Men's Basketball Visits Redbirds In Battle of MVC Favorites
1/1/2013 11:36:00 AM | Men's Basketball
2012-13 Creighton Men's Basketball
Game #14 at Illinois State • Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2013 • 7:05 pm
#16 Creighton Bluejays at Illinois State Redbirds
Redbird Arena (10,000) • Normal, Ill.
Radio: KXSP 590 AM, www.am590espnradio.com
Television: FSN Midwest; ESPN3 (select areas)
Series History: Illinois State leads, 40-29
Last Meeting: Creighton 83, Illinois State 79 (OT) on 3/4/12 in St. Louis, Mo.
Next Game
No. 16 Creighton (12-1, 1-0 MVC) opens the 2013 calendar year with a road game at Illinois State (9-4, 0-1 MVC) in a battle of the two teams picked atop the preseason MVC poll.
Wednesday's game will tip at 7:05 pm from Redbird Arena (10,000) in Normal, Ill.
Radio Broadcast Information
KXSP (“AM 590 - Omaha's ESPN Radio”) will broadcast all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2012-13 season, including Wednesday. T. Scott Marr and Nick Bahe will call the action. The audio is also webcast live at www.AM590espnradio.com.
TV Broadcast Information
Wednesday's telecast will be cleared live on FOX Sports Midwest, FOX Sports Indiana (on FOX Sports Plus channels in the state of Indiana due to Indiana Pacers) and FOX Sports Kansas City, FOX College Sports Atlantic, Comcast SportsNet Chicago (on Comcast SportsNet Plus channels in the states of Illinois, Indiana and Iowa but will not clear Chicago DMA live), ESPN3 (outside the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska), DirecTV (Channel 671), Dish Network (Channel 418) and AT&T U-Verse (Channel 748). John Rooney and Mark Adams will announce. Coordinates are below:
Date: Wednesday, January 2
Test Time: 6:30 p.m. Central
On-Air: 7:00 p.m. Central
Tipoff: 7:07 p.m. Central
Satellite Coordinates: AMC 16 – Transponder K18 – Digital Slot A
Band: Digital KU Band
Format: SD 16:9
Video Compression: 4:2:2
Modulation: QPSK
Bandwidth: 18 Megahertz
Parameters: FEC ≤
Symbol Rate: 13.235
Data Rate: 18.295
Downlink Frequency: 12051 Megahertz Horizontal
Video Webcast Information
Wednesday's game will be webcast on ESPN3 at http://es.pn/mbb-CREIGHTONvsISU. The ESPN3 broadcast will be blacked out in states within the six-team MVC footprint (NE, IA, IL, IN, KS, MO).
Live Stats Information
All of Creighton's games this season will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats tab on the top of the page for a link the exact URL.
Home games can also be followed by those who have mobile devices with internet capability at www.gocreightonstats.com.
Scouting No. 16 Creighton
Creighton is 12-1 this season, including wins over Wisconsin, Arizona State, UAB, Saint Joseph's, Nebraska, Akron, Cal and Tulsa. Creighton's only loss this year has come against Boise State on Nov. 28th.
Junior forward Doug McDermott (23.5 ppg., 7.0 rpg.) is the nation's only returning consensus First Team All-American, as well as the nation's leading returning scorer (22.9 ppg. last year). He's led the Jays in scoring and rebounding each of the past two seasons, and has already picked up MVC Freshman of the Year, MVC Newcomer of the Year, MVC Player of the Year and MVC Tournament MVP honors in his career. McDermott is 23-of-38 from three-point range in the past seven contests and has already been named MVC Player of the Week four times this season.
The other three returning starters include senior center Gregory Echenique (11.0 ppg., 7.9 rpg., 1.7 bpg.), senior guard Grant Gibbs (6.5 ppg., 5.8 apg.) and junior guard Jahenns Manigat (.468 3FG% last year). Gibbs led the MVC with 176 assists last year, while Echenique had a league-high 57 blocks en route to earning MVC Defensive Player of the Year honors.
Sophomore Austin Chatman replaced three-year starter Antoine Young, the lone player from last year's rotation to depart. Chatman is averaging 8.1 points and 4.5 assists per contest.
The Bluejays returned 10 lettermen and four starters from last year's 29-6 team that reached the third round of the NCAA Tournament, and have been widely praised for having one of the nation's most potent offenses.
Creighton is shooting 50.8 percent from the floor, 42.5 percent from downtown, 75.5 percent at the line, and outrebounding foes by 3.7 caroms a game. CU scores 79.5 points per game.
Scouting Illinois State
Illinois State is 9-4 on the season after falling 77-75 at Indiana State in last Sunday's league-opener.
The Redbirds are paced by preseason All-Valley pick Jackie Carmichael (17.8 ppg., 8.5 rpg., 2.2 bpg.), as well as Tyler Brown (16.8 ppg., 30 three-pointers).
Also scoring in bunches are Jon Ekey (9.5 ppg., 4.7 rpg.) and Bryant Allen (9.4 ppg.).
The Redbirds are 6-1 at home this season, where it averages 5,617 fans per game. The 'Birds average 80.5 points per game this season and shoot 49.7 percent from the field, 36.4 percent from downtown and 68.0 percent at the line.
The Coaches
Greg McDermott (Northern Iowa, 1988) is in his third season as head coach at Creighton. He led CU to a 29-6 mark last year, and is now 64-23 with the Bluejays. McDermott has previously been a head coach at Iowa State (2006-10), Northern Iowa (2001-06), North Dakota State (2000-01) and Wayne State (1994-2000). He owns a career mark of 344-218 in 19 seasons and is 213-154 in 12 Division I campaigns. McDermott is assisted by Darian DeVries, Steve Lutz and Steve Merfeld.
Illinois State is coached by Dan Muller (Illinois State, 1998), who is 9-4 in his first year as a head coach at any level. Muller starred at Illinois State as a player, then spent the past 12 years as a Vanderbilt assistant to his former Redbird coach, Kevin Stallings. Muller is assisted by Dana Ford, Rob Judson and Torrey Ward.
The Series With Illinois State
Illinois State leads the all-time series with Creighton by a 40-29 margin but the Bluejays have won 21 of the last 31 meetings.
The Redbirds own a 24-8 lead in Normal, but Creighton has won six of its past 11 trips to Redbird Arena.
Creighton coach Greg McDermott has won 10 straight meetings to improve to 12-4 all-time against Illinois State (5-0 since coming to Creighton) and has never faced against Dan Muller. Muller is 0-0 against Creighton.
Last Game Recap
Creighton used an early 19-3 run to build a 19-5 lead and never looked back in an 87-70 win over Evansville in the league opener for both teams. Doug McDermott had 29 points and 10 rebounds, while Gregory Echenique added 13 points and 13 rebounds as part of a dominant front-line effort over UE. Colt Ryan led the Purple Aces with 25 points, while Troy Taylor had a triple-double with 10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
I See Red People
Creighton looks to extend a lengthy trend of success over teams wearing a shade of red when it visits Normal on Wednesday.
Creighton went a perfect 14-0 in the 2012 calendar year against teams that wear red/cardinal/crimson/scarlet/garnet/maroon, as seen below:
Date Opponent Color Score
12/06/12 Nebraska Scarlet W 64-42
12/01/12 Saint Joseph's Crimson W 80-51
11/24/12 Arizona State Maroon W 87-73
11/23/12 Wisconsin Cardinal W 84-74
11/18/12 Presbyterian Garnet W 87-58
03/16/12 Alabama Crimson W 58-57
03/04/12 Illinois State Red W 83-79
02/14/12 Southern Illinois Maroon W 88-69
02/01/12 Illinois State Red W 102-74
01/28/12 Bradley Red W 73-59
01/18/12 Missouri State Maroon W 66-65
01/15/12 Southern Illinois Maroon W 90-71
01/13/12 Illinois State Red W 87-78
01/07/12 Bradley Red W 92-83
Making Them Ill(inois)
Last year marked the first time Creighton played a season without a loss to a team from Illinois since 1973-74. The Jays went 9-0 last season against teams from the state of Illinois, having gone 3-0 against Illinois State, 2-0 vs. Bradley and Southern Illinois, and 1-0 against Northwestern and Chicago State.
The Jays have won 10 straight games against teams from the “Land of Lincoln”, overall.
Each of Creighton's 11 teams to win two Valley road games in Illinois (vs. BU, ILS or SIU) reached the postseason, including seven NCAA Tournament squads.
In three road games vs. teams from Illinois (at Southern Illinois, at Bradley, at Illinois State) last season, Creighton averaged 89.0 points and shot 64.0 percent from the field, 61.5 percent from three-point range and 71.7 percent at the line. CU was also +12.3 on the glass and had 66 assists to just 43 turnovers.
Creighton's top perimeter threats all feasted in those games. Jahenns Manigat was 12-15 (80 percent) from '3' in those wins, with Doug McDermott (5-7, 71.4 percent) and Ethan Wragge (11-16, 68.8 percent) close behind.
Carmichael vs. Creighton
Illinois State big man Jackie Carmichael owns 49 points and 23 total rebounds in six career games vs. Creighton. Much of the defensive work has been done by the reigning MVC Defensive Player of the Year, Gregory Echenique, one of the few Valley players who can match Carmichael's size and strength inside.
Echenique owns 45 points and 33 rebounds in five all-time meetings vs. ISU.
Redbirds vs. Ranked
Illinois State has lost 26 of its last 27 games vs. ranked opponents since 1988, with only a 2012 MVC Tournment victory over Wichita State to show for it.
The Redbirds are 0-7 all-time vs. ranked foes at Redbird Arena and last beat a ranked opponent in Normal on March 3, 1984.
Creighton is ranked No. 16 in the AP poll entering Wednesday's game.
Postseason Contenders
Either Creighton or Illinois State has made the postseason in each of the last 18 years. In six of those 18 seasons, both Creighton and Illinois State have participated in postseason play.
30-Point Threats
Only four men in the MVC have scored 30 or more points in a game this season, and all four will be on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena on Wednesday.
Creighton's Doug McDermott has three games of 30 points or more this winter, while Illinois State's trio of Bryant Allen, Tyler Brown and Jackie Carmichael have all done it once each. The Redbirds are the nation's only team to have three different men score 30 or more in a game this season.
Unbeaten December
Creighton went 6-0 in December wrapping up an unbeaten December with a victory over Evansville last Saturday.
Since 1946-47, Creighton's only two other teams to go unbeaten in December were in 2003 and 2008.
The 2008-09 team went 9-0 in December and would go on to win a share of the MVC regular-season title.
The 2003-04 squad finished tied for second in the MVC. That team began the season 12-0 before suffering an overtime loss in a game hosted by Northern Iowa and its then-coach, Greg McDermott.
Winning Away From Home
Creighton won a school-record 15 games away from home last season. The Jays went 10-3 in true road games and were also 5-1 on neutral floors.
Creighton's lone neutral-site loss came to North Carolina in a not-so “neutral” Greensboro, N.C., in the third round of the NCAA Tournament.
This year's team is 4-0 away from home, with each victory against a BCS school (Wisconsin, Arizona State, Nebraska, Cal) and by double-digits.
This season is the first time since 2004-05 that Creighton has won its first four games away from home. Creighton hasn't won its first five games away from home since 1999-00.
Each of Creighton's last nine NCAA Tournament teams have won 10 or more games away from home, and eight of those teams had a winning record in true road contests.
MVC Road Openers
Wednesday's game at Illinois State will be Creighton's first MVC road game of the season. Creighton is just 3-5 in recent seasons in those situations, though in three of those eight years they've fallen in a game decided at the buzzer.
In 2006-07, Creighton lost a 55-52 game in Terre Haute when Nate Funk's last-second three-point try was deflected by Indiana State's Gabe Moore.
In 2005-06, Illinois State's Dana Ford drained a 40-foot heave at the final horn for a 53-50 Redbird win.
During the 2004-05 season, Evansville's Kyle Anslinger grabbed an offensive rebound and beat the buzzer with an 18-footer in UE's 63-61 win. That Evansville team was coached by current Bluejay assistant Steve Merfeld.
The three teams mentioned above that Creighton lost to would wind up with a losing record in Valley action and played in a MVC Tournament play-in game.
MVC's Best On The Road
In addition to owning one of the MVC's best home-court advantages, Creighton has easily posted the league's best record in MVC road games since 2000-01 as well.
Creighton is 59-49 in MVC road games in that span, a win percentage of .546. A distant second is Southern Illinois (53-56, .486). As a league, the road winning percentage has been .347 in the same span.
MVC Road Records (since 2000-01)
Team W L Pct.
Creighton 59 49 .546
Southern Illinois 53 56 .486
Wichita State 46 62 .426
Northern Iowa 44 65 .404
Missouri State 42 66 .389
Drake 31 78 .284
Illinois State 30 79 .275
Bradley 29 79 .269
Indiana State 23 85 .213
Evansville 19 90 .174
All MVC Teams 376 709 .347
The Road Less Traveled
Creighton won its final two road games last year (at Southern Illinois, at Indiana State) and have won its first two road games this year too (Nebraska, Cal).
The four-game road win streak is tied for the nation's 10th-longest active streak nationally. Last season Creighton won six straight true road games, its longest such streak since 1975.
Road Warriors
Creighton is 12-3 in true road games over the past two seasons, one of the nation's best such marks. Only five teams have fewer true road losses in that span, a group consisting of Murray State, Syracuse, Wichita State, Kansas and Duke.
Fewest Road Losses, Last 2 Seasons (1/1)
Team W-L Pct. Next Road
Murray State 16-1 .941 1/3
Syracuse 10-1 .909 1/6
Wichita State 12-2 .857 1/12
Kansas 9-2 .818 1/12
Duke 8-2 .800 1/12
Creighton 12-3 .800 1/2
VCU 12-3 .800 1/2
Kentucky 8-3 .727 1/10
Rebound Battle Decides The War
Rebounds have played an important role in deciding the outcome of Creighton's recent trips to Redbird Arena, as each of the last seven (and 10 of 12) winners in the meeting in Normal has been won by the team to snare more rebounds. Illinois State has outrebounded foes by 1.5 boards per game this year, while Creighton is +3.7 on the glass.
Score Rebound
Year Margin Margin
2012 CU +9 CU +9
2011 CU +11 CU +4
2010 ISU +9 ISU +3
2009 ISU +22 ISU +18
2008 ISU +14 ISU +21
2007 ISU +10 ISU +7
2006 ISU +3 ISU +1
2005 CU +5 ISU +6
2004 CU +1 Even
2003 CU +19 CU +2
2002 CU +14 CU +5
RPI Update
Through games of December 31st, Creighton is ranked 17th in the RPI according to WarrenNolan.com, while Illinois State ranks 61st.
Creighton owns nine wins against RPI teams in the top-150. By comparison, defending national champion Kentucky has one top-200 win.
As a league, the MVC is the ninth-best conference nationally.
Celsius or Fahrenheit?
Jahenns Manigat led the MVC with his 49.2 percent marksmanship from three-point range in league play a year ago. When it came to CU's nine MVC road games last year, he was the barometer.
In Creighton's seven Valley road wins, Manigat shot a robust 19-of-27 (70.4 percent) from downtown. In CU's two Valley road losses, Manigat was just 2-of-9 (22.2 percent) from downtown.
Manigat is 7-for-14 (50 percent) from three-point range in the past three games this year after starting the season 8-for-28 (28.6 percent) in his first 10 outings.
What A Start!
Now in his third year, Greg McDermott is 64-23 in his first 87 games on the Creighton sideline. The 64 wins is tied for the most in Creighton history after 87 games, matching Tom Apke (1974-81).
Here's a breakdown of how he compares to some other Creighton coaches after 87 games.
W-L After 87 Games, Select CU Coaches
Coach Years W-L After 87
Greg McDermott 2010-Pres. 64-23
Tom Apke 1974-81 64-23
Eddie Sutton 1969-74 52-37
Arthur A. Schabinger 1922-35 52-37
Red McManus 1959-69 49-38
Dana Altman 1994-10 40-47
Tony Barone 1985-91 37-50
Willis Reed 1981-85 34-53
Rematch On Deck
Wednesday's game will feature the first meeting between Creighton and Illinois State since the 2012 MVC Tournament title game won by the Bluejays, 83-79 in overtime.
In that contest, Doug McDermott had 33 points, tying for the most in a final during the 22-year history since the event moved to St. Louis. Grant Gibbs added a career-high 20 points in the win.
High-Powered Offenses Meet
Wednesday's showdown in Normal will feature the MVC's top-two scoring offenses. Illinois State leads the league with 80.5 points per game, just ahead of Creighton (79.5). Drake (74.6) is the only other team in the MVC averaging more than 71 points per game.
Last year Creighton once again ignored the saying that “Defense wins championships” this season. The 2011-12 Bluejays led the MVC in scoring offense, averaging 79.2 points per game, and won the MVC Tournament.
Since 1997-98, seven of the 15 teams to lead the league in scoring offense went on to win the MVC Tournament (Drake in 2008, ILS in 1998, CU in 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2012).
By comparison, only two teams that led the league in scoring defense won the MVC Tournament (SIU in 2006, UNI in 2010).
Double-Digits?
Each of Creighton's first 13 games have been decided by 10 or more points. Through games of Dec. 31st, Creighton's 12 double-digit wins this year are tied for the most nationally with Pittsburgh.
Dingman Rings It Up
Creighton has needed someone to step up once Josh Jones was forced out of the line-up, and that someone has been Avery Dingman.
Since Jones met the media and disclosed he'd be out for at least a month (which has now turned out to be career-ending), Dingman is averaging 16.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals in two games while sinking 8-of-10 three-point shots.
In Creighton's Dec. 19 win over Tulsa, Dingman scored a career-best 21 points against the Golden Hurricane while also plucking a career-high three steals. Dingman made his first seven attempts and finished 8-for-9 from the field, including 5-of-6 from three-point land.
Most recently, Dingman had 11 points and a career-high seven rebounds in the win over Evansville.
Dingman is the sixth player on this year's Creighton roster to own a 20-point game in his career. Doug McDermott's done it 40 times, Ethan Wragge and Gregory Echenique have both done it twice, and Grant Gibbs, Jones and Dingman each have done it one time.
Conference Openers Have Gone Well
Creighton owns a 11-4 record in its last 15 MVC openers, improving to 32-22 all-time in Valley lid-lifters.
Since 1993-94, only one team (Northern Iowa, a 2008-09 co-champion) has won at least a share of the regular-season title without winning its league opener. In fact, 16 of the last 18 regular-season champs (or co-champs) have opened 2-0 or better in MVC play, with UNI in 2008-09 and Wichita State in 2011-12 serving as the exceptions.
Greg McDermott improved to 5-3 all-time in MVC openers.
Playing With The Lead
Creighton has not trailed in five games this season, and just 32 seconds total in the past three games. After not trailing at Cal or vs. Tulsa, the Jays fell behind 2-0 vs. Evansville last Saturday, only to respond with a 19-3 flurry.
In six games (240 minutes) in December, Creighton trailed for a total span of 4:53, and never trailed in the second half of any game.
10 Conference Wins x 16
Last season's Creighton team extended its MVC record by winning 10 or more league games for a 16th consecutive season.
On a national basis, the only other current school with at least 16 straight years of 10 or more league wins is Kansas (18).
Each of the last 16 seasons has seen the team finish fourth place or better in the MVC as well.
Team of the Millennium?
Below is the records for each MVC school from the start of the 2000-01 season until the start of this season, ranked by overall winning percentage.
Creighton leads the MVC overall with 292 wins in the millennium, as well as 12 postseason appearances:
MVC Standings (start 2000-01 to Jan. 1, 2013)
MVC only All Games
Team W L Pct. W L Pct.
Creighton 150 67 .691 292 121 .707
Wichita State 126 91 .581 250 152 .622
Southern Illinois 134 83 .618 245 156 .611
Northern Iowa 118 99 .544 233 164 .587
Missouri State 118 99 .544 226 173 .566
Illinois State 99 118 .456 210 179 .540
Bradley 94 123 .433 198 201 .496
Drake 92 125 .424 186 197 .486
Indiana State 80 137 .369 170 216 .440
Evansville 74 143 .341 149 222 .402
Postseason Appearances by MVC Teams
(Since 2000-01)
Team NCAA NIT CBI CIT Total
Creighton 6 4 1 1 12
Wichita State 2 5 1 0 8
Southern Illinois 6 1 0 0 7
Northern Iowa 5 1 0 1 7
Bradley 1 2 1 1 5
Missouri State 0 4 0 1 5
Illinois State 0 5 0 0 5
Indiana State 2 0 1 1 4
Drake 1 0 0 2 3
Evansville 0 0 2 1 3
Consistent Challengers
Ten of Creighton's last 15 teams have finished either first or second in The Valley's regular-season race. Two of the five 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, while the 2010-11 club tied for fourth place.
Creighton's MVC Finishes, Last 15 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.), 2011-12 (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; 2009-10
Tied for 4th Place 2010-11
Creighton's Exclusive 30/30 Club
Doug McDermott scored 30 points in a Dec. 9 win vs. Akron, then followed that performance with a season-high 34 seven days later at Cal.
McDermott, who leads the MVC with 23.5 points per game, became the first Creighton player with 30 points in consecutive contests since Bob Harstad in 1990.
Doing It All
Reigning MVC Player of the Year Doug McDermott has one of the nation's best set of post moves, and now the junior forward is taking his skills to the perimeter with similar success.
Eight days after tying a career-high with five-three pointers in a 29-point thrashing of Atlantic-10 favorite Saint Joseph's, McDermott shot 6-for-8 from downtown in a 77-61 win over defending MAC champion Akron on Dec. 9th.
McDermott's career 45.6 percent accuracy from three-point range ranks tops in CU history. Since starting his career 15-of-53 (28.3 percent) after 20 games from downtown, McDermott has made 115-of-232 three-pointers (49.6 percent) in his past 67 games.
Since the start of last season, McDermott is shooting 49.1 percent (83-169) from 3-point range.
McDermott Earns MVC Awards
Doug McDermott has been named MVC Player of the Week four times this season.
His first honor came Nov. 12th for his performance in a Nov. 9 win vs. North Texas. McDermott had 21 points and 11 rebounds to produce CU's first double-double in a season-opener since Kyle Korver in 2001-02.
He was then honored on Nov. 26th after averaging 25.3 points and 7.3 rebounds while earning MVP honors of the Las Vegas Invitational.
McDermott was honored on Dec. 10th after averaging 28.5 points in wins vs. Nebraska and Akron.
Most recently, McDermott was honored on Dec. 17th after scoring 34 points and hauling down nine rebounds in a win at Cal on Dec. 15th. He was also named National Player of the Week by Seth Davis (CBS/Sports Illustrated) and the USBWA for that performance.
McDermott now owns nine career MVC Player of the Week honors, something only Bradley great Hersey Hawkins (14) can top. Including his seven MVC Newcomer of the Week honors in 2010-11, McDermott has won at least one weekly award from the MVC in 16 of 40 weeks since enrolling at Creighton.
Chasing History, Part I
Doug McDermott has scored 21 or more points in 10 of the season's 13 games, moving up to seventh on Creighton's all-time scoring list with 1,688 career points.
With 29 points last Saturday vs. Evansville, McDermott moved past Paul Silas on Creighton's all-time scoring list and past Wes Unseld on the MVC's all-time scoring list.
At McDermott's current scoring average of 23.5 points per game this year he'll become Creighton's all-time leading scorer in 19 more games. Creighton has a minimum of 19 games remaining this season.
By comparison, both of Creighton's top two all-time leading scorers, Rodney Buford (1995-99) and Bob Harstad (1987-91), had exactly 1,540 points at the end of their junior seasons.
McDermott is within range to make huge gains on both the MVC and Creighton scoring charts should he continue his recent productivity.
All-Time MVC Scoring Leaders
Rk. Name, School Points
1. Hersey Hawkins, Bradley 3,008
23. Osiris Eldridge, Illinois State 1,838
24. Johnny Murdock, Missouri State 1,834
25. Tracy Moore, Tulsa 1,823
26. Kyle Korver, Creighton 1,801
27. Josh Young, Drake 1,789
28. Ben Jacobson, UNI 1,787
29. Aubrey Sherrod, Wichita State 1,765
30. Joe Allen, Bradley 1,763
31. Andy Elkins, Evansville 1,761
Darren Brooks, Southern Illinois 1,761
33. Slab Jones, New Mexico State 1,758
34. Colt Ryan, Evansville* 1,756
35. Nate Funk, Creighton 1,754
36. Tarise Bryson, Illinois State 1,736
37. Jason Daisy, UNI 1,721
38. Voise Winters, Bradley 1,714
39. Steve Middleton, Southern Illinois 1,710
40. Danny Moore, Missouri State 1,691
41. Phillip Gilbert, Bradley 1,689
42. Doug McDermott, Creighton* 1,688
43. Wes Unseld, Louisville 1,686
44. Anthony Parker, Bradley 1,683
*active
All-Time Creighton Scoring Leaders
Rk. Name, Years Points
1. Rodney Buford, 1995-99 2,116
2. Bob Harstad, 1987-91 2,110
3. Chad Gallagher, 1987-91 1,983
4. Bob Portman, 1966-69 1,876
5. Kyle Korver, 1999-03 1,801
6. Nate Funk, 2002-07 1,754
7. Doug McDermott, 2010-Pres.* 1,688
8. Rick Apke, 1974-78 1,682
9. Paul Silas, 1961-64 1,661
*active
More Than The Rest
Doug McDermott has scored 1,688 points in his career, 10th-most among active players. He is the only active junior with at least 1,300 career points.
Most Points, Active Players (though 1/1)
Source: Stats Inc./MVC
Rk. Pts. Name, School Next Game
1. 2,357 C.J. McCollum, Lehigh 1/5
2. 1,956 Kevin Foster, Santa Clara 1/2
3. 1,894 Nate Wolters, S. Dakota State 1/3
4. 1,804 Markeith Cummings, Kennesaw St. 1/2
5. 1,792 C.J. Reed, Georgia Southern 1/2
6. 1,781 D.J. Cooper, Ohio 1/5
7. 1,756 Colt Ryan, Evansville 1/2
8. 1,727 Kenny Boynton, Florida 1/6
9. 1,692 Stan Okoye, VMI 1/2
10. 1,688 Doug McDermott, Creighton 1/2
11. 1,677 Seth Curry, Duke 1/2
12. 1,670 Mike Muscala, Bucknell 1/2
13. 1,632 Shane Gibson, Sacred Heart 1/3
14. 1,628 Isaiah Canaan, Murray State 1/3
15. 1,624 Matthew Dellavedova, St. Mary's 1/5
Most Career Points, Active Juniors
Source: Creighton Sports Info/STATS Inc. (1/1)
Rk. Pts. Name, School Next Game
1. 1,688 Doug McDermott, Creighton 1/2
2. 1,284 Devon Saddler, Delaware 1/5
3. 1,205 DeAndre Kane, Marshall 1/2
Strong On the Road
Off to a 12-1 start overall, Creighton is 4-0 away from home this season. Those four victories have come against two Big Ten teams (Wisconsin, Nebraska) and two Pacific-12 teams (Arizona State, Cal).
Impressively, all four wins have been by double-digits. Creighton is 8-1 in the past two years against BCS teams, including six victories by double-digits and another triumph by eight.
BCS Busters, Again
Creighton improved to 8-1 in the past two seasons vs. teams from BCS conferences with wins this year over Wisconsin & Nebraska (Big Ten) and Arizona State and Cal (Pacific-12). Last year Creighton defeated Alabama (SEC) as well as Big 10 foes Nebraska, Northwestern and Iowa, losing only to North Carolina (ACC) in the NCAA Tournament.
In those nine games, All-American Doug McDermott has averaged 25.3 points and 8.3 rebounds, well above his career averages (19.4 ppg., 7.6 rpg.), as seen below:
McDermott vs. BCS Schools, Last 2 Years
Date Opponent Pts. Reb. Score
11/20/11 vs. Iowa 25 9 W 82-59
12/04/11 Nebraska 24 12 W 76-66
12/22/11 Northwestern 27 5 W 87-79
03/16/12 vs. Alabama 16 10 W 58-57
03/18/12 vs. North Carolina 20 9 L 73-87
11/23/12 vs. Wisconsin 30 8 W 84-74
11/24/12 vs. Arizona State 29 9 W 87-73
12/06/12 at Nebraska 27 4 W 64-42
12/15/12 at California 30 9 W 74-64
All I Wanted For Christmas Was 11 Wins
Creighton was 11-1 heading into its Christmas break. This was just the fourth time in program history the Jays own 10 or more wins by Dec. 25th, and the first to ever reach 11 victories before Christmas.
Gift of Gibbs
Grant Gibbs led the MVC with 176 assists last season, and his 76 helpers this season are already 18 more than any other Valley player.
In the last five games, Gibbs has 37 assists and just six turnovers. For the year, Gibbs owns a 76/14 assist/turnover ratio.
That 5.43 assist/turnover ratio is easily the best for any player nationally with at least 4.3 assists per game or more. UCLA's Larry Drew II (5.09 a/to ratio) is a distant second.
Ball Control Offense
Creighton owns a stellar 226/152 assist/turnover ratio (1.49) as a team to rank 10th nationally.
Last year Creighton ranked sixth nationally by finishing with a 1.48 assist/turnover ratio.
In addition to Grant Gibbs' outstanding 5.4 assist/turnover ratio, sophomore point guard Austin Chatman has just four turnovers in the past four games.
Efficiency Improves
Because Creighton tends to play at a faster pace and have more possessions than the average school, Bluejay coaches place significant emphasis on stats like average points per possession, with data that can be found on a site such as bbstate.com.
Creighton's offense is still clicking as one of the nation's best, but the team has made huge strides on the defensive end of the floor, jumping from 222nd last year to 46th this season.
Eleven of Creighton's first 13 opponents have been hold under 1.00 points per possession this season.
Points Per Possession
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13
Offense 1.065 1.150 1.163
Offense Rank 46th 2nd 5th
Defense 1.006 1.014 0.881
Defense Rank 192nd 222nd 46th
Defense! Defense!
Creighton ranked 222nd nationally last season in field goal percentage defense at 44.1 percent, one area that the program has tried hard to improve on in the off-season.
The early results have been promising, as CU has limited foes to 39.6 percent marksmanship. That figure ranked 81st-best nationally in 2012-13 through Sunday's games.
Only one team (Boise State) has shot better than 43.4 percent this season against the Jays.
The 42 points by Nebraska on Dec. 6th were its fewest against Creighton since 1932, a span of 39 meetings.
Leading Scorer, Again
Before Avery Dingman's team-high 21 points vs. Tulsa on Dec. 19th, Doug McDermott had led Creighton in scoring nine straight games, averaging 26.1 points per game in that time.
This was the second time in the past 13 months that he's had a streak of nine or more straight games as the team scoring leader.
Dating to 1988, Bob Harstad owns the longest such streak with 12 straight games as CU's leading scorer from Dec. 10, 1988 to Jan. 28, 1989.
Consec. Games as Leading Scorer, Since 1988
Games Name Dates
12 Bob Harstad Dec. 10, 1988-Jan. 28, 1989
11 Doug McDermott Nov. 13 - Dec. 28, 2011
9 Doug McDermott Nov. 18 - Dec. 16, 2012
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
Inside The Numbers
Creighton's Doug McDermott (23.5) enters this week as the nation's top scoring junior. As can be seen below, good things have happened to the top-scoring juniors in the past nine years:
NCAA's Top-Scoring Juniors, Last Nine Years
NBA
Year Name, School PPG Draft #
2011-12 Damian Lillard, Weber St. 24.5 6th
2010-11 Kemba Walker, UConn. 23.5 9th
2009-10 Adnan Hodzic, Lipscomb 22.7 not picked
2008-09 Stephen Curry, Davidson 28.6 7th
2007-08 Lester Hudson, UT-Martin 25.7 58th
2006-07 Reggie Williams, VMI 28.1 not picked*
2005-06 Adam Morrison, Gonzaga 28.1 3rd
2004-05 Ike Diogu, Arizona State 22.6 9th
2003-04 Kevin Martin, W. Carolina 24.9 26th
*wasn't drafted, but currently in fourth year in NBA
BCS Bracket Buster
Some of Creighton's most thrilling victories in recent seasons have been against teams from the six major college football BCS Conferences (ACC, SEC, Big 10, Big 12, Pac-12, BIg East), as Creighton owns a 32-21 mark in the past 15 seasons.
Among CU's victims in that time have been Nebraska (12 times), Iowa (three times) DePaul (twice), Florida (twice), Baylor (twice), Oklahoma State (once), Notre Dame (once), Providence (once), Missouri (once), Oregon (once), Northwestern (once), Alabama (once), Wisconsin (once), Cal (once), TCU (once) and Ohio State (once).
Best 13 Game Starts
Creighton has started 12-1 or better for the first time since 2003-04, and fifth time overall. Below are Creighton's best 13-game starts in history:
Best 13-Game Starts
First 13 Year Final W-L
13-0 1942-43 16-1
12-1 1924-25 14-2
12-1 2002-03 29-5
12-1 2003-04 20-9
12-1 2012-13 ? ? ?
Jones Hospitalized
Josh Jones was hospitalized prior to Creighton's Dec. 6 game at Nebraska after he fainted during pre-game warm-ups on the Bob Devaney Sports Center court prior to Creighton's 64-42 win.
Jones was released from a Lincoln hospital on Dec. 7th. Jones was underwent a nine-hour medical procedure on Dec. 18th, and on Dec. 26th announced his basketball career is done due to an atrial flutter.
The senior guard was averaging 7.0 points per game as the team's top guard off the bench.
Top Four From Three
While Gregory Echenique has yet to attempt a three-point shot this season, Creighton's other top three scorers continue to fill it up from deep.
Austin Chatman (.600), Ethan Wragge (.406) and Doug McDermott (.500) have combined to make 69-of-147 three-point attempts this season, good for 46.9 percent.
Chatman is 11-for-14 from three-point range in the past nine games, while McDermott is 23-of-38 from downtown in the past seven contests. Wragge started the season 18-for-29 and is fifth in the MVC in three-pointers made.
Either Wragge or McDermott has had three or more three-pointers in 13 of Creighton's last 16 games dating back to late last season.
McDermott has made 35-of-60 three-point shots (.58.3) in the month of December in the past two seasons.
Creighton owns four men on its roster who have made 106 or more career three-pointers.
Pick Your Poison
Last season Creighton ranked third nationally in three-point percentage, making 42.4 percent from downtown.
This year's team can still fill it up from long-range (42.5 percent, good for second nationally), but are off the charts from close-range as well.
This year's Bluejay team is shooting 56.0 percent from two-point range, ninth-best in the nation. Wednesday's foe, Illinois State, ranks as the nation's third-best at 57.3 percent from two-point range.
According to data from bbstate.com, no team since at least 2005-06 has shot better than 58.7 from two-point range.
Comparing Offenses
Last season Creighton had one of the nation's most effective and most efficient offenses. With all but one regular from that squad back, we thought we'd take a second to compare the 2011-12 and 2012-13 teams through 13 games:
Stat 2011-12 2012-13
Record 11-2 12-1
FG Made 386 365
FG% .501 .508
3FG Made 119 119
3FG% .451 .425
FT Made 189 185
FT% .692 .755
Rebound Margin +4.7 +3.7
Assists 259 226
Turnovers 163 152
Scoring Average 83.1 79.5
Scoring Margin +14.0 +18.2
Pizza Pie, Piled High = Wins
Thanks to a promotion with Omaha-based Godfather's Pizza, Creighton season ticket-holders can get a free mini pizza any time the Jays score 75 points at home.
History has proven that when the team earns the fans pizza, it often leads to a victory as well.
The first three years of CenturyLink Center Omaha (2003-06), Creighton needed 70 points to earn its fans free pizza, and the Jays went 27-3 when reaching that threshold, closing out that run with 12 straight wins.
Since upping the standard to 75 points prior to the 2006-07 campaign, Creighton is a perfect 61-0 when scoring 75 points or more at CenturyLink Center Omaha.
In other words, Creighton is a perfect 73-0 in CenturyLink Center Omaha since Feb. 6, 2005 when scoring enough points to earn its fans some free pizza.
A New Streak
Now that the impressive streak when scoring 70 or more is over, it's time to look at a few other eye-opening streaks still in play.
Since Greg McDermott took over three years ago, Creighton is averaging 77.91 points per home game (3,662 points in 47 home games).
That's a vital number since Creighton is 85-0 at home (58-0 at CenturyLink Center Omaha) when scoring 78 points or more and 69-0 at home (46-0 at CenturyLink Center Omaha) when scoring 80 points or more at home dating to a 92-83 loss to Southern Illinois on Feb. 19, 2000.
Whistle While You Work
Creighton has enjoyed a big edge at the line this season, making more free throws than their opponents have attempted.
Creighton is 185-of-245 at the line compared to 122-of-178 shooting from its foes. Creighton's 75.5 percent marksmanship from the line ranks 26th nationally.
Stat Leaders
Statistically, Creighton ranks among the nation's top-20 in nine different categories. The Jays are second in three-point percentage (.425), seventh in win percentage (.923), eighth in three-pointers per game (9.2), ninth in field goal percentage (.508), 10th in assist/turnover ratio (1.49), 11th in assists per game (17.4), 13th in scoring margin (18.2), 19th in total points (1,034) and 20th in scoring offense (79.5).
Individually, Grant Gibbs is second in assist/turnover ratio (5.43) and 25th in assists per game (5.8), Doug McDermott is third in points per game (23.5), 35th in free-throw percentage (.878) and 47th in field goal percentage (.553). In addition, Gregory Echenique ranks 43rd in double-doubles (4) and 90th in blocked shots per game (1.69) and 99th in rebounds per game.
Big Road Win
Creighton's 64-42 win at Nebraska matched its largest victory margin in a true road win since an 82-60 win at Southern Illinois on Feb. 14, 2009.
It was also the largest margin in a non-conference road win since winning at Drexel, 72-48, on Dec. 1, 2007.
Before Dec. 6th, last time Creighton won a true road game by 22+ points vs. a BCS-league team was 12/18/76 at Oregon State (90-68).
Scoring On The Badgers
Creighton scored 84 points on Nov. 23rd against Wisconsin's vaunted defense that has ranked among the nation's top-10 in scoring defense in each of the past six seasons.
It was the first time in either of the last two seasons that Wisconsin had allowed 80 points in a game, and the eighth-most allowed in regulation in Bo Ryan's 12 years as a head coach.
New Coaches Update
Greg McDermott was one of 53 head coaches hired to coach a school prior to 2010-11. His 64 wins in that span are easily the most of that group, and McDermott, Tad Boyle (Colorado) and Dana Altman (Oregon) are the only men to win a postseason game each of their first two seasons.
Below is a list of the new coaches with 50 or more wins at their school since being hired.
School Coach W-L Next Game
Creighton Greg McDermott 64-23 1/2
Colorado Tad Boyle 58-28 1/3
Iona Tim Cluess 57-26 1/4
Oregon Dana Altman 56-30 1/6
Robert Morris Andy Toole 52-30 1/3
Marshall Tom Herrion 50-32 1/2
Austin Powers
After spending last year as a back-up to Antoine Young, sophomore Austin Chatman has taken over as Creighton's starting point guard. Creighton's been blessed with a legacy of some of the MVC's best point guards in the last 15 years, a streak that began with four-year starters Ryan Sears (1997-2001), Tyler McKinney (2001-05) and Josh Dotzler (2005-09) at the point before Young ran the offense while starting the last three years.
Here's a look at the stats, by year, of the men that Chatman is trying to replace.
Freshman Sophomore
Name PPG APG CU W-L PPG APG CU W-L
Sears 10.5 4.8 18-10 8.7 4.0 22-9
McKinney 4.3 2.1 23-9 5.0 4.1 29-5
Dotzler 6.4 4.2 20-10 2.2 2.0 22-11
Young 4.9 1.4 27-8 7.1 3.1 18-16
Chatman 2.4 1.9 29-6 8.1 4.5 12-1
Dime Time
Austin Chatman's 11 assists on Nov. 18 vs. Presbyterian were one shy of the CenturyLink Center Omaha record, set last season by Grant Gibbs vs. Northwestern. Chatman entered the game with a career-high of seven assists, then had nine by halftime.
Chatman's 11 dimes led to 30 Bluejay points, and Creighton outscored the Blue Hose 63-26 in his 24 minutes of play.
In addition, Chatman's 11 assists were the most by a Bluejay sophomore since Tyler McKinney had 12 assists in a 81-73 win at Nebraska on Dec. 21, 2002.
Quick Starts Key To Playing in Postseason
Creighton has started off 3-0 (or better) in 12 of the previous 14 seasons. Each of Creighton's previous 13 3-0 starts have been culminated in a postseason tournament appearance at the end of the year.
Not Half Bad
Doug McDermott outscored Presbyterian 20-17 in the first half in a Nov. 18 win. It was the second-most points McDermott has ever had at halftime, and the fourth-highest half of his career.
McDermott's highest scoring half of his career has been 31 points, done last year in the second half at Bradley when he scored a career-best 44 points.
McDermott has scored 15 points or more in a half 31 times during his career, and Creighton is 28-0 in those contests (three times he's scored 15 or more in both halves).
Rare Air
Gregory Echenique had one of the best all-around games of his career on Nov. 14 in the win vs. UAB, finishing with 13 points, 16 rebounds and four blocked shots. For good measure, he made 5-of-5 shots from the field and was a perfect 3-for-3 at the line.
Echenique was the first Bluejay with at least 13 points, 16 rebounds and four blocked shots in the same game since Benoit Benjamin had 15 points, 17 rebounds and four swats on Feb. 28, 1985 at Dayton.
Echenique was the first Bluejay to have a 13/16/4 game at home since Benjamin had 26 points, 18 rebounds and seven rejections in a win vs. Marquette on Jan. 27, 1985.
Incredibly, Benjamin had nine different games in his junior season with at least 13 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks before Echenique ended the 27-year drought.
Playing With The Lead
In 162 games at CenturyLink Center Omaha all-time, Creighton has not trailed in 39 of those contests, a staggering 24.1 percent of the time, including seven wire-to-wire wins at home last season and three wins (Longwood, Saint Joseph's, Tulsa) this season.
Creighton has trailed by double-digits in 37 career games at CenturyLink Center Omaha, only to rally to win 22 of those contests.
On The Trail
Creighton won six games last season after trailing by 10 or more points, including wins away from home at San Diego State and at Wichita State, on neutral floors vs. Drake and Alabama, and in home triumphs over Long Beach State and Evansville.
In its Nov. 14 win vs. UAB, Creighton trailed 45-35 in the second stanza, only to rally for a 77-60 win. It was the first time since Feb. 3, 2010 (vs. Evansville) that Creighton trailed by double-digits at any point before rallying to win by double-figures. That UAB game was also the first time in CenturyLink Center Omaha history that Creighton trailed by double-figures in the second half, yet still won by double-digits.
Creighton, which trailed 37-33 at the half to UAB, is 9-6 in the last two seasons when facing an intermission deficit.
Double-Double Opener
Doug McDermott opened his junior season with 21 points and 11 rebounds on Nov. 9 against North Texas in a 71-51 win.
He was the first Creighton player to have a double-double in a season-opener since Kyle Korver opened his junior campaign with 14 points and 10 rebounds in a 72-51 victory over North Carolina A&T.
Korver would go on to earn MVC Player of the Year accolades as both a junior and as a senior. Last year McDermott was the first player in MVC history named MVC Player of the Year as a sophomore.
Creighton has won either the MVC regular-season title or MVC Tournament each of its previous six seasons it had a player with a double-double in the opener (2001-02, 1999-00, 1998-99, 1990-91, 1989-90, 1988-89).
Poll Position
Creighton is ranked 11th in this week's USA Today Top 25 Coaches poll and 16th in this week's Associated Press poll. Creighton's best AP ranking this year was 11th on Nov. 26th, while this week's No. 11 coaches poll rank matches the best (also Nov. 26th).
Creighton was ranked 15th in this year's preseason coaches poll, its first preseason recognition since coming in at No. 23 in 2006-07.
Creighton started this year with a No. 16 preseason ranking by the AP, its highest preseason mark in program history and the best by any MVC school since No. 6 Wichita State in 1981-82.
Pencil Him In
According to STATS Inc., Doug McDermott is one of 14 juniors or seniors nationwide to start every game of his career (min. 2 years played):
Juniors/Seniors To Start Every Game
Source: STATS Inc., through 1/1
Starts Name, School Next Game 120 Brandon Triche, Syracuse 1/2
108 Dorian Green, Colorado State 1/2
87 Doug McDermott, Creighton 1/2
82 Ray McCallum, Detroit 1/3
81 Cody Doolin, San Francisco 1/2
81 Deonte Burton, Nevada 1/9
80 Brian Voelkel, Vermont 1/2
79 Frantz Massenat, Drexel 1/2
78 Holton Hunsaker, Utah Valley 1/5
78 Jeromie Hill, UTSA 1/3
75 Devon Saddler, Delaware 1/5
74 Travis McKie, Wake Forest 1/2
73 Marshall Bjorklund, N. Dakota St. 1/3
73 Daniel Miller, Georgia Tech 1/2
Chasing History
Doug McDermott has scored 900 points in his first 47 career home games. He is the all-time leading scorer in CenturyLink Center Omaha history.
McDermott also owns CenturyLink Center Omaha career records in points per game (19.1) and rebounds per game (7.5).
McDermott enters Wednesday's game with 1,688 career points in all venues, good for seventh in school history.
Super Streak Ends At 37
Doug McDermott's streak of 37 straight games in double-figures came to an end when he was held to five points vs. UAB on Nov. 14th.
McDermott had owned the nation's third-longest active streak in the country, and the longest by any Bluejay since Vernon Moore's stretch of 46 in a row in 1984 and 1985.
McDermott's five points were the second-fewest in his career. His only game lower was his freshman season vs. Saint Joseph's, when he was scoreless in his ninth career contest.
CU's Top 10+ Point Streaks, Since 1981-82
No. Name Dates
46 Vernon Moore Jan. 30, 1984 - Mar. 5, 1985
37 Doug McDermott April 1, 2011-Nov. 9, 2012
32 Bob Harstad Feb. 24, 1990-Feb. 25, 1991
31 Benoit Benjamin Mar. 8, 1984 - Feb. 20, 1985
Milestone Man
Because he's split his college career between Rutgers and Creighton, you might not realize the rather impressive college stats being generated by Gregory Echenique.
Echenique owns 1,158 points, 854 rebounds and 228 blocked shots in his first 116 games as a collegian. He entered the season as the nation's only active player with at least 1,000 point, 750 rebounds and 200 blocked shots, and is currently the nation's only active player with 1,100 points, 850 rebounds and 225 or more blocked shots.
Had all those stats been generated at Creighton, Echenique would rank 27th in career points, sixth in career rebounds and second in career blocked shots at CU.
I Know What You Did Last Summer
Senior center Gregory Echenique played for coach Eric Musselman on the Venezuelan National Team last summer, alongside the likes of former Maryland star and current Memphis Grizzlies guard Greivis Vasquez.
Echenique averaged 7.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in two games at the FIBA Olympic Qualifier in Caracas in July against Lithuania and Nigeria, where he went head-to-head against NBA players such as Linas Kleiza, Jonas Valanciunas, and Al-Farouq Aminu.
Army of Iowans
Every Creighton team since 1988-89 has had at least one Iowa native, and this season is no exception.
Creighton has four 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 Iowans this season includes senior Grant Gibbs (Marion), junior Doug McDermott (Ames), sophomore Will Artino (Waukee) and redshirt freshman Alex Olsen (Council Bluffs).
Other past notable Iowans include Kyle Korver (Pella), Ryan Sears (Ankeny), Brody Deren (Harlan), Tyler McKinney (Urbandale) and Nate Funk (Sioux City).
Creighton has played at least one Iowa native in 598 straight games. That streak dates to a Feb. 5, 1994 win against Wichita State.
Preseason MVC Poll
Creighton was picked to win the Missouri Valley Conference in the preseason poll of league coaches, SID's and media. The Bluejays earned 38-of-40 first-place votes and 398 points overall.
Illinois State was second with 327 points and the remaining two first-place votes, while Northern Iowa was third with 316 points. Wichita State (298) and Evansville (240) rounded out the upper half of the league.
In sixth was Drake (184), while Indiana State (165), Missouri State (122), Bradley (84) and Southern Illinois (66) round out the rest of the league predictions.
Creighton junior Doug McDermott was named preseason MVC Player of the Year. He's joined on the team by repeat selections Jake Odum (Indiana State) and Colt Ryan (Evansville) as well as new picks Ben Simons (Drake) and Jackie Carmichael (Illinois State).
Creighton's women were also picked to win the MVC, just the third time in league history the MVC favorites came from the same schools.
Portman To Enter MVC Hall of Fame
Bob Portman will enter the Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Fame on March 8, 2013, during a banquet at the MVC Tournament in St. Louis, Mo.
Portman played for Creighton from 1966-69 and averaged 24.6 points and 12.9 rebounds per game during his college career.
Portman owns the Creighton records for single-game scoring (51), single-season scoring average (29.5) and career scoring average (24.7). He is also second for points in a season (738) and ranks fourth in career points (1,876), rebounds (979), free throws (382) and field goals made (747).
Going For 20, Again
Creighton has won 20 or more games in 13 of the last 14 seasons, an unprecedented feat in Missouri Valley Conference history that puts the Jays among an exclusive group, nationally.
Just five schools nationally have had 20 or more wins each of the last 14 years: Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas and Syracuse.
Creighton is one of six schools with 20 or more wins in exactly 13 of the past 14 years. That list consists of Creighton, Kent State, Kentucky, Texas, Utah State and Xavier.
That's better than traditional powers Arizona, Connecticut and Memphis (12 each) and also ahead of Michigan State, Pittsburgh and Wisconsin (11 each).
Postseason x 15
Creighton has made the postseason in 15 consecutive seasons, the longest streak of postseason bids in MVC history.
The only eight schools to make the postseason in each of the last 14 years are Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State and Syracuse.
Postseason Win Streak
Thanks to an NCAA Tournament win over Alabama, the Creighton men's basketball team has now won a postseason game in a school-record five straight seasons. The previous mark was three in a row from 1962-64.
The following eight programs are the only ones that have won a postseason game in five straight seasons, including 2011-12: Creighton, Kansas, Kansas State, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Syracuse and Wisconsin.
Full House
Creighton finished sixth nationally in home attendance, averaging 16,665 fans per home game, in 2011-12. It's the sixth straight season that CU has been among the nation's top-25 in average home attendance, and set an MVC average home attendance record.
Creighton surpassed 200,000 home fans in a season for the sixth time. No other school in the history of the MVC has ever done so.
Creighton also ranked seventh nationally in men's soccer attendance and 10th in baseball attendance, the nation's only school in the top-10 of those three sports.
This year's Creighton team is averaging 16,572 fans per home game through nine dates.
2011-12 Attendance Leaders (Final)
Rk. School Average
1. Kentucky 23,721
2. Syracuse 23,618
3. Louisville 21,503
4. North Carolina 20,159
5. Wisconsin 17,181
6. Creighton 16,665
7. Tennessee 16,543
8. Ohio State 16,510
9. Indiana 16,462
10. Kansas 16,300
Highest Season Home Attendance, MVC History
Home Att. School Year
302,676 Creighton 2008-09
297,161 Creighton 2010-11
276,000 Creighton 2007-08
266,632 Creighton 2011-12
246,419 Creighton 2009-10
Highest Average Attendance, MVC History
Avg. Att. School Year
16,665 Creighton 2011-12
15,930 Creighton 2008-09
15,909 Creighton 2006-07
15,333 Creighton 2007-08
14,495 Creighton 2009-10
Long-Distance Streak Alive
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in a league-best 622 straight games since a 59-53 loss at Illinois State on Feb. 20, 1993. That's the longest active streak in the MVC.
CenturyLink Center Omaha Success
Creighton has played 162 regular and postseason contests at CenturyLink Center Omaha all-time in its 10 seasons at the facility.
The Bluejays own an 138-24 (.852) record all-time at the facility, and have never lost there on a Thursday (7-0) or Friday (6-0).
Creighton has outscored its opponents 12,158-10,259 in games at CenturyLink Center Omaha, an average margin of 11.7 points per game. Creighton has led wire-to-wire 39 different times, including seven times last season and three times this winter (Longwood, Saint Joseph's, Tulsa).
Piling Up The Points, and Wins
Creighton has won 55 straight games when scoring 90 points or more, dating to Jan. 11, 1988.
Creighton has won 19 straight (at all sites) when scoring 100 points or more, dating to Feb. 26, 1977.
In home games only, Creighton has won 94 straight games when scoring 71 or more points since a Feb. 5, 2005 loss to Missouri State.
Here's To History
With the 2012 MVC Tournament title, Creighton head coach Greg McDermott became the first head coach in league history to win a Valley Tournament title at more than one school.
McDermott previously won a title in 2004 at Northern Iowa. The 1988 Northern Iowa grad McDermott also holds the honor of being the first coach in league history to win an MVC Tournament title at his alma mater.
Dance Partners
Only two schools won their league tournament in both men's and women's basketball in 2011-12: Creighton and South Dakota State.
This was the fifth time in MVC history that the same school has won the men's and women's tournament titles in the same season. Creighton, however, was the first program to do it twice (UNI 2010, Creighton 2002 and 2012, Missouri State 1992, Illinois State 1983).
McDermott A Preseason All-American
Junior forward Doug McDermott became the first player in MVC history to be named a preseason First Team All-American by the Associated Press. The team was announced on October 28th.
McDermott earned acclaim on 62-of-65 ballots, trailing only Indiana's Cody Zeller. The rest of the team consisted of Isaiah Canaan (Murray State), Deshaun Thomas (Ohio State), Trey Burke (Michigan) and C.J. McCollum (Lehigh).
The preseason All-America team was first announced in 1986-87.
Watch This!
Junior Doug McDermott is on the preseason watch lists for both the Wooden Award and the Naismith Award, two of the top awards in college basketball.
McDermott is the only man who was a finalist for either award to return to school this season.
The Naismith Award is presented by the Atlanta Tipoff Club and will be presented on April 7, 2013, in Atlanta.
The Wooden Award is presented by the Los Angeles Athletic Club and will handed out the weekend of April 12-13, 2013, in Los Angeles.
Everybody's All-American
Doug McDermott hauled All-America honors on a regular basis last year.
He was named a First Team All-American by the Associated Press, NABC, USBWA, Basketball Times and ESPN.com, and a second-team selection by The Sporting News and CBSSports.com. He was also named to the 10-man John R. Wooden Award All-America team.
Prior to McDermott, the only other player honored by the USBWA with All-America status had been second-team selection Kyle Korver in 2003, and the only prior NABC selections from Creighton had been second-teamer Paul Silas (1964) and third-team selections Benoit Benjamin (1985) and Kyle Korver (2003).
Last year McDermott was named CollegeInsider.com's Lute Olson National Player of the Year. He was also a finalist for the Naismith and Wooden Award, though Anthony Davis won both awards.
Scoring In Numbers
Doug McDermott owned 801 points in 35 games last year, an average of 22.9 per contest that ranked him third nationally in scoring.
McDermott's 22.9 points per game ranked fourth-most in CU single-season history and were the most since Bob Portman averaged 26.2 points per game in 1968-69.
Portman, who finished fifth nationally in scoring in 1967-68 (29.5 ppg.), was the only previous Bluejay to ever rank in the top-10 of the year-end scoring leaders.
McDermott's 22.9 points per game made him the first MVC player over 20 points per game since Illinois State's Tarise Bryson (2000-01) and the most by a MVC player since Northern Iowa's Randy Blocker (23.0 ppg.) in 1993-94. Bryson had been the only MVC player since 1989 to rank in the top-five nationally in scoring.
No Bluejay had averaged more than 20 points per game since Bob Harstad's 22.2 average in 1989-90.
Oscar, Bird, Doug
Doug McDermott set a Creighton (and MVC) record for points by a freshman with 581 in 2010-11. Last season, McDermott had 801 points, the most single-season points in school history by any player.
McDermott's 1,382 points after two seasons were the most in school history by a player in their first two seasons, passing Bob Portman (1,195). According to STATS Inc., the only other players since 1996-97 with at least 1,382 points or more by the end of their sophomore season had been Davidson's Stephen Curry (1,661 points from 2006-08), Eastern Washington's Rodney Stuckey (1,438 points from 2005-07) and VMI's Keydren Clark (1,497 points from 2002-04).
He became just the third sophomore in MVC history to reach 800 points in a season, trailing only Oscar Robertson and Larry Bird on that list. His 801 points from last year rank 10th-most in MVC single-season history and were the most by any Valley player since 1988.
Below is a list of the most prolific sophomore scorers in MVC history, as well as the top single-season scorers in Creighton history (all classes):
Top Scorers, MVC History (All Years)
Pts. Name, School Years
1125 Hersey Hawkins, Bradley 1987-88
1011 Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati 1959-60
984 Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati 1957-58
978 Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati 1958-59
973 Larry Bird, Indiana State 1978-79
959 Larry Bird, Indiana State 1977-78
918 Larry Bird, Indiana State 1976-77
844 Xavier McDaniel, Wichita State 1984-85
815 Lewis Lloyd, Drake 1979-80
801 Doug McDermott, Creighton 2011-12
788 Hersey Hawkins, Bradley 1986-87
788 Willie Biles, Tulsa 1972-73
Top Sophomore Scorers, MVC History
Pts. Name, School Years
984 Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati 1957-58
918 Larry Bird, Indiana State 1976-77
801 Doug McDermott, Creighton 2011-12
680 Mitchell Anderson, Bradley 1979-80
656 Hersey Hawkins, Bradley 1985-86
Top Scorers, Creighton Single-Season History
Pts. Name (Class) Year
801 Doug McDermott (So.) 2011-12
738 Bob Portman (Jr.) 1967-68
734 Bob Harstad (Jr.) 1989-90
Familiar Fives
Creighton utilized the same starting line-up all season long in 2011-12, as Gregory Echenique, Doug McDermott, Grant Gibbs, Jahenns Manigat and Antoine Young started all 35 games.
According to STATS Inc., the only schools with the same starting five every game were Creighton, Missouri, Nevada, Wisconsin and Youngstown State.
Of those five schools above, the only team to use the same starting five for every game in 2012-13 is Creighton.
All-Around Doug
Last season Doug McDermott joined Texas' Kevin Durant (in 2006-07) as the nation's only player since 1996-97 to finish a season with at least 800 points, 280 rebounds and 50 three-pointers.
It came on the heels of McDermott's remarkable freshman season with 581 points, 280 rebounds and 47 three-point baskets.
According to research by STATS Inc., the last two freshmen (before McDermott) to attain 525 points, 270 rebounds and 40 three-pointers in a season were Durant and Carmelo Anthony (Syracuse) in 2002-03. The previous two freshmen before them to do so, Quentin Richardson (1998-99 at DePaul) and Eddie Griffin (2000-01 at Seton Hall), like Durant and Anthony, were also named the National Freshman of the Year.
Below is the list, compiled by STATS Inc., of all 19 Division I players since 1996-97 to have McDermott's levels of at least 581 points, 280 rebounds and 47 three-pointers in one season.
McDermott, who repeated the feat in 2011-12, joins Kyle Singler (Duke) as one of two men to do it twice.:
581+ Pts., 280+ Reb., 47+ 3FG Since 1996-97
Source: STATS Inc. & Creighton Sports Info
Name, School Year 3FG Reb. Pts.
Kevin Durant, Texas* 2006-07 82 390 903
Doug McDermott, Creighton 2011-12 54 288 801
Carmelo Anthony, Syracuse* 2002-03 56 349 778
Shane Battier, Duke 2000-01 124 285 778
Kyle Singler, Duke 2009-10 85 280 707
Keith Van Horn, Utah 1996-97 58 303 705
Ryan Anderson, Cal 2007-08 64 328 697
Matt Harpring, Ga. Tech 1997-98 52 302 691
Rasual Butler, LaSalle 2001-02 57 283 670
Wendell McKinies, New Mex St. 2011-12 51 374 653
Brian Heinle, CS-Northridge 2000-01 52 293 646
Jae Crowder, Marquette 2011-12 61 295 614
Jamine Peterson, Providence 2009-10 51 315 609
James Posey, Xavier 1998-99 48 322 609
Kyle Singler, Duke 2008-09 69 284 609
Matt Howard, Butler 2010-11 53 285 608
Romain Sato, Xavier 2003-04 75 297 603
Draymond Green, Michigan St. 2011-12 52 392 601
Doug McDermott, Creighton* 2010-11 47 280 581
*Freshmen
Last Season Recap
Creighton went 29-6 and reached the third round of the MVC Tournament last season. Creighton started the year 7-0 to move into the Associated Press top-25, a spot they would hold for 12 of the final 15 weeks.
Doug McDermott ranked third nationally in scoring (22.9), scoring a school-record 801 points. He became the first sophomore named MVC Player of the Year and was a consensus First Team All-American.
Point guard Antoine Young (12.1 ppg., 4.5 apg.) was a second-team all-Valley pick, while center Gregory Echenique (9.7 ppg., 7.3 rpg., 1.6 bpg.) was named MVC Defensive Player of the Year. In addition, Grant Gibbs was runner-up for MVC Newcomer of the Year accolades after dishing a league-high 176 assists.
The Jays ranked second nationally in field goal percentage (.504), third in three-point percentage (.424), fifth in assists (17.6), sixth in home attendance (16,665) and ninth in scoring offense (79.2).
Creighton finished the regular-season second in the MVC before winning its league-record 11th Valley Tournament title to clinch an NCAA bid. At the NCAA's, Creighton topped Alabama 58-57 before falling to No. 4 North Carolina.
Creighton Will Host in 2015, Again
The NCAA announced on Nov. 12, 2012, that Creighton will serve as the host institution on March 20/22, 2015, when the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament returns to CenturyLink Center Omaha for second/third-round games.
This will be the third time in a seven-year span the arena has hosted, having previously done so in 2008 and 2012 to much acclaim.
CenturyLink Center Omaha has previously hosted NCAA finals for women's volleyball (2006, 2008) and wrestling (2010), as well as the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Swimming (2008, 2012). This January, it will host the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.
Shuttle Service Provided Again
Chief Bus will provide complimentary shuttle service from the Creighton University campus to CenturyLink Center Omaha for all men's basketball home games this season. The service is available to all fans, not just Creighton students.
The shuttle will start 75 minutes before tip-off and shuttles will continue to operate the route during the game. The three designated stops for pick-up around the CU campus are: 24th & California (nearside/southbound); 20th & Cass (nearside/eastbound) and at Billy Blues Alumni Grill (outside the Mike & Josie Harper Center in the turnaround which is on the east side of the building).
The shuttle will then go eastbound on Capitol Avenue and then go north up 10th Street for drop-off at the CenturyLink Center Omaha convention center entrance. The route is designed for each shuttle driver to make a roundtrip every 15 minutes.
Following the game's conclusion, the shuttle will start at the CenturyLink Center Omaha convention center entrance on 10th Street and loop the original route with the first of three stops at 24th & California Streets.
Ticket Information
Single-game tickets for the 2012-13 season went on sale on October 29th at 10 am.
Fans can purchase single-game tickets at CenturyLink Center Omaha Box Office, Ryan Athletic Center, all Ticketmaster locations (Baker's, Younkers), Ticketmaster online at http://www.ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster and charging by phone at (800) 745-3000. Only upper bowl seats will be available for any game and cost is $12 for adults and $8 for youth ages 3-18 (children two and under are free).
For more information, call the Creighton Ticket Office at (402) 280-JAYS.
Game #14 at Illinois State • Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2013 • 7:05 pm
#16 Creighton Bluejays at Illinois State Redbirds
Redbird Arena (10,000) • Normal, Ill.
Radio: KXSP 590 AM, www.am590espnradio.com
Television: FSN Midwest; ESPN3 (select areas)
Series History: Illinois State leads, 40-29
Last Meeting: Creighton 83, Illinois State 79 (OT) on 3/4/12 in St. Louis, Mo.
Next Game
No. 16 Creighton (12-1, 1-0 MVC) opens the 2013 calendar year with a road game at Illinois State (9-4, 0-1 MVC) in a battle of the two teams picked atop the preseason MVC poll.
Wednesday's game will tip at 7:05 pm from Redbird Arena (10,000) in Normal, Ill.
Radio Broadcast Information
KXSP (“AM 590 - Omaha's ESPN Radio”) will broadcast all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2012-13 season, including Wednesday. T. Scott Marr and Nick Bahe will call the action. The audio is also webcast live at www.AM590espnradio.com.
TV Broadcast Information
Wednesday's telecast will be cleared live on FOX Sports Midwest, FOX Sports Indiana (on FOX Sports Plus channels in the state of Indiana due to Indiana Pacers) and FOX Sports Kansas City, FOX College Sports Atlantic, Comcast SportsNet Chicago (on Comcast SportsNet Plus channels in the states of Illinois, Indiana and Iowa but will not clear Chicago DMA live), ESPN3 (outside the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska), DirecTV (Channel 671), Dish Network (Channel 418) and AT&T U-Verse (Channel 748). John Rooney and Mark Adams will announce. Coordinates are below:
Date: Wednesday, January 2
Test Time: 6:30 p.m. Central
On-Air: 7:00 p.m. Central
Tipoff: 7:07 p.m. Central
Satellite Coordinates: AMC 16 – Transponder K18 – Digital Slot A
Band: Digital KU Band
Format: SD 16:9
Video Compression: 4:2:2
Modulation: QPSK
Bandwidth: 18 Megahertz
Parameters: FEC ≤
Symbol Rate: 13.235
Data Rate: 18.295
Downlink Frequency: 12051 Megahertz Horizontal
Video Webcast Information
Wednesday's game will be webcast on ESPN3 at http://es.pn/mbb-CREIGHTONvsISU. The ESPN3 broadcast will be blacked out in states within the six-team MVC footprint (NE, IA, IL, IN, KS, MO).
Live Stats Information
All of Creighton's games this season will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the Live Stats tab on the top of the page for a link the exact URL.
Home games can also be followed by those who have mobile devices with internet capability at www.gocreightonstats.com.
Scouting No. 16 Creighton
Creighton is 12-1 this season, including wins over Wisconsin, Arizona State, UAB, Saint Joseph's, Nebraska, Akron, Cal and Tulsa. Creighton's only loss this year has come against Boise State on Nov. 28th.
Junior forward Doug McDermott (23.5 ppg., 7.0 rpg.) is the nation's only returning consensus First Team All-American, as well as the nation's leading returning scorer (22.9 ppg. last year). He's led the Jays in scoring and rebounding each of the past two seasons, and has already picked up MVC Freshman of the Year, MVC Newcomer of the Year, MVC Player of the Year and MVC Tournament MVP honors in his career. McDermott is 23-of-38 from three-point range in the past seven contests and has already been named MVC Player of the Week four times this season.
The other three returning starters include senior center Gregory Echenique (11.0 ppg., 7.9 rpg., 1.7 bpg.), senior guard Grant Gibbs (6.5 ppg., 5.8 apg.) and junior guard Jahenns Manigat (.468 3FG% last year). Gibbs led the MVC with 176 assists last year, while Echenique had a league-high 57 blocks en route to earning MVC Defensive Player of the Year honors.
Sophomore Austin Chatman replaced three-year starter Antoine Young, the lone player from last year's rotation to depart. Chatman is averaging 8.1 points and 4.5 assists per contest.
The Bluejays returned 10 lettermen and four starters from last year's 29-6 team that reached the third round of the NCAA Tournament, and have been widely praised for having one of the nation's most potent offenses.
Creighton is shooting 50.8 percent from the floor, 42.5 percent from downtown, 75.5 percent at the line, and outrebounding foes by 3.7 caroms a game. CU scores 79.5 points per game.
Scouting Illinois State
Illinois State is 9-4 on the season after falling 77-75 at Indiana State in last Sunday's league-opener.
The Redbirds are paced by preseason All-Valley pick Jackie Carmichael (17.8 ppg., 8.5 rpg., 2.2 bpg.), as well as Tyler Brown (16.8 ppg., 30 three-pointers).
Also scoring in bunches are Jon Ekey (9.5 ppg., 4.7 rpg.) and Bryant Allen (9.4 ppg.).
The Redbirds are 6-1 at home this season, where it averages 5,617 fans per game. The 'Birds average 80.5 points per game this season and shoot 49.7 percent from the field, 36.4 percent from downtown and 68.0 percent at the line.
The Coaches
Greg McDermott (Northern Iowa, 1988) is in his third season as head coach at Creighton. He led CU to a 29-6 mark last year, and is now 64-23 with the Bluejays. McDermott has previously been a head coach at Iowa State (2006-10), Northern Iowa (2001-06), North Dakota State (2000-01) and Wayne State (1994-2000). He owns a career mark of 344-218 in 19 seasons and is 213-154 in 12 Division I campaigns. McDermott is assisted by Darian DeVries, Steve Lutz and Steve Merfeld.
Illinois State is coached by Dan Muller (Illinois State, 1998), who is 9-4 in his first year as a head coach at any level. Muller starred at Illinois State as a player, then spent the past 12 years as a Vanderbilt assistant to his former Redbird coach, Kevin Stallings. Muller is assisted by Dana Ford, Rob Judson and Torrey Ward.
The Series With Illinois State
Illinois State leads the all-time series with Creighton by a 40-29 margin but the Bluejays have won 21 of the last 31 meetings.
The Redbirds own a 24-8 lead in Normal, but Creighton has won six of its past 11 trips to Redbird Arena.
Creighton coach Greg McDermott has won 10 straight meetings to improve to 12-4 all-time against Illinois State (5-0 since coming to Creighton) and has never faced against Dan Muller. Muller is 0-0 against Creighton.
Last Game Recap
Creighton used an early 19-3 run to build a 19-5 lead and never looked back in an 87-70 win over Evansville in the league opener for both teams. Doug McDermott had 29 points and 10 rebounds, while Gregory Echenique added 13 points and 13 rebounds as part of a dominant front-line effort over UE. Colt Ryan led the Purple Aces with 25 points, while Troy Taylor had a triple-double with 10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
I See Red People
Creighton looks to extend a lengthy trend of success over teams wearing a shade of red when it visits Normal on Wednesday.
Creighton went a perfect 14-0 in the 2012 calendar year against teams that wear red/cardinal/crimson/scarlet/garnet/maroon, as seen below:
Date Opponent Color Score
12/06/12 Nebraska Scarlet W 64-42
12/01/12 Saint Joseph's Crimson W 80-51
11/24/12 Arizona State Maroon W 87-73
11/23/12 Wisconsin Cardinal W 84-74
11/18/12 Presbyterian Garnet W 87-58
03/16/12 Alabama Crimson W 58-57
03/04/12 Illinois State Red W 83-79
02/14/12 Southern Illinois Maroon W 88-69
02/01/12 Illinois State Red W 102-74
01/28/12 Bradley Red W 73-59
01/18/12 Missouri State Maroon W 66-65
01/15/12 Southern Illinois Maroon W 90-71
01/13/12 Illinois State Red W 87-78
01/07/12 Bradley Red W 92-83
Making Them Ill(inois)
Last year marked the first time Creighton played a season without a loss to a team from Illinois since 1973-74. The Jays went 9-0 last season against teams from the state of Illinois, having gone 3-0 against Illinois State, 2-0 vs. Bradley and Southern Illinois, and 1-0 against Northwestern and Chicago State.
The Jays have won 10 straight games against teams from the “Land of Lincoln”, overall.
Each of Creighton's 11 teams to win two Valley road games in Illinois (vs. BU, ILS or SIU) reached the postseason, including seven NCAA Tournament squads.
In three road games vs. teams from Illinois (at Southern Illinois, at Bradley, at Illinois State) last season, Creighton averaged 89.0 points and shot 64.0 percent from the field, 61.5 percent from three-point range and 71.7 percent at the line. CU was also +12.3 on the glass and had 66 assists to just 43 turnovers.
Creighton's top perimeter threats all feasted in those games. Jahenns Manigat was 12-15 (80 percent) from '3' in those wins, with Doug McDermott (5-7, 71.4 percent) and Ethan Wragge (11-16, 68.8 percent) close behind.
Carmichael vs. Creighton
Illinois State big man Jackie Carmichael owns 49 points and 23 total rebounds in six career games vs. Creighton. Much of the defensive work has been done by the reigning MVC Defensive Player of the Year, Gregory Echenique, one of the few Valley players who can match Carmichael's size and strength inside.
Echenique owns 45 points and 33 rebounds in five all-time meetings vs. ISU.
Redbirds vs. Ranked
Illinois State has lost 26 of its last 27 games vs. ranked opponents since 1988, with only a 2012 MVC Tournment victory over Wichita State to show for it.
The Redbirds are 0-7 all-time vs. ranked foes at Redbird Arena and last beat a ranked opponent in Normal on March 3, 1984.
Creighton is ranked No. 16 in the AP poll entering Wednesday's game.
Postseason Contenders
Either Creighton or Illinois State has made the postseason in each of the last 18 years. In six of those 18 seasons, both Creighton and Illinois State have participated in postseason play.
30-Point Threats
Only four men in the MVC have scored 30 or more points in a game this season, and all four will be on Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena on Wednesday.
Creighton's Doug McDermott has three games of 30 points or more this winter, while Illinois State's trio of Bryant Allen, Tyler Brown and Jackie Carmichael have all done it once each. The Redbirds are the nation's only team to have three different men score 30 or more in a game this season.
Unbeaten December
Creighton went 6-0 in December wrapping up an unbeaten December with a victory over Evansville last Saturday.
Since 1946-47, Creighton's only two other teams to go unbeaten in December were in 2003 and 2008.
The 2008-09 team went 9-0 in December and would go on to win a share of the MVC regular-season title.
The 2003-04 squad finished tied for second in the MVC. That team began the season 12-0 before suffering an overtime loss in a game hosted by Northern Iowa and its then-coach, Greg McDermott.
Winning Away From Home
Creighton won a school-record 15 games away from home last season. The Jays went 10-3 in true road games and were also 5-1 on neutral floors.
Creighton's lone neutral-site loss came to North Carolina in a not-so “neutral” Greensboro, N.C., in the third round of the NCAA Tournament.
This year's team is 4-0 away from home, with each victory against a BCS school (Wisconsin, Arizona State, Nebraska, Cal) and by double-digits.
This season is the first time since 2004-05 that Creighton has won its first four games away from home. Creighton hasn't won its first five games away from home since 1999-00.
Each of Creighton's last nine NCAA Tournament teams have won 10 or more games away from home, and eight of those teams had a winning record in true road contests.
MVC Road Openers
Wednesday's game at Illinois State will be Creighton's first MVC road game of the season. Creighton is just 3-5 in recent seasons in those situations, though in three of those eight years they've fallen in a game decided at the buzzer.
In 2006-07, Creighton lost a 55-52 game in Terre Haute when Nate Funk's last-second three-point try was deflected by Indiana State's Gabe Moore.
In 2005-06, Illinois State's Dana Ford drained a 40-foot heave at the final horn for a 53-50 Redbird win.
During the 2004-05 season, Evansville's Kyle Anslinger grabbed an offensive rebound and beat the buzzer with an 18-footer in UE's 63-61 win. That Evansville team was coached by current Bluejay assistant Steve Merfeld.
The three teams mentioned above that Creighton lost to would wind up with a losing record in Valley action and played in a MVC Tournament play-in game.
MVC's Best On The Road
In addition to owning one of the MVC's best home-court advantages, Creighton has easily posted the league's best record in MVC road games since 2000-01 as well.
Creighton is 59-49 in MVC road games in that span, a win percentage of .546. A distant second is Southern Illinois (53-56, .486). As a league, the road winning percentage has been .347 in the same span.
MVC Road Records (since 2000-01)
Team W L Pct.
Creighton 59 49 .546
Southern Illinois 53 56 .486
Wichita State 46 62 .426
Northern Iowa 44 65 .404
Missouri State 42 66 .389
Drake 31 78 .284
Illinois State 30 79 .275
Bradley 29 79 .269
Indiana State 23 85 .213
Evansville 19 90 .174
All MVC Teams 376 709 .347
The Road Less Traveled
Creighton won its final two road games last year (at Southern Illinois, at Indiana State) and have won its first two road games this year too (Nebraska, Cal).
The four-game road win streak is tied for the nation's 10th-longest active streak nationally. Last season Creighton won six straight true road games, its longest such streak since 1975.
Road Warriors
Creighton is 12-3 in true road games over the past two seasons, one of the nation's best such marks. Only five teams have fewer true road losses in that span, a group consisting of Murray State, Syracuse, Wichita State, Kansas and Duke.
Fewest Road Losses, Last 2 Seasons (1/1)
Team W-L Pct. Next Road
Murray State 16-1 .941 1/3
Syracuse 10-1 .909 1/6
Wichita State 12-2 .857 1/12
Kansas 9-2 .818 1/12
Duke 8-2 .800 1/12
Creighton 12-3 .800 1/2
VCU 12-3 .800 1/2
Kentucky 8-3 .727 1/10
Rebound Battle Decides The War
Rebounds have played an important role in deciding the outcome of Creighton's recent trips to Redbird Arena, as each of the last seven (and 10 of 12) winners in the meeting in Normal has been won by the team to snare more rebounds. Illinois State has outrebounded foes by 1.5 boards per game this year, while Creighton is +3.7 on the glass.
Score Rebound
Year Margin Margin
2012 CU +9 CU +9
2011 CU +11 CU +4
2010 ISU +9 ISU +3
2009 ISU +22 ISU +18
2008 ISU +14 ISU +21
2007 ISU +10 ISU +7
2006 ISU +3 ISU +1
2005 CU +5 ISU +6
2004 CU +1 Even
2003 CU +19 CU +2
2002 CU +14 CU +5
RPI Update
Through games of December 31st, Creighton is ranked 17th in the RPI according to WarrenNolan.com, while Illinois State ranks 61st.
Creighton owns nine wins against RPI teams in the top-150. By comparison, defending national champion Kentucky has one top-200 win.
As a league, the MVC is the ninth-best conference nationally.
Celsius or Fahrenheit?
Jahenns Manigat led the MVC with his 49.2 percent marksmanship from three-point range in league play a year ago. When it came to CU's nine MVC road games last year, he was the barometer.
In Creighton's seven Valley road wins, Manigat shot a robust 19-of-27 (70.4 percent) from downtown. In CU's two Valley road losses, Manigat was just 2-of-9 (22.2 percent) from downtown.
Manigat is 7-for-14 (50 percent) from three-point range in the past three games this year after starting the season 8-for-28 (28.6 percent) in his first 10 outings.
What A Start!
Now in his third year, Greg McDermott is 64-23 in his first 87 games on the Creighton sideline. The 64 wins is tied for the most in Creighton history after 87 games, matching Tom Apke (1974-81).
Here's a breakdown of how he compares to some other Creighton coaches after 87 games.
W-L After 87 Games, Select CU Coaches
Coach Years W-L After 87
Greg McDermott 2010-Pres. 64-23
Tom Apke 1974-81 64-23
Eddie Sutton 1969-74 52-37
Arthur A. Schabinger 1922-35 52-37
Red McManus 1959-69 49-38
Dana Altman 1994-10 40-47
Tony Barone 1985-91 37-50
Willis Reed 1981-85 34-53
Rematch On Deck
Wednesday's game will feature the first meeting between Creighton and Illinois State since the 2012 MVC Tournament title game won by the Bluejays, 83-79 in overtime.
In that contest, Doug McDermott had 33 points, tying for the most in a final during the 22-year history since the event moved to St. Louis. Grant Gibbs added a career-high 20 points in the win.
High-Powered Offenses Meet
Wednesday's showdown in Normal will feature the MVC's top-two scoring offenses. Illinois State leads the league with 80.5 points per game, just ahead of Creighton (79.5). Drake (74.6) is the only other team in the MVC averaging more than 71 points per game.
Last year Creighton once again ignored the saying that “Defense wins championships” this season. The 2011-12 Bluejays led the MVC in scoring offense, averaging 79.2 points per game, and won the MVC Tournament.
Since 1997-98, seven of the 15 teams to lead the league in scoring offense went on to win the MVC Tournament (Drake in 2008, ILS in 1998, CU in 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2012).
By comparison, only two teams that led the league in scoring defense won the MVC Tournament (SIU in 2006, UNI in 2010).
Double-Digits?
Each of Creighton's first 13 games have been decided by 10 or more points. Through games of Dec. 31st, Creighton's 12 double-digit wins this year are tied for the most nationally with Pittsburgh.
Dingman Rings It Up
Creighton has needed someone to step up once Josh Jones was forced out of the line-up, and that someone has been Avery Dingman.
Since Jones met the media and disclosed he'd be out for at least a month (which has now turned out to be career-ending), Dingman is averaging 16.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals in two games while sinking 8-of-10 three-point shots.
In Creighton's Dec. 19 win over Tulsa, Dingman scored a career-best 21 points against the Golden Hurricane while also plucking a career-high three steals. Dingman made his first seven attempts and finished 8-for-9 from the field, including 5-of-6 from three-point land.
Most recently, Dingman had 11 points and a career-high seven rebounds in the win over Evansville.
Dingman is the sixth player on this year's Creighton roster to own a 20-point game in his career. Doug McDermott's done it 40 times, Ethan Wragge and Gregory Echenique have both done it twice, and Grant Gibbs, Jones and Dingman each have done it one time.
Conference Openers Have Gone Well
Creighton owns a 11-4 record in its last 15 MVC openers, improving to 32-22 all-time in Valley lid-lifters.
Since 1993-94, only one team (Northern Iowa, a 2008-09 co-champion) has won at least a share of the regular-season title without winning its league opener. In fact, 16 of the last 18 regular-season champs (or co-champs) have opened 2-0 or better in MVC play, with UNI in 2008-09 and Wichita State in 2011-12 serving as the exceptions.
Greg McDermott improved to 5-3 all-time in MVC openers.
Playing With The Lead
Creighton has not trailed in five games this season, and just 32 seconds total in the past three games. After not trailing at Cal or vs. Tulsa, the Jays fell behind 2-0 vs. Evansville last Saturday, only to respond with a 19-3 flurry.
In six games (240 minutes) in December, Creighton trailed for a total span of 4:53, and never trailed in the second half of any game.
10 Conference Wins x 16
Last season's Creighton team extended its MVC record by winning 10 or more league games for a 16th consecutive season.
On a national basis, the only other current school with at least 16 straight years of 10 or more league wins is Kansas (18).
Each of the last 16 seasons has seen the team finish fourth place or better in the MVC as well.
Team of the Millennium?
Below is the records for each MVC school from the start of the 2000-01 season until the start of this season, ranked by overall winning percentage.
Creighton leads the MVC overall with 292 wins in the millennium, as well as 12 postseason appearances:
MVC Standings (start 2000-01 to Jan. 1, 2013)
MVC only All Games
Team W L Pct. W L Pct.
Creighton 150 67 .691 292 121 .707
Wichita State 126 91 .581 250 152 .622
Southern Illinois 134 83 .618 245 156 .611
Northern Iowa 118 99 .544 233 164 .587
Missouri State 118 99 .544 226 173 .566
Illinois State 99 118 .456 210 179 .540
Bradley 94 123 .433 198 201 .496
Drake 92 125 .424 186 197 .486
Indiana State 80 137 .369 170 216 .440
Evansville 74 143 .341 149 222 .402
Postseason Appearances by MVC Teams
(Since 2000-01)
Team NCAA NIT CBI CIT Total
Creighton 6 4 1 1 12
Wichita State 2 5 1 0 8
Southern Illinois 6 1 0 0 7
Northern Iowa 5 1 0 1 7
Bradley 1 2 1 1 5
Missouri State 0 4 0 1 5
Illinois State 0 5 0 0 5
Indiana State 2 0 1 1 4
Drake 1 0 0 2 3
Evansville 0 0 2 1 3
Consistent Challengers
Ten of Creighton's last 15 teams have finished either first or second in The Valley's regular-season race. Two of the five 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, while the 2010-11 club tied for fourth place.
Creighton's MVC Finishes, Last 15 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.), 2011-12 (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; 2009-10
Tied for 4th Place 2010-11
Creighton's Exclusive 30/30 Club
Doug McDermott scored 30 points in a Dec. 9 win vs. Akron, then followed that performance with a season-high 34 seven days later at Cal.
McDermott, who leads the MVC with 23.5 points per game, became the first Creighton player with 30 points in consecutive contests since Bob Harstad in 1990.
Doing It All
Reigning MVC Player of the Year Doug McDermott has one of the nation's best set of post moves, and now the junior forward is taking his skills to the perimeter with similar success.
Eight days after tying a career-high with five-three pointers in a 29-point thrashing of Atlantic-10 favorite Saint Joseph's, McDermott shot 6-for-8 from downtown in a 77-61 win over defending MAC champion Akron on Dec. 9th.
McDermott's career 45.6 percent accuracy from three-point range ranks tops in CU history. Since starting his career 15-of-53 (28.3 percent) after 20 games from downtown, McDermott has made 115-of-232 three-pointers (49.6 percent) in his past 67 games.
Since the start of last season, McDermott is shooting 49.1 percent (83-169) from 3-point range.
McDermott Earns MVC Awards
Doug McDermott has been named MVC Player of the Week four times this season.
His first honor came Nov. 12th for his performance in a Nov. 9 win vs. North Texas. McDermott had 21 points and 11 rebounds to produce CU's first double-double in a season-opener since Kyle Korver in 2001-02.
He was then honored on Nov. 26th after averaging 25.3 points and 7.3 rebounds while earning MVP honors of the Las Vegas Invitational.
McDermott was honored on Dec. 10th after averaging 28.5 points in wins vs. Nebraska and Akron.
Most recently, McDermott was honored on Dec. 17th after scoring 34 points and hauling down nine rebounds in a win at Cal on Dec. 15th. He was also named National Player of the Week by Seth Davis (CBS/Sports Illustrated) and the USBWA for that performance.
McDermott now owns nine career MVC Player of the Week honors, something only Bradley great Hersey Hawkins (14) can top. Including his seven MVC Newcomer of the Week honors in 2010-11, McDermott has won at least one weekly award from the MVC in 16 of 40 weeks since enrolling at Creighton.
Chasing History, Part I
Doug McDermott has scored 21 or more points in 10 of the season's 13 games, moving up to seventh on Creighton's all-time scoring list with 1,688 career points.
With 29 points last Saturday vs. Evansville, McDermott moved past Paul Silas on Creighton's all-time scoring list and past Wes Unseld on the MVC's all-time scoring list.
At McDermott's current scoring average of 23.5 points per game this year he'll become Creighton's all-time leading scorer in 19 more games. Creighton has a minimum of 19 games remaining this season.
By comparison, both of Creighton's top two all-time leading scorers, Rodney Buford (1995-99) and Bob Harstad (1987-91), had exactly 1,540 points at the end of their junior seasons.
McDermott is within range to make huge gains on both the MVC and Creighton scoring charts should he continue his recent productivity.
All-Time MVC Scoring Leaders
Rk. Name, School Points
1. Hersey Hawkins, Bradley 3,008
23. Osiris Eldridge, Illinois State 1,838
24. Johnny Murdock, Missouri State 1,834
25. Tracy Moore, Tulsa 1,823
26. Kyle Korver, Creighton 1,801
27. Josh Young, Drake 1,789
28. Ben Jacobson, UNI 1,787
29. Aubrey Sherrod, Wichita State 1,765
30. Joe Allen, Bradley 1,763
31. Andy Elkins, Evansville 1,761
Darren Brooks, Southern Illinois 1,761
33. Slab Jones, New Mexico State 1,758
34. Colt Ryan, Evansville* 1,756
35. Nate Funk, Creighton 1,754
36. Tarise Bryson, Illinois State 1,736
37. Jason Daisy, UNI 1,721
38. Voise Winters, Bradley 1,714
39. Steve Middleton, Southern Illinois 1,710
40. Danny Moore, Missouri State 1,691
41. Phillip Gilbert, Bradley 1,689
42. Doug McDermott, Creighton* 1,688
43. Wes Unseld, Louisville 1,686
44. Anthony Parker, Bradley 1,683
*active
All-Time Creighton Scoring Leaders
Rk. Name, Years Points
1. Rodney Buford, 1995-99 2,116
2. Bob Harstad, 1987-91 2,110
3. Chad Gallagher, 1987-91 1,983
4. Bob Portman, 1966-69 1,876
5. Kyle Korver, 1999-03 1,801
6. Nate Funk, 2002-07 1,754
7. Doug McDermott, 2010-Pres.* 1,688
8. Rick Apke, 1974-78 1,682
9. Paul Silas, 1961-64 1,661
*active
More Than The Rest
Doug McDermott has scored 1,688 points in his career, 10th-most among active players. He is the only active junior with at least 1,300 career points.
Most Points, Active Players (though 1/1)
Source: Stats Inc./MVC
Rk. Pts. Name, School Next Game
1. 2,357 C.J. McCollum, Lehigh 1/5
2. 1,956 Kevin Foster, Santa Clara 1/2
3. 1,894 Nate Wolters, S. Dakota State 1/3
4. 1,804 Markeith Cummings, Kennesaw St. 1/2
5. 1,792 C.J. Reed, Georgia Southern 1/2
6. 1,781 D.J. Cooper, Ohio 1/5
7. 1,756 Colt Ryan, Evansville 1/2
8. 1,727 Kenny Boynton, Florida 1/6
9. 1,692 Stan Okoye, VMI 1/2
10. 1,688 Doug McDermott, Creighton 1/2
11. 1,677 Seth Curry, Duke 1/2
12. 1,670 Mike Muscala, Bucknell 1/2
13. 1,632 Shane Gibson, Sacred Heart 1/3
14. 1,628 Isaiah Canaan, Murray State 1/3
15. 1,624 Matthew Dellavedova, St. Mary's 1/5
Most Career Points, Active Juniors
Source: Creighton Sports Info/STATS Inc. (1/1)
Rk. Pts. Name, School Next Game
1. 1,688 Doug McDermott, Creighton 1/2
2. 1,284 Devon Saddler, Delaware 1/5
3. 1,205 DeAndre Kane, Marshall 1/2
Strong On the Road
Off to a 12-1 start overall, Creighton is 4-0 away from home this season. Those four victories have come against two Big Ten teams (Wisconsin, Nebraska) and two Pacific-12 teams (Arizona State, Cal).
Impressively, all four wins have been by double-digits. Creighton is 8-1 in the past two years against BCS teams, including six victories by double-digits and another triumph by eight.
BCS Busters, Again
Creighton improved to 8-1 in the past two seasons vs. teams from BCS conferences with wins this year over Wisconsin & Nebraska (Big Ten) and Arizona State and Cal (Pacific-12). Last year Creighton defeated Alabama (SEC) as well as Big 10 foes Nebraska, Northwestern and Iowa, losing only to North Carolina (ACC) in the NCAA Tournament.
In those nine games, All-American Doug McDermott has averaged 25.3 points and 8.3 rebounds, well above his career averages (19.4 ppg., 7.6 rpg.), as seen below:
McDermott vs. BCS Schools, Last 2 Years
Date Opponent Pts. Reb. Score
11/20/11 vs. Iowa 25 9 W 82-59
12/04/11 Nebraska 24 12 W 76-66
12/22/11 Northwestern 27 5 W 87-79
03/16/12 vs. Alabama 16 10 W 58-57
03/18/12 vs. North Carolina 20 9 L 73-87
11/23/12 vs. Wisconsin 30 8 W 84-74
11/24/12 vs. Arizona State 29 9 W 87-73
12/06/12 at Nebraska 27 4 W 64-42
12/15/12 at California 30 9 W 74-64
All I Wanted For Christmas Was 11 Wins
Creighton was 11-1 heading into its Christmas break. This was just the fourth time in program history the Jays own 10 or more wins by Dec. 25th, and the first to ever reach 11 victories before Christmas.
Gift of Gibbs
Grant Gibbs led the MVC with 176 assists last season, and his 76 helpers this season are already 18 more than any other Valley player.
In the last five games, Gibbs has 37 assists and just six turnovers. For the year, Gibbs owns a 76/14 assist/turnover ratio.
That 5.43 assist/turnover ratio is easily the best for any player nationally with at least 4.3 assists per game or more. UCLA's Larry Drew II (5.09 a/to ratio) is a distant second.
Ball Control Offense
Creighton owns a stellar 226/152 assist/turnover ratio (1.49) as a team to rank 10th nationally.
Last year Creighton ranked sixth nationally by finishing with a 1.48 assist/turnover ratio.
In addition to Grant Gibbs' outstanding 5.4 assist/turnover ratio, sophomore point guard Austin Chatman has just four turnovers in the past four games.
Efficiency Improves
Because Creighton tends to play at a faster pace and have more possessions than the average school, Bluejay coaches place significant emphasis on stats like average points per possession, with data that can be found on a site such as bbstate.com.
Creighton's offense is still clicking as one of the nation's best, but the team has made huge strides on the defensive end of the floor, jumping from 222nd last year to 46th this season.
Eleven of Creighton's first 13 opponents have been hold under 1.00 points per possession this season.
Points Per Possession
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13
Offense 1.065 1.150 1.163
Offense Rank 46th 2nd 5th
Defense 1.006 1.014 0.881
Defense Rank 192nd 222nd 46th
Defense! Defense!
Creighton ranked 222nd nationally last season in field goal percentage defense at 44.1 percent, one area that the program has tried hard to improve on in the off-season.
The early results have been promising, as CU has limited foes to 39.6 percent marksmanship. That figure ranked 81st-best nationally in 2012-13 through Sunday's games.
Only one team (Boise State) has shot better than 43.4 percent this season against the Jays.
The 42 points by Nebraska on Dec. 6th were its fewest against Creighton since 1932, a span of 39 meetings.
Leading Scorer, Again
Before Avery Dingman's team-high 21 points vs. Tulsa on Dec. 19th, Doug McDermott had led Creighton in scoring nine straight games, averaging 26.1 points per game in that time.
This was the second time in the past 13 months that he's had a streak of nine or more straight games as the team scoring leader.
Dating to 1988, Bob Harstad owns the longest such streak with 12 straight games as CU's leading scorer from Dec. 10, 1988 to Jan. 28, 1989.
Consec. Games as Leading Scorer, Since 1988
Games Name Dates
12 Bob Harstad Dec. 10, 1988-Jan. 28, 1989
11 Doug McDermott Nov. 13 - Dec. 28, 2011
9 Doug McDermott Nov. 18 - Dec. 16, 2012
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
Inside The Numbers
Creighton's Doug McDermott (23.5) enters this week as the nation's top scoring junior. As can be seen below, good things have happened to the top-scoring juniors in the past nine years:
NCAA's Top-Scoring Juniors, Last Nine Years
NBA
Year Name, School PPG Draft #
2011-12 Damian Lillard, Weber St. 24.5 6th
2010-11 Kemba Walker, UConn. 23.5 9th
2009-10 Adnan Hodzic, Lipscomb 22.7 not picked
2008-09 Stephen Curry, Davidson 28.6 7th
2007-08 Lester Hudson, UT-Martin 25.7 58th
2006-07 Reggie Williams, VMI 28.1 not picked*
2005-06 Adam Morrison, Gonzaga 28.1 3rd
2004-05 Ike Diogu, Arizona State 22.6 9th
2003-04 Kevin Martin, W. Carolina 24.9 26th
*wasn't drafted, but currently in fourth year in NBA
BCS Bracket Buster
Some of Creighton's most thrilling victories in recent seasons have been against teams from the six major college football BCS Conferences (ACC, SEC, Big 10, Big 12, Pac-12, BIg East), as Creighton owns a 32-21 mark in the past 15 seasons.
Among CU's victims in that time have been Nebraska (12 times), Iowa (three times) DePaul (twice), Florida (twice), Baylor (twice), Oklahoma State (once), Notre Dame (once), Providence (once), Missouri (once), Oregon (once), Northwestern (once), Alabama (once), Wisconsin (once), Cal (once), TCU (once) and Ohio State (once).
Best 13 Game Starts
Creighton has started 12-1 or better for the first time since 2003-04, and fifth time overall. Below are Creighton's best 13-game starts in history:
Best 13-Game Starts
First 13 Year Final W-L
13-0 1942-43 16-1
12-1 1924-25 14-2
12-1 2002-03 29-5
12-1 2003-04 20-9
12-1 2012-13 ? ? ?
Jones Hospitalized
Josh Jones was hospitalized prior to Creighton's Dec. 6 game at Nebraska after he fainted during pre-game warm-ups on the Bob Devaney Sports Center court prior to Creighton's 64-42 win.
Jones was released from a Lincoln hospital on Dec. 7th. Jones was underwent a nine-hour medical procedure on Dec. 18th, and on Dec. 26th announced his basketball career is done due to an atrial flutter.
The senior guard was averaging 7.0 points per game as the team's top guard off the bench.
Top Four From Three
While Gregory Echenique has yet to attempt a three-point shot this season, Creighton's other top three scorers continue to fill it up from deep.
Austin Chatman (.600), Ethan Wragge (.406) and Doug McDermott (.500) have combined to make 69-of-147 three-point attempts this season, good for 46.9 percent.
Chatman is 11-for-14 from three-point range in the past nine games, while McDermott is 23-of-38 from downtown in the past seven contests. Wragge started the season 18-for-29 and is fifth in the MVC in three-pointers made.
Either Wragge or McDermott has had three or more three-pointers in 13 of Creighton's last 16 games dating back to late last season.
McDermott has made 35-of-60 three-point shots (.58.3) in the month of December in the past two seasons.
Creighton owns four men on its roster who have made 106 or more career three-pointers.
Pick Your Poison
Last season Creighton ranked third nationally in three-point percentage, making 42.4 percent from downtown.
This year's team can still fill it up from long-range (42.5 percent, good for second nationally), but are off the charts from close-range as well.
This year's Bluejay team is shooting 56.0 percent from two-point range, ninth-best in the nation. Wednesday's foe, Illinois State, ranks as the nation's third-best at 57.3 percent from two-point range.
According to data from bbstate.com, no team since at least 2005-06 has shot better than 58.7 from two-point range.
Comparing Offenses
Last season Creighton had one of the nation's most effective and most efficient offenses. With all but one regular from that squad back, we thought we'd take a second to compare the 2011-12 and 2012-13 teams through 13 games:
Stat 2011-12 2012-13
Record 11-2 12-1
FG Made 386 365
FG% .501 .508
3FG Made 119 119
3FG% .451 .425
FT Made 189 185
FT% .692 .755
Rebound Margin +4.7 +3.7
Assists 259 226
Turnovers 163 152
Scoring Average 83.1 79.5
Scoring Margin +14.0 +18.2
Pizza Pie, Piled High = Wins
Thanks to a promotion with Omaha-based Godfather's Pizza, Creighton season ticket-holders can get a free mini pizza any time the Jays score 75 points at home.
History has proven that when the team earns the fans pizza, it often leads to a victory as well.
The first three years of CenturyLink Center Omaha (2003-06), Creighton needed 70 points to earn its fans free pizza, and the Jays went 27-3 when reaching that threshold, closing out that run with 12 straight wins.
Since upping the standard to 75 points prior to the 2006-07 campaign, Creighton is a perfect 61-0 when scoring 75 points or more at CenturyLink Center Omaha.
In other words, Creighton is a perfect 73-0 in CenturyLink Center Omaha since Feb. 6, 2005 when scoring enough points to earn its fans some free pizza.
A New Streak
Now that the impressive streak when scoring 70 or more is over, it's time to look at a few other eye-opening streaks still in play.
Since Greg McDermott took over three years ago, Creighton is averaging 77.91 points per home game (3,662 points in 47 home games).
That's a vital number since Creighton is 85-0 at home (58-0 at CenturyLink Center Omaha) when scoring 78 points or more and 69-0 at home (46-0 at CenturyLink Center Omaha) when scoring 80 points or more at home dating to a 92-83 loss to Southern Illinois on Feb. 19, 2000.
Whistle While You Work
Creighton has enjoyed a big edge at the line this season, making more free throws than their opponents have attempted.
Creighton is 185-of-245 at the line compared to 122-of-178 shooting from its foes. Creighton's 75.5 percent marksmanship from the line ranks 26th nationally.
Stat Leaders
Statistically, Creighton ranks among the nation's top-20 in nine different categories. The Jays are second in three-point percentage (.425), seventh in win percentage (.923), eighth in three-pointers per game (9.2), ninth in field goal percentage (.508), 10th in assist/turnover ratio (1.49), 11th in assists per game (17.4), 13th in scoring margin (18.2), 19th in total points (1,034) and 20th in scoring offense (79.5).
Individually, Grant Gibbs is second in assist/turnover ratio (5.43) and 25th in assists per game (5.8), Doug McDermott is third in points per game (23.5), 35th in free-throw percentage (.878) and 47th in field goal percentage (.553). In addition, Gregory Echenique ranks 43rd in double-doubles (4) and 90th in blocked shots per game (1.69) and 99th in rebounds per game.
Big Road Win
Creighton's 64-42 win at Nebraska matched its largest victory margin in a true road win since an 82-60 win at Southern Illinois on Feb. 14, 2009.
It was also the largest margin in a non-conference road win since winning at Drexel, 72-48, on Dec. 1, 2007.
Before Dec. 6th, last time Creighton won a true road game by 22+ points vs. a BCS-league team was 12/18/76 at Oregon State (90-68).
Scoring On The Badgers
Creighton scored 84 points on Nov. 23rd against Wisconsin's vaunted defense that has ranked among the nation's top-10 in scoring defense in each of the past six seasons.
It was the first time in either of the last two seasons that Wisconsin had allowed 80 points in a game, and the eighth-most allowed in regulation in Bo Ryan's 12 years as a head coach.
New Coaches Update
Greg McDermott was one of 53 head coaches hired to coach a school prior to 2010-11. His 64 wins in that span are easily the most of that group, and McDermott, Tad Boyle (Colorado) and Dana Altman (Oregon) are the only men to win a postseason game each of their first two seasons.
Below is a list of the new coaches with 50 or more wins at their school since being hired.
School Coach W-L Next Game
Creighton Greg McDermott 64-23 1/2
Colorado Tad Boyle 58-28 1/3
Iona Tim Cluess 57-26 1/4
Oregon Dana Altman 56-30 1/6
Robert Morris Andy Toole 52-30 1/3
Marshall Tom Herrion 50-32 1/2
Austin Powers
After spending last year as a back-up to Antoine Young, sophomore Austin Chatman has taken over as Creighton's starting point guard. Creighton's been blessed with a legacy of some of the MVC's best point guards in the last 15 years, a streak that began with four-year starters Ryan Sears (1997-2001), Tyler McKinney (2001-05) and Josh Dotzler (2005-09) at the point before Young ran the offense while starting the last three years.
Here's a look at the stats, by year, of the men that Chatman is trying to replace.
Freshman Sophomore
Name PPG APG CU W-L PPG APG CU W-L
Sears 10.5 4.8 18-10 8.7 4.0 22-9
McKinney 4.3 2.1 23-9 5.0 4.1 29-5
Dotzler 6.4 4.2 20-10 2.2 2.0 22-11
Young 4.9 1.4 27-8 7.1 3.1 18-16
Chatman 2.4 1.9 29-6 8.1 4.5 12-1
Dime Time
Austin Chatman's 11 assists on Nov. 18 vs. Presbyterian were one shy of the CenturyLink Center Omaha record, set last season by Grant Gibbs vs. Northwestern. Chatman entered the game with a career-high of seven assists, then had nine by halftime.
Chatman's 11 dimes led to 30 Bluejay points, and Creighton outscored the Blue Hose 63-26 in his 24 minutes of play.
In addition, Chatman's 11 assists were the most by a Bluejay sophomore since Tyler McKinney had 12 assists in a 81-73 win at Nebraska on Dec. 21, 2002.
Quick Starts Key To Playing in Postseason
Creighton has started off 3-0 (or better) in 12 of the previous 14 seasons. Each of Creighton's previous 13 3-0 starts have been culminated in a postseason tournament appearance at the end of the year.
Not Half Bad
Doug McDermott outscored Presbyterian 20-17 in the first half in a Nov. 18 win. It was the second-most points McDermott has ever had at halftime, and the fourth-highest half of his career.
McDermott's highest scoring half of his career has been 31 points, done last year in the second half at Bradley when he scored a career-best 44 points.
McDermott has scored 15 points or more in a half 31 times during his career, and Creighton is 28-0 in those contests (three times he's scored 15 or more in both halves).
Rare Air
Gregory Echenique had one of the best all-around games of his career on Nov. 14 in the win vs. UAB, finishing with 13 points, 16 rebounds and four blocked shots. For good measure, he made 5-of-5 shots from the field and was a perfect 3-for-3 at the line.
Echenique was the first Bluejay with at least 13 points, 16 rebounds and four blocked shots in the same game since Benoit Benjamin had 15 points, 17 rebounds and four swats on Feb. 28, 1985 at Dayton.
Echenique was the first Bluejay to have a 13/16/4 game at home since Benjamin had 26 points, 18 rebounds and seven rejections in a win vs. Marquette on Jan. 27, 1985.
Incredibly, Benjamin had nine different games in his junior season with at least 13 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks before Echenique ended the 27-year drought.
Playing With The Lead
In 162 games at CenturyLink Center Omaha all-time, Creighton has not trailed in 39 of those contests, a staggering 24.1 percent of the time, including seven wire-to-wire wins at home last season and three wins (Longwood, Saint Joseph's, Tulsa) this season.
Creighton has trailed by double-digits in 37 career games at CenturyLink Center Omaha, only to rally to win 22 of those contests.
On The Trail
Creighton won six games last season after trailing by 10 or more points, including wins away from home at San Diego State and at Wichita State, on neutral floors vs. Drake and Alabama, and in home triumphs over Long Beach State and Evansville.
In its Nov. 14 win vs. UAB, Creighton trailed 45-35 in the second stanza, only to rally for a 77-60 win. It was the first time since Feb. 3, 2010 (vs. Evansville) that Creighton trailed by double-digits at any point before rallying to win by double-figures. That UAB game was also the first time in CenturyLink Center Omaha history that Creighton trailed by double-figures in the second half, yet still won by double-digits.
Creighton, which trailed 37-33 at the half to UAB, is 9-6 in the last two seasons when facing an intermission deficit.
Double-Double Opener
Doug McDermott opened his junior season with 21 points and 11 rebounds on Nov. 9 against North Texas in a 71-51 win.
He was the first Creighton player to have a double-double in a season-opener since Kyle Korver opened his junior campaign with 14 points and 10 rebounds in a 72-51 victory over North Carolina A&T.
Korver would go on to earn MVC Player of the Year accolades as both a junior and as a senior. Last year McDermott was the first player in MVC history named MVC Player of the Year as a sophomore.
Creighton has won either the MVC regular-season title or MVC Tournament each of its previous six seasons it had a player with a double-double in the opener (2001-02, 1999-00, 1998-99, 1990-91, 1989-90, 1988-89).
Poll Position
Creighton is ranked 11th in this week's USA Today Top 25 Coaches poll and 16th in this week's Associated Press poll. Creighton's best AP ranking this year was 11th on Nov. 26th, while this week's No. 11 coaches poll rank matches the best (also Nov. 26th).
Creighton was ranked 15th in this year's preseason coaches poll, its first preseason recognition since coming in at No. 23 in 2006-07.
Creighton started this year with a No. 16 preseason ranking by the AP, its highest preseason mark in program history and the best by any MVC school since No. 6 Wichita State in 1981-82.
Pencil Him In
According to STATS Inc., Doug McDermott is one of 14 juniors or seniors nationwide to start every game of his career (min. 2 years played):
Juniors/Seniors To Start Every Game
Source: STATS Inc., through 1/1
Starts Name, School Next Game 120 Brandon Triche, Syracuse 1/2
108 Dorian Green, Colorado State 1/2
87 Doug McDermott, Creighton 1/2
82 Ray McCallum, Detroit 1/3
81 Cody Doolin, San Francisco 1/2
81 Deonte Burton, Nevada 1/9
80 Brian Voelkel, Vermont 1/2
79 Frantz Massenat, Drexel 1/2
78 Holton Hunsaker, Utah Valley 1/5
78 Jeromie Hill, UTSA 1/3
75 Devon Saddler, Delaware 1/5
74 Travis McKie, Wake Forest 1/2
73 Marshall Bjorklund, N. Dakota St. 1/3
73 Daniel Miller, Georgia Tech 1/2
Chasing History
Doug McDermott has scored 900 points in his first 47 career home games. He is the all-time leading scorer in CenturyLink Center Omaha history.
McDermott also owns CenturyLink Center Omaha career records in points per game (19.1) and rebounds per game (7.5).
McDermott enters Wednesday's game with 1,688 career points in all venues, good for seventh in school history.
Super Streak Ends At 37
Doug McDermott's streak of 37 straight games in double-figures came to an end when he was held to five points vs. UAB on Nov. 14th.
McDermott had owned the nation's third-longest active streak in the country, and the longest by any Bluejay since Vernon Moore's stretch of 46 in a row in 1984 and 1985.
McDermott's five points were the second-fewest in his career. His only game lower was his freshman season vs. Saint Joseph's, when he was scoreless in his ninth career contest.
CU's Top 10+ Point Streaks, Since 1981-82
No. Name Dates
46 Vernon Moore Jan. 30, 1984 - Mar. 5, 1985
37 Doug McDermott April 1, 2011-Nov. 9, 2012
32 Bob Harstad Feb. 24, 1990-Feb. 25, 1991
31 Benoit Benjamin Mar. 8, 1984 - Feb. 20, 1985
Milestone Man
Because he's split his college career between Rutgers and Creighton, you might not realize the rather impressive college stats being generated by Gregory Echenique.
Echenique owns 1,158 points, 854 rebounds and 228 blocked shots in his first 116 games as a collegian. He entered the season as the nation's only active player with at least 1,000 point, 750 rebounds and 200 blocked shots, and is currently the nation's only active player with 1,100 points, 850 rebounds and 225 or more blocked shots.
Had all those stats been generated at Creighton, Echenique would rank 27th in career points, sixth in career rebounds and second in career blocked shots at CU.
I Know What You Did Last Summer
Senior center Gregory Echenique played for coach Eric Musselman on the Venezuelan National Team last summer, alongside the likes of former Maryland star and current Memphis Grizzlies guard Greivis Vasquez.
Echenique averaged 7.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in two games at the FIBA Olympic Qualifier in Caracas in July against Lithuania and Nigeria, where he went head-to-head against NBA players such as Linas Kleiza, Jonas Valanciunas, and Al-Farouq Aminu.
Army of Iowans
Every Creighton team since 1988-89 has had at least one Iowa native, and this season is no exception.
Creighton has four 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 Iowans this season includes senior Grant Gibbs (Marion), junior Doug McDermott (Ames), sophomore Will Artino (Waukee) and redshirt freshman Alex Olsen (Council Bluffs).
Other past notable Iowans include Kyle Korver (Pella), Ryan Sears (Ankeny), Brody Deren (Harlan), Tyler McKinney (Urbandale) and Nate Funk (Sioux City).
Creighton has played at least one Iowa native in 598 straight games. That streak dates to a Feb. 5, 1994 win against Wichita State.
Preseason MVC Poll
Creighton was picked to win the Missouri Valley Conference in the preseason poll of league coaches, SID's and media. The Bluejays earned 38-of-40 first-place votes and 398 points overall.
Illinois State was second with 327 points and the remaining two first-place votes, while Northern Iowa was third with 316 points. Wichita State (298) and Evansville (240) rounded out the upper half of the league.
In sixth was Drake (184), while Indiana State (165), Missouri State (122), Bradley (84) and Southern Illinois (66) round out the rest of the league predictions.
Creighton junior Doug McDermott was named preseason MVC Player of the Year. He's joined on the team by repeat selections Jake Odum (Indiana State) and Colt Ryan (Evansville) as well as new picks Ben Simons (Drake) and Jackie Carmichael (Illinois State).
Creighton's women were also picked to win the MVC, just the third time in league history the MVC favorites came from the same schools.
Portman To Enter MVC Hall of Fame
Bob Portman will enter the Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Fame on March 8, 2013, during a banquet at the MVC Tournament in St. Louis, Mo.
Portman played for Creighton from 1966-69 and averaged 24.6 points and 12.9 rebounds per game during his college career.
Portman owns the Creighton records for single-game scoring (51), single-season scoring average (29.5) and career scoring average (24.7). He is also second for points in a season (738) and ranks fourth in career points (1,876), rebounds (979), free throws (382) and field goals made (747).
Going For 20, Again
Creighton has won 20 or more games in 13 of the last 14 seasons, an unprecedented feat in Missouri Valley Conference history that puts the Jays among an exclusive group, nationally.
Just five schools nationally have had 20 or more wins each of the last 14 years: Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas and Syracuse.
Creighton is one of six schools with 20 or more wins in exactly 13 of the past 14 years. That list consists of Creighton, Kent State, Kentucky, Texas, Utah State and Xavier.
That's better than traditional powers Arizona, Connecticut and Memphis (12 each) and also ahead of Michigan State, Pittsburgh and Wisconsin (11 each).
Postseason x 15
Creighton has made the postseason in 15 consecutive seasons, the longest streak of postseason bids in MVC history.
The only eight schools to make the postseason in each of the last 14 years are Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State and Syracuse.
Postseason Win Streak
Thanks to an NCAA Tournament win over Alabama, the Creighton men's basketball team has now won a postseason game in a school-record five straight seasons. The previous mark was three in a row from 1962-64.
The following eight programs are the only ones that have won a postseason game in five straight seasons, including 2011-12: Creighton, Kansas, Kansas State, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Syracuse and Wisconsin.
Full House
Creighton finished sixth nationally in home attendance, averaging 16,665 fans per home game, in 2011-12. It's the sixth straight season that CU has been among the nation's top-25 in average home attendance, and set an MVC average home attendance record.
Creighton surpassed 200,000 home fans in a season for the sixth time. No other school in the history of the MVC has ever done so.
Creighton also ranked seventh nationally in men's soccer attendance and 10th in baseball attendance, the nation's only school in the top-10 of those three sports.
This year's Creighton team is averaging 16,572 fans per home game through nine dates.
2011-12 Attendance Leaders (Final)
Rk. School Average
1. Kentucky 23,721
2. Syracuse 23,618
3. Louisville 21,503
4. North Carolina 20,159
5. Wisconsin 17,181
6. Creighton 16,665
7. Tennessee 16,543
8. Ohio State 16,510
9. Indiana 16,462
10. Kansas 16,300
Highest Season Home Attendance, MVC History
Home Att. School Year
302,676 Creighton 2008-09
297,161 Creighton 2010-11
276,000 Creighton 2007-08
266,632 Creighton 2011-12
246,419 Creighton 2009-10
Highest Average Attendance, MVC History
Avg. Att. School Year
16,665 Creighton 2011-12
15,930 Creighton 2008-09
15,909 Creighton 2006-07
15,333 Creighton 2007-08
14,495 Creighton 2009-10
Long-Distance Streak Alive
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in a league-best 622 straight games since a 59-53 loss at Illinois State on Feb. 20, 1993. That's the longest active streak in the MVC.
CenturyLink Center Omaha Success
Creighton has played 162 regular and postseason contests at CenturyLink Center Omaha all-time in its 10 seasons at the facility.
The Bluejays own an 138-24 (.852) record all-time at the facility, and have never lost there on a Thursday (7-0) or Friday (6-0).
Creighton has outscored its opponents 12,158-10,259 in games at CenturyLink Center Omaha, an average margin of 11.7 points per game. Creighton has led wire-to-wire 39 different times, including seven times last season and three times this winter (Longwood, Saint Joseph's, Tulsa).
Piling Up The Points, and Wins
Creighton has won 55 straight games when scoring 90 points or more, dating to Jan. 11, 1988.
Creighton has won 19 straight (at all sites) when scoring 100 points or more, dating to Feb. 26, 1977.
In home games only, Creighton has won 94 straight games when scoring 71 or more points since a Feb. 5, 2005 loss to Missouri State.
Here's To History
With the 2012 MVC Tournament title, Creighton head coach Greg McDermott became the first head coach in league history to win a Valley Tournament title at more than one school.
McDermott previously won a title in 2004 at Northern Iowa. The 1988 Northern Iowa grad McDermott also holds the honor of being the first coach in league history to win an MVC Tournament title at his alma mater.
Dance Partners
Only two schools won their league tournament in both men's and women's basketball in 2011-12: Creighton and South Dakota State.
This was the fifth time in MVC history that the same school has won the men's and women's tournament titles in the same season. Creighton, however, was the first program to do it twice (UNI 2010, Creighton 2002 and 2012, Missouri State 1992, Illinois State 1983).
McDermott A Preseason All-American
Junior forward Doug McDermott became the first player in MVC history to be named a preseason First Team All-American by the Associated Press. The team was announced on October 28th.
McDermott earned acclaim on 62-of-65 ballots, trailing only Indiana's Cody Zeller. The rest of the team consisted of Isaiah Canaan (Murray State), Deshaun Thomas (Ohio State), Trey Burke (Michigan) and C.J. McCollum (Lehigh).
The preseason All-America team was first announced in 1986-87.
Watch This!
Junior Doug McDermott is on the preseason watch lists for both the Wooden Award and the Naismith Award, two of the top awards in college basketball.
McDermott is the only man who was a finalist for either award to return to school this season.
The Naismith Award is presented by the Atlanta Tipoff Club and will be presented on April 7, 2013, in Atlanta.
The Wooden Award is presented by the Los Angeles Athletic Club and will handed out the weekend of April 12-13, 2013, in Los Angeles.
Everybody's All-American
Doug McDermott hauled All-America honors on a regular basis last year.
He was named a First Team All-American by the Associated Press, NABC, USBWA, Basketball Times and ESPN.com, and a second-team selection by The Sporting News and CBSSports.com. He was also named to the 10-man John R. Wooden Award All-America team.
Prior to McDermott, the only other player honored by the USBWA with All-America status had been second-team selection Kyle Korver in 2003, and the only prior NABC selections from Creighton had been second-teamer Paul Silas (1964) and third-team selections Benoit Benjamin (1985) and Kyle Korver (2003).
Last year McDermott was named CollegeInsider.com's Lute Olson National Player of the Year. He was also a finalist for the Naismith and Wooden Award, though Anthony Davis won both awards.
Scoring In Numbers
Doug McDermott owned 801 points in 35 games last year, an average of 22.9 per contest that ranked him third nationally in scoring.
McDermott's 22.9 points per game ranked fourth-most in CU single-season history and were the most since Bob Portman averaged 26.2 points per game in 1968-69.
Portman, who finished fifth nationally in scoring in 1967-68 (29.5 ppg.), was the only previous Bluejay to ever rank in the top-10 of the year-end scoring leaders.
McDermott's 22.9 points per game made him the first MVC player over 20 points per game since Illinois State's Tarise Bryson (2000-01) and the most by a MVC player since Northern Iowa's Randy Blocker (23.0 ppg.) in 1993-94. Bryson had been the only MVC player since 1989 to rank in the top-five nationally in scoring.
No Bluejay had averaged more than 20 points per game since Bob Harstad's 22.2 average in 1989-90.
Oscar, Bird, Doug
Doug McDermott set a Creighton (and MVC) record for points by a freshman with 581 in 2010-11. Last season, McDermott had 801 points, the most single-season points in school history by any player.
McDermott's 1,382 points after two seasons were the most in school history by a player in their first two seasons, passing Bob Portman (1,195). According to STATS Inc., the only other players since 1996-97 with at least 1,382 points or more by the end of their sophomore season had been Davidson's Stephen Curry (1,661 points from 2006-08), Eastern Washington's Rodney Stuckey (1,438 points from 2005-07) and VMI's Keydren Clark (1,497 points from 2002-04).
He became just the third sophomore in MVC history to reach 800 points in a season, trailing only Oscar Robertson and Larry Bird on that list. His 801 points from last year rank 10th-most in MVC single-season history and were the most by any Valley player since 1988.
Below is a list of the most prolific sophomore scorers in MVC history, as well as the top single-season scorers in Creighton history (all classes):
Top Scorers, MVC History (All Years)
Pts. Name, School Years
1125 Hersey Hawkins, Bradley 1987-88
1011 Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati 1959-60
984 Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati 1957-58
978 Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati 1958-59
973 Larry Bird, Indiana State 1978-79
959 Larry Bird, Indiana State 1977-78
918 Larry Bird, Indiana State 1976-77
844 Xavier McDaniel, Wichita State 1984-85
815 Lewis Lloyd, Drake 1979-80
801 Doug McDermott, Creighton 2011-12
788 Hersey Hawkins, Bradley 1986-87
788 Willie Biles, Tulsa 1972-73
Top Sophomore Scorers, MVC History
Pts. Name, School Years
984 Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati 1957-58
918 Larry Bird, Indiana State 1976-77
801 Doug McDermott, Creighton 2011-12
680 Mitchell Anderson, Bradley 1979-80
656 Hersey Hawkins, Bradley 1985-86
Top Scorers, Creighton Single-Season History
Pts. Name (Class) Year
801 Doug McDermott (So.) 2011-12
738 Bob Portman (Jr.) 1967-68
734 Bob Harstad (Jr.) 1989-90
Familiar Fives
Creighton utilized the same starting line-up all season long in 2011-12, as Gregory Echenique, Doug McDermott, Grant Gibbs, Jahenns Manigat and Antoine Young started all 35 games.
According to STATS Inc., the only schools with the same starting five every game were Creighton, Missouri, Nevada, Wisconsin and Youngstown State.
Of those five schools above, the only team to use the same starting five for every game in 2012-13 is Creighton.
All-Around Doug
Last season Doug McDermott joined Texas' Kevin Durant (in 2006-07) as the nation's only player since 1996-97 to finish a season with at least 800 points, 280 rebounds and 50 three-pointers.
It came on the heels of McDermott's remarkable freshman season with 581 points, 280 rebounds and 47 three-point baskets.
According to research by STATS Inc., the last two freshmen (before McDermott) to attain 525 points, 270 rebounds and 40 three-pointers in a season were Durant and Carmelo Anthony (Syracuse) in 2002-03. The previous two freshmen before them to do so, Quentin Richardson (1998-99 at DePaul) and Eddie Griffin (2000-01 at Seton Hall), like Durant and Anthony, were also named the National Freshman of the Year.
Below is the list, compiled by STATS Inc., of all 19 Division I players since 1996-97 to have McDermott's levels of at least 581 points, 280 rebounds and 47 three-pointers in one season.
McDermott, who repeated the feat in 2011-12, joins Kyle Singler (Duke) as one of two men to do it twice.:
581+ Pts., 280+ Reb., 47+ 3FG Since 1996-97
Source: STATS Inc. & Creighton Sports Info
Name, School Year 3FG Reb. Pts.
Kevin Durant, Texas* 2006-07 82 390 903
Doug McDermott, Creighton 2011-12 54 288 801
Carmelo Anthony, Syracuse* 2002-03 56 349 778
Shane Battier, Duke 2000-01 124 285 778
Kyle Singler, Duke 2009-10 85 280 707
Keith Van Horn, Utah 1996-97 58 303 705
Ryan Anderson, Cal 2007-08 64 328 697
Matt Harpring, Ga. Tech 1997-98 52 302 691
Rasual Butler, LaSalle 2001-02 57 283 670
Wendell McKinies, New Mex St. 2011-12 51 374 653
Brian Heinle, CS-Northridge 2000-01 52 293 646
Jae Crowder, Marquette 2011-12 61 295 614
Jamine Peterson, Providence 2009-10 51 315 609
James Posey, Xavier 1998-99 48 322 609
Kyle Singler, Duke 2008-09 69 284 609
Matt Howard, Butler 2010-11 53 285 608
Romain Sato, Xavier 2003-04 75 297 603
Draymond Green, Michigan St. 2011-12 52 392 601
Doug McDermott, Creighton* 2010-11 47 280 581
*Freshmen
Last Season Recap
Creighton went 29-6 and reached the third round of the MVC Tournament last season. Creighton started the year 7-0 to move into the Associated Press top-25, a spot they would hold for 12 of the final 15 weeks.
Doug McDermott ranked third nationally in scoring (22.9), scoring a school-record 801 points. He became the first sophomore named MVC Player of the Year and was a consensus First Team All-American.
Point guard Antoine Young (12.1 ppg., 4.5 apg.) was a second-team all-Valley pick, while center Gregory Echenique (9.7 ppg., 7.3 rpg., 1.6 bpg.) was named MVC Defensive Player of the Year. In addition, Grant Gibbs was runner-up for MVC Newcomer of the Year accolades after dishing a league-high 176 assists.
The Jays ranked second nationally in field goal percentage (.504), third in three-point percentage (.424), fifth in assists (17.6), sixth in home attendance (16,665) and ninth in scoring offense (79.2).
Creighton finished the regular-season second in the MVC before winning its league-record 11th Valley Tournament title to clinch an NCAA bid. At the NCAA's, Creighton topped Alabama 58-57 before falling to No. 4 North Carolina.
Creighton Will Host in 2015, Again
The NCAA announced on Nov. 12, 2012, that Creighton will serve as the host institution on March 20/22, 2015, when the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament returns to CenturyLink Center Omaha for second/third-round games.
This will be the third time in a seven-year span the arena has hosted, having previously done so in 2008 and 2012 to much acclaim.
CenturyLink Center Omaha has previously hosted NCAA finals for women's volleyball (2006, 2008) and wrestling (2010), as well as the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Swimming (2008, 2012). This January, it will host the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.
Shuttle Service Provided Again
Chief Bus will provide complimentary shuttle service from the Creighton University campus to CenturyLink Center Omaha for all men's basketball home games this season. The service is available to all fans, not just Creighton students.
The shuttle will start 75 minutes before tip-off and shuttles will continue to operate the route during the game. The three designated stops for pick-up around the CU campus are: 24th & California (nearside/southbound); 20th & Cass (nearside/eastbound) and at Billy Blues Alumni Grill (outside the Mike & Josie Harper Center in the turnaround which is on the east side of the building).
The shuttle will then go eastbound on Capitol Avenue and then go north up 10th Street for drop-off at the CenturyLink Center Omaha convention center entrance. The route is designed for each shuttle driver to make a roundtrip every 15 minutes.
Following the game's conclusion, the shuttle will start at the CenturyLink Center Omaha convention center entrance on 10th Street and loop the original route with the first of three stops at 24th & California Streets.
Ticket Information
Single-game tickets for the 2012-13 season went on sale on October 29th at 10 am.
Fans can purchase single-game tickets at CenturyLink Center Omaha Box Office, Ryan Athletic Center, all Ticketmaster locations (Baker's, Younkers), Ticketmaster online at http://www.ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster and charging by phone at (800) 745-3000. Only upper bowl seats will be available for any game and cost is $12 for adults and $8 for youth ages 3-18 (children two and under are free).
For more information, call the Creighton Ticket Office at (402) 280-JAYS.
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/ Men's BasketballCreighton Men's Basketball Press Conference vs. West Virginia - 4/4/26
Saturday, April 04
Creighton Men's Basketball Press Conference vs. Rutgers - 4/2/26
Friday, April 03
Creighton Press Conference After Rutgers - 4/2/26
Friday, April 03
Creighton Men's Basketball Availability - 3/30/26
Monday, March 30
