., 1.4 spg.). Stinnett was a second-team all-Valley pick after sweeping MVC Freshman and Newcomer of the Year honors last season.
Senior point guard Josh Dotzler owns an MVC-best 68 steals and is fourth nationally in assist/turnover ratio (3.26), while sophomore big man Kenny Lawson Jr. tops The Valley with 53 blocked shots. Both Dotzler and Lawson were named to the MVC's All-Defensive Teams.
Creighton shoots 44.6 percent from the floor, 38.3 percent from three-point territory and is also making 75.1 percent of its shots from the line.
The Bluejays returned 10 lettermen and three starters from last year's 22-11 team that made an 11th straight postseason appearance, reaching the second round of the NIT.
Scouting Bowling Green
Bowling Green is 19-13 on the season and received an automatic bid to the NIT by winning the Mid-American Conference regular season conference championship. This will be BGSU's first postseason appearance since playing Butler in the NIT in 2002.
Senior forward Nate Miller is a first-team all-MAC selection and one of three players in Falcons history with at least 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 145 steals in a career. He leads Bowling Green in scoring (13.5), rebounding (7.4) and steals (2.0) per game and has had career-high point totals in each of his last two games (22, then 27).
Fellow senior Brian Moten was an honorable-mention all-MAC pick after averaging 11.1 points per game. Moten tops the team with 67 three-point baskets.
BGSU averages 64.2 points per game while allowing only 60.8 per contest. The Falcons shoot 43.1 percent from the field, 35.5 percent from three-point range and 67.5 percent at the line. It also outrebounds foes by 1.5 caroms per contest and has a -0.5 turnover margin.
The Falcons were 0-6 in non-conference road games, including single-digit losses at both Minnesota (68-61) and Ohio State (61-57), but have won six of its past seven games in enemy venues.
The Coach
The dean of Missouri Valley Conference coaches, Creighton's Dana Altman (Eastern New Mexico, 1980) is in his 15th year as head coach of the Bluejays.
He owns a 308-159 (.660) mark at Creighton and a career record of 391-226 (.634) in his 20th year as a NCAA Division I head coach when you add four seasons at Kansas State and one at Marshall. Tack on four years at the junior college level and Altman's overall record as a college head coach is 514-250 (.673).
Creighton's all-time winningest coach, Altman has been named national, conference, regional or district coach of the year in 10 of his first 23 years as a head coach. The 2001 and 2002 MVC Coach of the Year was a finalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year Award in 2003. In 2004, Altman was named the Collegeinsider.com Jim Phelan National Mid-Season Coach of the Year. In March, 2007, Altman was named a coach on the MVC's All-Centennial Team.
Additionally, Altman has led Creighton to seven NCAA Tournaments and his teams have played in the postseason in 12 straight seasons. He is assisted by Brian Fish, Darian DeVries and Todd Eisner. Nick Bahe is the team's graduate manager.
Louis Orr is in his second season as head coach of Bowling Green and was recently named Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year. Orr owns a 32-30 record in his second season at Bowling Green, and a 132-110 record in eight seasons overall when you include stops at Siena (2000-01) and Seton Hall (2001-06). Orr is assisted by LaMonta Stone, George Jackson and Louis Twigg.
Series History
Creighton and Bowling Green have never met.
Head coach Dana Altman has never coached against Louis Orr.
Altman is 3-5 in his career against teams from the Mid-American Conference, including a 1-4 record at Creighton. The lone win at CU was a 71-60 home victory over Akron in the 2006 NIT.
MVC Tournament Recap
Creighton went 1-1 at the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, which is contested at Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo.
The second-seeded Bluejays defeated Wichita State, 63-62, in quarterfinal round action thanks to a buzzer-beating game-winner by Booker Woodfox.
In the semifinals, Creighton would never lead while losing a 73-49 decision to Illinois State.
Woodfox, who led CU with 30 combined points in the two games, was named to the All-Tournament Team.
What A Win Would Mean
With a win on Wednesday, Creighton would...
-Improve to 27-7 on the season, and win for the 12th time in 13 games.
-Give Creighton a postseason win for the third time in the past four seasons.
-Improve Creighton to 5-9 all-time in the National Invitation Tournament.
-Give Creighton 31 straight Wednesday home wins.
-Give Creighton 18 consecutive non-conference home wins.
-Improve to 1-0 against Bowling Green.
-Creighton's 27 wins would be two behind the 2002-03 team that won a school-record 29 games.
-Improve Creighton to 35-1 at Qwest Center Omaha in non-televised games.
Creighton's NIT History
Creighton is playing in its 10th National Invitation Tournament, owning a 4-9 all-time record in the event.
Creighton owns a 2-4 home record, an 0-3 road record and a 2-2 neutral-site record in games played at Madison Square Garden.
This is Creighton's fifth NIT appearance under Dana Altman, who is 2-4 in NIT games at Creighton and 6-7 in his career when you include two NIT appearances while at Kansas State.
1942 (2-1) in New York City, N.Y.
3/16 Creighton 59, West Texas A&M 58
3/23 W. Kentucky 49, Creighton 36
3/25 Creighton 48, Toledo 46
1943 (0-1) in New York City, N.Y.
3/18 Washington & Jefferson 43, Creighton 42
1977 (0-1) in Omaha, Neb.
3/08 Illinois State 65, Creighton 58
1984 (0-1) in Omaha, Neb.
3/15 Nebraska 56, Creighton 54
1990 (0-1) in Chicago, Ill.
3/16 DePaul 89, Creighton 72
1998 (0-1) in Milwaukee, Wis.
3/11 Marquette 80, Creighton 68
2004 (0-1) in Omaha, Neb.
3/16 Nebraska 71, Creighton 70
2006 (1-1) in Omaha, Neb.
3/16 Creighton 71, Akron 60
3/20 Miami (Fla.) 53, Creighton 52
2008 (1-1) in Omaha, Neb. & Gainesville, Fla.
3/18 Creighton 74, Rhode Island 73
3/21 Florida 82, Creighton 54
Altman In The NIT
Creighton coach Dana Altman is making his seventh appearance in the NIT, and fourth with the Bluejays. Altman owns a 6-7 record in the NIT and a 2-4 mark at Creighton. Below is a list of the games his teams have played in:
Date Result
03/21/08 Florida 82, Creighton 54
03/18/08 Creighton 74, Rhode Island 73
03/20/06 Miami (Fla.) 53, at Creighton 52
03/16/06 at Creighton 71, Akron 60
03/16/04 Nebraska 71, at Creighton 70
03/11/98 at Marquette 80, Creighton 68
03/30/94 Siena 92, Kansas State 79 (in New York)
03/28/94 Vanderbilt 82, Kansas State 76 (in New York)
03/24/94 at Kansas State 115, Fresno State 77
03/22/94 at Kansas State 66, Gonzaga 64
03/17/94 at Kansas State 78, Mississippi State 67
03/23/92 at Notre Dame 64, Kansas State 47
03/18/92 at Kansas State 85, Western Kentucky 74
Altman Went From Manhattan To Manhattan
Dana Altman's 1994 Kansas State team won three straight home games in Manhattan, Kansas to advance to the NIT Final Four, which is played in Manhattan, New York at the world's most famous arena, Madison Square Garden. Bluejay assistant coach Brian Fish was also a film coordinator on that team.
Helping key Kansas State's 1994 run to the NIT Final Four was a masterful quarterfinal round performance by Askia Jones. Jones scored 62 points while draining 14-of-18 three-pointers in a 38-point win over Fresno State. Jones made 11 treys in the second half, including nine straight at one point. Jones' 62 points remain the 12th-most points in a game in NCAA history and rank second in postseason tournament history.
More Trips To New York, Too
One other member of the Creighton program has reached the Final Four of the NIT in New York City as well. Junior Chad Millard's Louisville team reached the semifinals of the NIT in 2005-06 before he transferred to Creighton.
Recent NIT History for the MVC
The MVC went 3-3 in NIT action last season, with Creighton, Illinois State and Southern Illinois all going 1-1.
The last MVC school to win the men's NIT championship was the 1982 Bradley team that beat American, Syracuse, Tulane, Oklahoma and Purdue en route to the title.
The MVC has had a women's team reach the Final Four of the WNIT (held at campus sites) three of the last six seasons. The 2003 Creighton's women's team lost in the semifinals to eventual champion Auburn, while the 2004 Creighton women's team won the WNIT. In 2005, Missouri State's women's team won the WNIT.
Back-to-Back NIT Appearances
This is Creighton's 10th appearance in the NIT, but just the second time its made back-to-back appearances. CU also earned consecutive NIT bids in 1942 and 1943, back when the NIT was considered the “elite” postseason tournament.
Home Sweet NIT Home
If the past two years are any indication, having the home-court advantage during the NIT is a tremendous factor. Since the NIT was trimmed to 32 teams and taken over by the NCAA two years ago, home-court teams are a combined 45-11 in the event.
In each of the last two seasons, home teams have gone 13-3 in the first round and 7-1 in the second round. In quarterfinal round action, home teams are 5-3 in that same span.
Home Court Records, NIT, By Round
Year Rd. 1 Rd. 2 Rd. 3 Total
2008 13-3 7-1 1-3 21-7
2007 13-3 7-1 4-0 24-4
Non-Conference Home Success
Creighton owns a 79-12 (.868) record in non-conference home games under Dana Altman. Equally impressive, CU is 39-5 (.886) in non-conference home games since moving to Qwest Center Omaha.
During CU's active string of 12 straight postseason bids, the Bluejays are 62-7 (.899) in home games against non-conference foes.
Creighton has won 17 straight non-conference home games (since Feb. 17, 2007 vs. Drexel) and has won 30 straight home games played on Wednesday's (since Jan. 12, 2000 vs. No. 19 Tulsa).
No TV, No Problem
Creighton is 9-0 in games that have not been televised this season, and have won 10 straight games when not on the tube dating to a loss at Evansville last year. The Jays have won those games by an average of 82.8-67.8.
Creighton has won 13 straight home games that have not been televised, outscoring those foes by an average of 84.3-61.2. The last home loss by CU in a non-televised home game came on March 20, 2006 in an NIT setback against Miami.
Creighton is 34-1 all-time at Qwest Center Omaha in non-televised games.
Slow Out Of The Gate
Creighton has trailed at the half in 12 of its last 14 postseason games under Dana Altman. The Jays 40-26 lead over Akron in 2006 and 32-31 lead over Nevada in 2007 stand as the only exceptions. It is worth noting that in nine of those 14 games, CU tied or outscored the opposition in the second half.
Louis Orr's Bowling Green teams are 27-6 with a halftime lead but just 3-20 when trailing at intermission in the past two seasons.
Year Opponent 1st Half 2nd Half W-L
2008 Florida 19-39 35-43 L
2008 Rhode Island 30-45 44-28 W
2007 Nevada 32-31 27-28 L
2006 Miami (Fla.) 19-29 33-24 L
2006 Akron 40-26 31-34 W
2005 West Virginia 31-33 30-30 L
2004 Nebraska 29-35 41-36 L
2003 Central Michigan 22-38 51-41 L
2002 Illinois 26-31 34-41 L
2002 Florida 31-38 38-31 W
2001 Iowa 30-32 26-37 L
2000 Auburn 25-40 44-32 L
1999 Maryland 32-45 31-30 L
1999 Louisville 23-31 39-27 W
Qwest Center Home To Some Close Games
This will be Creighton's fifth all-time postseason game at the six-year-old Qwest Center Omaha. Three of the previous four games were decided by a single point.
Creighton has won 16 of its last 21 games decided by one point (including six straight), and is 18-11 under Dana Altman in such contests.
NIT Games, Qwest Center Omaha History
Date Att. Score
3/16/04 13,483 Nebraska 71, Creighton 70
3/16/06 10,197 Creighton 71, Akron 60
3/20/06 10,018 Miami 53, Creighton 52
3/18/08 7,948 Creighton 74, Rhode Island 73
Qwest Records Within Reach
Booker Woodfox is approaching a Qwest Center Omaha record for points in a season. He has scored 269 points in 17 games at home this year, second only to Nate Funk's 286 in 15 games during the 2004-05 campaign.
Also within shouting distance is P'Allen Stinnett, who has scored 245 points at home this year.
Connections With Bowling Green
Creighton and Bowling Green don't have a lot in common, but there are a few rather obscure connections.
Bowling Green is a member of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association, where it competes against Nebraska-Omaha on an annual basis. Bowling Green, however, is just 2-7-1 all-time at Qwest Center Omaha, where it has lost six straight games and winless since November 13, 2004.
Bowling Green junior Adrion Graves has played against Creighton twice when he was a member of the Xavier basketball team. Graves did not score in 11 minutes in the Musketeers win in Cincinnati in December of 2007, and did not score in four minutes of play in a Creighton win over XU in 2006 in Omaha. Graves is sitting out this season as a transfer and is unable to travel with the BGSU squad due to NCAA restrictions.
Against Common Opponents
Creighton and Bowling Green have played just one common opponent this season, with that being Illinois State. The Bluejays were 1-2 in those games versus the Redbirds, while the Falcons went 0-1 against ISU.
Opponent Creighton Bowling Green
Illinois State ISU 86-64 ISU 65-78
CU 74-70 -
ISU 73-49 -
Against Postseason Opponents
Creighton played 18 games against postseason qualifiers this season (going 12-6), while Bowling Green had 10 such contests (going 4-6).
Creighton was 2-1 against NCAA qualifiers, while Bowling Green was 1-4.
Against NIT qualifiers, CU was 3-3 while BGSU was 0-1.
Against Collegeinsider.com Tournament qualifiers, Creighton was 5-1 while Bowling Green went 1-1.
Against College Basketball Invitational qualifiers, the Bluejays went 2-1 while the Falcons went 2-0.
vs. NCAA Qualifiers
Opponent Creighton Bowling Green
Dayton CU 77-59 -
Northern Iowa UNI 69-66 -
CU 77-71 -
Minnesota - UM 68-61
Ohio State - OSU 61-57
Akron - UA 62-52
- BGSU 50-46
- UA 63-55
vs. NIT Qualifiers
Opponent Creighton Bowling Green
New Mexico CU 82-75 -
Nebraska NU 54-42 -
Illinois State ISU 86-64 ISU 65-78
CU 74-70 -
ISU 73-49 -
George Mason CU 76-63 -
vs. CIT Qualifiers
Opponent Creighton Bowling Green
Bradley CU 73-64 -
CU 79-65 -
Evansville CU 79-57 -
CU 89-84 -
Drake DU 74-62 -
CU 79-68 -
Kent State - KSU 72-48
- BGSU 67-66
vs. CBI Qualifiers
Opponent Creighton Bowling Green
Wichita State CU 68-56 -
WSU 74-61 -
CU 63-62 -
Buffalo - BGSU 86-82
- BGSU 59-48
Heartbreak Hotel
Six of Creighton's last seven postseason runs have included a game that was decided in the final seconds, including the past five seasons.
Last year Creighton rallied from a 12-point deficit in the final 3:07 to top Rhode Island, 73-72, in the first round of the NIT. Cavel Witter hit the game-winner with 3.2 seconds left to give CU its first lead of the game since 3-0.
In 2007, Creighton had the ball for a final shot in a tie game against Nevada in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Nate Funk's shot attempt missed, and a tip-in try was also not converted. The Jays would eventually lose 77-71 in overtime.
In 2006 in the NIT, Miami (Fla.) guard Guilermo Diaz drained a free throw with 2.6 seconds left to beat Creighton 53-52. A last-second shot attempt by Bluejay senior Johnny Mathies was knocked out of his hands.
In the 2005 NCAA Tourney, Nate Funk had his three-point try with seven seconds left blocked by Tyrone Sally, and Sally raced downcourt for a breakaway dunk with 2.4 seconds left to give West Virginia a 63-61 win. Funk's three-point try from the corner missed at the buzzer.
In 2004, Creighton fell 71-70 to Nebraska in the NIT. The Jays led nearly the entire second half before NU's go-ahead basket with 12 seconds left. Nate Funk's game-winning jumper from 18-feet away was blocked by Husker guard Jake Muhleisen.
In 2002, Creighton beat #15 Florida, 83-82, in Chicago. Terrell Taylor hit a game-winning trey with 0.2 seconds left in double-overtime, his final three of 28 points after a scoreless first half.
Record Breaking Attendance
Creighton has attracted 276,115 home fans so far this season, a figure that is the most in the 102-year history of the MVC.
The Jays are also on pace to set an MVC record in average attendance. Creighton is averaging 16,242 fans currently (10th nationally), just ahead of the 15,909 average from 2006-07.
Highest Season Home Attendance, MVC History
Home Att. School Year
276,115 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
16,242 so far Creighton 2008-09
15,909 Creighton 2006-07
15,333 Creighton 2007-08
13,901 Creighton 2005-06
13,674 Louisville 1974-75
2008-09 Attendance Leaders (Thru 3/16/09)
Rk. School Average Next
1. Kentucky 23,012 3/17
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. Creighton 16,242 3/18
11. Marquette 16,200 --
12. Arkansas 16,043 --
13. Illinois 15,498 --
14. Ohio State 15,462 --
15. Indiana 14,331 --
What Is The Patch For?
Creighton wears one patch on its uniform. Located near the top of the shorts on the right leg is a black patch with the words “Doc” inscribed. The patch honors Dr. Lee “Doc” Bevilacqua, Creighton's volunteer team physician for 32 years until his passing in October of 1998. A member of the Creighton Athletics and MVC Hall's of Fame, Bevilacqua never received monetary compensation and always paid his own way when he traveled with teams.
Hot Team
Creighton has won 11 of its past 12 games and enters this week as one of the nation's hottest teams. Bowling Green went 8-4 in its final 12 games.
Below is a list of the nation's other teams that are 11-1 or better in the past dozen games. Notably, all but Creighton and Weber State are in the NCAA Tournament.
Team Last 12 Games Tourney
Memphis 12-0 NCAA
American 12-0 NCAA
Creighton 11-1 NIT
Binghamton 11-1 NCAA
Louisville 11-1 NCAA
Gonzaga 11-1 NCAA
Western Kentucky 11-1 NCAA
North Dakota State 11-1 NCAA
Binghamton 11-1 NCAA
Weber State 11-1 NIT
Mogan State 11-1 NCAA
Radford 11-1 NCAA
Alabama State 11-1 NCAA
The 26-Win Group
Creighton was one of 23 schools with 26 or more wins this season through March 16th. Nineteen of those teams made the NCAA's (all but Creighton, St. Mary's, Niagara and Charleston).
This year Creighton became the only school from a top-10 league to ever win 26 or more games and not receive an NCAA Tournament bid.
Wins Schools
31 Memphis
30 Utah State
28 North Carolina, Duke, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Missouri
27 Connecticut, Oklahoma
26 Creighton, Dayton, Villanova, Syracuse, Michigan State, Butler, Siena, Niagara, LSU, Davidson, Charleston, North Dakota State, Gonzaga, St. Mary's
Woodfox Named MVC Player of the Year
Senior Booker Woodfox has been named the Larry Bird Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year, edging out Evansville's Shy Ely and UNI's Adam Koch.
Woodfox is the fourth player in school history to earn MVC Player of the Year accolades, joining Bob Harstad (1990), Chad Gallagher (1991) and Kyle Korver (2002 and 2003).
Woodfox leads Creighton with 15.9 points per game, 86 three-pointers made, 48.9 percent from three-point range, 92 free-throws made and 87.6 percent from the line.
Honor Roll Update
No fewer than eight different players on this year's Creighton team were honored last week by the MVC office.
Booker Woodfox was named Larry Bird MVC Player of the Year, as well as a first-team all-Valley selection. This is his first honor on the first-team all-MVC squad, and he joins Bob Harstad (1990), Chad Gallagher (1991), Kyle Korver (2002 and 2003) as CU student-athletes to win Valley Player of the Year accolades. Woodfox was also named to the NABC's All-District Team on March 5th and to the MVC All-Tournament Team on March 8th.
P'Allen Stinnett was a second-team all-MVC pick. Last season Stinnett was an honorable-mention all-Valley choice.
Josh Dotzler and Kenny Lawson Jr. are both on the MVC's All-Defensive Team. Dotzler tops the league with 66 steals while Lawson leads the way with 49 blocked shots. This is the first such honor for both men.
CU also landed two men on the MVC's All-Bench Team. Freshman Antoine Young and sophomore Kenton Walker both earned a spot on that club.
Last but not least, Creighton had two men on The Valley's Scholar-Athlete Team. Sophomore Kaleb Korver (3.377 GPA in Business) and senior Dustin Sitzmann (3.886 in Exercise Science) were honored on the second-team. It is the first such honor for both gentlemen.
We Got Game
Creighton's game on Wednesday vs. Bowling Green will be its 34th of the season, tying the school record for most games in a season. The Bluejays also played 34 games in 2004-05 and 2002-03.
Current Creighton players to start all 33 games this season include Kenny Lawson Jr., Justin Carter and Josh Dotzler.
Current Creighton players to appear in all 33 games this season include Lawson, Carter, Dotzler, Cavel Witter, Casey Harriman and Kaleb Korver.
Below are the players who currently own a share of those single-season records:
Games Played (34) Games Started (34)
Tyler McKinney, ?05 Tyler McKinney, ?05
Johnny Mathies, ?05 Tyler McKinney, ?03
Kellen Miliner, ?05 Larry House, ?03
Dane Watts, ?05 Brody Deren, ?03
Jimmy Motz, ?05 Kyle Korver, ?03
Jeffrey Day, ?05
Anthony Tolliver, ?05
Pierce Hibma, ?05
Kyle Korver, ?03
Larry House, ?03
Mike Grimes, ?03
Brody Deren, ?03
Michael Lindeman, ?03
DeAnthony Bowden, ?03
Joe Dabbert, ?03
Tyler McKinney, ?03
Nate Funk, ?03
At The Buzzer!
Booker Woodfox's jumper as time expired on March 6th to beat Wichita State was the first time that Creighton hit a go-ahead basket at the buzzer since Jan. 28, 2006, when Anthony Tolliver scored to give CU a 58-56 victory over Wichita State.
Woodfox has now hit three baskets in his Creighton career that gave CU the lead for good in the final 30 seconds of an eventual win. Last year he hit a shot to beat Oral Roberts, and earlier this year he drained a three-pointer that beat Southern Illinois.
About The Senior Class
Creighton's senior class consists of Josh Dotzler, Booker Woodfox and Dustin Sitzmann. Over the past four years, Creighton is 90-39 with four 20-win seasons and four postseason appearances (one NCAA, three NIT's) to date.
Dotzler is a senior guard from Omaha who owns 422 points, 378 assists, 194 steals and 181 rebounds in his career. He's played in 115 games, including 94 starts, and ranks in the top-seven in CU history in both assists and steals.
Sitzmann is a senior guard from LeMars, Iowa, who owns 16 points, eight rebounds and six assists in his career. Sitzmann has played in 40 games, all as a reserve, while seeing 77 minutes of action.
Woodfox is a senior guard from Lewisville, Texas, who owns 825 points, 150 rebounds and 75 assists in his career. Woodfox has played in 65 games, including 32 starts, and is on pace to set CU records for three-point percentage in a season and career.
Half-Grand Man
Senior Booker Woodfox has scored 508 points this season, two points ahead of Bob Gibson for 29th on CU's all-time single-season list.
Woodfox is just the fourth different Creighton player to score more than 500 points in the past 15 years, joining an elite group that includes Kyle Korver (2003), Nate Funk (2005 and 2007) and Rodney Buford (1997, 1998 and 1999).
An Unlikely Turnaround?
Creighton trailed Northern Iowa by three games in the league standings with six conference games left, heading into a road game against the first-place Panthers on Feb. 8th.
Creighton left Cedar Falls with a 77-71 road win, snapping UNI's school-record 11-game win streak, and sending notice that the race was on for the regular-season title.
Creighton owns a combined 14 all-time regular-season titles (7 outright, 7 shared), more than any other league school except Oklahoma A&M (15) and Kansas (also 14).
Three Streak Continues
Booker Woodfox has made a three-pointer in 29 straight games, which is the ninth-longest active streak nationally.
Woodfox's streak is the longest in CU history, one ahead of Kyle Korver's stretch of 28 games in a row with a trifecta.
It's worth noting that Korver's streak of 28 games with a trey was snapped when he did not attempt a field goal in 24 minutes of play during an 83-56 win over UNI on Feb. 9, 2002. Korver then drained a triple in 27 more games in a row, a stretch from Feb. 13, 2002 to Jan. 20, 2003.
Consecutive Games With a 3-Pointer, CU History
Streak Name Dates
29 Booker Woodfox 11/25/08 to Present
28 Kyle Korver 2/4/01 to 2/6/02
27 Kyle Korver 2/13/02 to 1/20/03
Consecutive Games With A 3-Pointer, Individuals
Courtesy STATS Inc. (through 3/16)
Rank No. Name, Team Next Game
1. 44 Josh Akognon, Cal St Fullerton --
2. 42 Craig Moore, Northwestern 3/18
3. 34 Ryan Schneider, Marist --
4. 33 Jack McClinton, Miami Fla. 3/18
5. 32 Chase Adams, Centenary --
32 Ryan Wittman, Cornell 3/20
32 Sean Ogirri, Wyoming 3/17
8. 30 Jamarco Warren, Charleston So. --
9. 29 Booker Woodfox, Creighton 3/18
29 David Holston, Chicago State --
Nation's Best Shooter?
Creighton guard Booker Woodfox continues to sink shots from all distances and angles, making his case as one of the nation's top shooters.
Woodfox ranks first in the NCAA in three-point field goal percentage (48.9 percent) and is 17th in free-throw percentage at 87.6 percent, which makes him one of three players in the country to rank in the top-20 nationally in both three-point percentage and free-throw percentage.
Below is a list of 13 incredible figures as they relate to Woodfox:
1. Leads the nation in three-point percentage (48.9 percent).
2. One of three players to rank in the top-20 nationally in both 3FG% and FT%, joining Miami's Jack McClinton and Texas Tech's Alan Voskuil.
3. Set a Creighton record with 36 consecutive made free throws earlier this season.
4. Has made 48-of-51 free-throw attempts away from home this season (94.1 percent), including 25-of-25 in MVC road games this year.
5. Is shooting 57.0 percent (45-79) from three-point range in games not against MVC schools.
6. When you subtract nine games played in January when he was hobbled by a bum ankle, Woodfox has shot 52.9 percent from three-point land (72-136) this season.
7. Has made 55.6 percent (10-18) of his three-point attempts in games televised by ESPN2 or ESPNU this year
8. On pace to shatter CU's single-season and career marks for three-point accuracy.
9. Has made 50.8 percent (30-59) of his three-pointers the last 12 games and 50 percent (21-42) from downtown the past nine games.
10. Woodfox has made a three-pointer in a school-record 29 straight games.
11. Woodfox is currently shooting 49.3 percent from the field overall this season. No Creighton player ever listed at 6'1” or smaller who has taken 200 attempts in a season since at least 1955 (when field goal attempts started being listed regularly) has shot better than 50.2 percent.
12. Hit a 16-foot jumper as time expired as Creighton beat Wichita State, 63-62, in the MVC Tournament quarterfinals. The shot helped avoid a potentially devastating loss that saw CU blow a 16-point lead in the final four minutes before his heroics.
13. Creighton is 15-0 this year when Woodfox makes more than 50 percent of his field goal attempts and 11-0 when he's over 50 percent from three-point territory.
Woodfox Invited To Three-Point Shootout
Booker Woodfox has been officially invited to compete in the Three-Point Shootout at next month's Final Four. The nation's leading three-point shooter will compete on Thursday, April 2nd, with the event televised on the ESPN family of networks.
Woodfox is Creighton's second player in the past six years to earn an invite to this event. In 2003, Kyle Korver finished second to Butler's Darnell Archey in the competition.
In the event that Creighton advances to the NIT championship game on April 2nd, Woodfox would withdraw from the field since the events are being held on the same night.
Pair of 9's
Creighton is one of four teams in the country that have posted multiple win streaks of nine or more this season, joining Connecticut, North Carolina and Xavier.
Creighton won nine straight games from Dec. 2-31 and then 11 victories in a row from Jan. 27-March 6th.
This is the first time in school history that Creighton has had two win streaks of nine or longer in the same season.
A Tradition of Win Streaks
Creighton's 11-game win streak was its longest streak in five years. The Bluejays have had at least one five-game win streak in 12 straight seasons, and 20 such streaks overall in the 15-year tenure of Dana Altman. Since 1988-89, the Bluejays have made the postseason all 15 times they've had a five-game winning streak in a season, but missed the postseason all six times they haven't.
Below is a list of Creighton's longest win streaks under Dana Altman.
CU's Longest Win Streaks Under Dana Altman
W's Dates Postseason?
12 Nov. 22, 2003-Jan. 11, 2004 NIT
11 Jan. 27-March 3, 2001 NCAA
11 Jan. 27 - March 6, 2009 NIT
10 Nov. 17-Dec. 29, 2002 NCAA
9 Jan. 21-Feb. 16, 1998 NIT
9 Nov. 22-Dec. 21, 1999 NCAA
9 Dec. 2-31, 2008 NIT
8 Feb. 16-March 7, 2005 NCAA
7 Four Times
6 Four Times
5 Four Times
Perfect Months
Creighton went 9-0 in December, closing out a perfect month with a Dec. 31 win at Indiana State. This marks Creighton's first-ever unbeaten month when playing nine games or more. Creighton's last previous undefeated December came in 2003-04, when the team went 7-0.
Creighton also went 9-0 in the month of February, the school's first ever unbeaten February in which it played nine or more games.
Chasing History
Creighton picked up its 20th win this season on Feb. 11th with a win over Bradley. This is the 21st time that Creighton has won 20 or more games, but only once before has it gotten there quicker on the calendar.
In the 2002-03 season, Creighton became the nation's first team to 20 wins when it beat Northern Iowa on Feb. 4th. That Creighton team won a school-record 29 games.
Creighton's 26 wins this season are second-most all-time, trailing only the 2002-03 season. Below is a list of the campaigns in which Creighton has had 24 or more wins in a season.
Wins Year(s)
29 2002-03
26 2008-09
24 2000-01, 1990-91
20 Overall Wins x 11 Years = MVC History
Creighton is the only school in the 102-year history of the Missouri Valley Conference to post 11 straight 20-win campaigns, a figure it reached this season on Feb. 11 with a win over Bradley. No other Valley school owns more than six straight 20-win seasons.
Creighton is one of seven teams nationally with 20 or more wins in each of previous 10 seasons. That list consists of Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kent State and Syracuse.
Creighton, Duke, Florida Gonzaga, Kansas and Syracuse have already extended their streak to 11 straight years. Below is a list of where Kent State stands as it chases an 11th straight 20-win season:
Team Current W-L Next Game
Kent State 19-14 3/17 at Oakland
20 Wins = Postseason Again
Creighton, Northern Iowa and Illinois State all have 20 or more wins this year, and all three made the postseason. Since the NCAA Tournament field was expanded to 64 teams (1985), 65 Valley teams have posted 20 wins prior to "Selection Sunday." All but one reached post-season play (Creighton in 1985 did not).
10 Conference Wins x 13
Creighton has also 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 team with at least 13 straight years of 10 or more league wins is Kansas (15).
Five In Double-Figures x 3
Creighton placed five men in double-figures in consecutive wins over Bradley, Southern Illinois and Evansville in February.
Prior to that stretch, CU hadn't placed five players in double-figures during the same game since Jan. 31, 2007 when it did so against Bradley.
Creighton had not placed five men in double-figures in three consecutive games in a search back through readily available box scores dating to the 1981-82 season.
Tenure? He's Got 15 Years
Dana Altman is the dean of MVC coaches, as he is in his 15th season as head coach at Creighton.
According to a recent article by The Washington Times, Altman's 15 years at CU ranks 16th-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
26 Tom Green, Fairleigh Dickinson
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
Biggest Road Wins
Creighton won four Valley road games by double-digits this season.
Creighton's 79-57 win at Evansville on Jan. 20th ranked as the school's fourth-largest victory margin ever out of 367 Valley road games played. The Jays posted another 22-point Valley road win on Feb. 14th at Southern Illinois, topping the Salukis 82-60.
In fact, since 1933, the Jays had only posted one Valley road win by 22 points or more, a 28-point win in 2003 at Indiana State.
The 22-point victories at Evansville and Southern Illinois match the largest in the MVC this season by a road team in a conference game, as UNI also defeated Drake 81-59 on Jan. 17th and Illinois State beat Drake 67-45 on Feb. 15th.
Below is a list of CU's all-time Valley road wins by 22 points or more:
Largest MVC Road Win Margins, CU History
Score Margin Opponent Date
46-16 +30 at Morningside 2/16/1925
74-46 +28 at Indiana State 1/29/2003
43-17 +26 at Drake 1/15/1932
79-57 +22 at Evansville 1/20/2009
82-60 +22 at Southern Illinois 2/14/2009
Road Reversal
Six of Creighton's MVC road results were the opposite of how it did in those road trips last season. In the six Valley venues Creighton lost in last season, it went 5-1. In the three Valley cities Creighton won in last year, it went 2-1.
Opponent 2007-08 2008-09
at Bradley BU 87-59 CU 73-64
at Drake DU 75-65 CU 79-68
at Evansville UE 60-56 CU 79-57
at Illinois State ILS 68-54 ILS 86-64
at Indiana State INS 62-54 CU 79-61
at Missouri State CU 50-49 CU 65-59
at Northern Iowa CU 68-59 CU 77-71
at Southern Illinois SIU 48-44 CU 82-60
at Wichita State CU 68-65 WSU 74-61
Road The Key To Success
College basketball is one of the ultimate home-court sports, as roughly two-thirds of all games are traditionally won by the host school. Creighton's postseason destination often seems to revolve around its success, or lack thereof, while playing on the road.
Consider the following evidence:
-Creighton's 7-2 MVC road record was the school's best mark since the 2001-02 team went also went 7-2.
-Since 1977-78 (when Creighton rejoined the MVC) it has had five or more road wins nine times. Eight of those 10 teams reached the NCAA's while the other two reached the NIT. Of the 22 teams with four or less Valley road wins, three reached the NCAA's, four reached the NIT and 15 did not make the postseason.
-Additionally, Creighton currently has 11 wins away from home (eight road, three neutral). Eight of the past nine times it has had seven or more wins away from home (road + neutral), the Jays have made the NCAA Tournament, with this year being the only exception.
-Creighton has eight true road wins this season. Four of the six most recent times it has won eight or more true road games, it has made the NCAA's. This is the the first team with eight true road wins since the 1999-2000 club finished 8-6 on the road.
-At 7-2 on the MVC road, Creighton has now won three or more Valley road contests in 14 straight seasons.
Record Chasers
A trio of Bluejay guards are moving up on the school's single-season record lists.
Josh Dotzler leads Creighton with 68 steals thus far. That places him tied for fifth in school history.
Most Steals, Season
Stl. Name (Class) Year
80 Ryan Sears (Jr.) 1999-00
73 Ryan Sears (Sr.) 2000-01
72 Latrell Wrightsell (Sr.) 1991-92
70 Duan Cole (Sr.) 1991-92
68 Ryan Sears (So.) 1998-99
68 Josh Dotzler (Sr.) 2008-09
63 James Farr (Jr.) 1987-88
Fellow senior Booker Woodfox has made 86 three-point baskets this season, which ranks third in single-season Creighton history.
Most 3-Point Field Goals Made, Season
3FG Name (Class) Year
129 Kyle Korver (Sr.) 2002-03
100 Kyle Korver (So.) 2000-01
86 Booker Woodfox (Sr.) 2008-09
82 Tad Ackerman (Jr.) 1994-95
79 Kyle Korver (Jr.) 2001-02
Both Woodfox and Cavel Witter are also making a dent on the school's free-throw percentage list. Woodfox is fifth at 88.8 percent, while Witter is eighth at 86.1 percent.
Free Throw Percentage, (Minimum 70 Attempts)
Pct. Name (Class, Year) FTM-FTA
.908 Kyle Korver (Sr., 2002-03) 109-120
.890 Kyle Korver (Jr., 2001-02) 97-109
.882 Doug Brookins (Sr., 1974-75) 98-111
.880 Mike Caruso (Sr., 1970-71) 95-108
.876 Booker Woodfox (Sr., 2008-09) 92-105
.863 Nate Funk (Sr., 2006-07) 126-146
.867 Kyle Korver (So., 2000-01) 72-83
.861 Cavel Witter (Jr., 2008-09) 87-101
.855 Ryan Sears (So., 1989-99) 71-83
More Defense
Creighton held Northern Iowa to season-low 29.0 percent field goal shooting on Feb. 8th. It's the 10th time in the past 15 years that Creighton has held a team under 30 percent from the field.
Below is a list of all the teams to shoot less than 30 percent in a game since Dana Altman came to CU 15 years ago.
Poorest FG Pct., Opponents, Under Altman
Pct. Opponent FG-FGA Date CU Result
.233 Indiana State 10-43 03/02/07 W 59-38
.241 Ark.-Pine Bluff 14-58 11/29/06 W 74-39
.266 CS-Sacramento 17-64 12/14/96 W 59-42
.266 Tulsa 17-64 01/17/96 W 72-59
.273 Western Illinois 15-55 11/20/00 W 96-50
.274 Nebraska 17-62 12/11/05 W 70-44
.286 Indiana State 20-70 01/05/95 W 70-63
.289 Missouri State 13-45 01/05/08 W 50-49
.290 Northern Iowa 18-62 02/08/09 W 77-71
.291 George Mason 16-55 11/22/05 W 72-52
Altman Picks Up 300th Win With Jays
With Creighton's 79-68 win last on Feb. 4 at Drake, Dana Altman became just the second coach in the 102-year history of the Missouri Valley Conference to win 300 games at one school. Altman, who owns a 308-159 mark with the Jays, joins Henry Iba (486 wins at Oklahoma A&M) in that elite group.
Below is a list of some of Altman's milestone wins at Creighton:
W-L Rec. Opponent Date Result
50-55 at Evansville 02/02/98 W 85-76
100-78 Western Illinois 11/20/00 W 96-50
150-95 vs. Notre Dame% 11/26/02 W 80-75
200-109 vs. Ohio State% 11/24/04 W 65-63 (OT)
250-136 Bradley 01/18/07 W 65-64
300-158 at Drake 02/04/09 W 79-68
%Guardians Classic (Kansas City, Mo.)
A Ton of Points
Creighton has scored 2,429 points so far, moving over the 2,000-point barrier for the 11th time in 15 seasons under Dana Altman.
Creighton has now had nine teams score more than 2,200 points under Altman. Seven of those teams reached the NCAA Tournament, while the past two year's teams have done it and been sent to the NIT.
Most Points, Season, Under Altman
Rank Points Year Postseason
1. 2,688 2002-03 NCAA
2. 2,429 2008-09 NIT
3. 2,421 2004-05 NCAA
2,421 2001-02 NCAA
5. 2,410 1999-00 NCAA
6. 2,360 2007-08 NIT
7. 2,357 1998-99 NCAA
8. 2,325 2000-01 NCAA
9. 2,220 2006-07 NCAA
10. 2,100 1997-98 NIT
Check The Book's
Booker Woodfox has scored 20 or more points nine times this season, but his 23 points at Drake on Feb. 4 were the first time over the 20-point barrier in Valley action this season.
Creighton is 11-1 when Woodfox scores 20 or more points in his Bluejay career.
Woodfox has made five three-pointers in one game six times this year and eight times in his career. Creighton is 7-1 all-time when Woodfox makes at least five treys.
Iowa Road Sweep
Creighton picked up road wins at both Drake and Northern Iowa this year for the fourth time in five seasons, and seventh time in the past 12 years. Creighton also accomplished the feat in 1997-98, 2000-01, 2002-03, 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07.
CU's Feb. 8th win over UNI marked the first time Creighton has beaten the same opponent on the road in five straight seasons since topping Washington (Mo.) five years in a row from 1936-40.
All The Small Things
Josh Dotzler has scored just 42 points in the past 12 games, but you'd have a tough time finding a Creighton player doing any better.
In the past 12 games (11 wins), Dotzler has 48 assists, eight turnovers and 21 steals in 260 minutes.
Despite being CU's primary ballhandler, Dotzler owned just 18 turnovers in 18 MVC games this season, including 15 league games with zero or one miscue this winter. He ranks fourth nationally with a 3.26 assist/turnover ratio through games of last Thursday.
Give Me Four (Or More) From 3
Creighton has made four or more three-pointers in 66 consecutive games, which ranks eighth nationally.
Consecutive Games, 4+ 3-Pointers, Teams
Courtesy STATS Inc. (through 3/16)
Rank No. Team Next Game
1. 96 Lafayette --
96 Belmont 3/18
3. 80 Eastern Kentucky --
4. 74 Liberty 3/17
5. 72 Michigan 3/19
6. 70 Drake 3/18
70 Portland State 3/20
8. 66 Creighton 3/18
9. 62 Valparaiso --
Walk(er) This Way
Sophomore center Kenton Walker put together the best offensive game of his career in the Feb. 1 victory over Missouri State.
After missing his first two attempts, Walker hit seven of his last eight shots from the field en route to scoring a career-high 15 points.
Walker added five rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot in 21 minutes of floor time against the Bears.
Walker is averaging 5.0 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocked shots per game in 14.9 minutes per contest. He shoots 53.0 percent from the floor, best on the team.
Room To Board
The rebound differential between Creighton and its opponent has stood at 10 or larger in 17 of the 33 games to date.
The Jays have won the boards by 10 or more five times (going 4-1), but lost on the glass by double-digits on 12 occasions (going 8-4).
In the 16 games that the rebound discrepancy has been a single-digit, CU is 14-2.
Creighton is 13-2 when winning the rebound battle this year, and 18-3 when they are -9 or better on the glass.
Jays Reach 10 Home Wins, Again
The Jan. 27 win over Indiana State was Creighton's 10th home win this season. Creighton has now won 10 or more home games in 13 straight seasons, setting a school-record.
Creighton previously won 10 or more home games in 12 straight seasons from the 1969-70 season to the 1980-81 campaign.
Ball Control
Creighton point guards Josh Dotzler and Antoine Young have done an admirable job of taking care of the ball in the past 13 games, combining for just 22 turnovers in that span.
Young has 13 turnovers in 221 minutes of action, while Dotzler has just nine in 277 minutes of play in those 13 games.
Carter Carries Jays
Junior Justin Carter had one of his best all-around games on Jan. 27th in Creighton's victory over Indiana State.
Carter had career-highs with 17 points, four steals and two blocked shots. He also tied his previous best with eight rebounds.
Carter has taken over the team lead with 171 rebounds and ranks third with 61 assists while playing the power forward position. He is vying to become the first junior college transfer to lead Creighton in rebounding in his first season since Chuckie Johnson in 1995-96.
Carter has started each of his first 33 games at Creighton. The last player that could say that was Ryan Sears, who started all 124 games of his Bluejay career from 1997-2001.
Consec. Starts To Open CU Career, Last 15 Years
Starts Name Years
124 Ryan Sears 1997-2001
59 Edward St. Fleur 1995-1997
42 Tad Ackerman 1994-1996
33 Justin Carter 2008-Present
7-Up
Creighton went 7-for-7 from the field in the final seven minutes of its Jan. 27 win over Indiana State, getting four baskets from P'Allen Stinnett and one each from Booker Woodfox, Antoine Young and Kenton Walker.
Creighton has shot 108-for-206 in the final seven minutes of regulation in its 26 wins this season, good for 52.4 percent. That figure includes Stinnett shooting 24-of-28 from two-point range (85.7 percent), and the team shooting 34-of-83 (41.0 percent) from three-point range in that time range.
On the other hand in the final seven minutes of its seven losses, Creighton is 17-of-61 from the field (27.9 percent) and 5-of-29 from three-point range (17.2 percent). Stinnett is 0-for-9 from the field in the last seven minutes of CU's seven losses this season.
Altman Passing Coaching Legends
Dana Altman continues to pass some of the coaching greats in MVC history in two categories. Altman's 308 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 this March in conjunction with Arch Madness.
MVC Coaches--Most Wins In Conference Games
Wins Coach School(s)
1. 187 Henry Iba Oklahoma A&M
2. 172 Dana Altman Creighton
3. 163 Eddie Hickey Creighton & St. Louis
Coaches--Most Wins As MVC Member--All Games
Wins Coach School(s)
1. 486 Henry Iba Oklahoma A&M
2. 337 Eddie Hickey Creighton & St. Louis
3. 308 Dana Altman Creighton
Historically After 12 MVC Games
The last time that Creighton was 8-4 after 12 MVC games was the 2000-01 season, when it closed out the year with six straight wins to claim the Valley title at 14-4.
This is the 14th straight season that Creighton has had a league record of .500 or better after 12 games, and each of those 14 campaigns the Jays would also go .500 or better in its final six contests as well.
Prior to this year, Creighton had made the NCAA Tournament each of the last seven times it has gone 4-2 or better in its last six MVC games.
Year W-L After 12 W-L Final 6
2008-09 8-4 6-0
2007-08 7-5 3-3
2006-07 9-3 4-2
2005-06 9-3 3-3
2004-05 6-6 5-1
2003-04 9-3 3-3
2002-03 11-1 4-2
2001-02 10-2 4-2
2000-01 8-4 6-0
1999-00 7-5 4-2
1998-99 7-5 4-2
1997-98 8-4 4-2
1996-97 7-5 3-3
1995-96 6-6 3-3
1994-95 3-9 1-5
Total 115-65 (.639) 57-33 (.633)
Over .500 Again
Creighton has been better than .500 in either the first or second-half of the league season in 28 straight trips through the league, including the both halves this year.
Creighton's 28 consecutive halves above .500 in league play is easily the Valley's longest active streak, far ahead of Illinois State (4), Northern Iowa (3), Indiana State (1) and Wichita State (1).
Here's how Dana Altman's clubs have fared in the various halves of the MVC season since his arrival:
Year 1st Half 2nd Half
2008-09 5-4 9-0
2007-08 5-4 5-4
2006-07 6-3 7-2
2005-06 7-2 5-4
2004-05 5-4 6-3
2003-04 7-2 5-4
2002-03 8-1 7-2
2001-02 8-1 6-3
2000-01 5-4 9-0
1999-00 5-4 6-3
1998-99 6-3 5-4
1997-98 5-4 7-2
1996-97 5-4 5-4
1995-96 4-5 5-4
1994-95 3-6 1-8
Total 84-51 (.622) 88-47 (.652)
Second Half Turnaround, Again
This season turned around just like the 2000-01 campaign did. That season, like this one, saw the preseason favorite Bluejays drop to 5-4 at the midway point after a loss on Jan. 24th.
The 2000-01 team would post a win on Jan. 27th to start an 11-game win streak that helped carry the team to the MVC regular-season title and eventual at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament.
This year Creighton also lost on Jan. 24th before starting its recent 11-game winning streak on Jan. 27th, and would go on to win a share of the MVC.
Home Cooking
Creighton is 44-10 at home all-time at Qwest Center Omaha in MVC games (.815), compared to a 28-26 (.519) road record in the MVC during that stretch.
Only five MVC visiting schools (DU, ILS, MSU, UNI, SIU) have ever won a game in the six-year old Qwest Center Omaha. In fact, four Valley schools have not won a game in Omaha since the decade started.
Below is a look at Creighton's current home winning streaks over current league foes:
Opponent CU Streak Last Opp. Win in Omaha
Bradley Won 11 1/17/98
Drake Lost 2 1/24/09
Evansville Won 10 1/04/99
Illinois State Won 1 12/29/07
Indiana State Won 10 1/04/99
Missouri State Won 4 2/05/05
Northern Iowa Lost 1 1/6/09
So. Illinois Won 2 1/20/07
Wichita State Won 16 2/22/92
Lawson's Blocks Way Towards The Top
Sophomore center Kenny Lawson Jr. owns a league-high 53 blocked shots. Lawson has a blocked shot in 29 of CU's 33 contests this season. Lawson owns 81 career blocked shots, moving him into seventh on CU's all-time list.
Most Blocked Shots, CU History, Since 1979-80
Blk. Name Years
411 Benoit Benjamin 1982-85
183 Chad Gallagher 1987-91
138 Brody Deren 2001-04
136 Anthony Tolliver 2003-07
109 Doug Swenson 1997-99
104 Joe Dabbert 2000-04
81 Kenny Lawson Jr. 2006-Pres.
79 Adam Reid 1994-97
76 Livan Pyfrom 1999-01
75 Jeffrey Day 2004-06
Let's Start With Dotzler
Josh Dotzler has started each of Creighton's last 67 games, winning 48 of those starts. The streak dates back to the final contest of the 2006-07 campaign and is the longest active string in the Missouri Valley Conference.
For his career, Dotzler has made 94 starts, with CU winning 66 of them (70.2 percent).
Blocking Bookends
Sophomore post men Kenny Lawson Jr. and Kenton Walker are both among the MVC leaders in blocked shots, albeit in two different categories.
Lawson's 53 blocked shots for the season are six more than his closest competition, Bradley's David Collins.
Walker owned the Valley lead in conference play with 31 blocks, four more than UNI's Jordan Eglseder.
Creighton's last player to lead the league in blocked shots for an entire season is Brody Deren, who had 56 swats during the 2002-03 season when he was also a sophomore.
Big Shot Booker Strikes Again
Creighton's Booker Woodfox has drained a pair of game-winning baskets this season, and three in the past two years.
Woodfox's most recent heroics were at the MVC Tournament on March 7th, when he caught an inbounds pass with 1.8 seconds left, took two dribbles and fired in the game winner as the horn sounded to beat Wichita State.
Woodfox drained a go-ahead three-pointer with 21.4 seconds left in overtime against Southern Illinois on Jan. 14th.
He also hit a game-winning three-pointer to beat Oral Roberts by one point with 26.5 seconds left last season.
Fellow teammate P'Allen Stinnett hit five different shots on Jan. 14th that gave CU the lead against Southern Illinois and now has 18 go-ahead baskets this year, five behind Kenny Lawson Jr.'s and Woodfox's team-best 23.
Below is a list of Creighton's baskets that gave them a lead this season, as well as baskets that gave the team the lead for good.
Gave CU Lead Got Lead Last
Name Lead For Good 2 Minutes
Kenny Lawson Jr. 23 5 0
Booker Woodfox 23 7 2
P'Allen Stinnett 18 6 2
Justin Carter 12 3 0
Antoine Young 10 1 0
Kaleb Korver 5 1 0
Cavel Witter 5 0 0
Casey Harriman 5 0 0
Kenton Walker 4 1 0
Chad Millard 3 1 0
Josh Dotzler 2 1 1
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 209 wins in the decade, as well as nine postseason appearances:
MVC Standings (2000-01 to 3/15/09)
MVC only All Games
Team W L Pct. W L Pct.
Creighton 115 47 .710 209 81 .721
Southern Illinois 118 44 .728 202 93 .685
Northern Iowa 84 78 .519 156 124 .557
Missouri State 85 77 .525 157 126 .555
Wichita State 83 79 .512 155 126 .552
Illinois State 75 87 .463 146 130 .529
Bradley 78 84 .481 151 136 .526
Drake 69 93 .426 135 137 .496
Indiana State 50 112 .309 107 168 .389
Evansville 53 109 .327 101 162 .384
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
Cardiac Kids
Creighton's win over Wichita State on March 6th marked the eighth time in the past two seasons that Creighton won in which it trailed or had been tied at some point in the final minute, and second time this season.
Five of those eight wins came at home, and three of the games featured a go-ahead three-pointer in the final 30 seconds.
Margin Opponent Date
-5 Bradley 3/1/08
-4 Saint Joseph's 12/9/07
-4 Southern Illinois 1/14/09
-3 Rhode Island 3/18/08
-2 at Oral Roberts 2/23/08
-1 Wichita State 2/2/08
-1 vs. Wichita State 3/6/09
Tie at Missouri State 1/5/08
Step Right Up Young Man
Antoine Young scored 27 points in his first 16 games with Creighton (1.7 ppg.), but has since exploded to score 129 points over the past 17 games (7.6 ppg.).
That includes 15 points against Evansville, 13 points against Bradley and George Mason and 12 points against both Indiana State and Wichita State.
Young delivered the breakthrough game of his fledgling career on Jan. 10th at Bradley. Young had a career-best 13 points while adding two assists and a team-high two steals in 21 minutes. Young, who had entered the contest 0-for-11 from three-point range, also went 2-for-2 from downtown in the victory.
Young scored a career-high 15 points in Creighton's 89-84 win over Evansville on Feb. 17th. He missed his first six attempts, but would score all his points in the final 14:40 to help CU rally for the victory.
Fish Gets Call From Hall
Creighton University assistant coach Brian Fish has been named to the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame Silver Anniversary Team. He and 16 other former Indiana high school basketball standouts will be honored at a dinner on March 25 in Indianapolis.
Fish will be the just the seventh graduate in Seymour High School history to be honored. To qualify for the honor, a player must have graduated high school 25 years ago.
Fish still holds Seymour career records for charges taken (42), free throws made (390) and free throws attempted, ranks second with 1,400 points and is fourth with 128 steals, 505 field goals made and 1,112 field goals attempted.
Altman Records 500th Win
Creighton head coach Dana Altman picked up his 500th win as a college head coach at all levels on New Year's Eve against Indiana State.
Altman owns a career record of 514-250 in 24 years as a head coach at the Division I and junior college levels. Altman owns 29 wins at Southeast Junior College (1982-83), 94 wins at Moberly Junior College (1983-86), 15 wins at Marshall (1989-90), 68 wins at Kansas State (1990-94) and 308 victories at Creighton (1994-Present).
Comparison To Past Years
Below is a comparison after 33 games of this year's team to that of last year's team, as well as the memorable 2002-03 squad that finished 29-5, and the 2000-01 team that also won the MVC regular-season title, with season-bests in bold:
Statistic 2008-09 2007-08 2002-03 2000-01
W-L Record 26-7 22-11 29-5 24-8
MVC W-L 14-4 10-8 15-3 14-4
FG% .446 .447 .498 .442
3FG% .383 .366 .390 .359
3FG/Game 8.0 8.3 7.9 7.8
FT% .751 .719 .693 .702
Reb. Margin -3.4 +1.4 +1.6 +1.1
Assists 461 473 575 490
Turnovers 407 469 462 426
Blocks 132 116 153 114
Steals 271 245 283 293
PPG Scored 73.6 71.5 79.1 72.7
PPG Allowed 65.4 66.0 64.8 63.2
Woodfox Automatic At The Line Too
Not only has Booker Woodfox been lights-out from the field, but it's carried over to the free-throw line. Despite one of the nation's most unique pre-shot rituals, Woodfox drained a Creighton-record 36 straight free throws from Dec. 6-Jan. 3rd.
The 36 straight makes is four more than the previous Creighton record set by Michael Lindeman. The streak was seventh-longest in MVC history, and the longest in five years by a league player not named Blake Ahearn (Ahearn holds six of the 12 best streaks in MVC history).
For the season, Woodfox leads the MVC with 87.6 percent marksmanship from the line (92-105), which is eighth-best nationally.
Most Consecutive Free Throws Made, MVC History
60 Blake Ahearn, MSU (12/20/03 - 2/14/04)
60 Blake Ahearn, MSU (12/19/04 - 2/28/05)
57 Vince Greene, ILS (1/18/04 - 11/30/04)
51 Blake Ahearn, MSU (12/15/05 - 1/29/06)
48 Marcus Wilson, Evansville (12/1/96 - 2/2/97)
44 James Gillingham, BU (2/8/03 - 2/25/03)
36 Booker Woodfox, CU (12/6/08 - 1/6/09)
35 Aaron Zobrist, Bradley (12/27/96 - 1/27/97)
P For 3
Sophomore guard P'Allen Stinnett drained a three-pointer on the first possession of both halves, as well as a double-clutch banked trey at the first-half buzzer, en route to shooting 6-of-8 from three-point range at Indiana State on Dec. 31. The six three-pointers was a career-high for Stinnett, who opened his career with five three-pointers in the second half of a 2007 win over DePaul.
Stinnett is one of seven players on the current roster who have made three or more three-pointers in a game during their Bluejay career.
They Hit How Many?
Creighton drained 15-of-24 three-point attempts in its road win at Indiana State on Dec. 31st. The 15 three-pointers were tied for third-most ever, and the most by the Jays since they set a school and MVC record with a 20-of-30 display from downtown in a Feb. 19, 2005 win over Chattanooga.
Among games that Creighton has made 10 or more three-pointers all-time, Creighton's 62.5 percent shooting behind the arc was fourth-best in history, and its best since the 20-for-30 (66.7 percent) against Chattanooga.
Creighton is 20-0 all-time under Dana Altman when making 10 or more three-pointers and 54 percent or better of those attempts from downtown.
Creighton has made 10 three-pointers or more nine times this season, making at least 40 percent of its tries in eight of those contests.
Heating Up December
Booker Woodfox was red-hot from the field in the nine games played in December. Woodfox scored 180 points in 219 minutes in nine December games, all Bluejay wins. Woodfox shot 58-for-99 from the floor in that time (58.6 percent), including 35-of-60 (58.3 percent) from three-point land. Woodfox also hit 29-of-31 free throws (93.5 percent) in December.
Leading Scorer, Again
Booker Woodfox led Creighton in scoring during seven straight games from Dec. 6-28, averaging 21.3 points per game in that time. In Dana Altman's 15-year tenure, Creighton's only longer streak was by Rodney Buford, who twice had eight straight games.
Consec. Games as Leading Scorer, Under Altman
Games Name Dates
8 Rodney Buford Jan. 27-Feb. 17, 1997
8 Rodney Buford Feb. 23-Dec. 2, 1998
7 Rodney Buford Jan. 2-20, 1997
7 Booker Woodfox Dec. 6-28, 2008
Book It!
Booker Woodfox is 86-of-176 (48.9 percent) from three-point range this season, best nationally.
For his career, he is 142-of-308, which computes to 46.1 percent, just ahead of the school-record figure achieved by noted marksman Kyle Korver. The only previous player in CU history to shoot better than 44.5 percent from three-point range in their career was two-time MVC Player of the Year Korver, who made 45.3 percent from downtown while hitting 371-of-819 from long-range. Kaleb Korver ranks third on the list with 44.5 percent accuracy.
Creighton's 3-Point Percentage Leaders, Career
(Minimum 100 Attempts)
Pct. Name, Years 3FGM-FGA
.4610 Booker Woodfox, 2007-Present 142-308
.4530 Kyle Korver, 1999-03 371-819
.4455 Kaleb Korver, 2007-Present 49-110
.4415 Rod Mason, 1986-88 132-299
.4404 Nerijus Karlikanovas, 1998-00 48-109
.4306 Michael Lindeman, 2000-04 62-144
.4293 Duan Cole, 1987-92 176-410
.4206 Casey Harriman, 2007-Present 53-126
.4065 Nate Funk, 2002-07 200-492
.4053 Matt West, 1996-00 92-227
.4051 Matt Petty, 1989-93 143-353
.4017 Darin Plautz, 1989-91 94-234
Heavy Lumber For Woodfox
Booker Woodfox had a career-high in several categories during CU's 69-58 win at Saint Joseph's on Dec. 6. Woodfox had career-highs with 29 points, nine field goals and seven three-pointers while also matching his previous best with seven rebounds.
The seven three-pointers by Woodfox were the most by a Creighton player since Nate Funk made seven trifectas at Nebraska on Nov. 18, 2006.
Additionally, he was the first player in Creighton history to make at least seven three-pointers while shooting 75 percent or better from behind the arc in the same game. Below is a list of Creighton players to make seven treys in a game.
Creighton's Most 3-Pointers Made, Single-Game
3FG-A Name, Opponent Date
9-14 Kyle Korver vs. Evansville 01/15/03
8-13 Tad Ackerman at Drake 01/23/95
8-15 Terrell Taylor vs. Florida 03/15/02
8-13 Kyle Korver at Xavier 12/31/02
7-12 Gary Swain vs. Nebraska-Omaha 12/11/86
7-10 Ryan Sears vs. Wyoming 12/06/97
7-11 Kyle Korver vs. Notre Dame 11/26/02
7-15 Kyle Korver vs. Fresno State 02/22/03
7-11 Nate Funk at Nebraska 11/18/06
7-9 Booker Woodfox at Saint Joseph's 12/06/08
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 one more than the 10 straight from 1966 to 1975 by Louisville.
The only 12 schools to make the postseason in each of the last 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.
MVC Preseason Poll
For the second time in three years, Creighton has been picked to win the Missouri Valley Conference in a preseason poll of coaches, beat writers, SID's and play-by-play men.
Creighton was picked first on 36 of the 39 ballots to earn 386 of a possible 390 points. Last year's favorite, Southern Illinois, earned two first-place votes and totaled 322 points for second place, just ahead of Illinois State, which garnered 309 points and the lone remaining first-place vote. Rounding out the rest of the poll was Drake (274), Bradley (219), UNI (186), Indiana State (137), Evansville (122), Wichita State (105) and Missouri State (85).
The preseason all-MVC team is headlined by preseason player of the year Osiris Eldridge (Illinois State). Joining Eldridge on the first team are P'Allen Stinnett (Creighton), Bryan Mullins (Southern Illinois) and the Drake tandem of Jonathan Cox and Josh Young. Honorable-mention picks include the Bradley pair of Theron Wilson and Andrew Warren, as well as the Evansville duo of Shy Ely and Jason Holsinger.
Crowds Increase For League Action
Compared to its non-conference crowds, Creighton's attendance has increased in MVC action each of the previous eight years:
Creighton's Yearly Home Attendance
Year Non-MVC Games MVC Games Change
2000-01 7,132 7,268 +2%
2001-02 6,333 6,800 +7%
2002-03 7,401 8,996 +22%
2003-04 11,467 12,443 +9%
2004-05 9,926 12,207 +23%
2005-06 13,404 14,343 +7%
2006-07 15,471 16,153 +4%
2007-08 14,544 16,122 +10%
2008-09 16,040 16,422 +2.4%
Statistical Leaders, Nationally
Through games of March 12th, Booker Woodfox ranked first in three-point field goal percentage (48.9%), 17th in free-throw percentage (87.6%) 63rd in three-pointers per game (2.7) and 100th in field goal percentage (49.3%). Josh Dotzler ranked fourth with a 3.26 assist/turnover ratio and 47th with 2.1 steals per game. Cavel Witter's 86.1 percent free-throw percentage ranked 27th.
As a team, Creighton was ranked 18th in free-throw percentage (75.1), 12th in turnover margin (+3.9), 27th in three-point field-goal percentage (38.3) and 34th in three-point field goals per game (8.0).
Dotzler Top Seven in Assists & Steals
After seven previous games with exactly five steals in his career, Josh Dotzler had a career-best six steals on Dec. 13 against Northern Colorado. Creighton turned all six of those steals into points, scoring 13 points on its ensuing possessions.
Dotzler's 194 career steals ranks third in CU history. Dotzler's 378 career assists places him seventh in Creighton history, just ahead of current Indiana State coach Kevin McKenna from his playing days at CU.
Dotzler is one of four players in CU history with more than 150 steals and 300 career assists, joining Ryan Sears, Duan Cole and Latrell Wrightsell.
Steals (Since 1979-80)
Stl. Name Years
283 Ryan Sears 1997-01
195 Rodney Buford 1995-99
194 Josh Dotzler 2005-Pres.
186 Duan Cole 1987-92
Assists (Since 1970-71)
Ast. Name Years
570 Ryan Sears 1997-01
549 Ralph Bobik 1971-74
458 Randy Eccker 1974-78
430 Tyler McKinney 2001-05
418 Vernon Moore 1981-85
382 Duan Cole 1987-92
378 Josh Dotzler 2005-Pres.
332 Kevin McKenna 1977-81
Steal Leader
KenPom.com, a college basketball website dedicated to statistics, ranks Creighton guard Josh Dotzler among its best defenders. The site calculates that Dotzler earns a steal on 5.7 percent of all defensive possessions that he's in the game for, the nation's second-best rate.
The same website ranks Booker Woodfox 23rd in offensive rating, a calculation of a player's offensive efficiency from two-point range, three-point range and the free-throw line, as well as scarcity of turnovers per minute played.
Army of Iowans
Every Creighton team since 1988-89 has had at least one Iowa native, and this season is no exception.
Creighton has three players from Iowa on this season's team, continuing a long trend of relying on some of the Hawkeye State's top preps. CU's native Iowans this season include senior Dustin Sitzmann (LeMars) and sophomores Casey Harriman (Ida Grove) and Kaleb Korver (Pella).
Other past notable Iowans include Kyle Korver and Pierce Hibma (Pella), Ryan Sears (Ankeny), Brody Deren (Harlan), Tyler McKinney (Urbandale), Nate Funk (Sioux City) and Michael Lindeman (Iowa Falls).
Creighton has played at least one Iowa native in 475 straight games. That streak dates to a Feb. 5, 1994 win against Wichita State.
Big Blue Wave
Eleven different players are averaging 9.7 minutes per game or more this season for Creighton, with no player seeing more than 25.9 minutes per game.
Creighton has had at least 10 players average 10.7 minutes per game or more in each of previous three seasons, as well.
Creighton has not used anyone for more than 32 minutes in any regulation-length game this year. By comparison, seven individuals throughout the MVC average 32.5 minutes per game or more.
Two Years, 700 Points Under Altman
Creighton has had four players score 700 or more points in their first two years playing for Dana Altman. Two of those men, Booker Woodfox and P'Allen Stinnett, are currently in the program.
Among players in the Altman era, only Rodney Buford has scored more points in their first two years in the program.
700+Points In First 2 Years Under Dana Altman
Name Points Games Years
Rodney Buford 1,010 59 1995-1997
Booker Woodfox 825 65 2007-2009
P'Allen Stinnett 808 65 2007-2009
Kyle Korver 759 65 1999-2001
Long-Distance Streak Alive
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in a league-best 499 straight games since a 59-53 loss at Illinois State on Feb. 20, 1993. That's the longest active streak in the MVC.
The Charge Chart
Creighton took 62 charges last season, with Casey Harriman and Dane Watts sharing the team lead with 17 charges taken. Over the previous six seasons, the Bluejays have averaged 48.7 per year.
So far this season, Creighton has taken 45 charges in 33 games.
Below is a list of the Creighton players that have taken charges since the 2002-03 season:
Name 2002-07 ?07-08 ?08-09 Total
Justin Carter n/a n/a 8 8
Casey Harriman n/a 17 7 24
Josh Dotzler 4 5 6 15
Chad Millard n/a 7 4 11
P'Allen Stinnett n/a 5 4 9
Kenton Walker n/a 3 4 7
Kenny Lawson Jr. 0 2 4 6
Antoine Young n/a n/a 4 4
Kaleb Korver n/a 0 3 3
Booker Woodfox n/a 2 1 3
Cavel Witter n/a 3 0 3
Dustin Sitzmann 0 1 0 1
Former Players 226 17 n/a 243
Total 230 62 45 337
What's Your Twenty?
This was the 12th straight year that Creighton has won at least 13 of its first 20 games. Each of the previous 11 seasons it has done that, it reached the postseason. Here's a look at Creighton's record after 20 games in the 15 seasons under Dana Altman.
Creighton -- First 20 Games Under Dana Altman
Year First 20 W-L Final W-L Postseason
2008-09 15-5 ? ? ? NIT
2007-08 14-6 22-11 NIT
2006-07 13-7 22-11 NCAA
2005-06 15-5 20-10 NIT
2004-05 13-7 23-11 NCAA
2003-04 17-3 20-9 NIT
2002-03 18-2 29-5 NCAA
2001-02 14-6 23-9 NCAA
2000-01 14-6 24-8 NCAA
1999-00 14-6 23-10 NCAA
1998-99 14-6 22-9 NCAA
1997-98 14-6 18-10 NIT
1996-97 10-10 15-15 ---
1995-96 11-9 14-15 ---
1994-95 6-14 7-19 ---
Walker Nabs Double-Double
Sophomore center Kenton Walker became the only current member of the Creighton team to record a double-double, when he recorded 10 points and 10 rebounds in 20 minutes off the bench against Mississippi Valley State on December 2nd.
Walker's 10 points tied for the second-highest scoring output of his young career, while his 10 rebounds were one more of his previous career-best.
Like A Good Neighbor
Sophomore center Kenton Walker has been named one of 10 recipients of the MVC's Good Neighbor Award. The award is given to model student-athletes in good academic standing who demonstrate good sportsmanship and significant community service.
Jays Were 3-0 Once Again
Creighton's win against Oral Roberts on Nov. 22nd gave it a 3-0 start for the 10th time in the past 11 seasons. The 2006-07 team that started 2-1 is the lone exception in the past decade.
Each of Creighton's 3-0 starts under Dana Altman have been culminated in a postseason tournament appearance at the end of the year.
Creighton has not taken the floor with a losing record since December 3, 1997 when it faced Grambling. Wednesday will be the 378th game in a row the Jays have played with a record of .500 or better.
3 Players, 20 Points, First 3 Games
Creighton had three different players score 20 or more points during its first three contests this winter. P'Allen Stinnett (30) and Booker Woodfox (26) did it against New Mexico, while Cavel Witter (25) did it against Oral Roberts.
This is the first time it's happened in Dana Altman's 15-year tenure at Creighton, as well as the first time its happened at Creighton in at least 30 years.
Double-Double Eludes Lawson
Sophomore Kenny Lawson Jr. hasn't notched a double-double in his young career, but he's been steadily getting closer.
Lawson, who had 13 points and nine rebounds at Southern Illinois on Feb. 14, owns nine career games of at least eight points and eight boards in his career. CU has won eight of those games, outscoring foes by an average of 78.4-62.8.
Creighton is 24-4 in Lawson's career when he has five rebounds or more, but 26-14 in games he's appeared in and snared less than five caroms.
25 Points Off The Bench, Again
Cavel Witter scored 25 points off the bench in CU's Nov. 22 win over Oral Roberts.
It marked the second time in his career he's done that, as the junior guard torched Bradley for a Qwest Center Omaha record 42 points on March 1, 2008, in a double-overtime win over Bradley.
Before Witter, Creighton had not had a player score 25 points or more off the bench since March of 2002.
Television Records
Creighton is a combined 101-55 in televised games in the last seven seasons, including a 36-22 mark on KMTV-produced games (which does not include CU's record in NCAA Tournament games on KMTV). Creighton went 4-2 in games aired on KMTV in 2002-03, 6-3 in 2003-04, 4-5 in 2004-05, 5-3 in 2005-06, 6-2 in 2006-07 and 5-4 last year in KMTV-produced games. CU is 6-3 on KMTV this year.
The Jays are also 46-29 in games that air regionally or nationally in that time, including a 24-17 mark on MVC TV.
Creighton had 27-of-33 games on television last season. Twenty-four games have aired on television this season, including all but one MVC game.
What A Start!
The 2007-08 MVC Sixth Man of the Year, Booker Woodfox scored 26 points in his first career start against New Mexico on Nov. 16.
Woodfox's 26 points are the most by a Bluejay in their first career start since at least 1980.
Dynamic Duo, Part II?
From 1987-91, Creighton big men Bob Harstad and Chad Gallagher were known as the “Dynamic Duo”. Both men were named MVC Player of the Year (Harstad in 1990, Gallagher in 1991) and finished their careers first and second in school history for points scored.
The Jays had quite the dynamic duo in the season-opening win over New Mexico when P'Allen Stinnett (30) and Booker Woodfox (26) both lit up the Lobos.
The current duo became the first Bluejay pair to score 25 points or more in the same game in the Dana Altman era.
CU hadn't had that happen since, you guessed it, Gallagher (29) and Harstad (26) did it against Bradley on Jan. 21, 1991.
P'henomenal Debut x 2
P'Allen Stinnett's 23 points last year against DePaul were the most by a Bluejay in their first game since Cyril Baptiste scored 24 points on Dec. 1, 1969 against Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
Stinnett's 30 points in this year's opener were the most by a Creighton player in the season lid-lifter since Bob Harstad scored 38 points against Texas-San Antonio on Nov. 30, 1990.
Piling Up The Points, and Wins
Creighton has won 52 straight home games when scoring 68 points or more since Feb. 5, 2005.
Creighton has won 63 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.
Who Are Those Guys?
Creighton also has two walk-ons practicing with the team that might suit up on but are not listed in the media guide.
No. 24 is Matt Dorwart, a 6-7 freshman forward from Sidney, Neb. Dorwart played at Sidney High School and averaged 8.0 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while shooting 38.5 percent from three-point range.
No. 40 Derek Sebastian is a 6-5 freshman guard/forward from Loveland, Colo. Sebastian played at Thompson Valley High School, where he averaged 14.8 points and 8.8 rebounds per game last year.
Turning Point?
One common theme when Creighton is successful is that they have had an advantage in “points off turnovers” in many of those contests.
Creighton was 17-4 when scoring more points off turnovers than its opponent last year. In the last five years, Creighton is 85-14 when winning this category, including an 24-4 mark this winter.
Paint Points
Since Creighton started tracking points in the paint six years ago, CU is 63-9 in games when scoring 28 or more points in the paint.
Largest...Crowd...Ever...
Creighton drew its largest crowd, a record crowd for the state of Nebraska, and a record for a league game in its win against Wichita State on Dec. 28, 2008 as 17,954 attended the game at Qwest Center Omaha. That bettered the previous Creighton single-game mark (17,607 vs. Drexel - 2/17/07).
Louisville formerly held the league's single-game attendance record for a regular-season conference game (17,661 vs. Cincinnati, Feb. 22, 1969).
NBA Presence
Two former Creighton players have spent time on NBA rosters this season. Kyle Korver (1999-2003) plays for Utah, while Anthony Tolliver (2003-07) has spent time this season with both San Antonio and New Orleans.
Tolliver averaged 2.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in 10.9 minutes during 19 games with San Antonio. He was cut by the Spurs on January 7th but resurfaced in the NBA on Jan. 21st when he signed a 10-day contract with the Hornets. He did not appear with the Hornets and returned to playing for the Des Moines Energy in the NBA D-League. Tolliver left for Turkey on Feb. 25th, where he will finish off this season.
Korver is averaging 8.7 points in 23.9 minutes per game off the bench for Utah. He is shooting 37.4 percent from three-point range for the Jazz.
Consistent Challengers
One of the most impressive facets of the Dana Altman tenure is how often his teams have been in the running for the MVC regular-season title. Nine of his last 12 teams have finished either first or second in The Valley's regular-season race, including this year. Two of the three that didn't won the MVC Tournament.
The Bluejays won the MVC in 2000-01 and tied for the title in 2001-02 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
Qwest To Be The Best
Creighton has played 98 regular and post-season contests at Qwest Center Omaha all-time. The Bluejays own a 83-15 (.847) record all-time at the facility, including a perfect 17-0 figure on Wednesday's, a 6-0 mark on Thursday's and a 1-0 mark on Friday's. The 15 losses have been by a combined 85 points.
Creighton has outscored its opponents 7,270-6,105 in games at Qwest Center Omaha, an average margin of 11.9 points per game.
The Jays have led wire-to-wire 19 different times.
?W'inning Edge
Creighton's men's and women's basketball teams have been nearly unbeatable at home in recent seasons, going a combined 218-47 in the last nine seasons. In fact, the men and women have both lost a home game in the same month just four times since March, 2000.
Creighton's Home Records, Last Nine Years
Year Men Women Combined
2008-09 15-2 11-4 26-6
2007-08 16-2 11-1 27-3
2006-07 12-2 7-7 19-9
2005-06 15-2 5-7 20-9
2004-05 11-5 12-3 23-8
2003-04 14-2 12-1 26-3
2002-03 17-0 13-1 30-1
2001-02 12-3 11-1 23-4
2000-01 14-0 10-4 24-4
TOTALS 126-18 92-29 218-47
One of the Best Programs Around
Every five years since 1997, Basketball Times has evaluated the best of the best NCAA programs -- those that have won two-thirds of their games over the previous 10 season span. The 2007 edition of the report had 29 teams that met that qualification, including Creighton.
Those 29 schools were then ranked from 1-29 on categories like 10-year winning percentage, number of active NBA players, freshman graduation rate and US News & World Report's academic peer assessment score, as well as a subjective vote of 10 panelists who judged teams based on “program cleanliness” and “head coach ranking”.
Creighton finished an impressive seventh, trailing only Duke, North Carolina, Florida, Stanford, Gonzaga and Michigan State.
Basketball Times Overall Rankings
Rk. School Avg. Ranking
1. Duke 3.7
2. North Carolina 7.5
3. Florida 8.0
4. Stanford 8.8
5. Gonzaga 10.0
Michigan State 10.0
7. Creighton 10.2
8. Kansas 10.8
9. Xavier 11.5
10. Illinois 12.0
11. Arizona 13.5
12. Connecticut 13.7
13. Syracuse 14.5
14. Butler 14.8
15. College of Charleston 15.2
Southern Illinois 15.2
Texas 15.2
18. Kentucky 16.0
Pennsylvania 16.0
20. Maryland 17.3
21. Pittsburgh 17.5
22. Utah State 18.3
23. Kent State 18.8
24. Utah 20.2
25. Cincinnati 20.5
26. Murray State 20.7
Oklahoma 20.7
28. Oklahoma State 21.0
29. Memphis 23.0
Double-Digit Comebacks at Home
Creighton has fallen behind by double-digits in 24 of its 98 all-time home games all-time at Qwest Center Omaha. In 16 of those 24 games, the Bluejays came back to win.
Creighton's incredible streak of 181 straight games without a double-digit home loss (dating to Jan. 3, 1996) was snapped on Dec. 29, 2007 by Illinois State. That had ranked as the nation's oldest streak in that obscure category.
Double Digit Deficits at Qwest Center Omaha
Date Opponent Deficit Final Score
12/30/03 Missouri State 10 W 59-54
12/04/04 High Point 13 W 79-60
12/07/04 Kent State 16 L 58-67
12/18/04 Wyoming 13 L 64-68
02/01/05 Wichita State 10 W 73-69
02/05/05 Missouri State 15 L 71-79
11/26/05 Dayton 11 W 91-90 2ot
12/18/05 Xavier 10 W 61-59
01/18/06 Bradley 12 W 80-76
01/28/06 Wichita State 19 W 57-55
02/11/06 Southern Illinois 14 L 67-74
02/22/06 Indiana State 14 W 67-62
03/20/06 Miami (Fla.) 12 L 52-53
12/30/06 Missouri State 11 W 77-74
01/20/07 Southern Illinois 12 L 57-58
02/07/07 Evansville 14 W 79-74
11/09/07 DePaul 17 W 74-62
12/29/07 Illinois State 19 L 67-80
02/02/08 Wichita State 15 W 65-63
03/01/08 Bradley 12 W 111-110 2ot
03/18/08 Rhode Island 17 W 74-73
11/16/08 New Mexico 16 W 82-75
01/24/09 Drake 14 L 62-74
02/01/09 Missouri State 10 W 75-51
Double-Digit Comebacks
Including three times this season, Creighton has won after overcoming a double-digit deficit 29 times in the last nine seasons.
Below is a list of those comebacks, listed by size of the margin overcome:
Overcoming Double Digit Deficits, Last 9 Years
Date Opponent Deficit Final Score
01/28/06 Wichita State 19 W 57-55
11/27/01 Western Kentucky 18 W 95-91 2ot
02/12/03 Missouri State 17 W 70-67 ot
11/09/07 DePaul 17 W 74-62
03/18/08 Rhode Island 17 W 74-73
11/16/08 New Mexico 16 W 82-75
02/04/06 at Drake 16 W 72-67 ot
01/26/03 TCU 16 W 89-79
02/02/08 Wichita State 15 W 65-63
02/22/06 Indiana State 14 W 67-62
02/07/07 Evansville 14 W 79-74
12/04/04 High Point 13 W 79-60
03/09/03 vs. Wichita State 13 W 70-69
01/18/03 Southern Illinois 13 W 85-76
02/04/01 at Indiana State 13 W 77-71
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
Academically Tops In The MVC Too
Creighton ranks first in the Missouri Valley Conference in graduation success rate (94.7 percent) among all sports.
Also, for the fourth time in the six-year existence of the award, Creighton University has been recognized with the 2007-08 MVC All-Academic Award. Bluejay student-athletes posted a 3.30 cumulative grade-point average over the 2007-08 academic calendar. Creighton previously shared the award in 2003-04, and were the outright winners in 2004-05 and 2006-07.
Creighton had seven men's basketball players earn Dean's List (3.50 GPA or better) accolades last year, which helped the team to a 3.01 GPA overall.
Bench Points Add Up
Creighton owned 41 different double-figure scoring games last season off the bench, compared to a total of 30 during the previous three years combined. In fact, there were only four (of 33) contests in which it didn't have a double-figure scorer off the bench.
Last year's team scored 18 or more bench points in every game but one, with a low of 13.
This year, the Bluejay bench has scored 889 of the team's 2,429 points (36.6 percent).
Creighton's bench has scored 51 points in two different games this season and 41 or more four times.
This year's Creighton team has produced 31 double-digit scoring games off the bench, including 13 such efforts from Cavel Witter.
Recruits Inked
A pair of prep standouts signed letters-of-intent in November to join the Creighton men's basketball team next year.
Andrew Bock is a 6'1” guard from Eisenhower High School in Rialto, Calif. Bock averaged 18 points and eight assists per game while helping the Eagles to a 27-4 record. He was named Most Valuable Player of the Citrus Belt League last season.
Ethan Wragge (RAH-gy) is a 6'8” forward from Eden Prairie, Minn., where he attends Eden Prairie High School. He averaged 16 points and nine rebounds per game and owns the school record for three-point baskets made. He made 91 percent of his free-throw attempts last year. His team finished 19-9 last winter.
Both men will be freshmen and have four years of eligibility.
Last Season Recap
Creighton put together a second consecutive 22-11 season last fall, reaching the second round of the NIT with a team featuring nine newcomers.
P'Allen Stinnett (12.6 ppg.) swept MVC Newcomer and Freshman of the Year honors after leading Creighton in scoring, while senior Dane Watts (11.3 ppg.) led the team with 6.4 rebounds per game.
Booker Woodfox (9.6 ppg.) was named MVC Sixth Man of the Year as the leader for a bench that outscored CU's starters by 76 points for the season.
Ticket Information
Single game tickets for regular-season home games went on sale on Nov. 11 at 10 am.
Fans can purchase tickets in advance at Qwest Center Omaha Box Office, all Ticketmaster locations (Baker's, Younkers), Ticketmaster online at http://www.ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster and charging by phone at (402) 422-1212.
Morrison Stadium also sells tickets (in-person only) from 9:00 am-4:30 pm weekdays.
Only upper bowl seats will be available for any game and cost is $12 for adults and $8 for youth ages 3-18 (children two and under are free). For more information, call the Creighton Ticket Office at (402) 280-JAYS.
Creighton sold an MVC-record 13,615 season tickets for this year. The previous MVC record had been the 12,888 season-tickets Creighton fans bought for the 2007-08 season.
Creighton (26-7) returns to the postseason for a Missouri Valley Conference-record 12th straight season when it hosts Bowling Green (19-13) in first-round action of the MasterCard National Invitation Tournament on Wednesday at 7 pm.
Qwest Center Omaha (17,272) in Omaha, Neb. will host the action.
The winner of the Creighton/Bowing Green game will face the winner of Tuesday night's UNLV/Kentucky NIT game.
That second-round game would be played in Omaha if Creighton wins on Wednesday night. If Bowling Green wins on Wednesday night, the Falcons would play a road game at the home venue of the UNLV/Kentucky victor.
Radio Broadcast Information
KXSP (“Big Sports 590” AM) will broadcast all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2008-09 season. T. Scott Marr and Nick Bahe will call the action.
The game will not be streamed on www.bigsports590.com.
Big Sports 590 afternoon host Matt Perrault will host a call-in show focusing on the Bluejays, that leads into the pre-game show. Perrault will also take calls after the game, also on Big Sports 590.
Television Broadcast Information
Wednesday's game will not be televised.
Video Webcast Information
Wednesday's game will not be video webcast.
Live Stats
Live stats for Wednesday's game will be available on-line at www.gocreighton.com. Click on the “Live Stats” tab under “Multimedia” on the left side of the home page.
All About Creighton
Founded in 1878, Creighton University is a private co-educational university located in Omaha, Neb., and one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities.
Creighton was founded on Sept. 2, 1878 at the bequest of Mary Lucretia Creighton, the widow of telegraph pioneer Edward Creighton, who included money in her will for the establishment of a school in her husband's name.
Creighton has an enrollment of 7,051, of which 4,104 are undergrads.
For the fifth consecutive year, Creighton University in 2008 is No. 1 in U.S. News & World Report's ranking of Midwest masters' universities. It is the 10th time in 12 years Creighton has been No. 1, and the 21st straight year the University has been ranked at or near the top of the magazine's “America's Best Colleges” edition. Creighton also was recognized as No. 1 in the Midwest region as a “best value,” where students get the best return on their tuition investment.
Creighton ranks 5th in PC Magazine's Top Wired Colleges, and is the only university in Nebraska and the only Catholic school in the nation recognized.
Creighton owns a student-to-faculty ratio of 12:1.
Creighton serves as the annual host institution for the NCAA Men's College World Series. June 13-24, 2009 will mark the 60th consecutive year the CWS comes to Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha.
Creighton Athletics ranked 23rd nationally in 2007-08 with a 94 percent graduation rate and has won the MVC's All-Academic Award in three of the past four seasons.
Creighton's student-athletes owned a 3.32 GPA last fall.
Famous Creighton alums include Kyle Korver, Paul Silas and Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson (who also competed in basketball and track at CU).
Scouting Creighton (26-7, 14-4 MVC)
The preseason favorites in the Missouri Valley Conference lived up to that moniker, tying for the regular-season title with a 14-4 league mark.
The Bluejays have won 11 of their last 12 and 23 of their past 28 games to improve to 26-7 overall.
MVC Player of the Year Booker Woodfox leads the team with 15.9 points per game and ought to be included in the discussion of the nation's best shooters. The senior guard leads the nation in three-point percentage (48.9 percent) and ranks 17th nationally in free-throw percentage (87.6 percent).
Also scoring in double-figures is sophomore guard P'Allen Stinnett (12.3 ppg., 1.4 spg.). Stinnett was a second-team all-Valley pick after sweeping MVC Freshman and Newcomer of the Year honors last season.
Senior point guard Josh Dotzler owns an MVC-best 68 steals and is fourth nationally in assist/turnover ratio (3.26), while sophomore big man Kenny Lawson Jr. tops The Valley with 53 blocked shots. Both Dotzler and Lawson were named to the MVC's All-Defensive Teams.
Creighton shoots 44.6 percent from the floor, 38.3 percent from three-point territory and is also making 75.1 percent of its shots from the line.
The Bluejays returned 10 lettermen and three starters from last year's 22-11 team that made an 11th straight postseason appearance, reaching the second round of the NIT.
Scouting Bowling Green
Bowling Green is 19-13 on the season and received an automatic bid to the NIT by winning the Mid-American Conference regular season conference championship. This will be BGSU's first postseason appearance since playing Butler in the NIT in 2002.
Senior forward Nate Miller is a first-team all-MAC selection and one of three players in Falcons history with at least 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 145 steals in a career. He leads Bowling Green in scoring (13.5), rebounding (7.4) and steals (2.0) per game and has had career-high point totals in each of his last two games (22, then 27).
Fellow senior Brian Moten was an honorable-mention all-MAC pick after averaging 11.1 points per game. Moten tops the team with 67 three-point baskets.
BGSU averages 64.2 points per game while allowing only 60.8 per contest. The Falcons shoot 43.1 percent from the field, 35.5 percent from three-point range and 67.5 percent at the line. It also outrebounds foes by 1.5 caroms per contest and has a -0.5 turnover margin.
The Falcons were 0-6 in non-conference road games, including single-digit losses at both Minnesota (68-61) and Ohio State (61-57), but have won six of its past seven games in enemy venues.
The Coach
The dean of Missouri Valley Conference coaches, Creighton's Dana Altman (Eastern New Mexico, 1980) is in his 15th year as head coach of the Bluejays.
He owns a 308-159 (.660) mark at Creighton and a career record of 391-226 (.634) in his 20th year as a NCAA Division I head coach when you add four seasons at Kansas State and one at Marshall. Tack on four years at the junior college level and Altman's overall record as a college head coach is 514-250 (.673).
Creighton's all-time winningest coach, Altman has been named national, conference, regional or district coach of the year in 10 of his first 23 years as a head coach. The 2001 and 2002 MVC Coach of the Year was a finalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year Award in 2003. In 2004, Altman was named the Collegeinsider.com Jim Phelan National Mid-Season Coach of the Year. In March, 2007, Altman was named a coach on the MVC's All-Centennial Team.
Additionally, Altman has led Creighton to seven NCAA Tournaments and his teams have played in the postseason in 12 straight seasons. He is assisted by Brian Fish, Darian DeVries and Todd Eisner. Nick Bahe is the team's graduate manager.
Louis Orr is in his second season as head coach of Bowling Green and was recently named Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year. Orr owns a 32-30 record in his second season at Bowling Green, and a 132-110 record in eight seasons overall when you include stops at Siena (2000-01) and Seton Hall (2001-06). Orr is assisted by LaMonta Stone, George Jackson and Louis Twigg.
Series History
Creighton and Bowling Green have never met.
Head coach Dana Altman has never coached against Louis Orr.
Altman is 3-5 in his career against teams from the Mid-American Conference, including a 1-4 record at Creighton. The lone win at CU was a 71-60 home victory over Akron in the 2006 NIT.
MVC Tournament Recap
Creighton went 1-1 at the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, which is contested at Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo.
The second-seeded Bluejays defeated Wichita State, 63-62, in quarterfinal round action thanks to a buzzer-beating game-winner by Booker Woodfox.
In the semifinals, Creighton would never lead while losing a 73-49 decision to Illinois State.
Woodfox, who led CU with 30 combined points in the two games, was named to the All-Tournament Team.
What A Win Would Mean
With a win on Wednesday, Creighton would...
-Improve to 27-7 on the season, and win for the 12th time in 13 games.
-Give Creighton a postseason win for the third time in the past four seasons.
-Improve Creighton to 5-9 all-time in the National Invitation Tournament.
-Give Creighton 31 straight Wednesday home wins.
-Give Creighton 18 consecutive non-conference home wins.
-Improve to 1-0 against Bowling Green.
-Creighton's 27 wins would be two behind the 2002-03 team that won a school-record 29 games.
-Improve Creighton to 35-1 at Qwest Center Omaha in non-televised games.
Creighton's NIT History
Creighton is playing in its 10th National Invitation Tournament, owning a 4-9 all-time record in the event.
Creighton owns a 2-4 home record, an 0-3 road record and a 2-2 neutral-site record in games played at Madison Square Garden.
This is Creighton's fifth NIT appearance under Dana Altman, who is 2-4 in NIT games at Creighton and 6-7 in his career when you include two NIT appearances while at Kansas State.
1942 (2-1) in New York City, N.Y.
3/16 Creighton 59, West Texas A&M 58
3/23 W. Kentucky 49, Creighton 36
3/25 Creighton 48, Toledo 46
1943 (0-1) in New York City, N.Y.
3/18 Washington & Jefferson 43, Creighton 42
1977 (0-1) in Omaha, Neb.
3/08 Illinois State 65, Creighton 58
1984 (0-1) in Omaha, Neb.
3/15 Nebraska 56, Creighton 54
1990 (0-1) in Chicago, Ill.
3/16 DePaul 89, Creighton 72
1998 (0-1) in Milwaukee, Wis.
3/11 Marquette 80, Creighton 68
2004 (0-1) in Omaha, Neb.
3/16 Nebraska 71, Creighton 70
2006 (1-1) in Omaha, Neb.
3/16 Creighton 71, Akron 60
3/20 Miami (Fla.) 53, Creighton 52
2008 (1-1) in Omaha, Neb. & Gainesville, Fla.
3/18 Creighton 74, Rhode Island 73
3/21 Florida 82, Creighton 54
Altman In The NIT
Creighton coach Dana Altman is making his seventh appearance in the NIT, and fourth with the Bluejays. Altman owns a 6-7 record in the NIT and a 2-4 mark at Creighton. Below is a list of the games his teams have played in:
Date Result
03/21/08 Florida 82, Creighton 54
03/18/08 Creighton 74, Rhode Island 73
03/20/06 Miami (Fla.) 53, at Creighton 52
03/16/06 at Creighton 71, Akron 60
03/16/04 Nebraska 71, at Creighton 70
03/11/98 at Marquette 80, Creighton 68
03/30/94 Siena 92, Kansas State 79 (in New York)
03/28/94 Vanderbilt 82, Kansas State 76 (in New York)
03/24/94 at Kansas State 115, Fresno State 77
03/22/94 at Kansas State 66, Gonzaga 64
03/17/94 at Kansas State 78, Mississippi State 67
03/23/92 at Notre Dame 64, Kansas State 47
03/18/92 at Kansas State 85, Western Kentucky 74
Altman Went From Manhattan To Manhattan
Dana Altman's 1994 Kansas State team won three straight home games in Manhattan, Kansas to advance to the NIT Final Four, which is played in Manhattan, New York at the world's most famous arena, Madison Square Garden. Bluejay assistant coach Brian Fish was also a film coordinator on that team.
Helping key Kansas State's 1994 run to the NIT Final Four was a masterful quarterfinal round performance by Askia Jones. Jones scored 62 points while draining 14-of-18 three-pointers in a 38-point win over Fresno State. Jones made 11 treys in the second half, including nine straight at one point. Jones' 62 points remain the 12th-most points in a game in NCAA history and rank second in postseason tournament history.
More Trips To New York, Too
One other member of the Creighton program has reached the Final Four of the NIT in New York City as well. Junior Chad Millard's Louisville team reached the semifinals of the NIT in 2005-06 before he transferred to Creighton.
Recent NIT History for the MVC
The MVC went 3-3 in NIT action last season, with Creighton, Illinois State and Southern Illinois all going 1-1.
The last MVC school to win the men's NIT championship was the 1982 Bradley team that beat American, Syracuse, Tulane, Oklahoma and Purdue en route to the title.
The MVC has had a women's team reach the Final Four of the WNIT (held at campus sites) three of the last six seasons. The 2003 Creighton's women's team lost in the semifinals to eventual champion Auburn, while the 2004 Creighton women's team won the WNIT. In 2005, Missouri State's women's team won the WNIT.
Back-to-Back NIT Appearances
This is Creighton's 10th appearance in the NIT, but just the second time its made back-to-back appearances. CU also earned consecutive NIT bids in 1942 and 1943, back when the NIT was considered the “elite” postseason tournament.
Home Sweet NIT Home
If the past two years are any indication, having the home-court advantage during the NIT is a tremendous factor. Since the NIT was trimmed to 32 teams and taken over by the NCAA two years ago, home-court teams are a combined 45-11 in the event.
In each of the last two seasons, home teams have gone 13-3 in the first round and 7-1 in the second round. In quarterfinal round action, home teams are 5-3 in that same span.
Home Court Records, NIT, By Round
Year Rd. 1 Rd. 2 Rd. 3 Total
2008 13-3 7-1 1-3 21-7
2007 13-3 7-1 4-0 24-4
Non-Conference Home Success
Creighton owns a 79-12 (.868) record in non-conference home games under Dana Altman. Equally impressive, CU is 39-5 (.886) in non-conference home games since moving to Qwest Center Omaha.
During CU's active string of 12 straight postseason bids, the Bluejays are 62-7 (.899) in home games against non-conference foes.
Creighton has won 17 straight non-conference home games (since Feb. 17, 2007 vs. Drexel) and has won 30 straight home games played on Wednesday's (since Jan. 12, 2000 vs. No. 19 Tulsa).
No TV, No Problem
Creighton is 9-0 in games that have not been televised this season, and have won 10 straight games when not on the tube dating to a loss at Evansville last year. The Jays have won those games by an average of 82.8-67.8.
Creighton has won 13 straight home games that have not been televised, outscoring those foes by an average of 84.3-61.2. The last home loss by CU in a non-televised home game came on March 20, 2006 in an NIT setback against Miami.
Creighton is 34-1 all-time at Qwest Center Omaha in non-televised games.
Slow Out Of The Gate
Creighton has trailed at the half in 12 of its last 14 postseason games under Dana Altman. The Jays 40-26 lead over Akron in 2006 and 32-31 lead over Nevada in 2007 stand as the only exceptions. It is worth noting that in nine of those 14 games, CU tied or outscored the opposition in the second half.
Louis Orr's Bowling Green teams are 27-6 with a halftime lead but just 3-20 when trailing at intermission in the past two seasons.
Year Opponent 1st Half 2nd Half W-L
2008 Florida 19-39 35-43 L
2008 Rhode Island 30-45 44-28 W
2007 Nevada 32-31 27-28 L
2006 Miami (Fla.) 19-29 33-24 L
2006 Akron 40-26 31-34 W
2005 West Virginia 31-33 30-30 L
2004 Nebraska 29-35 41-36 L
2003 Central Michigan 22-38 51-41 L
2002 Illinois 26-31 34-41 L
2002 Florida 31-38 38-31 W
2001 Iowa 30-32 26-37 L
2000 Auburn 25-40 44-32 L
1999 Maryland 32-45 31-30 L
1999 Louisville 23-31 39-27 W
Qwest Center Home To Some Close Games
This will be Creighton's fifth all-time postseason game at the six-year-old Qwest Center Omaha. Three of the previous four games were decided by a single point.
Creighton has won 16 of its last 21 games decided by one point (including six straight), and is 18-11 under Dana Altman in such contests.
NIT Games, Qwest Center Omaha History
Date Att. Score
3/16/04 13,483 Nebraska 71, Creighton 70
3/16/06 10,197 Creighton 71, Akron 60
3/20/06 10,018 Miami 53, Creighton 52
3/18/08 7,948 Creighton 74, Rhode Island 73
Qwest Records Within Reach
Booker Woodfox is approaching a Qwest Center Omaha record for points in a season. He has scored 269 points in 17 games at home this year, second only to Nate Funk's 286 in 15 games during the 2004-05 campaign.
Also within shouting distance is P'Allen Stinnett, who has scored 245 points at home this year.
Connections With Bowling Green
Creighton and Bowling Green don't have a lot in common, but there are a few rather obscure connections.
Bowling Green is a member of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association, where it competes against Nebraska-Omaha on an annual basis. Bowling Green, however, is just 2-7-1 all-time at Qwest Center Omaha, where it has lost six straight games and winless since November 13, 2004.
Bowling Green junior Adrion Graves has played against Creighton twice when he was a member of the Xavier basketball team. Graves did not score in 11 minutes in the Musketeers win in Cincinnati in December of 2007, and did not score in four minutes of play in a Creighton win over XU in 2006 in Omaha. Graves is sitting out this season as a transfer and is unable to travel with the BGSU squad due to NCAA restrictions.
Against Common Opponents
Creighton and Bowling Green have played just one common opponent this season, with that being Illinois State. The Bluejays were 1-2 in those games versus the Redbirds, while the Falcons went 0-1 against ISU.
Opponent Creighton Bowling Green
Illinois State ISU 86-64 ISU 65-78
CU 74-70 -
ISU 73-49 -
Against Postseason Opponents
Creighton played 18 games against postseason qualifiers this season (going 12-6), while Bowling Green had 10 such contests (going 4-6).
Creighton was 2-1 against NCAA qualifiers, while Bowling Green was 1-4.
Against NIT qualifiers, CU was 3-3 while BGSU was 0-1.
Against Collegeinsider.com Tournament qualifiers, Creighton was 5-1 while Bowling Green went 1-1.
Against College Basketball Invitational qualifiers, the Bluejays went 2-1 while the Falcons went 2-0.
vs. NCAA Qualifiers
Opponent Creighton Bowling Green
Dayton CU 77-59 -
Northern Iowa UNI 69-66 -
CU 77-71 -
Minnesota - UM 68-61
Ohio State - OSU 61-57
Akron - UA 62-52
- BGSU 50-46
- UA 63-55
vs. NIT Qualifiers
Opponent Creighton Bowling Green
New Mexico CU 82-75 -
Nebraska NU 54-42 -
Illinois State ISU 86-64 ISU 65-78
CU 74-70 -
ISU 73-49 -
George Mason CU 76-63 -
vs. CIT Qualifiers
Opponent Creighton Bowling Green
Bradley CU 73-64 -
CU 79-65 -
Evansville CU 79-57 -
CU 89-84 -
Drake DU 74-62 -
CU 79-68 -
Kent State - KSU 72-48
- BGSU 67-66
vs. CBI Qualifiers
Opponent Creighton Bowling Green
Wichita State CU 68-56 -
WSU 74-61 -
CU 63-62 -
Buffalo - BGSU 86-82
- BGSU 59-48
Heartbreak Hotel
Six of Creighton's last seven postseason runs have included a game that was decided in the final seconds, including the past five seasons.
Last year Creighton rallied from a 12-point deficit in the final 3:07 to top Rhode Island, 73-72, in the first round of the NIT. Cavel Witter hit the game-winner with 3.2 seconds left to give CU its first lead of the game since 3-0.
In 2007, Creighton had the ball for a final shot in a tie game against Nevada in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Nate Funk's shot attempt missed, and a tip-in try was also not converted. The Jays would eventually lose 77-71 in overtime.
In 2006 in the NIT, Miami (Fla.) guard Guilermo Diaz drained a free throw with 2.6 seconds left to beat Creighton 53-52. A last-second shot attempt by Bluejay senior Johnny Mathies was knocked out of his hands.
In the 2005 NCAA Tourney, Nate Funk had his three-point try with seven seconds left blocked by Tyrone Sally, and Sally raced downcourt for a breakaway dunk with 2.4 seconds left to give West Virginia a 63-61 win. Funk's three-point try from the corner missed at the buzzer.
In 2004, Creighton fell 71-70 to Nebraska in the NIT. The Jays led nearly the entire second half before NU's go-ahead basket with 12 seconds left. Nate Funk's game-winning jumper from 18-feet away was blocked by Husker guard Jake Muhleisen.
In 2002, Creighton beat #15 Florida, 83-82, in Chicago. Terrell Taylor hit a game-winning trey with 0.2 seconds left in double-overtime, his final three of 28 points after a scoreless first half.
Record Breaking Attendance
Creighton has attracted 276,115 home fans so far this season, a figure that is the most in the 102-year history of the MVC.
The Jays are also on pace to set an MVC record in average attendance. Creighton is averaging 16,242 fans currently (10th nationally), just ahead of the 15,909 average from 2006-07.
Highest Season Home Attendance, MVC History
Home Att. School Year
276,115 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
16,242 so far Creighton 2008-09
15,909 Creighton 2006-07
15,333 Creighton 2007-08
13,901 Creighton 2005-06
13,674 Louisville 1974-75
2008-09 Attendance Leaders (Thru 3/16/09)
Rk. School Average Next
1. Kentucky 23,012 3/17
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. Creighton 16,242 3/18
11. Marquette 16,200 --
12. Arkansas 16,043 --
13. Illinois 15,498 --
14. Ohio State 15,462 --
15. Indiana 14,331 --
What Is The Patch For?
Creighton wears one patch on its uniform. Located near the top of the shorts on the right leg is a black patch with the words “Doc” inscribed. The patch honors Dr. Lee “Doc” Bevilacqua, Creighton's volunteer team physician for 32 years until his passing in October of 1998. A member of the Creighton Athletics and MVC Hall's of Fame, Bevilacqua never received monetary compensation and always paid his own way when he traveled with teams.
Hot Team
Creighton has won 11 of its past 12 games and enters this week as one of the nation's hottest teams. Bowling Green went 8-4 in its final 12 games.
Below is a list of the nation's other teams that are 11-1 or better in the past dozen games. Notably, all but Creighton and Weber State are in the NCAA Tournament.
Team Last 12 Games Tourney
Memphis 12-0 NCAA
American 12-0 NCAA
Creighton 11-1 NIT
Binghamton 11-1 NCAA
Louisville 11-1 NCAA
Gonzaga 11-1 NCAA
Western Kentucky 11-1 NCAA
North Dakota State 11-1 NCAA
Binghamton 11-1 NCAA
Weber State 11-1 NIT
Mogan State 11-1 NCAA
Radford 11-1 NCAA
Alabama State 11-1 NCAA
The 26-Win Group
Creighton was one of 23 schools with 26 or more wins this season through March 16th. Nineteen of those teams made the NCAA's (all but Creighton, St. Mary's, Niagara and Charleston).
This year Creighton became the only school from a top-10 league to ever win 26 or more games and not receive an NCAA Tournament bid.
Wins Schools
31 Memphis
30 Utah State
28 North Carolina, Duke, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Missouri
27 Connecticut, Oklahoma
26 Creighton, Dayton, Villanova, Syracuse, Michigan State, Butler, Siena, Niagara, LSU, Davidson, Charleston, North Dakota State, Gonzaga, St. Mary's
Woodfox Named MVC Player of the Year
Senior Booker Woodfox has been named the Larry Bird Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year, edging out Evansville's Shy Ely and UNI's Adam Koch.
Woodfox is the fourth player in school history to earn MVC Player of the Year accolades, joining Bob Harstad (1990), Chad Gallagher (1991) and Kyle Korver (2002 and 2003).
Woodfox leads Creighton with 15.9 points per game, 86 three-pointers made, 48.9 percent from three-point range, 92 free-throws made and 87.6 percent from the line.
Honor Roll Update
No fewer than eight different players on this year's Creighton team were honored last week by the MVC office.
Booker Woodfox was named Larry Bird MVC Player of the Year, as well as a first-team all-Valley selection. This is his first honor on the first-team all-MVC squad, and he joins Bob Harstad (1990), Chad Gallagher (1991), Kyle Korver (2002 and 2003) as CU student-athletes to win Valley Player of the Year accolades. Woodfox was also named to the NABC's All-District Team on March 5th and to the MVC All-Tournament Team on March 8th.
P'Allen Stinnett was a second-team all-MVC pick. Last season Stinnett was an honorable-mention all-Valley choice.
Josh Dotzler and Kenny Lawson Jr. are both on the MVC's All-Defensive Team. Dotzler tops the league with 66 steals while Lawson leads the way with 49 blocked shots. This is the first such honor for both men.
CU also landed two men on the MVC's All-Bench Team. Freshman Antoine Young and sophomore Kenton Walker both earned a spot on that club.
Last but not least, Creighton had two men on The Valley's Scholar-Athlete Team. Sophomore Kaleb Korver (3.377 GPA in Business) and senior Dustin Sitzmann (3.886 in Exercise Science) were honored on the second-team. It is the first such honor for both gentlemen.
We Got Game
Creighton's game on Wednesday vs. Bowling Green will be its 34th of the season, tying the school record for most games in a season. The Bluejays also played 34 games in 2004-05 and 2002-03.
Current Creighton players to start all 33 games this season include Kenny Lawson Jr., Justin Carter and Josh Dotzler.
Current Creighton players to appear in all 33 games this season include Lawson, Carter, Dotzler, Cavel Witter, Casey Harriman and Kaleb Korver.
Below are the players who currently own a share of those single-season records:
Games Played (34) Games Started (34)
Tyler McKinney, ?05 Tyler McKinney, ?05
Johnny Mathies, ?05 Tyler McKinney, ?03
Kellen Miliner, ?05 Larry House, ?03
Dane Watts, ?05 Brody Deren, ?03
Jimmy Motz, ?05 Kyle Korver, ?03
Jeffrey Day, ?05
Anthony Tolliver, ?05
Pierce Hibma, ?05
Kyle Korver, ?03
Larry House, ?03
Mike Grimes, ?03
Brody Deren, ?03
Michael Lindeman, ?03
DeAnthony Bowden, ?03
Joe Dabbert, ?03
Tyler McKinney, ?03
Nate Funk, ?03
At The Buzzer!
Booker Woodfox's jumper as time expired on March 6th to beat Wichita State was the first time that Creighton hit a go-ahead basket at the buzzer since Jan. 28, 2006, when Anthony Tolliver scored to give CU a 58-56 victory over Wichita State.
Woodfox has now hit three baskets in his Creighton career that gave CU the lead for good in the final 30 seconds of an eventual win. Last year he hit a shot to beat Oral Roberts, and earlier this year he drained a three-pointer that beat Southern Illinois.
About The Senior Class
Creighton's senior class consists of Josh Dotzler, Booker Woodfox and Dustin Sitzmann. Over the past four years, Creighton is 90-39 with four 20-win seasons and four postseason appearances (one NCAA, three NIT's) to date.
Dotzler is a senior guard from Omaha who owns 422 points, 378 assists, 194 steals and 181 rebounds in his career. He's played in 115 games, including 94 starts, and ranks in the top-seven in CU history in both assists and steals.
Sitzmann is a senior guard from LeMars, Iowa, who owns 16 points, eight rebounds and six assists in his career. Sitzmann has played in 40 games, all as a reserve, while seeing 77 minutes of action.
Woodfox is a senior guard from Lewisville, Texas, who owns 825 points, 150 rebounds and 75 assists in his career. Woodfox has played in 65 games, including 32 starts, and is on pace to set CU records for three-point percentage in a season and career.
Half-Grand Man
Senior Booker Woodfox has scored 508 points this season, two points ahead of Bob Gibson for 29th on CU's all-time single-season list.
Woodfox is just the fourth different Creighton player to score more than 500 points in the past 15 years, joining an elite group that includes Kyle Korver (2003), Nate Funk (2005 and 2007) and Rodney Buford (1997, 1998 and 1999).
An Unlikely Turnaround?
Creighton trailed Northern Iowa by three games in the league standings with six conference games left, heading into a road game against the first-place Panthers on Feb. 8th.
Creighton left Cedar Falls with a 77-71 road win, snapping UNI's school-record 11-game win streak, and sending notice that the race was on for the regular-season title.
Creighton owns a combined 14 all-time regular-season titles (7 outright, 7 shared), more than any other league school except Oklahoma A&M (15) and Kansas (also 14).
Three Streak Continues
Booker Woodfox has made a three-pointer in 29 straight games, which is the ninth-longest active streak nationally.
Woodfox's streak is the longest in CU history, one ahead of Kyle Korver's stretch of 28 games in a row with a trifecta.
It's worth noting that Korver's streak of 28 games with a trey was snapped when he did not attempt a field goal in 24 minutes of play during an 83-56 win over UNI on Feb. 9, 2002. Korver then drained a triple in 27 more games in a row, a stretch from Feb. 13, 2002 to Jan. 20, 2003.
Consecutive Games With a 3-Pointer, CU History
Streak Name Dates
29 Booker Woodfox 11/25/08 to Present
28 Kyle Korver 2/4/01 to 2/6/02
27 Kyle Korver 2/13/02 to 1/20/03
Consecutive Games With A 3-Pointer, Individuals
Courtesy STATS Inc. (through 3/16)
Rank No. Name, Team Next Game
1. 44 Josh Akognon, Cal St Fullerton --
2. 42 Craig Moore, Northwestern 3/18
3. 34 Ryan Schneider, Marist --
4. 33 Jack McClinton, Miami Fla. 3/18
5. 32 Chase Adams, Centenary --
32 Ryan Wittman, Cornell 3/20
32 Sean Ogirri, Wyoming 3/17
8. 30 Jamarco Warren, Charleston So. --
9. 29 Booker Woodfox, Creighton 3/18
29 David Holston, Chicago State --
Nation's Best Shooter?
Creighton guard Booker Woodfox continues to sink shots from all distances and angles, making his case as one of the nation's top shooters.
Woodfox ranks first in the NCAA in three-point field goal percentage (48.9 percent) and is 17th in free-throw percentage at 87.6 percent, which makes him one of three players in the country to rank in the top-20 nationally in both three-point percentage and free-throw percentage.
Below is a list of 13 incredible figures as they relate to Woodfox:
1. Leads the nation in three-point percentage (48.9 percent).
2. One of three players to rank in the top-20 nationally in both 3FG% and FT%, joining Miami's Jack McClinton and Texas Tech's Alan Voskuil.
3. Set a Creighton record with 36 consecutive made free throws earlier this season.
4. Has made 48-of-51 free-throw attempts away from home this season (94.1 percent), including 25-of-25 in MVC road games this year.
5. Is shooting 57.0 percent (45-79) from three-point range in games not against MVC schools.
6. When you subtract nine games played in January when he was hobbled by a bum ankle, Woodfox has shot 52.9 percent from three-point land (72-136) this season.
7. Has made 55.6 percent (10-18) of his three-point attempts in games televised by ESPN2 or ESPNU this year
8. On pace to shatter CU's single-season and career marks for three-point accuracy.
9. Has made 50.8 percent (30-59) of his three-pointers the last 12 games and 50 percent (21-42) from downtown the past nine games.
10. Woodfox has made a three-pointer in a school-record 29 straight games.
11. Woodfox is currently shooting 49.3 percent from the field overall this season. No Creighton player ever listed at 6'1” or smaller who has taken 200 attempts in a season since at least 1955 (when field goal attempts started being listed regularly) has shot better than 50.2 percent.
12. Hit a 16-foot jumper as time expired as Creighton beat Wichita State, 63-62, in the MVC Tournament quarterfinals. The shot helped avoid a potentially devastating loss that saw CU blow a 16-point lead in the final four minutes before his heroics.
13. Creighton is 15-0 this year when Woodfox makes more than 50 percent of his field goal attempts and 11-0 when he's over 50 percent from three-point territory.
Woodfox Invited To Three-Point Shootout
Booker Woodfox has been officially invited to compete in the Three-Point Shootout at next month's Final Four. The nation's leading three-point shooter will compete on Thursday, April 2nd, with the event televised on the ESPN family of networks.
Woodfox is Creighton's second player in the past six years to earn an invite to this event. In 2003, Kyle Korver finished second to Butler's Darnell Archey in the competition.
In the event that Creighton advances to the NIT championship game on April 2nd, Woodfox would withdraw from the field since the events are being held on the same night.
Pair of 9's
Creighton is one of four teams in the country that have posted multiple win streaks of nine or more this season, joining Connecticut, North Carolina and Xavier.
Creighton won nine straight games from Dec. 2-31 and then 11 victories in a row from Jan. 27-March 6th.
This is the first time in school history that Creighton has had two win streaks of nine or longer in the same season.
A Tradition of Win Streaks
Creighton's 11-game win streak was its longest streak in five years. The Bluejays have had at least one five-game win streak in 12 straight seasons, and 20 such streaks overall in the 15-year tenure of Dana Altman. Since 1988-89, the Bluejays have made the postseason all 15 times they've had a five-game winning streak in a season, but missed the postseason all six times they haven't.
Below is a list of Creighton's longest win streaks under Dana Altman.
CU's Longest Win Streaks Under Dana Altman
W's Dates Postseason?
12 Nov. 22, 2003-Jan. 11, 2004 NIT
11 Jan. 27-March 3, 2001 NCAA
11 Jan. 27 - March 6, 2009 NIT
10 Nov. 17-Dec. 29, 2002 NCAA
9 Jan. 21-Feb. 16, 1998 NIT
9 Nov. 22-Dec. 21, 1999 NCAA
9 Dec. 2-31, 2008 NIT
8 Feb. 16-March 7, 2005 NCAA
7 Four Times
6 Four Times
5 Four Times
Perfect Months
Creighton went 9-0 in December, closing out a perfect month with a Dec. 31 win at Indiana State. This marks Creighton's first-ever unbeaten month when playing nine games or more. Creighton's last previous undefeated December came in 2003-04, when the team went 7-0.
Creighton also went 9-0 in the month of February, the school's first ever unbeaten February in which it played nine or more games.
Chasing History
Creighton picked up its 20th win this season on Feb. 11th with a win over Bradley. This is the 21st time that Creighton has won 20 or more games, but only once before has it gotten there quicker on the calendar.
In the 2002-03 season, Creighton became the nation's first team to 20 wins when it beat Northern Iowa on Feb. 4th. That Creighton team won a school-record 29 games.
Creighton's 26 wins this season are second-most all-time, trailing only the 2002-03 season. Below is a list of the campaigns in which Creighton has had 24 or more wins in a season.
Wins Year(s)
29 2002-03
26 2008-09
24 2000-01, 1990-91
20 Overall Wins x 11 Years = MVC History
Creighton is the only school in the 102-year history of the Missouri Valley Conference to post 11 straight 20-win campaigns, a figure it reached this season on Feb. 11 with a win over Bradley. No other Valley school owns more than six straight 20-win seasons.
Creighton is one of seven teams nationally with 20 or more wins in each of previous 10 seasons. That list consists of Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kent State and Syracuse.
Creighton, Duke, Florida Gonzaga, Kansas and Syracuse have already extended their streak to 11 straight years. Below is a list of where Kent State stands as it chases an 11th straight 20-win season:
Team Current W-L Next Game
Kent State 19-14 3/17 at Oakland
20 Wins = Postseason Again
Creighton, Northern Iowa and Illinois State all have 20 or more wins this year, and all three made the postseason. Since the NCAA Tournament field was expanded to 64 teams (1985), 65 Valley teams have posted 20 wins prior to "Selection Sunday." All but one reached post-season play (Creighton in 1985 did not).
10 Conference Wins x 13
Creighton has also 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 team with at least 13 straight years of 10 or more league wins is Kansas (15).
Five In Double-Figures x 3
Creighton placed five men in double-figures in consecutive wins over Bradley, Southern Illinois and Evansville in February.
Prior to that stretch, CU hadn't placed five players in double-figures during the same game since Jan. 31, 2007 when it did so against Bradley.
Creighton had not placed five men in double-figures in three consecutive games in a search back through readily available box scores dating to the 1981-82 season.
Tenure? He's Got 15 Years
Dana Altman is the dean of MVC coaches, as he is in his 15th season as head coach at Creighton.
According to a recent article by The Washington Times, Altman's 15 years at CU ranks 16th-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
26 Tom Green, Fairleigh Dickinson
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
Biggest Road Wins
Creighton won four Valley road games by double-digits this season.
Creighton's 79-57 win at Evansville on Jan. 20th ranked as the school's fourth-largest victory margin ever out of 367 Valley road games played. The Jays posted another 22-point Valley road win on Feb. 14th at Southern Illinois, topping the Salukis 82-60.
In fact, since 1933, the Jays had only posted one Valley road win by 22 points or more, a 28-point win in 2003 at Indiana State.
The 22-point victories at Evansville and Southern Illinois match the largest in the MVC this season by a road team in a conference game, as UNI also defeated Drake 81-59 on Jan. 17th and Illinois State beat Drake 67-45 on Feb. 15th.
Below is a list of CU's all-time Valley road wins by 22 points or more:
Largest MVC Road Win Margins, CU History
Score Margin Opponent Date
46-16 +30 at Morningside 2/16/1925
74-46 +28 at Indiana State 1/29/2003
43-17 +26 at Drake 1/15/1932
79-57 +22 at Evansville 1/20/2009
82-60 +22 at Southern Illinois 2/14/2009
Road Reversal
Six of Creighton's MVC road results were the opposite of how it did in those road trips last season. In the six Valley venues Creighton lost in last season, it went 5-1. In the three Valley cities Creighton won in last year, it went 2-1.
Opponent 2007-08 2008-09
at Bradley BU 87-59 CU 73-64
at Drake DU 75-65 CU 79-68
at Evansville UE 60-56 CU 79-57
at Illinois State ILS 68-54 ILS 86-64
at Indiana State INS 62-54 CU 79-61
at Missouri State CU 50-49 CU 65-59
at Northern Iowa CU 68-59 CU 77-71
at Southern Illinois SIU 48-44 CU 82-60
at Wichita State CU 68-65 WSU 74-61
Road The Key To Success
College basketball is one of the ultimate home-court sports, as roughly two-thirds of all games are traditionally won by the host school. Creighton's postseason destination often seems to revolve around its success, or lack thereof, while playing on the road.
Consider the following evidence:
-Creighton's 7-2 MVC road record was the school's best mark since the 2001-02 team went also went 7-2.
-Since 1977-78 (when Creighton rejoined the MVC) it has had five or more road wins nine times. Eight of those 10 teams reached the NCAA's while the other two reached the NIT. Of the 22 teams with four or less Valley road wins, three reached the NCAA's, four reached the NIT and 15 did not make the postseason.
-Additionally, Creighton currently has 11 wins away from home (eight road, three neutral). Eight of the past nine times it has had seven or more wins away from home (road + neutral), the Jays have made the NCAA Tournament, with this year being the only exception.
-Creighton has eight true road wins this season. Four of the six most recent times it has won eight or more true road games, it has made the NCAA's. This is the the first team with eight true road wins since the 1999-2000 club finished 8-6 on the road.
-At 7-2 on the MVC road, Creighton has now won three or more Valley road contests in 14 straight seasons.
Record Chasers
A trio of Bluejay guards are moving up on the school's single-season record lists.
Josh Dotzler leads Creighton with 68 steals thus far. That places him tied for fifth in school history.
Most Steals, Season
Stl. Name (Class) Year
80 Ryan Sears (Jr.) 1999-00
73 Ryan Sears (Sr.) 2000-01
72 Latrell Wrightsell (Sr.) 1991-92
70 Duan Cole (Sr.) 1991-92
68 Ryan Sears (So.) 1998-99
68 Josh Dotzler (Sr.) 2008-09
63 James Farr (Jr.) 1987-88
Fellow senior Booker Woodfox has made 86 three-point baskets this season, which ranks third in single-season Creighton history.
Most 3-Point Field Goals Made, Season
3FG Name (Class) Year
129 Kyle Korver (Sr.) 2002-03
100 Kyle Korver (So.) 2000-01
86 Booker Woodfox (Sr.) 2008-09
82 Tad Ackerman (Jr.) 1994-95
79 Kyle Korver (Jr.) 2001-02
Both Woodfox and Cavel Witter are also making a dent on the school's free-throw percentage list. Woodfox is fifth at 88.8 percent, while Witter is eighth at 86.1 percent.
Free Throw Percentage, (Minimum 70 Attempts)
Pct. Name (Class, Year) FTM-FTA
.908 Kyle Korver (Sr., 2002-03) 109-120
.890 Kyle Korver (Jr., 2001-02) 97-109
.882 Doug Brookins (Sr., 1974-75) 98-111
.880 Mike Caruso (Sr., 1970-71) 95-108
.876 Booker Woodfox (Sr., 2008-09) 92-105
.863 Nate Funk (Sr., 2006-07) 126-146
.867 Kyle Korver (So., 2000-01) 72-83
.861 Cavel Witter (Jr., 2008-09) 87-101
.855 Ryan Sears (So., 1989-99) 71-83
More Defense
Creighton held Northern Iowa to season-low 29.0 percent field goal shooting on Feb. 8th. It's the 10th time in the past 15 years that Creighton has held a team under 30 percent from the field.
Below is a list of all the teams to shoot less than 30 percent in a game since Dana Altman came to CU 15 years ago.
Poorest FG Pct., Opponents, Under Altman
Pct. Opponent FG-FGA Date CU Result
.233 Indiana State 10-43 03/02/07 W 59-38
.241 Ark.-Pine Bluff 14-58 11/29/06 W 74-39
.266 CS-Sacramento 17-64 12/14/96 W 59-42
.266 Tulsa 17-64 01/17/96 W 72-59
.273 Western Illinois 15-55 11/20/00 W 96-50
.274 Nebraska 17-62 12/11/05 W 70-44
.286 Indiana State 20-70 01/05/95 W 70-63
.289 Missouri State 13-45 01/05/08 W 50-49
.290 Northern Iowa 18-62 02/08/09 W 77-71
.291 George Mason 16-55 11/22/05 W 72-52
Altman Picks Up 300th Win With Jays
With Creighton's 79-68 win last on Feb. 4 at Drake, Dana Altman became just the second coach in the 102-year history of the Missouri Valley Conference to win 300 games at one school. Altman, who owns a 308-159 mark with the Jays, joins Henry Iba (486 wins at Oklahoma A&M) in that elite group.
Below is a list of some of Altman's milestone wins at Creighton:
W-L Rec. Opponent Date Result
50-55 at Evansville 02/02/98 W 85-76
100-78 Western Illinois 11/20/00 W 96-50
150-95 vs. Notre Dame% 11/26/02 W 80-75
200-109 vs. Ohio State% 11/24/04 W 65-63 (OT)
250-136 Bradley 01/18/07 W 65-64
300-158 at Drake 02/04/09 W 79-68
%Guardians Classic (Kansas City, Mo.)
A Ton of Points
Creighton has scored 2,429 points so far, moving over the 2,000-point barrier for the 11th time in 15 seasons under Dana Altman.
Creighton has now had nine teams score more than 2,200 points under Altman. Seven of those teams reached the NCAA Tournament, while the past two year's teams have done it and been sent to the NIT.
Most Points, Season, Under Altman
Rank Points Year Postseason
1. 2,688 2002-03 NCAA
2. 2,429 2008-09 NIT
3. 2,421 2004-05 NCAA
2,421 2001-02 NCAA
5. 2,410 1999-00 NCAA
6. 2,360 2007-08 NIT
7. 2,357 1998-99 NCAA
8. 2,325 2000-01 NCAA
9. 2,220 2006-07 NCAA
10. 2,100 1997-98 NIT
Check The Book's
Booker Woodfox has scored 20 or more points nine times this season, but his 23 points at Drake on Feb. 4 were the first time over the 20-point barrier in Valley action this season.
Creighton is 11-1 when Woodfox scores 20 or more points in his Bluejay career.
Woodfox has made five three-pointers in one game six times this year and eight times in his career. Creighton is 7-1 all-time when Woodfox makes at least five treys.
Iowa Road Sweep
Creighton picked up road wins at both Drake and Northern Iowa this year for the fourth time in five seasons, and seventh time in the past 12 years. Creighton also accomplished the feat in 1997-98, 2000-01, 2002-03, 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07.
CU's Feb. 8th win over UNI marked the first time Creighton has beaten the same opponent on the road in five straight seasons since topping Washington (Mo.) five years in a row from 1936-40.
All The Small Things
Josh Dotzler has scored just 42 points in the past 12 games, but you'd have a tough time finding a Creighton player doing any better.
In the past 12 games (11 wins), Dotzler has 48 assists, eight turnovers and 21 steals in 260 minutes.
Despite being CU's primary ballhandler, Dotzler owned just 18 turnovers in 18 MVC games this season, including 15 league games with zero or one miscue this winter. He ranks fourth nationally with a 3.26 assist/turnover ratio through games of last Thursday.
Give Me Four (Or More) From 3
Creighton has made four or more three-pointers in 66 consecutive games, which ranks eighth nationally.
Consecutive Games, 4+ 3-Pointers, Teams
Courtesy STATS Inc. (through 3/16)
Rank No. Team Next Game
1. 96 Lafayette --
96 Belmont 3/18
3. 80 Eastern Kentucky --
4. 74 Liberty 3/17
5. 72 Michigan 3/19
6. 70 Drake 3/18
70 Portland State 3/20
8. 66 Creighton 3/18
9. 62 Valparaiso --
Walk(er) This Way
Sophomore center Kenton Walker put together the best offensive game of his career in the Feb. 1 victory over Missouri State.
After missing his first two attempts, Walker hit seven of his last eight shots from the field en route to scoring a career-high 15 points.
Walker added five rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot in 21 minutes of floor time against the Bears.
Walker is averaging 5.0 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocked shots per game in 14.9 minutes per contest. He shoots 53.0 percent from the floor, best on the team.
Room To Board
The rebound differential between Creighton and its opponent has stood at 10 or larger in 17 of the 33 games to date.
The Jays have won the boards by 10 or more five times (going 4-1), but lost on the glass by double-digits on 12 occasions (going 8-4).
In the 16 games that the rebound discrepancy has been a single-digit, CU is 14-2.
Creighton is 13-2 when winning the rebound battle this year, and 18-3 when they are -9 or better on the glass.
Jays Reach 10 Home Wins, Again
The Jan. 27 win over Indiana State was Creighton's 10th home win this season. Creighton has now won 10 or more home games in 13 straight seasons, setting a school-record.
Creighton previously won 10 or more home games in 12 straight seasons from the 1969-70 season to the 1980-81 campaign.
Ball Control
Creighton point guards Josh Dotzler and Antoine Young have done an admirable job of taking care of the ball in the past 13 games, combining for just 22 turnovers in that span.
Young has 13 turnovers in 221 minutes of action, while Dotzler has just nine in 277 minutes of play in those 13 games.
Carter Carries Jays
Junior Justin Carter had one of his best all-around games on Jan. 27th in Creighton's victory over Indiana State.
Carter had career-highs with 17 points, four steals and two blocked shots. He also tied his previous best with eight rebounds.
Carter has taken over the team lead with 171 rebounds and ranks third with 61 assists while playing the power forward position. He is vying to become the first junior college transfer to lead Creighton in rebounding in his first season since Chuckie Johnson in 1995-96.
Carter has started each of his first 33 games at Creighton. The last player that could say that was Ryan Sears, who started all 124 games of his Bluejay career from 1997-2001.
Consec. Starts To Open CU Career, Last 15 Years
Starts Name Years
124 Ryan Sears 1997-2001
59 Edward St. Fleur 1995-1997
42 Tad Ackerman 1994-1996
33 Justin Carter 2008-Present
7-Up
Creighton went 7-for-7 from the field in the final seven minutes of its Jan. 27 win over Indiana State, getting four baskets from P'Allen Stinnett and one each from Booker Woodfox, Antoine Young and Kenton Walker.
Creighton has shot 108-for-206 in the final seven minutes of regulation in its 26 wins this season, good for 52.4 percent. That figure includes Stinnett shooting 24-of-28 from two-point range (85.7 percent), and the team shooting 34-of-83 (41.0 percent) from three-point range in that time range.
On the other hand in the final seven minutes of its seven losses, Creighton is 17-of-61 from the field (27.9 percent) and 5-of-29 from three-point range (17.2 percent). Stinnett is 0-for-9 from the field in the last seven minutes of CU's seven losses this season.
Altman Passing Coaching Legends
Dana Altman continues to pass some of the coaching greats in MVC history in two categories. Altman's 308 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 this March in conjunction with Arch Madness.
MVC Coaches--Most Wins In Conference Games
Wins Coach School(s)
1. 187 Henry Iba Oklahoma A&M
2. 172 Dana Altman Creighton
3. 163 Eddie Hickey Creighton & St. Louis
Coaches--Most Wins As MVC Member--All Games
Wins Coach School(s)
1. 486 Henry Iba Oklahoma A&M
2. 337 Eddie Hickey Creighton & St. Louis
3. 308 Dana Altman Creighton
Historically After 12 MVC Games
The last time that Creighton was 8-4 after 12 MVC games was the 2000-01 season, when it closed out the year with six straight wins to claim the Valley title at 14-4.
This is the 14th straight season that Creighton has had a league record of .500 or better after 12 games, and each of those 14 campaigns the Jays would also go .500 or better in its final six contests as well.
Prior to this year, Creighton had made the NCAA Tournament each of the last seven times it has gone 4-2 or better in its last six MVC games.
Year W-L After 12 W-L Final 6
2008-09 8-4 6-0
2007-08 7-5 3-3
2006-07 9-3 4-2
2005-06 9-3 3-3
2004-05 6-6 5-1
2003-04 9-3 3-3
2002-03 11-1 4-2
2001-02 10-2 4-2
2000-01 8-4 6-0
1999-00 7-5 4-2
1998-99 7-5 4-2
1997-98 8-4 4-2
1996-97 7-5 3-3
1995-96 6-6 3-3
1994-95 3-9 1-5
Total 115-65 (.639) 57-33 (.633)
Over .500 Again
Creighton has been better than .500 in either the first or second-half of the league season in 28 straight trips through the league, including the both halves this year.
Creighton's 28 consecutive halves above .500 in league play is easily the Valley's longest active streak, far ahead of Illinois State (4), Northern Iowa (3), Indiana State (1) and Wichita State (1).
Here's how Dana Altman's clubs have fared in the various halves of the MVC season since his arrival:
Year 1st Half 2nd Half
2008-09 5-4 9-0
2007-08 5-4 5-4
2006-07 6-3 7-2
2005-06 7-2 5-4
2004-05 5-4 6-3
2003-04 7-2 5-4
2002-03 8-1 7-2
2001-02 8-1 6-3
2000-01 5-4 9-0
1999-00 5-4 6-3
1998-99 6-3 5-4
1997-98 5-4 7-2
1996-97 5-4 5-4
1995-96 4-5 5-4
1994-95 3-6 1-8
Total 84-51 (.622) 88-47 (.652)
Second Half Turnaround, Again
This season turned around just like the 2000-01 campaign did. That season, like this one, saw the preseason favorite Bluejays drop to 5-4 at the midway point after a loss on Jan. 24th.
The 2000-01 team would post a win on Jan. 27th to start an 11-game win streak that helped carry the team to the MVC regular-season title and eventual at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament.
This year Creighton also lost on Jan. 24th before starting its recent 11-game winning streak on Jan. 27th, and would go on to win a share of the MVC.
Home Cooking
Creighton is 44-10 at home all-time at Qwest Center Omaha in MVC games (.815), compared to a 28-26 (.519) road record in the MVC during that stretch.
Only five MVC visiting schools (DU, ILS, MSU, UNI, SIU) have ever won a game in the six-year old Qwest Center Omaha. In fact, four Valley schools have not won a game in Omaha since the decade started.
Below is a look at Creighton's current home winning streaks over current league foes:
Opponent CU Streak Last Opp. Win in Omaha
Bradley Won 11 1/17/98
Drake Lost 2 1/24/09
Evansville Won 10 1/04/99
Illinois State Won 1 12/29/07
Indiana State Won 10 1/04/99
Missouri State Won 4 2/05/05
Northern Iowa Lost 1 1/6/09
So. Illinois Won 2 1/20/07
Wichita State Won 16 2/22/92
Lawson's Blocks Way Towards The Top
Sophomore center Kenny Lawson Jr. owns a league-high 53 blocked shots. Lawson has a blocked shot in 29 of CU's 33 contests this season. Lawson owns 81 career blocked shots, moving him into seventh on CU's all-time list.
Most Blocked Shots, CU History, Since 1979-80
Blk. Name Years
411 Benoit Benjamin 1982-85
183 Chad Gallagher 1987-91
138 Brody Deren 2001-04
136 Anthony Tolliver 2003-07
109 Doug Swenson 1997-99
104 Joe Dabbert 2000-04
81 Kenny Lawson Jr. 2006-Pres.
79 Adam Reid 1994-97
76 Livan Pyfrom 1999-01
75 Jeffrey Day 2004-06
Let's Start With Dotzler
Josh Dotzler has started each of Creighton's last 67 games, winning 48 of those starts. The streak dates back to the final contest of the 2006-07 campaign and is the longest active string in the Missouri Valley Conference.
For his career, Dotzler has made 94 starts, with CU winning 66 of them (70.2 percent).
Blocking Bookends
Sophomore post men Kenny Lawson Jr. and Kenton Walker are both among the MVC leaders in blocked shots, albeit in two different categories.
Lawson's 53 blocked shots for the season are six more than his closest competition, Bradley's David Collins.
Walker owned the Valley lead in conference play with 31 blocks, four more than UNI's Jordan Eglseder.
Creighton's last player to lead the league in blocked shots for an entire season is Brody Deren, who had 56 swats during the 2002-03 season when he was also a sophomore.
Big Shot Booker Strikes Again
Creighton's Booker Woodfox has drained a pair of game-winning baskets this season, and three in the past two years.
Woodfox's most recent heroics were at the MVC Tournament on March 7th, when he caught an inbounds pass with 1.8 seconds left, took two dribbles and fired in the game winner as the horn sounded to beat Wichita State.
Woodfox drained a go-ahead three-pointer with 21.4 seconds left in overtime against Southern Illinois on Jan. 14th.
He also hit a game-winning three-pointer to beat Oral Roberts by one point with 26.5 seconds left last season.
Fellow teammate P'Allen Stinnett hit five different shots on Jan. 14th that gave CU the lead against Southern Illinois and now has 18 go-ahead baskets this year, five behind Kenny Lawson Jr.'s and Woodfox's team-best 23.
Below is a list of Creighton's baskets that gave them a lead this season, as well as baskets that gave the team the lead for good.
Gave CU Lead Got Lead Last
Name Lead For Good 2 Minutes
Kenny Lawson Jr. 23 5 0
Booker Woodfox 23 7 2
P'Allen Stinnett 18 6 2
Justin Carter 12 3 0
Antoine Young 10 1 0
Kaleb Korver 5 1 0
Cavel Witter 5 0 0
Casey Harriman 5 0 0
Kenton Walker 4 1 0
Chad Millard 3 1 0
Josh Dotzler 2 1 1
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 209 wins in the decade, as well as nine postseason appearances:
MVC Standings (2000-01 to 3/15/09)
MVC only All Games
Team W L Pct. W L Pct.
Creighton 115 47 .710 209 81 .721
Southern Illinois 118 44 .728 202 93 .685
Northern Iowa 84 78 .519 156 124 .557
Missouri State 85 77 .525 157 126 .555
Wichita State 83 79 .512 155 126 .552
Illinois State 75 87 .463 146 130 .529
Bradley 78 84 .481 151 136 .526
Drake 69 93 .426 135 137 .496
Indiana State 50 112 .309 107 168 .389
Evansville 53 109 .327 101 162 .384
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
Cardiac Kids
Creighton's win over Wichita State on March 6th marked the eighth time in the past two seasons that Creighton won in which it trailed or had been tied at some point in the final minute, and second time this season.
Five of those eight wins came at home, and three of the games featured a go-ahead three-pointer in the final 30 seconds.
Margin Opponent Date
-5 Bradley 3/1/08
-4 Saint Joseph's 12/9/07
-4 Southern Illinois 1/14/09
-3 Rhode Island 3/18/08
-2 at Oral Roberts 2/23/08
-1 Wichita State 2/2/08
-1 vs. Wichita State 3/6/09
Tie at Missouri State 1/5/08
Step Right Up Young Man
Antoine Young scored 27 points in his first 16 games with Creighton (1.7 ppg.), but has since exploded to score 129 points over the past 17 games (7.6 ppg.).
That includes 15 points against Evansville, 13 points against Bradley and George Mason and 12 points against both Indiana State and Wichita State.
Young delivered the breakthrough game of his fledgling career on Jan. 10th at Bradley. Young had a career-best 13 points while adding two assists and a team-high two steals in 21 minutes. Young, who had entered the contest 0-for-11 from three-point range, also went 2-for-2 from downtown in the victory.
Young scored a career-high 15 points in Creighton's 89-84 win over Evansville on Feb. 17th. He missed his first six attempts, but would score all his points in the final 14:40 to help CU rally for the victory.
Fish Gets Call From Hall
Creighton University assistant coach Brian Fish has been named to the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame Silver Anniversary Team. He and 16 other former Indiana high school basketball standouts will be honored at a dinner on March 25 in Indianapolis.
Fish will be the just the seventh graduate in Seymour High School history to be honored. To qualify for the honor, a player must have graduated high school 25 years ago.
Fish still holds Seymour career records for charges taken (42), free throws made (390) and free throws attempted, ranks second with 1,400 points and is fourth with 128 steals, 505 field goals made and 1,112 field goals attempted.
Altman Records 500th Win
Creighton head coach Dana Altman picked up his 500th win as a college head coach at all levels on New Year's Eve against Indiana State.
Altman owns a career record of 514-250 in 24 years as a head coach at the Division I and junior college levels. Altman owns 29 wins at Southeast Junior College (1982-83), 94 wins at Moberly Junior College (1983-86), 15 wins at Marshall (1989-90), 68 wins at Kansas State (1990-94) and 308 victories at Creighton (1994-Present).
Comparison To Past Years
Below is a comparison after 33 games of this year's team to that of last year's team, as well as the memorable 2002-03 squad that finished 29-5, and the 2000-01 team that also won the MVC regular-season title, with season-bests in bold:
Statistic 2008-09 2007-08 2002-03 2000-01
W-L Record 26-7 22-11 29-5 24-8
MVC W-L 14-4 10-8 15-3 14-4
FG% .446 .447 .498 .442
3FG% .383 .366 .390 .359
3FG/Game 8.0 8.3 7.9 7.8
FT% .751 .719 .693 .702
Reb. Margin -3.4 +1.4 +1.6 +1.1
Assists 461 473 575 490
Turnovers 407 469 462 426
Blocks 132 116 153 114
Steals 271 245 283 293
PPG Scored 73.6 71.5 79.1 72.7
PPG Allowed 65.4 66.0 64.8 63.2
Woodfox Automatic At The Line Too
Not only has Booker Woodfox been lights-out from the field, but it's carried over to the free-throw line. Despite one of the nation's most unique pre-shot rituals, Woodfox drained a Creighton-record 36 straight free throws from Dec. 6-Jan. 3rd.
The 36 straight makes is four more than the previous Creighton record set by Michael Lindeman. The streak was seventh-longest in MVC history, and the longest in five years by a league player not named Blake Ahearn (Ahearn holds six of the 12 best streaks in MVC history).
For the season, Woodfox leads the MVC with 87.6 percent marksmanship from the line (92-105), which is eighth-best nationally.
Most Consecutive Free Throws Made, MVC History
60 Blake Ahearn, MSU (12/20/03 - 2/14/04)
60 Blake Ahearn, MSU (12/19/04 - 2/28/05)
57 Vince Greene, ILS (1/18/04 - 11/30/04)
51 Blake Ahearn, MSU (12/15/05 - 1/29/06)
48 Marcus Wilson, Evansville (12/1/96 - 2/2/97)
44 James Gillingham, BU (2/8/03 - 2/25/03)
36 Booker Woodfox, CU (12/6/08 - 1/6/09)
35 Aaron Zobrist, Bradley (12/27/96 - 1/27/97)
P For 3
Sophomore guard P'Allen Stinnett drained a three-pointer on the first possession of both halves, as well as a double-clutch banked trey at the first-half buzzer, en route to shooting 6-of-8 from three-point range at Indiana State on Dec. 31. The six three-pointers was a career-high for Stinnett, who opened his career with five three-pointers in the second half of a 2007 win over DePaul.
Stinnett is one of seven players on the current roster who have made three or more three-pointers in a game during their Bluejay career.
They Hit How Many?
Creighton drained 15-of-24 three-point attempts in its road win at Indiana State on Dec. 31st. The 15 three-pointers were tied for third-most ever, and the most by the Jays since they set a school and MVC record with a 20-of-30 display from downtown in a Feb. 19, 2005 win over Chattanooga.
Among games that Creighton has made 10 or more three-pointers all-time, Creighton's 62.5 percent shooting behind the arc was fourth-best in history, and its best since the 20-for-30 (66.7 percent) against Chattanooga.
Creighton is 20-0 all-time under Dana Altman when making 10 or more three-pointers and 54 percent or better of those attempts from downtown.
Creighton has made 10 three-pointers or more nine times this season, making at least 40 percent of its tries in eight of those contests.
Heating Up December
Booker Woodfox was red-hot from the field in the nine games played in December. Woodfox scored 180 points in 219 minutes in nine December games, all Bluejay wins. Woodfox shot 58-for-99 from the floor in that time (58.6 percent), including 35-of-60 (58.3 percent) from three-point land. Woodfox also hit 29-of-31 free throws (93.5 percent) in December.
Leading Scorer, Again
Booker Woodfox led Creighton in scoring during seven straight games from Dec. 6-28, averaging 21.3 points per game in that time. In Dana Altman's 15-year tenure, Creighton's only longer streak was by Rodney Buford, who twice had eight straight games.
Consec. Games as Leading Scorer, Under Altman
Games Name Dates
8 Rodney Buford Jan. 27-Feb. 17, 1997
8 Rodney Buford Feb. 23-Dec. 2, 1998
7 Rodney Buford Jan. 2-20, 1997
7 Booker Woodfox Dec. 6-28, 2008
Book It!
Booker Woodfox is 86-of-176 (48.9 percent) from three-point range this season, best nationally.
For his career, he is 142-of-308, which computes to 46.1 percent, just ahead of the school-record figure achieved by noted marksman Kyle Korver. The only previous player in CU history to shoot better than 44.5 percent from three-point range in their career was two-time MVC Player of the Year Korver, who made 45.3 percent from downtown while hitting 371-of-819 from long-range. Kaleb Korver ranks third on the list with 44.5 percent accuracy.
Creighton's 3-Point Percentage Leaders, Career
(Minimum 100 Attempts)
Pct. Name, Years 3FGM-FGA
.4610 Booker Woodfox, 2007-Present 142-308
.4530 Kyle Korver, 1999-03 371-819
.4455 Kaleb Korver, 2007-Present 49-110
.4415 Rod Mason, 1986-88 132-299
.4404 Nerijus Karlikanovas, 1998-00 48-109
.4306 Michael Lindeman, 2000-04 62-144
.4293 Duan Cole, 1987-92 176-410
.4206 Casey Harriman, 2007-Present 53-126
.4065 Nate Funk, 2002-07 200-492
.4053 Matt West, 1996-00 92-227
.4051 Matt Petty, 1989-93 143-353
.4017 Darin Plautz, 1989-91 94-234
Heavy Lumber For Woodfox
Booker Woodfox had a career-high in several categories during CU's 69-58 win at Saint Joseph's on Dec. 6. Woodfox had career-highs with 29 points, nine field goals and seven three-pointers while also matching his previous best with seven rebounds.
The seven three-pointers by Woodfox were the most by a Creighton player since Nate Funk made seven trifectas at Nebraska on Nov. 18, 2006.
Additionally, he was the first player in Creighton history to make at least seven three-pointers while shooting 75 percent or better from behind the arc in the same game. Below is a list of Creighton players to make seven treys in a game.
Creighton's Most 3-Pointers Made, Single-Game
3FG-A Name, Opponent Date
9-14 Kyle Korver vs. Evansville 01/15/03
8-13 Tad Ackerman at Drake 01/23/95
8-15 Terrell Taylor vs. Florida 03/15/02
8-13 Kyle Korver at Xavier 12/31/02
7-12 Gary Swain vs. Nebraska-Omaha 12/11/86
7-10 Ryan Sears vs. Wyoming 12/06/97
7-11 Kyle Korver vs. Notre Dame 11/26/02
7-15 Kyle Korver vs. Fresno State 02/22/03
7-11 Nate Funk at Nebraska 11/18/06
7-9 Booker Woodfox at Saint Joseph's 12/06/08
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 one more than the 10 straight from 1966 to 1975 by Louisville.
The only 12 schools to make the postseason in each of the last 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.
MVC Preseason Poll
For the second time in three years, Creighton has been picked to win the Missouri Valley Conference in a preseason poll of coaches, beat writers, SID's and play-by-play men.
Creighton was picked first on 36 of the 39 ballots to earn 386 of a possible 390 points. Last year's favorite, Southern Illinois, earned two first-place votes and totaled 322 points for second place, just ahead of Illinois State, which garnered 309 points and the lone remaining first-place vote. Rounding out the rest of the poll was Drake (274), Bradley (219), UNI (186), Indiana State (137), Evansville (122), Wichita State (105) and Missouri State (85).
The preseason all-MVC team is headlined by preseason player of the year Osiris Eldridge (Illinois State). Joining Eldridge on the first team are P'Allen Stinnett (Creighton), Bryan Mullins (Southern Illinois) and the Drake tandem of Jonathan Cox and Josh Young. Honorable-mention picks include the Bradley pair of Theron Wilson and Andrew Warren, as well as the Evansville duo of Shy Ely and Jason Holsinger.
Crowds Increase For League Action
Compared to its non-conference crowds, Creighton's attendance has increased in MVC action each of the previous eight years:
Creighton's Yearly Home Attendance
Year Non-MVC Games MVC Games Change
2000-01 7,132 7,268 +2%
2001-02 6,333 6,800 +7%
2002-03 7,401 8,996 +22%
2003-04 11,467 12,443 +9%
2004-05 9,926 12,207 +23%
2005-06 13,404 14,343 +7%
2006-07 15,471 16,153 +4%
2007-08 14,544 16,122 +10%
2008-09 16,040 16,422 +2.4%
Statistical Leaders, Nationally
Through games of March 12th, Booker Woodfox ranked first in three-point field goal percentage (48.9%), 17th in free-throw percentage (87.6%) 63rd in three-pointers per game (2.7) and 100th in field goal percentage (49.3%). Josh Dotzler ranked fourth with a 3.26 assist/turnover ratio and 47th with 2.1 steals per game. Cavel Witter's 86.1 percent free-throw percentage ranked 27th.
As a team, Creighton was ranked 18th in free-throw percentage (75.1), 12th in turnover margin (+3.9), 27th in three-point field-goal percentage (38.3) and 34th in three-point field goals per game (8.0).
Dotzler Top Seven in Assists & Steals
After seven previous games with exactly five steals in his career, Josh Dotzler had a career-best six steals on Dec. 13 against Northern Colorado. Creighton turned all six of those steals into points, scoring 13 points on its ensuing possessions.
Dotzler's 194 career steals ranks third in CU history. Dotzler's 378 career assists places him seventh in Creighton history, just ahead of current Indiana State coach Kevin McKenna from his playing days at CU.
Dotzler is one of four players in CU history with more than 150 steals and 300 career assists, joining Ryan Sears, Duan Cole and Latrell Wrightsell.
Steals (Since 1979-80)
Stl. Name Years
283 Ryan Sears 1997-01
195 Rodney Buford 1995-99
194 Josh Dotzler 2005-Pres.
186 Duan Cole 1987-92
Assists (Since 1970-71)
Ast. Name Years
570 Ryan Sears 1997-01
549 Ralph Bobik 1971-74
458 Randy Eccker 1974-78
430 Tyler McKinney 2001-05
418 Vernon Moore 1981-85
382 Duan Cole 1987-92
378 Josh Dotzler 2005-Pres.
332 Kevin McKenna 1977-81
Steal Leader
KenPom.com, a college basketball website dedicated to statistics, ranks Creighton guard Josh Dotzler among its best defenders. The site calculates that Dotzler earns a steal on 5.7 percent of all defensive possessions that he's in the game for, the nation's second-best rate.
The same website ranks Booker Woodfox 23rd in offensive rating, a calculation of a player's offensive efficiency from two-point range, three-point range and the free-throw line, as well as scarcity of turnovers per minute played.
Army of Iowans
Every Creighton team since 1988-89 has had at least one Iowa native, and this season is no exception.
Creighton has three players from Iowa on this season's team, continuing a long trend of relying on some of the Hawkeye State's top preps. CU's native Iowans this season include senior Dustin Sitzmann (LeMars) and sophomores Casey Harriman (Ida Grove) and Kaleb Korver (Pella).
Other past notable Iowans include Kyle Korver and Pierce Hibma (Pella), Ryan Sears (Ankeny), Brody Deren (Harlan), Tyler McKinney (Urbandale), Nate Funk (Sioux City) and Michael Lindeman (Iowa Falls).
Creighton has played at least one Iowa native in 475 straight games. That streak dates to a Feb. 5, 1994 win against Wichita State.
Big Blue Wave
Eleven different players are averaging 9.7 minutes per game or more this season for Creighton, with no player seeing more than 25.9 minutes per game.
Creighton has had at least 10 players average 10.7 minutes per game or more in each of previous three seasons, as well.
Creighton has not used anyone for more than 32 minutes in any regulation-length game this year. By comparison, seven individuals throughout the MVC average 32.5 minutes per game or more.
Two Years, 700 Points Under Altman
Creighton has had four players score 700 or more points in their first two years playing for Dana Altman. Two of those men, Booker Woodfox and P'Allen Stinnett, are currently in the program.
Among players in the Altman era, only Rodney Buford has scored more points in their first two years in the program.
700+Points In First 2 Years Under Dana Altman
Name Points Games Years
Rodney Buford 1,010 59 1995-1997
Booker Woodfox 825 65 2007-2009
P'Allen Stinnett 808 65 2007-2009
Kyle Korver 759 65 1999-2001
Long-Distance Streak Alive
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in a league-best 499 straight games since a 59-53 loss at Illinois State on Feb. 20, 1993. That's the longest active streak in the MVC.
The Charge Chart
Creighton took 62 charges last season, with Casey Harriman and Dane Watts sharing the team lead with 17 charges taken. Over the previous six seasons, the Bluejays have averaged 48.7 per year.
So far this season, Creighton has taken 45 charges in 33 games.
Below is a list of the Creighton players that have taken charges since the 2002-03 season:
Name 2002-07 ?07-08 ?08-09 Total
Justin Carter n/a n/a 8 8
Casey Harriman n/a 17 7 24
Josh Dotzler 4 5 6 15
Chad Millard n/a 7 4 11
P'Allen Stinnett n/a 5 4 9
Kenton Walker n/a 3 4 7
Kenny Lawson Jr. 0 2 4 6
Antoine Young n/a n/a 4 4
Kaleb Korver n/a 0 3 3
Booker Woodfox n/a 2 1 3
Cavel Witter n/a 3 0 3
Dustin Sitzmann 0 1 0 1
Former Players 226 17 n/a 243
Total 230 62 45 337
What's Your Twenty?
This was the 12th straight year that Creighton has won at least 13 of its first 20 games. Each of the previous 11 seasons it has done that, it reached the postseason. Here's a look at Creighton's record after 20 games in the 15 seasons under Dana Altman.
Creighton -- First 20 Games Under Dana Altman
Year First 20 W-L Final W-L Postseason
2008-09 15-5 ? ? ? NIT
2007-08 14-6 22-11 NIT
2006-07 13-7 22-11 NCAA
2005-06 15-5 20-10 NIT
2004-05 13-7 23-11 NCAA
2003-04 17-3 20-9 NIT
2002-03 18-2 29-5 NCAA
2001-02 14-6 23-9 NCAA
2000-01 14-6 24-8 NCAA
1999-00 14-6 23-10 NCAA
1998-99 14-6 22-9 NCAA
1997-98 14-6 18-10 NIT
1996-97 10-10 15-15 ---
1995-96 11-9 14-15 ---
1994-95 6-14 7-19 ---
Walker Nabs Double-Double
Sophomore center Kenton Walker became the only current member of the Creighton team to record a double-double, when he recorded 10 points and 10 rebounds in 20 minutes off the bench against Mississippi Valley State on December 2nd.
Walker's 10 points tied for the second-highest scoring output of his young career, while his 10 rebounds were one more of his previous career-best.
Like A Good Neighbor
Sophomore center Kenton Walker has been named one of 10 recipients of the MVC's Good Neighbor Award. The award is given to model student-athletes in good academic standing who demonstrate good sportsmanship and significant community service.
Jays Were 3-0 Once Again
Creighton's win against Oral Roberts on Nov. 22nd gave it a 3-0 start for the 10th time in the past 11 seasons. The 2006-07 team that started 2-1 is the lone exception in the past decade.
Each of Creighton's 3-0 starts under Dana Altman have been culminated in a postseason tournament appearance at the end of the year.
Creighton has not taken the floor with a losing record since December 3, 1997 when it faced Grambling. Wednesday will be the 378th game in a row the Jays have played with a record of .500 or better.
3 Players, 20 Points, First 3 Games
Creighton had three different players score 20 or more points during its first three contests this winter. P'Allen Stinnett (30) and Booker Woodfox (26) did it against New Mexico, while Cavel Witter (25) did it against Oral Roberts.
This is the first time it's happened in Dana Altman's 15-year tenure at Creighton, as well as the first time its happened at Creighton in at least 30 years.
Double-Double Eludes Lawson
Sophomore Kenny Lawson Jr. hasn't notched a double-double in his young career, but he's been steadily getting closer.
Lawson, who had 13 points and nine rebounds at Southern Illinois on Feb. 14, owns nine career games of at least eight points and eight boards in his career. CU has won eight of those games, outscoring foes by an average of 78.4-62.8.
Creighton is 24-4 in Lawson's career when he has five rebounds or more, but 26-14 in games he's appeared in and snared less than five caroms.
25 Points Off The Bench, Again
Cavel Witter scored 25 points off the bench in CU's Nov. 22 win over Oral Roberts.
It marked the second time in his career he's done that, as the junior guard torched Bradley for a Qwest Center Omaha record 42 points on March 1, 2008, in a double-overtime win over Bradley.
Before Witter, Creighton had not had a player score 25 points or more off the bench since March of 2002.
Television Records
Creighton is a combined 101-55 in televised games in the last seven seasons, including a 36-22 mark on KMTV-produced games (which does not include CU's record in NCAA Tournament games on KMTV). Creighton went 4-2 in games aired on KMTV in 2002-03, 6-3 in 2003-04, 4-5 in 2004-05, 5-3 in 2005-06, 6-2 in 2006-07 and 5-4 last year in KMTV-produced games. CU is 6-3 on KMTV this year.
The Jays are also 46-29 in games that air regionally or nationally in that time, including a 24-17 mark on MVC TV.
Creighton had 27-of-33 games on television last season. Twenty-four games have aired on television this season, including all but one MVC game.
What A Start!
The 2007-08 MVC Sixth Man of the Year, Booker Woodfox scored 26 points in his first career start against New Mexico on Nov. 16.
Woodfox's 26 points are the most by a Bluejay in their first career start since at least 1980.
Dynamic Duo, Part II?
From 1987-91, Creighton big men Bob Harstad and Chad Gallagher were known as the “Dynamic Duo”. Both men were named MVC Player of the Year (Harstad in 1990, Gallagher in 1991) and finished their careers first and second in school history for points scored.
The Jays had quite the dynamic duo in the season-opening win over New Mexico when P'Allen Stinnett (30) and Booker Woodfox (26) both lit up the Lobos.
The current duo became the first Bluejay pair to score 25 points or more in the same game in the Dana Altman era.
CU hadn't had that happen since, you guessed it, Gallagher (29) and Harstad (26) did it against Bradley on Jan. 21, 1991.
P'henomenal Debut x 2
P'Allen Stinnett's 23 points last year against DePaul were the most by a Bluejay in their first game since Cyril Baptiste scored 24 points on Dec. 1, 1969 against Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
Stinnett's 30 points in this year's opener were the most by a Creighton player in the season lid-lifter since Bob Harstad scored 38 points against Texas-San Antonio on Nov. 30, 1990.
Piling Up The Points, and Wins
Creighton has won 52 straight home games when scoring 68 points or more since Feb. 5, 2005.
Creighton has won 63 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.
Who Are Those Guys?
Creighton also has two walk-ons practicing with the team that might suit up on but are not listed in the media guide.
No. 24 is Matt Dorwart, a 6-7 freshman forward from Sidney, Neb. Dorwart played at Sidney High School and averaged 8.0 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while shooting 38.5 percent from three-point range.
No. 40 Derek Sebastian is a 6-5 freshman guard/forward from Loveland, Colo. Sebastian played at Thompson Valley High School, where he averaged 14.8 points and 8.8 rebounds per game last year.
Turning Point?
One common theme when Creighton is successful is that they have had an advantage in “points off turnovers” in many of those contests.
Creighton was 17-4 when scoring more points off turnovers than its opponent last year. In the last five years, Creighton is 85-14 when winning this category, including an 24-4 mark this winter.
Paint Points
Since Creighton started tracking points in the paint six years ago, CU is 63-9 in games when scoring 28 or more points in the paint.
Largest...Crowd...Ever...
Creighton drew its largest crowd, a record crowd for the state of Nebraska, and a record for a league game in its win against Wichita State on Dec. 28, 2008 as 17,954 attended the game at Qwest Center Omaha. That bettered the previous Creighton single-game mark (17,607 vs. Drexel - 2/17/07).
Louisville formerly held the league's single-game attendance record for a regular-season conference game (17,661 vs. Cincinnati, Feb. 22, 1969).
NBA Presence
Two former Creighton players have spent time on NBA rosters this season. Kyle Korver (1999-2003) plays for Utah, while Anthony Tolliver (2003-07) has spent time this season with both San Antonio and New Orleans.
Tolliver averaged 2.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in 10.9 minutes during 19 games with San Antonio. He was cut by the Spurs on January 7th but resurfaced in the NBA on Jan. 21st when he signed a 10-day contract with the Hornets. He did not appear with the Hornets and returned to playing for the Des Moines Energy in the NBA D-League. Tolliver left for Turkey on Feb. 25th, where he will finish off this season.
Korver is averaging 8.7 points in 23.9 minutes per game off the bench for Utah. He is shooting 37.4 percent from three-point range for the Jazz.
Consistent Challengers
One of the most impressive facets of the Dana Altman tenure is how often his teams have been in the running for the MVC regular-season title. Nine of his last 12 teams have finished either first or second in The Valley's regular-season race, including this year. Two of the three that didn't won the MVC Tournament.
The Bluejays won the MVC in 2000-01 and tied for the title in 2001-02 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
Qwest To Be The Best
Creighton has played 98 regular and post-season contests at Qwest Center Omaha all-time. The Bluejays own a 83-15 (.847) record all-time at the facility, including a perfect 17-0 figure on Wednesday's, a 6-0 mark on Thursday's and a 1-0 mark on Friday's. The 15 losses have been by a combined 85 points.
Creighton has outscored its opponents 7,270-6,105 in games at Qwest Center Omaha, an average margin of 11.9 points per game.
The Jays have led wire-to-wire 19 different times.
?W'inning Edge
Creighton's men's and women's basketball teams have been nearly unbeatable at home in recent seasons, going a combined 218-47 in the last nine seasons. In fact, the men and women have both lost a home game in the same month just four times since March, 2000.
Creighton's Home Records, Last Nine Years
Year Men Women Combined
2008-09 15-2 11-4 26-6
2007-08 16-2 11-1 27-3
2006-07 12-2 7-7 19-9
2005-06 15-2 5-7 20-9
2004-05 11-5 12-3 23-8
2003-04 14-2 12-1 26-3
2002-03 17-0 13-1 30-1
2001-02 12-3 11-1 23-4
2000-01 14-0 10-4 24-4
TOTALS 126-18 92-29 218-47
One of the Best Programs Around
Every five years since 1997, Basketball Times has evaluated the best of the best NCAA programs -- those that have won two-thirds of their games over the previous 10 season span. The 2007 edition of the report had 29 teams that met that qualification, including Creighton.
Those 29 schools were then ranked from 1-29 on categories like 10-year winning percentage, number of active NBA players, freshman graduation rate and US News & World Report's academic peer assessment score, as well as a subjective vote of 10 panelists who judged teams based on “program cleanliness” and “head coach ranking”.
Creighton finished an impressive seventh, trailing only Duke, North Carolina, Florida, Stanford, Gonzaga and Michigan State.
Basketball Times Overall Rankings
Rk. School Avg. Ranking
1. Duke 3.7
2. North Carolina 7.5
3. Florida 8.0
4. Stanford 8.8
5. Gonzaga 10.0
Michigan State 10.0
7. Creighton 10.2
8. Kansas 10.8
9. Xavier 11.5
10. Illinois 12.0
11. Arizona 13.5
12. Connecticut 13.7
13. Syracuse 14.5
14. Butler 14.8
15. College of Charleston 15.2
Southern Illinois 15.2
Texas 15.2
18. Kentucky 16.0
Pennsylvania 16.0
20. Maryland 17.3
21. Pittsburgh 17.5
22. Utah State 18.3
23. Kent State 18.8
24. Utah 20.2
25. Cincinnati 20.5
26. Murray State 20.7
Oklahoma 20.7
28. Oklahoma State 21.0
29. Memphis 23.0
Double-Digit Comebacks at Home
Creighton has fallen behind by double-digits in 24 of its 98 all-time home games all-time at Qwest Center Omaha. In 16 of those 24 games, the Bluejays came back to win.
Creighton's incredible streak of 181 straight games without a double-digit home loss (dating to Jan. 3, 1996) was snapped on Dec. 29, 2007 by Illinois State. That had ranked as the nation's oldest streak in that obscure category.
Double Digit Deficits at Qwest Center Omaha
Date Opponent Deficit Final Score
12/30/03 Missouri State 10 W 59-54
12/04/04 High Point 13 W 79-60
12/07/04 Kent State 16 L 58-67
12/18/04 Wyoming 13 L 64-68
02/01/05 Wichita State 10 W 73-69
02/05/05 Missouri State 15 L 71-79
11/26/05 Dayton 11 W 91-90 2ot
12/18/05 Xavier 10 W 61-59
01/18/06 Bradley 12 W 80-76
01/28/06 Wichita State 19 W 57-55
02/11/06 Southern Illinois 14 L 67-74
02/22/06 Indiana State 14 W 67-62
03/20/06 Miami (Fla.) 12 L 52-53
12/30/06 Missouri State 11 W 77-74
01/20/07 Southern Illinois 12 L 57-58
02/07/07 Evansville 14 W 79-74
11/09/07 DePaul 17 W 74-62
12/29/07 Illinois State 19 L 67-80
02/02/08 Wichita State 15 W 65-63
03/01/08 Bradley 12 W 111-110 2ot
03/18/08 Rhode Island 17 W 74-73
11/16/08 New Mexico 16 W 82-75
01/24/09 Drake 14 L 62-74
02/01/09 Missouri State 10 W 75-51
Double-Digit Comebacks
Including three times this season, Creighton has won after overcoming a double-digit deficit 29 times in the last nine seasons.
Below is a list of those comebacks, listed by size of the margin overcome:
Overcoming Double Digit Deficits, Last 9 Years
Date Opponent Deficit Final Score
01/28/06 Wichita State 19 W 57-55
11/27/01 Western Kentucky 18 W 95-91 2ot
02/12/03 Missouri State 17 W 70-67 ot
11/09/07 DePaul 17 W 74-62
03/18/08 Rhode Island 17 W 74-73
11/16/08 New Mexico 16 W 82-75
02/04/06 at Drake 16 W 72-67 ot
01/26/03 TCU 16 W 89-79
02/02/08 Wichita State 15 W 65-63
02/22/06 Indiana State 14 W 67-62
02/07/07 Evansville 14 W 79-74
12/04/04 High Point 13 W 79-60
03/09/03 vs. Wichita State 13 W 70-69
01/18/03 Southern Illinois 13 W 85-76
02/04/01 at Indiana State 13 W 77-71
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
Academically Tops In The MVC Too
Creighton ranks first in the Missouri Valley Conference in graduation success rate (94.7 percent) among all sports.
Also, for the fourth time in the six-year existence of the award, Creighton University has been recognized with the 2007-08 MVC All-Academic Award. Bluejay student-athletes posted a 3.30 cumulative grade-point average over the 2007-08 academic calendar. Creighton previously shared the award in 2003-04, and were the outright winners in 2004-05 and 2006-07.
Creighton had seven men's basketball players earn Dean's List (3.50 GPA or better) accolades last year, which helped the team to a 3.01 GPA overall.
Bench Points Add Up
Creighton owned 41 different double-figure scoring games last season off the bench, compared to a total of 30 during the previous three years combined. In fact, there were only four (of 33) contests in which it didn't have a double-figure scorer off the bench.
Last year's team scored 18 or more bench points in every game but one, with a low of 13.
This year, the Bluejay bench has scored 889 of the team's 2,429 points (36.6 percent).
Creighton's bench has scored 51 points in two different games this season and 41 or more four times.
This year's Creighton team has produced 31 double-digit scoring games off the bench, including 13 such efforts from Cavel Witter.
Recruits Inked
A pair of prep standouts signed letters-of-intent in November to join the Creighton men's basketball team next year.
Andrew Bock is a 6'1” guard from Eisenhower High School in Rialto, Calif. Bock averaged 18 points and eight assists per game while helping the Eagles to a 27-4 record. He was named Most Valuable Player of the Citrus Belt League last season.
Ethan Wragge (RAH-gy) is a 6'8” forward from Eden Prairie, Minn., where he attends Eden Prairie High School. He averaged 16 points and nine rebounds per game and owns the school record for three-point baskets made. He made 91 percent of his free-throw attempts last year. His team finished 19-9 last winter.
Both men will be freshmen and have four years of eligibility.
Last Season Recap
Creighton put together a second consecutive 22-11 season last fall, reaching the second round of the NIT with a team featuring nine newcomers.
P'Allen Stinnett (12.6 ppg.) swept MVC Newcomer and Freshman of the Year honors after leading Creighton in scoring, while senior Dane Watts (11.3 ppg.) led the team with 6.4 rebounds per game.
Booker Woodfox (9.6 ppg.) was named MVC Sixth Man of the Year as the leader for a bench that outscored CU's starters by 76 points for the season.
Ticket Information
Single game tickets for regular-season home games went on sale on Nov. 11 at 10 am.
Fans can purchase tickets in advance at Qwest Center Omaha Box Office, all Ticketmaster locations (Baker's, Younkers), Ticketmaster online at http://www.ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster and charging by phone at (402) 422-1212.
Morrison Stadium also sells tickets (in-person only) from 9:00 am-4:30 pm weekdays.
Only upper bowl seats will be available for any game and cost is $12 for adults and $8 for youth ages 3-18 (children two and under are free). For more information, call the Creighton Ticket Office at (402) 280-JAYS.
Creighton sold an MVC-record 13,615 season tickets for this year. The previous MVC record had been the 12,888 season-tickets Creighton fans bought for the 2007-08 season.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's BasketballMeet the Jays - MBB Blake Harper
Friday, August 15
Meet the Jays - MBB Austin Swartz
Friday, August 15
Meet the Jays - MBB Jasen Green
Friday, August 15
Meet the Jays - MBB Ty Davis
Friday, August 15
