Men's Basketball Heads to St. Louis To Defend Arch Madness Title

2012-13 Creighton Men's Basketball
Game #32 • MVC Tournament Quarterfinals • Friday, March 8, 2013 • 12:05 pm
Drake Bulldogs/Bradley Braves winner vs. Creighton Bluejays
Scottrade Center (20,948) • St. Louis, Mo.
Radio: KXSP 590 AM, www.am590espnradio.com
Television: FSN Midwest
Series Histories: Creighton leads Drake 93-59; Creighton leads Bradley 46-41
Last Meetings: DU beat CU 74-69 on 1/23/13; CU beat BU 80-62 on 2/27/13

Complete 2013 MVC Tournament Schedule of Games
Thursday, March 7 -- Session I (all games on Fox Sports Midwest, WXOS Radio)
Game 1 -- #8 Bradley (16-15, 7-11) vs. #9 Drake (14-16, 7-11)    6:05 pm
Game 2 -- #7 Missouri St. (10-21, 7-11) vs. #10 Southern Illinois (14-16, 6-12)    8:35 pm
Friday, March 8 -- Session II (all games on Fox Sports Midwest, WXOS Radio)
Game 3 -- #1 Creighton (24-7, 13-5) vs. Winner Game 1    12:05 pm
Game 4 -- #4 Evansville (18-13, 10-8) vs. #5 Indiana State (17-13, 9-9)    2:35 pm
Friday, March 8 -- Session III (all games on Fox Sports Midwest, WXOS Radio)
Game 5 -- #2 Wichita State (24-7, 12-6) vs. Winner Game 2    6:05 pm
Game 6 -- #3 Northern Iowa (18-13, 11-7) vs. #6 Illinois State (17-14, 8-10)    8:35 pm
Saturday, March 9 -- Session IV (all games on Fox Sports Midwest, WXOS Radio)
Game 7 -- Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4    1:35 pm
Game 8 -- Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6    4:05 pm
Sunday, March 10 -- Session V (game on CBS, Dial Global Sports and Sirius XM Radio)
Championship -- Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8    1:05 pm

This Week
Top-seeded Creighton (24-7, 13-5 MVC) begins its quest for a league-record 12th MVC Tournament title, beginning with a quarterfinal round match-up on Friday at 12:05 pm. The Bluejays will face the winner of Thursday's 6:05 pm play-in round game between Drake (14-16, 7-11) and Bradley (16-15, 7-11).
    Scottrade Center (20,948) in St. Louis, Mo. , will host the action.

Radio Broadcast Information
KXSP (“AM 590 - Omaha's ESPN Radio”) will broadcast all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2012-13 season. T. Scott Marr and Nick Bahe will call the action. The audio is also webcast live at www.AM590espnradio.com.
    Creighton's quarterfinal game can also be heard in St. Louis on 101 ESPN FM (WXOS), with Kevin Paulus and Scott Highmark on the call.
Television Broadcast Information
For the third time in the 23-year history of the State Farm MVC Tournament in St. Louis, all games of the tournament will be televised in high-definition.
    Telecasts will be cleared on Fox Sports Midwest, Fox Sports Indiana, Fox Sports Kansas City and Comcast SportsNet Chicago. The games can also be seen on DirecTV channel 671, Dish Network channel 418 and AT&T U-Verse channel 748.
    Sunday's final will air on CBS Sports for the eighth straight year.
    Mitch Holthus and Rich Zvosec will call Creighton's quarterfinal game, with Scott Warmann serving as host and Tom Ackerman as sideline reporter.
    Coordinates for the Friday's game follow:
What: MVC Tournament Quarterfinal #1
Clearances: Live on Fox Sports Midwest, Fox Sports Indiana, Fox Sports Kansas City, Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Fox College Sports (Central), DirecTV Channel 671, Dish Network Channel 418, AT&T U-Verse Channel 748 and ESPN3 (except states of NE, IL, IN, IA, KS, MO)
Satellite Coordinates: AMC 15, Transponder K3
Band: Digital KU Band
Format: HD
Parameters: -- 4:2:0    Data Rate: 41.47 MSPS
Downlink Freq.: 11760 MHz Vertical
Bandwidth: 36 MHz
Symbol Rate: 29.999564 Ms
Modulation: QPSK

Postgame Coordinates
The MVC, in conjunction with its television production company Niles Media Group and KETC (St. Louis), will provide satellite feeds for the post-game press conferences for the tournament.
    Coordinates and uplink windows for Creighton's quarterfinal round postgame is as follows:
Satellite Coordinates: AMC 15, Transponder K-17, Slot A18
Band: Digital KU Band
Format: SD
Video Compression Ratio: 4:2:0
Data Rate: 18.29
Bandwith: 18 Megahertz
Parameters -- FEC: 3/4 QPSK
Symbol Rate: 13.235
Downlink Frequency: 12031 MHz Vertical

Webcast Information
The first eight games of the MVC Tournament will be video webcast nationwide on ESPN3.com, except in the states of Nebraska, Iowa, Indiana, Missouri, Kansas and Illinois.

Live Stats Information
All MVC Tournament games will have free live stats. Visit mvc.statbroadcast.com for the exact links.

Scouting Creighton
Creighton is 24-7 this season (13-5 MVC) and claimed its first outright MVC regular-season title since 2001 with a 91-79 win over Wichita State last Saturday.
    The Jays started the season impressively with an 11-1 record in pre-conference play. The start includes victories over NCAA hopefuls Wisconsin, Akron, Cal and Arizona State, as well as triumphs over league favorites from the Atlantic-10 (Saint Joseph's) and Sun Belt (North Texas).
    Junior forward Doug McDermott (23.4 ppg., 7.6 rpg.) is the nation's only returning First Team All-American and was named the Midseason National Player of the Year by Dick Vitale, Seth Davis, Mike DeCourcy and Andy Katz (among others). A two-time MVC Player of the Year, McDermott has been named MVC Player of the Week eight times this year and is 59-for-115 from three-point range in the past 25 games. On Feb. 16th, he became the first junior in MVC history to surpass 2,000 career points.
    Second on the team in scoring is senior center Gregory Echenique (9.6 ppg., 6.5 rpg., 1.5 bpg.). Echenique has led the MVC in blocked shots each of the past two years.
    Creighton also boasts a veteran backcourt consisting of Grant Gibbs (8.7 ppg., 5.9 apg., 4.2 rpg.), Austin Chatman (7.7 ppg., 4.3 apg.) and Jahenns Manigat (5.9 ppg.). Gibbs and Chatman rank first and third in the MVC in assists, while Manigat led The Valley in league play in three-point percentage a year ago.
    Creighton's bench is led by MVC Sixth Man of the Year Ethan Wragge (7.8 ppg.), who is fourth in the league with 68 three-pointers made and has drilled six three-pointers in a game on three occasions this season.
    Creighton leads the nation in field goal percentage (.511), is second in three-point percentage (.422), fourth in assists per game (17.4), sixth in three-pointers per game (8.8) and seventh in both points (2366) and assist/turnover ratio (1.43) while also outrebounding foes by 4.8 caroms a game.

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 76-29 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 356-224 in 19 seasons and is 225-160 in 12 Division I campaigns. McDermott is assisted by Darian DeVries, Steve Lutz and Steve Merfeld.
    McDermott is 9-5 all-time in the MVC Tournament, including the 2004 title while at Northern Iowa and the 2012 title at Creighton. He is 1-1 in the play-in round, 4-2 in the quarterfinals, 2-2 in the semifinals and 2-0 in the championship game.

Last Game Recap
Doug McDermott had a season-high 41 points to help Creighton men's basketball to the MVC regular-season title with a 91-79 victory over Wichita State. Demetric Williams led WSU with 18 points.

The Case For Creighton
Should Creighton not earn the automatic bid at Arch Madness in St. Louis, it's built up a compelling case for an at-large bid. Consider the following (games through 3/3)...
-Creighton owns a top-40 RPI and ranks tied for 10th nationally with 24 Division I wins.
-Creighton is 4-3 against the top-50 and 8-5 against the top-100.
-Creighton is 9-5 away from home this season. Among BCS teams, only four schools (Duke, Miami, Louisville, Arizona) have more than nine road/neutral victories this year.
-Creighton's seven true road wins are as many as BCS teams Marquette, Minnesota and Iowa ..COMBINED.
-Creighton won the regular-season title in the nation's ninth-best league, the MVC.
-Creighton went 11-2 in non-conference action, including double-digit wins away from home over Wisconsin, Arizona State, California and Nebraska.
-Creighton also defeated current MAC leader Akron and preseason league favorites Saint Joseph's and North Texas, all at home.
-Creighton leads the nation in 3-point percentage, is second in field goal percentage, and seventh in points scored.
-Creighton reached the third round of the NCAA Tournament a year ago.
-Creighton has won at least one postseason game each of the last five seasons, and has won 20 or more games in 14 of the past 15 years.

MVC Tournament History
Creighton owns a 40-20 all-time record in MVC Tournament play. Creighton's 11 MVC Tournament titles are six more than any other school, while its 40 wins and .667 winning percentage in league tourney action is also tops in event history.
    Creighton is 18-12 in the quarterfinals, 11-7 in the semifinals and 11-1 in the championship games.
    Creighton is 4-2 all-time against Drake at the MVC Tournament, and 3-5 against Bradley.

History As A Top Seed
Creighton is 8-1 in games all-time as the top seed, including titles in three of its four appearances in that spot. Creighton went 1-0 for the 1978 title, 3-0 in both 1989 and 1991 to win the crown, and were 1-1 in 2001 (losing to No. 5 Indiana State).
    The top seed has won 13 of the 36 tournament titles all-time, which is second-most in event history (the No. 2 seed owns 14 titles). The top seed owns a 42-16 record in the event since the tournament moved to St. Louis in 1991, the second-best winning percentage of any slot (No. 2 is 42-14).
    Additionally, the No. 1 seed has won at least one game in all 36 previous MVC tournaments, reached the final in five of the previous six seasons and won the title in three of the previous five years.

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.

One Game At A Time
Creighton has won the MVC Tournament eight of the last 12 times it has won its first game in St. Louis.
    Each time they've lost their first game in St. Louis, they've been bounced from the single-elimination tournament.

Seven Out Of 14 Tourney Titles
Creighton owns seven league tournament titles in the last 14 years. On a national basis, the only schools that can claim this are Duke (10), Gonzaga (10), Winthrop (9) and Creighton (7).
    Creighton's 11 all-time Valley Tournament titles are more than twice as many as the next closest school, Southern Illinois (5).

Ring Bearers
Creighton's current coaching staff and players have combined for 25 MVC Tournament championship titles, two MEAC Tournament titles, and one West Coast Conference Tourney title.
    In addition to nearly everyone returning from last year's championship squad, Darian DeVries has been a part of seven championship squads as a Bluejay assistant coach, while Greg McDermott won a title as head coach at Northern Iowa in 2004.
    In addition, Grant Gibbs was a redshirt on Gonzaga's 2008-09 team that defeated Saint Mary's in the West Coast Conference Tournament championship game.
    The only players on this year's club without a ring are true freshmen Isaiah Zierden and Andre Yates.
    Here's a breakdown of how many championships each person has been a part of:
Name    Titles Won    Years
Darian DeVries    7    1999, 2000, '02, '03, '05, '07, '12
Steve Merfeld    3    2001#, 2002#, 2012
Greg McDermott    2    2004, 2012
Grant Gibbs    2    2009*, 2012
Steve Lutz    1    2012
Greg Echenique    1    2012
Ausitn Chatman    1    2012
Taylor Stormberg    1    2012
Doug McDermott    1    2012
Alex Olsen    1    2012
Josh Jones    1    2012
Jahenns Manigat    1    2012
Avery Dingman    1    2012
Geoffrey Groselle    1    2012
Nevin Johnson    1    2012
Will Artino    1    2012
Ethan Wragge    1    2012
Mo Oginni    1    2012
#won MEAC Tourney titles as head coach at Hampton
*won a WCC Tourney title as a redshirt at Gonzaga

Hall of Fame Weekend For Bob Portman
Bob Portman will enter the Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Fame on Friday as part of a induction class that will be honored at an 8 am breakfast ceremony held in the Peabody Opera House's Midland States Bank Ballroom (tickets required).
    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 fifth in career points (1,876), rebounds (979), free throws (382) and field goals made (747).
    Portman is being honored by the MVC as an “Institutional Great” since he never played in the MVC due to Creighton's independent affiliation at the time.
    Joining Portman in the 16th MVC Hall of Fame class will be officials coordinator Jim Bain, Wichita State's Darren Dreifort, UNI's Molly O'Brien and Evansville's Krissy Meek-Engelbrecht.

Random Valley Tournament Facts
-Creighton is the only Valley school that has not appeared in the play-in round since that format began in 1997.
    -Creighton has won its last 10 games at the MVC Tournament decided by four points or less.
    -Creighton is 8-2 in its last 10 MVC Tournament games when playing an opponent with a better seed than the Bluejays.
    -Creighton is 4-0 all-time against teams defending an MVC Tournament title.
    -The last three times Creighton faced Drake in the MVC Tournament, the winner of that game won the tournament.
    -Creighton is 14-2 in six MVC Tournaments with an MVC Player of the Year on its roster, including titles in four of the last five occurences.

With A Win
With a win on Friday, Creighton would improve to 25-7 on the season, just the fourth time in program history its reached that victory milestone (also 2002-03, 2008-09, 2011-12).
    -Creighton would improve to 41-20 all-time in MVC Tournament action. Both the 41 wins and the .672 win percentage would be tops in event history.
    -Creighton would improve to 19-12 all-time in the quarterfinal round of the MVC Tournament.
    -Creighton head coach Greg McDermott would improve to 10-5 in the MVC Tournament, including a 5-2 mark in the quarterfinal round.
    -The No. 1 seed would improve to 37-0 all-time in its first MVC Tournament game.
    -Creighton would reach the semifinal round for the third straight season, and sixth time in the past seven years.
    -Creighton would own 77 wins in the past three years, the best three-year stretch in program history.
    -Creighton head coach would win his 169th game as a head coach in the MVC, tying him for 12th in league history with legendary Kansas coach Phog Allen.

More Tourney Info
Below is a list of average seeds in the MVC Tournament since it expanded to include all 10 teams in 1997.
    Notably, Creighton is the only team to avoid the play-in round in the past 17 years, a span that has seen nine different schools to earn the top seed for Arch Madness.
Team    Avg. Seed    Best Seed    Worst Seed
Creighton    2.94    1    6
Southern Illinois    4.65    1    10
Missouri State    4.76    1    10
Wichita State    4.76    1    9
Northern Iowa    5.24    1    10
Illinois State    5.41    1    10
Bradley    5.88    2    10
Evansville    6.59    1    10
Indiana State    7.06    1    10
Drake    7.71    1    10

Historical Trends
Here's six historical trends that indicate Creighton is a favorite to win the MVC Tournament.
1.) Creighton went 6-3 in its final nine MVC games this year. Each of the last four times the Jays went exactly 6-3 in its last nine league games, CU won the tournament.
2.) Creighton went 4-2 in its final six MVC games this year. Four of the last five times the Jays went exactly 4-2 in its last six league games, CU won the tournament.
3.) Creighton has won the MVC Tournament three of the previous four times its been the top seed.
4.) Creighton has won the MVC Tournament four of the last five times it's had a player recognized as MVC Player of the Year.
5.) Creighton opened MVC play 6-0 this season. Each of CU's previous two teams to start 5-0 or better in league play would go on to win the MVC Tournament.
6.) Each of the last two calendar years in which a Conclave convened to elect a new Pope – 1978 and 2005 –the winner of the MVC Men's Basketball Tournament was Creighton.

Back To Defend A Title
Creighton is attempting to win back-to-back MVC Tournament titles for the third time in program history. CU won the 1999 & 2000 crowns, as well as the 2002 & 2003 titles.
    The only other schools to repeat were Southern Illinois (1993, 1994 & 1995), Illinois State (1997 & 1998) and Northern Iowa (2009 & 2010).

You're My Boy, Blue!
Don't be surprised if it seems like half the lower bowl at Scottrade Center is filled with fans wearing blue.
    Creighton sold 4,158 all-session tickets to Arch Madness this year, most in event history by a single school. The previous mark had been 2,575, set last year by Creighton's fans.

Offense Wins Championships?
Creighton is putting the old saying “Defense wins championships” to the test this season. The Bluejays are leading the MVC in scoring offense this season, averaging 76.3 points per game.
    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, 2012).
    By comparison, only two teams that led the league in scoring defense won the MVC Tournament (SIU in 2006, UNI in 2010).

Going On The Offensive
Speaking of offense, Creighton leads the nation in field goal percentage at 51.1 percent.
    Since 2005-06 there have been seven teams that finished a year shooting 50.8 percent or better from the field. Six of those seven teams made the NCAA's, going 17-4 in the “Big Dance”, and two (Kansas in 2008 and Florida in 2007) won the national title.
    By comparison, 13 teams held foes to 56.0 points per game or less in the same seven-year span. Those teams combined for just seven NCAA bids and went a combined 7-7 in the Big Dance.

McDermott Named MVC Player of the Year
Last year Doug McDermott became the first sophomore in league history to be named Larry Bird MVC Player of the Year. This year, he became the eighth player in league history to repeat the award, joining an illustrious list that includes Junior Bridgeman, Larry Bird, Lewis Lloyd, Xavier McDaniel, Hersey Hawkins, Kyle Korver and Darren Brooks.
    McDermott leads The Valley and ranks second nationally with 23.4 points per game and is also top-five in the MVC in rebounding, field goal percentage, three-point percentage, free-throw percentage, three-pointers made and defensive rebounds.
    McDermott's honor gives Creighton seven MVC Player of the Year awards, one more than Bradley and Southern Illinois for most all-time.
    Last year he became the second player in MVC history to be named both MVC Freshman of the Year (2011) and MVC Player of the Year (2012 and 2013), joining Southern Illinois' great Ashraf Amaya (1990 FOY and 1992 POY).

Seeking To Repeat
Doug McDermott could join some elite company if he were able to duplicate his Most Outstanding Player award from last year's MVC Tournament.
    In league history, only Creighton's Kyle Korver (in 2002 & 2003) has won multiple MOP trophies at the MVC Tournament.
    Last season McDermott joined Adam Emmenecker (2008), Kyle Korver (2002 and 2003), Chris Carr (1995) and Hersey Hawkins (1988) as players to be named Most Outstanding Player in the same season they've earned MVC Player of the Year accolades.

Repeat Path?
Not only is Creighton gunning for a repeat MVC Tournament title, but the Jays could follow the exact same path as a year ago.
    Last season (as the No. 2 seed) Creighton opened with the Bradley/Drake winner (Drake), then beat Evansville, before topping Illinois State in the final.
    It's possible this year that Creighton could meet Drake in the quarterfinals, Evansville in the semi's and Illinois State for all the marbles.

Chasing History
Doug McDermott has scored 21 or more points in 22 of the season's 31 games, moving up to third on Creighton's all-time scoring list with 2,106 career points.
    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 can become Creighton's all-time leading scorer with 11 points on Friday.
All-Time Creighton Scoring Leaders
    Rk.    Name, Years    Points
    1.    Rodney Buford, 1995-99    2,116
    2.    Bob Harstad, 1987-91    2,110
    3.    Doug McDermott, 2010-Pres.*    2,106
    4.    Chad Gallagher, 1987-91    1,983
    5.    Bob Portman, 1966-69    1,876
*active

All-Time MVC Scoring Leaders
Rk.    Name, School    Points
    1.    Hersey Hawkins, Bradley    3,008
    5.    Mitchell Anderson, Bradley    2,341
    6.    Steve Harris, Tulsa    2,272
    7.    Colt Ryan, Evansville*    2,173
    8.    Cleo Littleton, Wichita State    2,164
    9.    Xavier McDaniel, Wichita State    2,152
    10.    Rodney Buford, Creighton    2,116
    11.    Bob Harstad, Creighton    2,110
    12.    Doug McDermott, Creighton*    2,106
    13.    Roger Phegley, Bradley    2,064
    *active

40, Back-to-Back?
Doug McDermott enters the MVC Tournament after a 41-point showing last Saturday vs. Wichita State.
    The only player in Creighton history to post two straight 40-point contests was Benoit Benjamin. Benjamin had 43 points vs. Southern Illinois on Jan. 17, 1985, then had 45 points against Indiana State two days later.
    Leaguewide since 1996-97, there have been just eight games of 40 or more points by one player. McDermott is the only player with multiple games of 41 or more, and Illinois State legend Tarise Bryson (1999-2001) is the only other man with two games of 40+.
    Of the 40-point outings, it's interesting to note that three of those performances have come on a Creighton Senior Night since 2008 (Cavel Witter's 42 in 2008, Colt Ryan's 43 in 2012, McDermott's 41 on Saturday).
    McDermott, who also had 39 points at Missouri State on Jan. 11, is the nation's only player with 39 points or more in multiple games this season.

Come A Little Bit Closer
Doug McDermott is shooting a ridiculous 48.1 percent from three-point range this year, but his two-point accuracy last week was out of this world.
    McDermott shot 21-of-23 from two-point range last week, making his last 16 attempts from two-point range since a first-half miss on Feb. 27 at Bradley.

Not Half Bad
Doug McDermott scored 16 points or more in all four halves played last week. He had 16 in both halves vs. Bradley on Feb. 27, then had 18 and 23 vs. Wichita State on March 2nd.
    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 43 times during his career, and Creighton is 36-2 in those contests (five times he's scored 15 or more in both halves).
    McDermott owns eight halves in his career with 20 or more points, and just six scoreless halves.

Filling It Up
Ethan Wragge is fourth in the MVC with 68 three-pointers made this season, giving him 214 in his career. That places him third in Creighton history.
    Each of the other four men in Creighton history with 200 or more three-pointers were named MVC Tournament Most Outstanding Player at some point in their careers.
Most 3FG Made, Career
3FG    Name    Years
    371    Kyle Korver    1999-03
    245    Ryan Sears    1997-01
    214    Ethan Wragge    2009-Pres.
    212    Rodney Buford    1995-99
    200    Nate Funk    2002-07

Straight Shooters
Creighton shot 70.2 percent on Saturday in a win vs. Wichita State. It was the sixth-best performance nationally this season, and best in the MVC. Next best in the league was a 65.6 percent performance by UNI vs. Wartburg.
    Last season Creighton shot 70 percent or better twice, including a league-record 77.5 percent marksmanship at Southern Illinois.
    Prior to the Jays doing it twice last year, no MVC team had shot 70 percent in any contest since Jan. 10, 2009.

Speaking Of Honors
Doug McDermott is also a finalist for the Lou Henson National Player of the Year, an award that collegeinsider.com hands out to the nation's top mid-major player.
    Fans can vote for McDermott at VoteLouHenson.com.
Championship History
Creighton has claimed its 15th MVC regular-season title in program history, matching Oklahoma State for most in league history.
    This year's outright title was the team's eighth overall, and first since 2000-01.
    CU's current haul of 15 regular-season titles is more than twice as many as any other current league foe (Wichita State, 7 outright, 0 shared; Southern Illinois, 4 outright, 3 shared).
    CU previously won outright crowns in 1990-91, 1988-89, 1977-78, 1942-43, 1940-41 and 1931-32. Only Oklahoma State (11) and Kansas (10) own more outright MVC titles than Creighton.
    Creighton owns seven shared titles as well, most recently in 2008-09. CU also shared titles in 2001-02, 1941-42, 1935-36, 1934-35, 1930-31 and 1929-30. Creighton's seven shared titles are three more than any other team (Oklahoma State, 4).
    Creighton also owns a record 11 MVC Tournament titles all-time, including 2012. The Jays also won the Valley Tournament in 2007, 2005, 2003, 2002, 2000, 1999, 1991, 1989, 1981 and 1978.
MVC History - Most Regular-Season Titles
15 - Creighton, Oklahoma State
7 - Southern Illinois, Cincinnati, Wichita State
6 - Bradley, Louisville, Tulsa, Drake

Senior Day Honored Five
Creighton honored five men in its March 2 Senior Day; Gregory Echenique, Taylor Stormberg, Josh Jones, Grant Gibbs and Joe Kelling.
    During the past four years, the Jays have gone 94-45 while appearing in the postseason every season and claiming the 2012-13 MVC regular-season title and 2012 MVC Tournament title.

Scoring Record Within Reach?
Junior forward Doug McDermott enters Friday's game 11 points shy of becoming the leading scorer in Creighton history.
    He'll enter the game with 2,106 points, trailing only Bob Harstad (2,110) and Rodney Buford (2,116) on CU's career list.

He Can Play In Peoria
Doug McDermott had his third straight dominating effort at Carver Arena on Feb. 27th, finishing with 32 points and 11 rebounds.
    As a freshman, McDermott had 19 points and a career-high 17 rebounds at Bradley. Last season, he scored a career-best 44 points versus the Braves.
    McDermott is averaging 31.7 points and 12.3 rebounds per game in three career games at Bradley. In the past two years, he's made 30-of-40 field goal attempts.

Against The Best
Creighton owns a 4-3 record this season against top-50 RPI teams, including double-figure wins over Wisconsin, Akron and Cal.
    Doug McDermott has averaged 29.0 points in those contests, scoring 21 or more points in each game, while shooting 61.9 percent from three-point range (26-42).

The Distributor
Grant Gibbs is well on his way to leading the MVC in assists for a second-straight season, something that hasn't been done since Illinois State's Jamar Smiley topped The Valley in three straight campaigns from 1995-98.
    Gibbs 182 assists are fifth-most in Creighton single-season history, and he's the first man in program history with multiple seasons of 170 assists or more.

The 700 Club
Creighton junior Doug McDermott leads the MVC with 724 points this season after owning a league-high 801 a year ago. He is the MVC's first player with consecutive seasons of 700 points or more since Hersey Hawkins (Bradley, 1986-88).
    McDermott's 724 points are fourth-most in Creighton single-season history.
    McDermott has joined Oscar Robertson, Larry Bird, Lewis Lloyd and Hersey Hawkins as the fifth player in MVC history with multiple 700-point seasons.

29 & 10 Guy
Doug McDermott owns four games with 29 points and 10 or more rebounds this season. VMI's Stan Okoye (6) is the only other player to do it as often or more this season.
    It's only happened 77 times nationally, according to research by Valley publicist Mike Kern, through games of March 1st.
Will Power
Reserve center Will Artino provided a huge boost in Creighton's 59-45 win over Southern Illinois on Feb. 19th.
    The sophomore from Waukee, Iowa, tied his career-high with 13 points and added a season-best five rebounds. He made all six field goal attempts and saw a career-high 17 minutes of playing time.
    Artino continued his strong play with 10 points and seven rebounds on Feb. 27 at Bradley.
    Artino has made 32 of his last 37 shots from the floor, good for an outstanding 86.5 percent.
    Even when Artino misses, it's not all bad. Creighton has won its last 23 games when Artino has a missed field goal, and is 28-1 all-time when Artino has a miss.

Full House
Creighton has attracted six of its nine largest home crowds in program history this season, which includes sellouts in seven of the past eight games. Here's a look at Creighton's top-16 home crowds all-time.
    Rank    Att.    Opponent    Date
    1.    18,735    Wichita State    02/11/12
    2.    18,613    Wichita State    03/02/13
    3.    18,494    Illinois State    02/09/13
    4.    18,458    Evansville    12/29/12
    5.    18,436    Bradley    01/28/12
    6.    18,111    Bradley    02/02/13
    7.    18,073    Drake    01/08/13
    8.    17,954    Wichita State    12/28/08
    9.    17,694    Indiana State    01/05/13
    10.    17,676    Northwestern    12/22/11
    11.    17,665    Missouri State    12/28/11
    12.    17,607    Drexel    02/17/07
    13.    17,459    Southern Illinois    01/20/07
    14.    17,411    George Mason    02/21/09
        17,411    Indiana State    01/21/12

Rasmussen Named to MBB Committee
Creighton Athletic Director Bruce Rasmussen has been appointed to the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee.
    Rasmussen's five-year term begins September 1st. He will be the only newcomer to the committee for the 2013-14 academic year, replacing current chair Mike Bobinski.

Pretty Good Stretch
Creighton owns 53 wins in the last two seasons, 76 wins in the past three seasons and 94 wins during the last four years. All three totals are among the best stretches in school history, as seen below
Most Wins, 2-Year Stretch
    W-L    Years
    53    2011-Present
    52    2010-12
    52    2001-03
    49    2007-09
    49    2002-04

Most Wins, 3-Year Stretch
    W-L    Years
    76    2000-03
    76    2010-Present
    72    2001-04
    72    2002-05
    71    2006-09

Most Wins, 4-Year Stretch
    W-L    Years
    99    1999-03
    97    2008-12
    96    2000-04
    95    2001-05
    94    2009-Present
    92    2002-06
    92    1998-02

His Own Game of H-O-R-S-E
Doug McDermott led the nation last year with 307 field goals made, and his 252 buckets this year are once again leading the country.
    Of McDermott's 307 hoops last year, he made 56 baskets with his left hand and used the glass for 174 of his scores.
    Though he's playing away from the basket even more this season, his numbers remain impressive, as he's used this left hand on 24 field goals and banked in a shot 117 times.
    McDermott's 252 field goals this season lead the country, even though he's 16th nationally with 450 field goal attempts.
    No player has led the country in field goals made in back-to-back seasons since at least 1995-96.

3-Point Specialist
According to data from Hoop-Math.com, only one player nationally has attempted a higher percentage of shots from three-point range than Creighton sharpshooter Ethan Wragge.
    Wragge has attempted 158-of-169 shots from downtown this season (93.5 percent), just behind UC Davis' Tyler Les (93.6), the son of former Bradley star player and head coach Jim Les.
    Wragge is also in some other elite company, as MVC associate commissioner Mike Kern reports that Wragge is the first player in league history with 210 or more three-pointers (214) and 10 starts or less (7).

Dealing With Full Houses
Creighton has played in front of 12 sellout crowds this season (8 at home, as well as road games at Nebraska, Wichita State, Northern Iowa and Saint Mary's).
    Last year's Creighton team played in front of 10 capacity crowds.

Speaking Of The Road
Creighton finished this season with a 5-4 road record in Valley play. The only other MVC school with five league road wins was Wichita State (5-4).
    Each of the last six times Creighton's made the NCAA Tournament, it's been 5-4 or better on the road in Valley play.

Comparing Teams
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 31 games:
Stat    2011-12    2012-13
Record    26-5    24-7
FG Made    863    840
FG%    .507    .511
3FG Made    251    274
3FG%    .423    .422
FT Made    482    412
FT%    .728    .752
Rebound Margin    +5.3    +4.8
Assists    553    538
Turnovers    385    377
Scoring Average    79.3    76.3
Scoring Defense    69.2    64.0
Scoring Margin    +10.1    +12.3

Racing Past 2,000 Points
After not having a player surpass 2,000 career points since 2003, the MVC had two players do it in the span of six days recently. Evansville's Colt Ryan did it on Feb. 10th vs. Drake in his 117th career contest, and Creighton's Doug McDermott did it against Evansville on Feb. 16th in his 101st career game.
    Below is a list of the all the players in MVC history to 2,000 career points, the quickest MVC players to reach 2,000 points, and a listing of the nation's players since 1995-96 to reach 2,000 career points in 101 career games or less, and some other notable players nationwide who reached 2,000 career points with how long it took them to reach the milestone.
All-Time MVC Scoring Leaders
    Rk.    Name, School    Points
    1.    Hersey Hawkins, Bradley    3,008
    2.    Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati    2,973
    3.    Larry Bird, Indiana State    2,850
    4.    John S. Williams, Indiana State    2,374
    5.    Mitchell Anderson, Bradley    2,341
    6.    Steve Harris, Tulsa    2,272
    7.    Colt Ryan, Evansville    2,173
    8.    Cleo Littleton, Wichita State    2,164
    9.    Xavier McDaniel, Wichita State    2,152
    10.    Rodney Buford, Creighton    2,116
    11.    Bob Harstad, Creighton    2,110
    12.    Doug McDermott, Creighton    2,106
    13.    Roger Phegley, Bradley    2,064

MVC's Fastest Players to 2,000 Points
    Rk.    Name, School    Games to 2,000
    1.    Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati    59
    2.    Larry Bird, Indiana State    65
    3.    Hersey Hawkins, Bradley    97
    4.    John Sherman Williams, Indiana State    98
    5.    Mitchell Anderson, Bradley    100
        Roger Phegley, Bradley    100
    7.    Doug McDermott, Creighton    101
    8.    Cleo Littleton, Wichita State    107
    9.    Rodney Buford, Creighton    111
        Steve Harris, Tulsa    111
    11.    Xavier McDaniel, Wichita State    112
    12.    Marcus Wilson, Evansville    117
        Colt Ryan, Evansville    117
    14.    Bob Harstad, Creighton    121
    15.    Kent Williams, Southern Illinois    130

Fewest Games to 2,000 Points, Since 1996-97
    Rk.    Name, School    Games to 2,000
    1.    Keydren Clark, Saint Peter's    77
    2.    Stephen Curry, Davidson    82
    3.    Reggie Williams, VMI    93
    4.    Troy Murphy, Notre Dame    94
        Gary Neal, La Salle/Towson State    94
    6.    Trey Johnson, Jackson St. & Alcorn St.    96
        C.J. McCollum, Lehigh    96
    8.    Michael Watson, UMKC    97
    9.    Troy Bell, Boston College    98
        Taylor Coppenrath, Vermont    98
        Ricky Minard, Morehead State    98
    12.    Tyler Hansbrough, North Carolina    99
        J.J. Barea, Northeastern    99
    14.    Henry Domercant, Eastern Illinois    100
        James Florence, Mercer    100
        Chris Davis, North Texas    100
    17.    Doug McDermott, Creighton    101

More About 2,000 Points
Some additional notes about the 2,000 point club.
    -Before Colt Ryan did it on Feb. 10th, the MVC's last player to score 2,000 points in a career was Southern Illinois' Kent Williams (1999-2003).
    -This year marks the third time in MVC history that two men joined the 2,000 point club in the same season. It previously happened in 1984-85 (Steve Harris & Xavier McDaniel), then again in 1998-99 (Rodney Buford & Marcus Wilson).
    -The Feb. 16, 2013 match-up between Colt Ryan (Evansville) and Doug McDermott (Creighton) marked the first time since March 1, 1999 that two players in the faced each other as members of the 2,000 point club. That match-up was also between Creighton & Evansville, as Rodney Buford's CU team defeated Marcus Wilson's UE squad in the 1999 MVC Tournament final. Buford had 21 points, while Wilson scored 16.
    -Doug McDermott is the first player in MVC history to reach the 2,000 point milestone during his junior season. The only other men to reach 2,000 in three years were Larry Bird and Oscar Robertson, though both men played their sophomore through senior seasons at their respective schools.

Rare Bird
According to research from STATS Inc., only three men since 1996-97 have compiled at least 2,100 points, 800 rebounds and 150 three-pointers in their career. That list includes Creighton junior Doug McDermott.
Name, School    PTS    REB    3FG
Reggie Williams, VMI    2,556    820    196
Kyle Singler, Duke    2,392    1,015    267
Doug McDermott, Creighton    2,106    804    166

Compared To The National POY's
Doug McDermott is at 2,106 points in 105 games. He reached the 2,000 point milestone in fewer career games (101) than any Oscar Robertson Trophy or John R. Wooden Award winner in the last 20 years except one (Tyler Hansbrough, 99 games).
Wooden Award & Oscar Robertson Trophy Winners To 2,000 Points, Last 20 Years
        Name, School    Games to 2,000
    W O    Anthony Davis, Kentucky    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Jimmer Fredette, BYU    120
    W O    Evan Turner, Ohio State    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Blake Griffin, Oklahoma    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Tyler Hansbrough, North Carolina    99
    W O    Kevin Durant, Texas    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    J.J. Redick, Duke    112
    --O    Adam Morrison, Gonzaga    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Andrew Bogut, Utah    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Jameer Nelson, Saint Joseph's    122
W        T.J. Ford, Texas    Didn't reach 2,000
    -- O    David West, Xavier    120
    W O    Jason Williams, Duke    104
    W O    Shane Battier, Duke    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Kenyon Martin, Cincinnati    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Elton Brand, Duke    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Antawn Jamison, N. Carolina    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Tim Duncan, Wake Forest    124
    W O    Marcus Camby, UMass    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Ed O'Bannon, UCLA    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Glenn Robinson, Purdue    Didn't reach 2,000
    W O    Calbert Cheaney, Indiana    105
W = Wooden Award winner
O = Oscar Robertson Trophy winner

More Than The Rest
Doug McDermott has scored 2,106 points in his career, sixth-most among active players. He is the only active junior with at least 1,700 career points.
Most Points, Active Players (though 3/3)
Source: Stats Inc./MVC
Rk.    Pts.    Name, School    Next Game
    1.    2,361    C.J. McCollum, Lehigh    3/6
    2.    2,288    Nate Wolters, S. Dakota State    3/9
    3.    2,242    Kevin Foster, Santa Clara    3/8
    4.    2,173    Colt Ryan, Evansville    3/8
    5.    2,108    Stan Okoye, VMI    3/7
    6.    2,106    Doug McDermott, Creighton    3/8
    7.    2,079    Shane Gibson, Sacred Heart    Done
    8.    2,068    C.J. Reed, Georgia Southern    3/8
    9.    2,048    Markeith Cummings, Kennesaw St.    Done
    10.    1,999    Isaiah Canaan, Murray State    3/8
    11.    1,989    D.J. Cooper, Ohio    3/5
    12.    1,982    Mike Muscala, Bucknell    3/6
    13.    1,967    Seth Curry, Duke    3/5
    14.    1,940    Kenny Boynton, Florida    3/6
    15.    1,873    Matthew Dellavedova, St. Mary's    3/9

Most Career Points, Active Juniors
Source: Creighton Sports Info/STATS Inc. (3/7)
    Rk.    Pts.    Name, School    Next Game
    1.    2,106    Doug McDermott, Creighton    3/8
    2.    1,641    Devon Saddler, Delaware    3/9
    3.    1,622    Travis Bader, Oakland    3/10

Arena Records Within Reach
Numerous CenturyLink Center Omaha records fell this season. See pages 26-27 for more details.
Season Records Already Set
Name        Stat
Austin Chatman        3FG Percentage
Gregory Echenique        FG Percentage
Doug McDermott        Points
Doug McDermott        Points Per Game
Doug McDermott        FT Made

Career Records Already Set
Name        Stat
Gregory Echenique        FG Percentage
Gregory Echenique        Blocked Shots
Doug McDermott        Points
Doug McDermott        Points Per Game
Doug McDermott        Field Goals Made
Doug McDermott        Field Goals Att.
Doug McDermott        FT Made
Doug McDermott        FT Attempted
Doug McDermott        Rebounds/Game
Doug McDermott        Off. Rebounds
Doug McDermott        Def. Rebounds
Doug McDermott        Turnovers
Doug McDermott        Rebounds
Ethan Wragge        3-Pointers Made
Ethan Wragge        3-Pointers Att.

1K to 2K
Creighton's Doug McDermott went over the 1,000 point milestone in his 57th career game (last year at home vs. SIU) and just surpassed 2,000 in game 101 at Evansville on Feb. 16th.
    McDermott had 1,018 points (17.9 ppg.) and 433 rebounds (7.6 rpg.) in his first 57 games while shooting 44.9 percent (80-179) from 3-point range.
    Since then, McDermott has scored 1,088 points (22.7 ppg) and grabbed 371 rebounds (7.7 rpg.) in 48 games while shooting 49.4 percent (86-174) from three-point range.

Call It A Comeback
Creighton trailed 31-15 early at Evansville on Feb. 16th before pulling off a much-needed comeback.
    It was the second comeback from double-digits down in a victory this season (also UAB), and eighth in the last two seasons. Impressively, five of those comebacks have come away from home.
    Below is a list of Creighton's 11 comebacks from down 15 points or more since 2000. Notably, Creighton's comeback at UE was CU's third-largest away from home in that time.
Overcoming Large Deficits, Since 2000
Date    Opponent    Deficit    Final Score
01/28/06    Wichita State    19    W 57-55
11/27/01    Western Kentucky    18    W 95-91 2ot
02/12/03    Missouri State    17    W 70-67 ot
11/09/07    DePaul    17    W 74-62
11/30/11    at San Diego State    17    W 85-83
03/18/08    Rhode Island    17    W 74-73
11/16/08    New Mexico    16    W 82-75
02/04/06    at Drake    16    W 72-67 ot
01/26/03    TCU    16    W 89-79
02/02/08    Wichita State    15    W 65-63
02/16/13    at Evansville    15    W 71-68

McDermott Earns MVC Awards
Doug McDermott has been named MVC Player of the Week eight times this season, the most by any player in one season in league history.
    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.
    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.
    His fifth honor of the year came on Jan. 14th after he averaged 27.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in wins over Missouri State and Drake.
    McDermott averaged 27.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game in wins vs. Missouri State and Bradley to win his sixth award on Feb. 4th.
    He earned his seventh accolade on Feb. 18th by averaging 18.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists as Creighton while becoming the first junior in league history to surpass 2,000 career points.
    Most recently, McDermott picked up his eighth honor on March 2nd after averaging 36.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in wins vs. Bradley and Wichita State that clinched CU's first outright MVC title since 2001.
    McDermott now owns 13 career MVC Player of the Week honors, something only Bradley great Hersey Hawkins (14) can top. His eight honors this year surpass Hawkins' 1987-88 campaign (6) for the most ever in a single-season.
    Including his seven MVC Newcomer of the Week honors in 2010-11, McDermott has won at least one weekly award from the MVC in 20 of 49 weeks since enrolling at Creighton.

Reasons For Optimism
Creighton's recent three-game losing streak, though rare, doesn't mean there's not time to right the ship. Consider the following championship teams from the past 24 months, and how they were able to recover:
2011 New York Giants (NFL) - Lost 4 in a row during weeks 11-14...won Super Bowl.
2010-11 Indiana State Sycamores (MBB) - Fell to 12-12 on the season (7-6 in the MVC) with its fifth straight loss on Feb. 5, 2011, only to rebound to win the MVC Tournament title.
2010-11 Connecticut Huskies (MBB) - Went 4-7 from Jan. 29-March 5...won NCAA title.
2010-11 Dallas Mavericks (NBA) - Three different losing streaks of 3 or more...won NBA title.
2010-11 Boston Bruins (NHL) - Three different losing streaks of 3 or more...won Stanley Cup.
2011 St. Louis Cardinals (MLB)- Six different losing streaks of 3 or more...won World Series.
2011-12 Creighton Bluejays (MBB) - Lost three games in early February...won next seven including MVC Tournament and NCAA Second Round game.
2011-12 Los Angeles Kings (NHL) - Two different three-game losing streaks...won Stanley Cup.
2011-12 Miami Heat (NBA) - Twice lost three straight games in strike-shortened season, then had to rally from a 3-2 deficit in Eastern Conference finals vs. Boston...won NBA title.
2012 San Francisco Giants (MLB) - Had five losing streaks of three or more and lost first two games in best-of-5 NLDS series at home...won World Series.
2012 Baltimore Ravens (NFL) - Lost in weeks 13, 14 and 15...won Super Bowl.

10 Conference Wins x 17
Creighton has extended its MVC record by winning 10 or more league games for a 17th consecutive season, picking up the 10th victory on Feb. 16th at Evansville.
    On a national basis, the only other current school with at least 17 straight years of 10 or more league wins is Kansas (19 straight, including this season).
    This is also Creighton's 17th straight season the Jays have finished fourth place or better in the MVC as well.

Johnson & More Johnson
Redshirt freshman guard Nevin Johnson has seen his role increase in recent weeks. The Houston, Texas, native has scored 28 points in his past seven games after scoring 23 total points in CU's first 23 games.
    Johnson had nine points and four rebounds vs. Illinois State on Feb. 9, then had three points and four rebounds at UNI on Feb. 13. Creighton outscored UNI the Panthers 32-21 in the 19:04 with Johnson on the floor.

McDermott Through 100 Games
Creighton junior Doug McDermott played in his 100th career game on Feb. 13th at UNI.
    He is the first Bluejay since Ryan Sears (1997-2001) to start the first 100 games of his career. Here's a look at the stats from some other recent notable Creighton players through 100 career games.
First 100 Career Games
Name    Pts    Rebounds
Doug McDermott    1,980    768
Rodney Buford    1,799    584
Bob Harstad    1,626    888
Chad Gallagher    1,508    695
Kyle Korver    1,306    480
Nate Funk    1,144    324
Ryan Sears    1,061    326
Ben Walker    951    530
Kenny Lawson Jr.    896    517
Dane Watts    830    498
Anthony Tolliver    782    443

Supporting Cast
Doug McDermott is Creighton's only player averaging in double-figures, but he's had lots of support to help lead the Jays to 24 wins already.
    Creighton is 12-2 when Gregory Echenique (9.6 ppg.) scores in double-figures this year.
    Creighton is 9-0 when Ethan Wragge (7.8 ppg.) scores in double-figures this year.
    Creighton is 8-1 when Austin Chatman (7.7 ppg.) scores in double-figures this year.
    Creighton is 5-2 when Jahenns Manigat (5.9 ppg.) scores in double-figures this year.

Poll Position
Creighton received 10 votes in this week's USA Today Coaches poll and seven votes in the Associated Press poll.
    Creighton's program-record streak of 17 straight weeks in the AP's top-25 was snapped when the Jays dropped out of the Feb. 11th edition.
    Creighton's best AP ranking this year was 11th on Nov. 26th, and its best coaches poll rank was 10th.
    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.
    Including the March 4th poll, Creighton has been ranked 26 times in 55 weeks of polls under Greg McDermott, and ranked between 26th-to-28th in five other polls. The 26 weeks in the top-25 under McDermott is more than any coach in Bluejay history.
Coaches Spending Most Weeks in Top 25 at CU
Greg McDermott, 2010-Pres.    26 (of 55)
Dana Altman, 1994-2010    18
Tom Apke, 1974-81    5
Eddie Sutton, 1969-74    5

20 Wins, Again
Creighton has won 20 or more games for the 14th time in the last 15 seasons, an unprecedented feat in Missouri Valley Conference history that puts the Jays among an exclusive group, nationally.
    Entering this season, just five schools nationally have had 20 or more wins each of the last 14 years: Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas and Syracuse.
    Creighton was one of six schools to enter this season 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).
    Creighton secured its 25th all-time 20-win season with a victory on Feb. 2nd, the second-fastest its ever been (by calendar) to that milestone.
Most 20+ Win Seasons, Last 14 Years (3/4)
    Seasons*    School    2012-13 W-L    Next Game
    14*    Gonzaga    29-2    3/9
    14*    Kansas    26-4    3/9
    14*    Duke    25-4    3/5
    14*    Florida    23-5    3/6
    14*    Syracuse    22-7    3/6
    13*    Creighton    24-7    3/8
    13*    Kentucky    20-9    3/7
    13    Utah State    19-9    3/7
    13    Kent State    17-12    3/5
    13    Xavier    16-12    3/6
    13    Texas    14-16    3/9
*20-win seasons list above does not include 2012-13

20-Win Seasons
Creighton has earned its 25th 20-win season in program history. A win on Friday would give Creighton 25 (or more) wins for the fourth time, but third time in the past five seasons.
Previous 20-Win Seasons, Sorted By Wins
    W-L    Season    Postseason?
    29-5    2002-03    NCAA (0-1)
    29-6    2011-12    NCAA (1-1)
    27-8    2008-09    NIT (1-1)
    24-7    2012-13    ? ? ?
    24-8    2000-01    NCAA (0-1)
    24-8    1990-91    NCAA (1-1)
    23-5    1921-22    --
    23-7    1973-74    NCAA (2-1)
    23-9    2001-02    NCAA (1-1)
    23-10    1999-00    NCAA (0-1)
    23-11    2004-05    NCAA (0-1)
    23-16    2010-11    CBI (4-2)
    22-7    1963-64    NCAA (1-2)
    22-9    1998-99    NCAA (1-1)
    22-11    2007-08    NIT (1-1)
    22-11    2006-07    NCAA (0-1)
    21-5    1961-62    NCAA (2-1)
    21-7    1976-77    NIT (0-1)
    21-9    1980-81    NCAA (0-1)
    21-12    1989-90    NIT (0-1)
    20-7    1974-75    NCAA (0-1)
    20-9    2003-04    NIT (0-1)
    20-10    2005-06    NIT (1-1)
    20-11    1988-89    NCAA (0-1)
    20-12    1984-85    --

About The Final Seconds
Creighton's Feb. 13 game at Northern Iowa was the first (and only) time all season that Creighton had a lead change in the final five minutes. Unfortunately for CU, its 48-45 lead was squandered as it lost 61-54.
    Last year's Creighton team went 5-1 in games that went to overtime or had a lead change in the final five minutes of regulation and were 7-1 in games decided by six points or less.

Grand Poobah
Doug McDermott has scored 1,101 points in his first 55 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 (20.1) and rebounds per game (7.5).
    McDermott enters Friday's game with 2,106 career points in all venues, good for third in school and 12th in MVC history.
    In case you're curious, CU's all-time leading scorer, Rodney Buford, scored 1,056 points in 56 career home games at the Omaha Civic Auditorium.

On A Roll
Since the start of last season, Creighton is a remarkable 52-13. On a national basis, Creighton's 52 wins since the start of last season ranks tied for fifth, as seen below.
Most Wins, Since 2011-12 (through 3/4)
School    '11-12    '12-13    W-L    Next
Kentucky    38-2    20-9    58-11    3/7
Kansas    32-7    25-4    57-11    3/4
Syracuse    34-3    22-7    56-10    3/6
Louisville    30-10    25-5    55-15    3/9
Creighton    29-6    24-7    53-13    3/8
Saint Mary's    27-6    26-5    53-11    3/9
North Carolina    32-6    21-8    53-14    3/6
Duke    27-7    25-4    52-11    3/5
Ohio State    31-8    21-7    52-15    3/5
Wichita State    27-6    24-7    51-13    3/8
Murray State    31-2    20-9    51-11    3/8

Historically After 12 MVC Games
Creighton was 9-3 in the MVC after its 12th game of the league slate. This is the 18th straight season that Creighton has had a league record of .500 or better after 12 games, and also the 18th straight year the Jays would go .500 or better in its final six contests as well.
Year    W-L After 12    W-L Final 6
2012-13    9-3    4-2
2011-12    11-1    3-3
2010-11    6-6    4-2
2009-10    7-5    3-3
2008-09    8-4    6-0
2007-08    7-5    3-3
2006-07    9-3    4-2
2005-06    9-3    3-3
2004-05    6-6    5-1
2003-04    9-3    3-3
2002-03    11-1    4-2
2001-02    10-2    4-2
2000-01    8-4    6-0
1999-00    7-5    4-2
1998-99    7-5    4-2
1997-98    8-4    4-2
1996-97    7-5    3-3
1995-96    6-6    3-3
Total    145-71 (.671)    70-38 (.648)

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 64-53 in MVC road games in that span, a win percentage of .547. A distant second is Southern Illinois (54-63, .461). As a league, the road winning percentage has been .344 in the same span.
MVC Road Records (since 2000-01)
Team    W    L    Pct.
Creighton    64    53    .547
Southern Illinois    54    63    .461
Wichita State    51    66    .436
Northern Iowa    48    69    .410
Missouri State    43    74    .368
Drake    34    83    .291
Illinois State    33    84    .282
Bradley    30    87    .256
Indiana State    25    92    .214
Evansville    21    96    .179
All MVC Teams    403    767    .344
Over .500, Again
Creighton has been better than .500 in either the first or second-half of the league season in 35 straight trips through the league, including both halves this year.
    Creighton's 35 consecutive halves above .500 in league play is easily the Valley's longest active streak, with Evansville the next closest at a modest two.
    Here's how Creighton's teams have fared in the various halves of the MVC season since 1995-96.
Year    1st Half    2nd Half
2012-13    7-2    6-3
2011-12    8-1    6-3
2010-11    5-4    5-4
2009-10    5-4    5-4
2008-09    5-4    9-0
2007-08    5-4    5-4
2006-07    6-3    7-2
2005-06    7-2    5-4
2004-05    5-4    6-3
2003-04    7-2    5-4
2002-03    8-1    7-2
2001-02    8-1    6-3
2000-01    5-4    9-0
1999-00    5-4    6-3
1998-99    6-3    5-4
1997-98    5-4    7-2
1996-97    5-4    5-4
1995-96    4-5    5-4
Total    106-56 (.654)    109-53 (.673)

Scoring Frenzy
No player has scored more points in the last two seasons than Doug McDermott, who owns the top spot on that list with 1,525 points in that span. Next up in a distant second on that list is South Dakota State's Nate Wolters (1,381).

Climbing The Charts
Greg McDermott ranks in 13th in league history in wins as well as 11th in MVC wins, as seen below:
Most Coaching Wins, All Games, MVC History
    1.    486    Henry P. Iba, Oklahoma State
    2.    337    Eddie Hickey, Creighton & Saint Louis
    3.    327    Dana Altman, Creighton
    4.    225    Rich Herrin, Southern Illinois
    5.    220    Ralph Miller, Wichita State
    6.    211    Maury John, Drake
    7.    197    Joe Stowell, Bradley
    8.    194    Chuck Orsborn, Bradley
    9.    185    Ken Hayes, Tulsa & New Mexico St.
    10.    183    Barry Hinson, Missouri State & SIU
    11.    174    Jim Molinari, Bradley
    12.    169    Dr. Phog Allen, Kansas
    13.    168    Bob Donewald, Illinois State
        168    Greg McDermott, UNI & Creighton

Most Coaching Wins, MVC Games Only
    1.    187    Henry P. Iba, Oklahoma State
    2.    162    Dana Altman, Creighton
    3.    163    Eddie Hickey, Creighton & Saint Louis
    4.    126    Dr. Phog Allen, Kansas
    5.    111    Rich Herrin, Southern Illinois
    6.    110    Jim Molinari, Bradley
    7.    102    Barry Hinson, Missouri State & SIU
    8.    95    Maury John, Drake
    9.    91    Joe Stowell, Bradley
    10.    87    Gene Smithson, Wichita State
    11.    86    Ken Hayes, Tulsa & New Mexico St.
        86    Chuck Orsborn, Bradley
        86    Greg McDermott, UNI & Creighton
    14.    84    W.O. Hamilton, Kansas

Give Him The Oscar!
Creighton junior Doug McDermott is one of 14 finalists selected by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association for its 2013 Oscar Robertson Trophy. Members of the association's board of directors chose the players to be included on the list as contenders for the Oscar Robertson Trophy presented by Aflac.
    In addition to McDermott, other players under consideration are Anthony Bennett, Trey Burke, Michael Carter-Williams, Ben McLemore, Victor Oladipo, Kelly Olynyk, Mason Plumlee, Otto Porter, Marcus Smart, Russ Smith, Deshaun Thomas, Jeff Withey and Cody Zeller.
    The award is to be presented to the national player of the year by its namesake at the Devon Energy College Basketball Awards on April 15 at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. The Henry Iba Coach of the Year Award and the Integris Wayman Tisdale Freshman of the Year Award will also be presented at the gala to be held annually the Monday following the NCAA Men's Final Four.

What A Start!
Now in his third year, Greg McDermott is 76-29 on the Creighton sideline. The 76 wins are easily the most in Creighton history in the first three seasons.
Most Wins at CU, First Three Seasons
Coach    Years    W-L After 3 Yrs
Greg McDermott    2010-Pres.    76-29
Tom Apke    1974-77    60-21
Eddie Sutton    1969-72    44-32
Red McManus    1959-62    42-33

Racing Past 70
Greg McDermott will enter Friday's game with 76 wins in his first three seasons at Creighton. According to research by MVC Associate Commissioner Mike Kern, McDermott's 76 wins are fourth-most by a Valley coach in his first three years at a school.
    Ed Jucker and Denny Crum both won national titles and are MVC Hall of Famers, while Crum is also in the Naismith and NABC Hall of Fame.
Most Wins, 1st Three Years at an MVC School
    W-L    Name, School    Years
    91-19    Forddy Anderson, Bradley    1948-51
    84-7    Ed Jucker, Cincinnati    1959-62
    78-26    Chris Lowery, Southern Illinois    2004-07
    76-29    Greg McDermott, Creighton    2010-Pres.
    71-31    Tim Jankovich, Illinois State    2007-10
    70-19    Denny Crum, Louisville    1971-74

Emerging Echenique
Gregory Echenique scored in double-figures during eight straight games from Dec. 1st - Jan. 5th, but has reached double-figures in just four of 16 games since.
    Creighton is 12-2 this year when Echenique scores in double-figures, and 37-13 all-time when he scores in double-figures.

Point, Counterpoint
No player in the MVC owns more assists in the past two seasons than Creighton senior Grant Gibbs' 358. Earlier this year Gibbs became the 12th player (and second-quickest) in Bluejay history to 300 assists, doing it in his 56th contest.
MVC Assist Leaders, Since 2011-12
    358    Grant Gibbs, Creighton
    299    Jake Odum, Indiana State
    230    Troy Taylor, Evansville

Creighton's Quickest Players to 300 Assists
    Games    Name
    53    Ralph Bobik
    56    Grant Gibbs
    59    Randy Eccker
    69    Ryan Sears
    85    Tyler McKinney
    89    Duan Cole
    94    Josh Dotzler
    92    Vernon Moore
    100    Antoine Young
    102    Kevin McKenna
    110    Latrell Wrightsell
    129    Nate Funk

Teach Me How To Stop Him
Doug McDermott owns 20 or more points in 52 of his first 105 career games in a Bluejay uniform. He's put up 20 points or more against a Valley opponent 26 times.
Doug McDermott Points vs. Opponents
Opponent    Points Against    20+    30+    40+
Bradley    161    4    2    1
Drake    152    4    1    -
Missouri State    143    2    1    -
Illinois State    141    4    1    -
Evansville    136    4    -    -
Northern Iowa    123    1    1    -
Indiana State    110    3    -    -
Wichita State    109    2    1    1
Southern Illinois    101    2    -    -
Nebraska    61    2    -    -
Tulsa    51    1    1    -
Saint Joseph's    49    2    -    -
Akron    46    1    1    -
Northwestern    41    1    -    -
Oregon    40    1    -    -
Long Beach State    36    1    1    -
California    34    1    1    -
UAB    32    1    -    -
Davidson    31    1    1    -
Campbell    31    1    1    -
Wisconsin    30    1    1    -
Arizona State    29    1    -    -
San Jose State    26    1    -    -
Iowa    25    1    -    -
San Diego State    25    1    -    -
Houston Baptist    25    1    -    -
Presbyterian    24    1    -    -
Saint Mary's    22    1    -    -
Chicago State    21    1    -    -
North Texas    21    1    -    -
Boise State    21    1    -    -
BYU    20    1    -    -
North Carolina    20    1    -    -
Kennesaw State    18    -    -    -
Longwood    17    -    -    -
Alabama State    16    -    -    -
Iowa State    16    -    -    -
UCF    16    -    -    -
Alabama    16    -    -    -
Samford    14    -    -    -
North Carolina A&T    13    -    -    -
Louisiana    12    -    -    -
Idaho State    12    -    -    -
Northern Arizona    10    -    -    -
Western Illinois    9    -    -    -

Number 3, For 3
Doug McDermott has made 50 percent or better of his three-point attempts during 16 of his last 25 games, and is shooting 48.1 percent from downtown overall this year.
    McDermott's 166 career three-pointers are eighth-most in Bluejay history. Teammate Ethan Wragge is third with 214 treys.
    3FG    Name    Years
    371    Kyle Korver    1999-03
    245    Ryan Sears    1997-01
    214    Ethan Wragge    2009-Pres.
    212    Rodney Buford    1995-99
    200    Nate Funk    2002-07
    185    Matt Roggenburk    1986-90
    177    Duan Cole    1987-92
    166    Doug McDermott    2010-Pres.
    147    Booker Woodfox    2007-09
144    Dane Watts    2004-08

Could He Lead The Nation?
Doug McDermott entered this week ranked second in the nation in scoring. Virginia Tech's Erick Green (25.0 ppg.) continues to lead the nation.
    Green has scored between 20 to 36 points in 25 of his 28 games this season, and led his team in scoring every game but two.
    The odds don't favor a player at a “BCS” school to finish as the scoring champ. Since 1971-72, the only guy playing at the “BCS” school to lead the nation in scoring was Purdue's Glenn Robinson (30.3 ppg.) in 1993-94.

Elite Company
Doug McDermott is averaging 23.4 points and 7.6 rebounds, while also shooting 48.1 percent from three-point range.
    According to a graphic airing on ESPN on January 15th, McDermott could join Duke's Christian Laettner and UCLA's Tracy Murray as the only players in NCAA history to average at least 20 points, 7.0 rebounds while shooting 50 percent or better from downtown (min. 50 attempts).
    Both Laettner and Murray did it in 1991-92, with Laettner taking home Wooden Award honors.

Active Leaders
Creighton has four players that rank among the top-50 in a career category among the nation's active players. Doug McDermott is in the top-10 in four categories, while he is joined by Gregory Echenique, Jahenns Manigat and Ethan Wragge in the various categories, through games of March 4th.
    Rank    Player    Category
    1    Doug McDermott    FG Made
    2    Doug McDermott    3FG%
    2    Doug McDermott    Points/Game
    6    Doug McDermott    Points
    8    Gregory Echenique    Blocked Shots
    10    Gregory Echenique    Games Played
    11    Gregory Echenique    FG Pct.
    13    Gregory Echenique    Rebounds
    15    Doug McDermott    Double-Doubles
    19    Doug McDermott    FG Attempts
    31    Doug McDermott    Rebounds
    31    Doug McDermott    FG Pct.
    36    Gregory Echenique    Blocks/Game
    38    Gregory Echenique    FT Attempted
    48    Jahenns Manigat    3FG%
    40    Doug McDermott    Rebounds/Game
    42    Doug McDermott    FT Made
    45    Ethan Wragge    3FG%
    49    Ethan Wragge    3FG Made

Who Will Start?
Creighton has utilized the same starting five in every game this season, and four of their five starters have streaks of 66 or more straight starts.
    Creighton is one of two teams to start the same starting five in every game this season, joining Stephen F. Austin.
    CU's starting five has played together as a group for 335 minutes this season, during which time its outscored the opposition by 121 points.
Consecutive Starts, Creighton (Active)
Doug McDermott    105
Gregory Echenique    90
Jahenns Manigat    81
Grant Gibbs    66
Austin Chatman    31

Strong On the Road
Off to a 24-7 start overall, Creighton is 9-5 away from home this season. Four of those victories have come against two Big Ten teams (Wisconsin, Nebraska) and two Pacific-12 teams (Arizona State, Cal).
    Impressively, all four BCS 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.

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 9-5 away from home, with four of those victories against a BCS school (Wisconsin, Arizona State, Nebraska, Cal) by double-digits, a 22-point win at Missouri State, a seven-point win at Illinois State, a 30-point win at Southern Illinois, a three-point win at Evansville and an 18-point triumph at Bradley.
    This season was the first time since 1942-43 that Creighton has won its first six games away from home.
    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.
Nation's Best Offense?
You can make a case that Creighton has boasted the nation's best offensive production so far this year.
    Through games of March 3rd, Creighton was tops in the country in field goal percentage (51.1) and two-point field goal percentage (56.9), second in the nation in three-point percentage (42.2) and sixth in three-pointers per game (8.8).
    According to data from bbstate.com, no team since at least 2005-06 has shot better than 58.7 from two-point range.
    Last season Creighton ranked third nationally in three-point percentage, making 42.4 percent from downtown.
    The only team to ever lead the nation in both 3-pointers per game and 3-point percentage was Princeton in 1987-88.
    The only team to ever lead the nation in both field goal percentage and three-point percentage was Northern Arizona 1998-99.

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 results have been promising, as CU has limited foes to 41.6 percent marksmanship. That figure ranked 121st-best nationally in 2012-13 through Sunday's games.
    Only nine teams have shot better than 43.4 percent this season against the Jays in 27 games.
    The 42 points by Nebraska on Dec. 6th were its fewest against Creighton since 1932, a span of 39 meetings.

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 110th this season.
    All but eight of Creighton's opponents have been held under 1.03 points per possession this season.
Points Per Possession
    2010-11    2011-12    2012-13
Offense    1.065    1.150    1.157
Offense Rank    46th    2nd    3rd
Defense    1.006    1.014    0.954
Defense Rank    192nd    222nd    110th

The Barometer
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.
    In Creighton's five Valley road wins this year, Manigat was 13-for-20 (65.0 percent) from three-point range, while he was 1-for-11 (9.1 percent) from deep in CU's four MVC road losses.

McDermott Goes For 39
Junior Doug McDermott had 39 points on Jan. 11th at Missouri State, scoring in nearly every conceivable way. Consider the following aspects of his performance:
-McDermott started the game 1-for-4 from the field, then sank his next 14 shots from the floor. When he missed his final shot of the game with 4:13 to go, the JQH Arena crowd gave a sarcastic Bronx cheer.
-McDermott scored Creighton's first 18 points of the second half as the Jays extended a 32-27 halftime lead into a 50-32 margin.
-McDermott's 39 points were seven more than the previous JQH Arena record.
-McDermott outscored Missouri State by himself in the second half, 28-25, and outscored MSU 35-34, in the final 26:16 of the contest.
-McDermott became the first player in the country this season with 39 points and 10 or more rebounds in the same game this season.
-His 28 points in the second half were the most by a Creighton player in a half since he scored 31 in the second half of his 44-point performance at Bradley on Jan. 7, 2012.

More on 39
Doug McDermott's 39 points at Missouri State now rank tied for 14th-most in Creighton history, and he joined Bob Portman and Benoit Benjamin as the only players in Creighton history with multiple games of 39 points or more in a career.
    Pts.    Name, Opponent    Date
    51    Bob Portman vs. UW-Milwaukee    12/16/67
    47    Eddie Cole at Morningside    11/29/54
    46    Bob Portman vs. Weber State    12/23/68
    45    Tim Powers at Idaho State    01/29/66
        Benoit Benjamin vs. Indiana State    01/19/85
    44    Doug McDermott at Bradley    01/07/12
    43    Bob Portman at Kansas State    02/12/68
        Benoit Benjamin vs. Southern Illinois    01/17/85
    42    Bob Portman vs. LaSalle    01/30/68
        Cavel Witter vs. Bradley    03/01/08
    41    Doug McDermott vs. Wichita State    03/02/13
    40    Chad Gallagher vs. Wichita State    02/17/90
        Rodney Buford vs. Bradley    12/30/98
    39    Bob Portman vs. Oklahoma City    01/13/68
        Doug McDermott at Missouri State    01/11/13

Jays Reach 10 Home Wins, Again
With a Jan. 8th win vs. Drake, Creighton won its 10th home game this season. Creighton has now won 10 or more home games in 17 straight seasons.
    The streak is easily a school-record, five more than the previous standard of 12 straight seasons from the 1969-70 season to the 1980-81 campaign with 10 or more home wins.

Wragge = Instant Offense
Ethan Wragge had 22 points in just 17 minutes vs. Drake on Jan. 8th, sinking six three-pointers for the fourth time in his career.
    It's the second time in Wragge's career he's had 20 or more points in 17 minutes or less, having gone for 21 points in 17 minutes as a freshman vs. Xavier.
    Before Wragge arrived on campus four years ago, no other Creighton player had 20 or more points in 19 minutes or less since Vernon Moore put up 21 points in 19 minutes against Nebraska-Kearney on Nov. 24, 1984.

Midseason Wooden Award List
Creighton forward Doug McDermott is the lone MVC representative on the John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top 25. Selected by the Wooden Award National Advisory Board, the list is made up of 25 student-athletes who, based on their performances in November, December, and the beginning of January, are the frontrunners for college basketball's most prestigious honor.
    The Wooden Award All American Team, consisting of the nation's top 10 players, will be announced the week of the “Elite Eight” round of the NCAA Tournament. The John R. Wooden Award Player of the Year presented by Wendy's will be announced on ESPN during the Final Four Weekend in Atlanta. The 2013 Wooden Award Gala presented by Wendy's will take place April 11-13, 2013, at The Los Angeles Athletic Club.

Three-Point Barrage
Creighton started MVC play shooting the daylights out of the ball, making 50 percent or better of its 3-point shots in six straight games for the first time in program history.
    The Jays were 12-of-24 from downtown vs. Evansville, went 13-of-25 at Illinois State, were 11-of-22 from deep vs. Indiana State, an absurd 16-of-27 vs. Drake, 9-of-17 from long-range at Missouri State and 6-of-12 vs. UNI.
    Creighton's four-game stretch to start league play was the first time since January of 2008 that Creighton's had four straight games with 10 or more three-pointers.
    Creighton's 16 three-pointers vs. Drake were tied for second-most in school history, tied for 10th-most in MVC history and the most in the MVC in 2012-13. The league record for three-pointers in a game is 20, done by Creighton (vs. Chattanooga on 2/19/05) and later matched by Bradley vs. Florida A&M on Nov. 21, 2006.

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 616 straight games. That streak dates to a Feb. 5, 1994 win against Wichita State. In that time, 933 of Creighton's 3,080 starts (30.3 percent) can be attributed to Iowans. Here's a list of the Iowans and how many starts they've made during this run:
Creighton's Starts By Iowans, Since 2/5/1994
Ryan Sears    124
Doug McDermott    105
Nate Funk    99
Kyle Korver    95
Michael Lindeman    94
Tyler McKinney    89
Brody Deren    89
Grant Gibbs    66
Joel Templeman    57
Kaleb Korver    46
Pierce Hibma    27
Adam Reid    24
Casey Harriman    16
John Klein     2

Big Man In The Middle
Gregory Echenique scored in double-figures in eight straight games from Dec. 1st - Jan. 5th.
    Echenique's 66.1 percent marksmanship from the field leads The Valley is on pace to approach not only the Creighton (67.4%) mark, but also the MVC single-season mark (also 67.4%) as well.
    It's also worth noting that Echenique ranks third in Creighton history with 158 career blocked shots. Echenique also ranks 13th in Rutgers history with 94 career swats, where he spent the first three semesters of college.
Most Blocked Shots, Creighton History
(Since 1979-80)
    Blk.    Name    Years
    411    Benoit Benjamin    1982-85
    183    Chad Gallagher    1987-91
    158    Gregory Echenique    2010-Pres.
    153    Kenny Lawson Jr.    2006-11
    138    Brody Deren    2001-04
    136    Anthony Tolliver    2003-07

RPI Update
Through games of March 3rd, Creighton is ranked 36th in the RPI according to WarrenNolan.com,
    Creighton owns 11 wins against RPI teams in the top-106. By comparison, defending national champion Kentucky has six such wins.
    As a league, the MVC is the ninth-best conference nationally.

Honors Roll In
Doug McDermott picked up two big honors in early January, adding to his collection.
    ESPN.com named McDermott the National Player of the Month after a December that saw him average a nation-best 26.5 points per game while shooting 57.5 percent from the field, 57.6 percent from three-point range and 88.9 percent in the line in six Creighton victories.
    McDermott was also named the Lute Olson Award Midseason National Player of the Year honoree. McDermott was named the Lute Olson Award National Player of the Year at the end of last season.
    McDermott has been named Midseason National Player of the Year by such experts as Seth Davis, Dick Vitale and Andy Katz.

Let's Get It Started
Creighton won its first six MVC games this season before falling at Wichita State.
    As good as Creighton's been since rejoining the MVC in 1977-78, it was just the second time the program has started 6-0 in league play in that span. Each of the previous two teams to start 5-0 in league play would go on to win the MVC Tournament.
Creighton's Best MVC Starts, Since 1977-78
    Start    Year    Finish/Place
    7-0    2002-03    15-3/2nd (won MVC Tourney)
    6-0    2012-13    13-5/1st (TBA in Tourney)
    5-0    1988-89    11-3/1st (won MVC Tourney

Conference Starts Are Big
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. Including this season, 17 of the last 19 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.

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 304 wins in the millennium, as well as 12 postseason appearances:
MVC Standings (start 2000-01 to March 6, 2013)
        MVC    only          All Games
Team    W    L    Pct.    W    L    Pct.
Creighton    162    72    .692    304    127    .705
Wichita State    137    97    .585    262    158    .624
Southern Illinois    140    94    .598    252    167    .601
Northern Iowa    129    105    .551    244    171    .588
Missouri State    124    110    .530    234    183    .561
Illinois State    107    127    .457    217    190    .533
Bradley    100    134    .427    205    212    .492
Drake    99    135    .423    194    207    .484
Indiana State    88    146    .376    180    224    .446
Evansville    84    150    .359    159    230    .409

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
This is the 11th time in the last 16 years thatCreighton has 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 2012-13, 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 16 Years
1st Place    2000-01, 2012-13
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

Unbeaten December
Creighton went 6-0 in December wrapping up an unbeaten December with a victory over Evansville on Dec. 29.
    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.

Coaches vs. Cancer Summary
As part of the nationwide American Cancer Society Coaches Vs. Cancer event, men's basketball fans were encouraged to wear pink to promote cancer awareness and participate in the “Creighton Vs. Cancer Pink Out” game when the Bluejays hosted Bradley on Saturday, Feb. 2.
    Bluejay players wore pink shooting shirts and pink jerseys for the game and fans had the opportunity to honor a friend or family member who has battled cancer or is currently battling cancer by purchasing the apparel via auction (the shooting shirt could be personalized – last name, nickname, etc.).
    The first 14,000 fans entering the venue on February 2 received a complimentary pink t-shirt courtesy of Alegent Creighton Health and Methodist Estabrook Cancer Center.
    Last year's Creighton vs. Cancer jersey auction raised more than $20,600. This year's auction raised $24,444. An additional $7,239.17 was raised from at-the-door collection, bringing the total to $31,683.17. Seven jerseys sold for more than $1,000. Below is a list showing what each jersey sold for:
Jersey #00    $2,025
Jersey #1    $1,125
Jersey #2    $860
Jersey #3    $5,002
Jersey #4    $406
Jersey #5    $2,550
Jersey #10    $3,050
Jersey #11    $510
Jersey #12    $1,020
Jersey #13    $450
Jersey #22    $910
Jersey #23    $585
Jersey #24    $960
Jersey #30    $556
Jersey #31    $710.01
Jersey #34    $1,025
Jersey #50    $510

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 45.9 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 151-of-309 three-pointers (48.9 percent) in his past 85 games.
    McDermott averaged 13.6 points in his first 20 games at Creighton, and has averaged 21.58 points in his past 85 games with the Jays.

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

Full House
This year's Creighton team ranks sixth nationally in average home attendance, averaging 17,155 fans per game.
    The figure ranks ahead of 15 NBA teams, and would rank 16th in the NBA this season.
    In 2011-12, Creighton finished sixth nationally in home attendance, averaging 16,665 fans per home game. 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 has now surpassed 200,000 home fans in a season for the eighth time. No other school in the history of the MVC has ever done so even once.
    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 in 2011-12.
2012-13 Attendance Leaders (3/4)
    Rk.    School    Average    Next Home
    1.    Kentucky    23,028    3/9
    2.    Syracuse    22,387    3/6
    3.    Louisville    21,488    3/9
    4.    North Carolina    19,190    3/9
    5.    Indiana    17,409    3/5
    6.    Creighton    17,155    -
    7.    Tennessee    17,104    3/9
    8.    Wisconsin    16,843    --
    9.    BYU    16,707    --
    10.    Kansas    16,438    --

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
    291,643    Creighton    2012-13
    276,000    Creighton    2007-08
    266,632    Creighton    2011-12

Highest Average Attendance, MVC History
    Avg. Att.    School    Year
    17,155    Creighton    2012-13
    16,665    Creighton    2011-12
    15,930    Creighton    2008-09
    15,909    Creighton     2006-07
    15,333    Creighton    2007-08

Inside The Numbers
Creighton's Doug McDermott (23.4) continues to be 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

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 23.4 points per game, became the first Creighton player with 30 points in consecutive contests since Bob Harstad in 1990.
    McDermott also scored 30 or more in consecutive wins vs. Missouri State and Northern Iowa in January, then again in consecutive wins vs. Bradley and Wichita State to close the regular-season.
    No Creighton player has had three straight games of 30 or more points since Benoit Benjamin did it three straight games in January of 1985.

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).

Jones Hangs Up High Tops
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.
    Creighton outscored the opposition 249-92 off the bench in eight games with Jones, but has been outscored 425-402 off the bench since he's been out of the line-up.

Might As Well Jump
Creighton is 14-3 this season when Gregory Echenique wins the opening tip. Creighton's streak of 20 straight wins when winning the jump ball to start the game ended in its Jan. 23 loss at Drake.
    Creighton is 44-12 all-time when Echenique wins the opening tip, but 18-10 when he loses the tip.

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 67-0 when scoring 75 points or more at CenturyLink Center Omaha.
    In other words, Creighton is a perfect 79-0 in CenturyLink Center Omaha since Feb. 6, 2005 when scoring enough points to earn its fans some free pizza.

A New Streak
Since Greg McDermott took over three years ago, Creighton is averaging 78.16 points per home game (4,299 points in 55 home games).
    That's a vital number since Creighton is 90-0 at home (63-0 at CenturyLink Center Omaha) when scoring 78 points or more and 72-0 at home (49-0 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.

Stat Leaders
Statistically, Creighton ranks among the nation's top-20 in eight different categories through games of March 3rd. The Jays are first in field goal percentage (.511), second in the nation in three-point percentage (.422), sixth in three-pointers per game (8.8), fourth with 17.4 assists per game, fifth in assist/turnover ratio (1.43), seventh in points (2,366) and 18th in scoring margin (+12.3).
    The only team to ever finish a season leading the nation in both 3-pointers per game and 3-point percentage was Princeton in 1987-88, while the only team to ever lead the nation in both field goal percentage and three-point percentage was Northern Arizona 1998-99.
    Individually, Doug McDermott is second in points per game (23.4), 28th in field goal percentage (.560), 30th in free-throw percentage (.866), 63rd in double-doubles (9) and 128th in rebounds per game (7.6). Grant Gibbs is 14th in assist/turnover ratio (2.68) and 23rd in assists per game (5.9). In addition, Gregory Echenique ranks 123rd in blocked shots per game (1.48) and 152nd in double-doubles (5). In addition, Austin Chatman ranks 108th with 4.3 assists per game and 89th with a 2.00 assist/turnover ratio.

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.

Third-Year Coaches Update
Greg McDermott was one of 53 head coaches hired to coach a school prior to 2010-11. His 76 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 67 or more wins at their school since being hired.
School    Coach    W-L    Next Game
Creighton    Greg McDermott    76-29    3/8
Oregon    Dana Altman    68-34    3/7
Colorado    Tad Boyle    67-35    3/7
Iona    Tim Cluess    67-33    3/8

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    7.7    4.3    24-7

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.

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 170 games at CenturyLink Center Omaha all-time, Creighton has not trailed in 41 of those contests, a staggering 24.1 percent of the time, including seven wire-to-wire wins at home last season and five wins (Longwood, Saint Joseph's, Tulsa, Drake, Southern Illinois) 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 has two comebacks from 10 or more down this season, having done so vs. UAB (10) and Evansville (16).

Pencil Him In
According to STATS Inc., Doug McDermott is one of 13 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 3/5
    Starts    Name, School    Next Game        136    Brandon Triche, Syracuse    3/6
    124    Dorian Green, Colorado State    3/6
    105    Doug McDermott, Creighton    3/8
    100    Ray McCallum, Detroit    3/9
    97    Cody Doolin, San Francisco    3/7
    97    Brian Voelkel, Vermont    3/9
    97    Frantz Massenat, Drexel    3/9
    95    Deonte Burton, Nevada    3/6
    92    Holton Hunsaker, Utah Valley    3/9
    92    Devon Saddler, Delaware    3/9
    91    Travis McKie, Wake Forest    3/6
    90    Daniel Miller, Georgia Tech    3/6
    89    Marshall Bjorklund, N. Dakota St.    3/10

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 1,312 points, 953 rebounds and 252 blocked shots in 135 games as a collegian. He and Bucknell's Mike Muscala are the nation's only active players with 1,300 points, 950 rebounds and 250 or more blocked shots.
    Had all those stats been generated at Creighton, Echenique would rank 19th in career points, fifth 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.

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.
    Including this year, Creighton has won either the MVC regular-season title or MVC Tournament (or both) each of its last seven seasons it had a player with a double-double in the opener (2012-13, 2001-02, 1999-00, 1998-99, 1990-91, 1989-90, 1988-89).

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.

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.

Long-Distance Streak Alive
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in a league-best 640 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 170 regular and postseason contests at CenturyLink Center Omaha all-time in its 10 seasons at the facility.
    The Bluejays own an 145-25 (.853) 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 12,795-10,788 in games at CenturyLink Center Omaha, an average margin of 11.8 points per game. Creighton has led wire-to-wire 41 different times, including seven times last season and five times this winter (Longwood, Saint Joseph's, Tulsa, Drake, Southern Illinois).

Piling Up The Points, and Wins
Creighton has won 58 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.

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

Top Junior Scorers, MVC History
    Pts.    Name, School    Years
978    Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati    1958-59
959    Larry Bird, Indiana State    1977-78
815    Lewis Lloyd, Drake    1979-80
788    Hersey Hawkins, Bradley    1986-87
788    Willie Biles, Tulsa    1972-73
769    Dave Stallworth, Wichita State    1963-64
739    Roger Phegley, Bradley    1976-77
734    Bob Harstad, Creighton    1989-90
724    Doug McDermott, Creighton    2012-13
    705    Chris Carr, Southern Illinois    1994-95

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

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

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.

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) and the U.S. Figure Skating Championships (2013).

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.

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.

Men's Basketball Heads to St. Louis To Defend Arch Madness Title

Players Mentioned

Will Artino

Austin Chatman

Avery Dingman

Gregory Echenique

Grant Gibbs

Geoffrey Groselle

Nevin Johnson

Josh Jones

Jahenns Manigat

Doug McDermott

Alex Olsen

Taylor Stormberg

Ethan Wragge

Antoine Young

Isaiah Zierden

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