Men's Basketball Meets No. 23 Georgetown in BIG EAST Quarterfinals
3/12/2015 2:54:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Game #33
Creighton vs. #23 Georgetown
BIG EAST Tournament Quarterfinals
Madison Square Garden (19,979) • New York City, N.Y.
Thursday, March 12, 2015
6:01 p.m. CST
Radio: KOZN 1620 AM, www.1620thezone.com
Television: FOX Sports 1 (Gus Johnson, Bill Raftery, Molly McGrath)
Series History: Georgetown leads, 3-2
Last Time: Georgetown 67, Creighton 40 on Jan. 31, 2015 in Omaha, Neb.
• Tenth-seeded Creighton advanced to Thursday evening's game vs. second-seeded and No. 23-ranked Georgetown by virtue of last night's 78-63 win over DePaul.
Creighton trailed for just 68 seconds in the contest, and all three times DePaul took the lead the Bluejays answered with a go-ahead basket on its next trip down.
James Milliken had 15 of his game-high 22 points in the first half, while Austin Chatman had 11 points and five assists while becoming the 39th player in CU history to reach 1,000 career points.
• With last night's win, improved to 3-1 all-time at the BIG EAST Tournament, and 1-0 in the first round of the BIG EAST Tournament. In Creighton's only previous appearance in the BIG EAST Tournament quarterfinals, the Bluejays defeated DePaul 84-62 on March 13, 2014. Creighton was 19-12 in 32 appearances (one year the team had a bye to the finals) at the MVC Tournament in the quarterfinals.
• Including Creighton last night, 10th seeds have won at least one game in the BIG EAST Tournament in five of the last seven seasons, and six of the last 10 campaigns. The10th seed has never won multiple games in the same BIG EAST Tournament.
• Creighton has won at least one conference tournament game in each of the last five seasons, the longest active streak of any current BIG EAST school. No other team in the BIG EAST owns a streak of more than one.
• Last night's win helped Creighton improve to 9-2 in its last 11 conference tournament games when facing an opponent with a better seed.
• Creighton has reached the final in 10 of its last 14 conference tournaments in which it has won its first game, including nine titles.
• Creighton's senior class improved to 98-40 with last night's win over DePaul, which includes a 9-1 record in conference tournament play in the last four years. The 98 wins are more than any other BIG EAST program, seven more than Villanova (91) and 11 more than Georgetown (87). The 98 wins also include a 17-7 mark in neutral site games in the last four years.
Creighton's 98 victories are tied for the third-most in any four-year span in school history (107 from 2010-14 and 99 from 1999-2003).
• Georgetown won both regular-season meetings with Creighton. The Hoyas won 76-61 on January 3, then topped the Bluejays 67-40 on Jan. 31 in Omaha.
In the first meeting, Creighton led 29-24 with 2:57 left in the first half before the Hoyas went on a 15-2 run spanning halftime to put the game away.
In the Omaha meeting, Creighton led 15-14 with nine minutes to go in the first half before the Hoyas went on a 31-3 run over a 17-minute stretch that saw the Bluejays miss 23 straight shots.
In the second half of those games, Creighton shot 14-for-52 (26.9 percent), while the Hoyas shot 30-for-46 (65.2 percent).
Since that second Georgetown meeting, Creighton is 4-5 against BIG EAST teams after a 1-9 start vs. conference foes.
• The last time Creighton was swept in the regular-season by an opponent, but defeated them in the conference tournament, came in 2007. That season Southern Illinois won 58-57 in Omaha and 72-68 in Carbondale before the Bluejays won the MVC Tournament final (in St. Louis), 67-61, over the 11th-ranked Salukis.
• A free throw with 4:34 left vs. DePaul moved Austin Chatman past 1,000 career points, and he finished the night with 1,002 career points. Chatman has a history of doing great things at Madison Square Garden, as he was named to the All-Tournament Team here last March.
Chatman also owns 491 career assists, seven shy of Grant Gibbs for fourth in school history and nine shy of becoming the third player in CU history (Ryan Sears & Antoine Young) with 1,000 career points and 500 career assists.
• Including last night's 31-21 edge off the bench, Creighton owns an 889-548 edge in bench points this year. The 889 bench points are Creighton's most off the pine since the 2008-09 MVC champion team had 923.
• Creighton has won 11 consecutive conference tournament games decided by four points or less.
• Creighton is 21-125 all-time against ranked teams, including a 1-6 mark this season. That record includes an 0-2 record this year against Georgetown, as CU has previously met the Hoyas when they were ranked 25th and 21st prior to Thursday's meeting with the No. 23 Hoyas.
The eight games against ranked teams extend a school-record for one season.
Greg McDermott is 3-10 all-time at Creighton against ranked teams, including an 0-3 mark on neutral floors. All three losses vs. ranked foes on neutral floors ended the season.
Creighton is 5-25 all-time at neutral sites vs. ranked teams. Creighton's last win over a ranked team on a neutral floor came vs. No. 11 Southern Illinois (67-61) on March 4, 2007.
• Thursday marks the one-year anniversary of Doug McDermott appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated. McDermott, who was in the midst of a National Player of the Year campaign, is currently a rookie with the Chicago Bulls and the son of Creighton head coach Greg McDermott. Among those featured with Doug McDermott on the cover was Kelsey Saddoris, a current member of the Jays Dancers.
• With Creighton's win on Wednesday, Greg McDermott improved to 3-1 all-time in BIG EAST Tournament play. McDermott's .750 winning percentage in the event ranks as the best mark of any coach to make multiple appearances. Next up on the list is Ben Howland (.727), John Thompson (.717), Rick Pitino (.667), Jim Calhoun (.648), Bob Huggins (.636), Mike Jarvis (.636) and Jim Boeheim (.633).
Among current BIG EAST coaches, only John Thompson III (13), Jay Wright (10) and Kevin Willard (4) own more league tournament victories, while McDermott is tied with Ed Cooley.
• Yesterday saw the No. 9 and No. 10 teams eliminate the No. 8 and No. 7 seeds, respectively. It was the first time that “lower” seeded teams won the first two games of the tournament since 2009, when No. 16 DePaul beat No. 9 Cincinnati and No. 13 St. John's defeated No. 12 Georgetown.
The BIG EAST has not had each of its top-four seeds advance to the semifinals in the same season since 2007, and the top two seeds haven't met in a BIG EAST final since 2004.
• Creighton has won eight league tournament titles in the previous 16 seasons. On a national basis, only Gonzaga (12), Duke (10) and Winthrop (9) own more.
• Creighton has made four or more three-pointers in all 67 games it has played during the past two seasons. Nationally, only Iona (68) has a longer streak, while BIG EAST rival Villanova is third with a streak of 65 straight games with four or more trifectas.
Overall, Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 712 straight games, the nation's 23rd-longest streak.
• Creighton made seven three-pointers last season, giving it 255 three-pointers overall this year. This marks the eighth straight season that Creighton has made 250 or more three-pointers. No one else in the league has an active streak of more than two.
• Creighton has won each of its last four conference tournament games against second-seeded teams, though all of those took place in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Dating back to 1991, Creighton is 20-2 in league tournament when either the No. 2 seed (16-2), or facing the No. 2 seed (4-0).
• James Milliken led Creighton with 22 points on Wednesday vs. DePaul. It was his fourth game this season with 20 or more points, but first since Jan. 17 vs. Providence.
Milliken's 15 first half points matched the most before halftime by any Bluejay in a game this season, tying him with Rick Kreklow's 15 points vs. Marquette on February 14th.
• Creighton had just five turnovers in Wednesday's win over DePaul, tying a season-low. The Bluejays also had five miscues on Jan. 17 vs. Providence.
In five seasons under Greg McDermott, Creighton owns just three games with fewer than five turnovers.
• Thursday will be Creighton's first game on any March 12th since 1981. All three games in school history played on March 12th have been decided by four points or less.
Creighton vs. #23 Georgetown
BIG EAST Tournament Quarterfinals
Madison Square Garden (19,979) • New York City, N.Y.
Thursday, March 12, 2015
6:01 p.m. CST
Radio: KOZN 1620 AM, www.1620thezone.com
Television: FOX Sports 1 (Gus Johnson, Bill Raftery, Molly McGrath)
Series History: Georgetown leads, 3-2
Last Time: Georgetown 67, Creighton 40 on Jan. 31, 2015 in Omaha, Neb.
• Tenth-seeded Creighton advanced to Thursday evening's game vs. second-seeded and No. 23-ranked Georgetown by virtue of last night's 78-63 win over DePaul.
Creighton trailed for just 68 seconds in the contest, and all three times DePaul took the lead the Bluejays answered with a go-ahead basket on its next trip down.
James Milliken had 15 of his game-high 22 points in the first half, while Austin Chatman had 11 points and five assists while becoming the 39th player in CU history to reach 1,000 career points.
• With last night's win, improved to 3-1 all-time at the BIG EAST Tournament, and 1-0 in the first round of the BIG EAST Tournament. In Creighton's only previous appearance in the BIG EAST Tournament quarterfinals, the Bluejays defeated DePaul 84-62 on March 13, 2014. Creighton was 19-12 in 32 appearances (one year the team had a bye to the finals) at the MVC Tournament in the quarterfinals.
• Including Creighton last night, 10th seeds have won at least one game in the BIG EAST Tournament in five of the last seven seasons, and six of the last 10 campaigns. The10th seed has never won multiple games in the same BIG EAST Tournament.
• Creighton has won at least one conference tournament game in each of the last five seasons, the longest active streak of any current BIG EAST school. No other team in the BIG EAST owns a streak of more than one.
• Last night's win helped Creighton improve to 9-2 in its last 11 conference tournament games when facing an opponent with a better seed.
• Creighton has reached the final in 10 of its last 14 conference tournaments in which it has won its first game, including nine titles.
• Creighton's senior class improved to 98-40 with last night's win over DePaul, which includes a 9-1 record in conference tournament play in the last four years. The 98 wins are more than any other BIG EAST program, seven more than Villanova (91) and 11 more than Georgetown (87). The 98 wins also include a 17-7 mark in neutral site games in the last four years.
Creighton's 98 victories are tied for the third-most in any four-year span in school history (107 from 2010-14 and 99 from 1999-2003).
• Georgetown won both regular-season meetings with Creighton. The Hoyas won 76-61 on January 3, then topped the Bluejays 67-40 on Jan. 31 in Omaha.
In the first meeting, Creighton led 29-24 with 2:57 left in the first half before the Hoyas went on a 15-2 run spanning halftime to put the game away.
In the Omaha meeting, Creighton led 15-14 with nine minutes to go in the first half before the Hoyas went on a 31-3 run over a 17-minute stretch that saw the Bluejays miss 23 straight shots.
In the second half of those games, Creighton shot 14-for-52 (26.9 percent), while the Hoyas shot 30-for-46 (65.2 percent).
Since that second Georgetown meeting, Creighton is 4-5 against BIG EAST teams after a 1-9 start vs. conference foes.
• The last time Creighton was swept in the regular-season by an opponent, but defeated them in the conference tournament, came in 2007. That season Southern Illinois won 58-57 in Omaha and 72-68 in Carbondale before the Bluejays won the MVC Tournament final (in St. Louis), 67-61, over the 11th-ranked Salukis.
• A free throw with 4:34 left vs. DePaul moved Austin Chatman past 1,000 career points, and he finished the night with 1,002 career points. Chatman has a history of doing great things at Madison Square Garden, as he was named to the All-Tournament Team here last March.
Chatman also owns 491 career assists, seven shy of Grant Gibbs for fourth in school history and nine shy of becoming the third player in CU history (Ryan Sears & Antoine Young) with 1,000 career points and 500 career assists.
• Including last night's 31-21 edge off the bench, Creighton owns an 889-548 edge in bench points this year. The 889 bench points are Creighton's most off the pine since the 2008-09 MVC champion team had 923.
• Creighton has won 11 consecutive conference tournament games decided by four points or less.
• Creighton is 21-125 all-time against ranked teams, including a 1-6 mark this season. That record includes an 0-2 record this year against Georgetown, as CU has previously met the Hoyas when they were ranked 25th and 21st prior to Thursday's meeting with the No. 23 Hoyas.
The eight games against ranked teams extend a school-record for one season.
Greg McDermott is 3-10 all-time at Creighton against ranked teams, including an 0-3 mark on neutral floors. All three losses vs. ranked foes on neutral floors ended the season.
Creighton is 5-25 all-time at neutral sites vs. ranked teams. Creighton's last win over a ranked team on a neutral floor came vs. No. 11 Southern Illinois (67-61) on March 4, 2007.
• Thursday marks the one-year anniversary of Doug McDermott appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated. McDermott, who was in the midst of a National Player of the Year campaign, is currently a rookie with the Chicago Bulls and the son of Creighton head coach Greg McDermott. Among those featured with Doug McDermott on the cover was Kelsey Saddoris, a current member of the Jays Dancers.
• With Creighton's win on Wednesday, Greg McDermott improved to 3-1 all-time in BIG EAST Tournament play. McDermott's .750 winning percentage in the event ranks as the best mark of any coach to make multiple appearances. Next up on the list is Ben Howland (.727), John Thompson (.717), Rick Pitino (.667), Jim Calhoun (.648), Bob Huggins (.636), Mike Jarvis (.636) and Jim Boeheim (.633).
Among current BIG EAST coaches, only John Thompson III (13), Jay Wright (10) and Kevin Willard (4) own more league tournament victories, while McDermott is tied with Ed Cooley.
• Yesterday saw the No. 9 and No. 10 teams eliminate the No. 8 and No. 7 seeds, respectively. It was the first time that “lower” seeded teams won the first two games of the tournament since 2009, when No. 16 DePaul beat No. 9 Cincinnati and No. 13 St. John's defeated No. 12 Georgetown.
The BIG EAST has not had each of its top-four seeds advance to the semifinals in the same season since 2007, and the top two seeds haven't met in a BIG EAST final since 2004.
• Creighton has won eight league tournament titles in the previous 16 seasons. On a national basis, only Gonzaga (12), Duke (10) and Winthrop (9) own more.
• Creighton has made four or more three-pointers in all 67 games it has played during the past two seasons. Nationally, only Iona (68) has a longer streak, while BIG EAST rival Villanova is third with a streak of 65 straight games with four or more trifectas.
Overall, Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 712 straight games, the nation's 23rd-longest streak.
• Creighton made seven three-pointers last season, giving it 255 three-pointers overall this year. This marks the eighth straight season that Creighton has made 250 or more three-pointers. No one else in the league has an active streak of more than two.
• Creighton has won each of its last four conference tournament games against second-seeded teams, though all of those took place in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Dating back to 1991, Creighton is 20-2 in league tournament when either the No. 2 seed (16-2), or facing the No. 2 seed (4-0).
• James Milliken led Creighton with 22 points on Wednesday vs. DePaul. It was his fourth game this season with 20 or more points, but first since Jan. 17 vs. Providence.
Milliken's 15 first half points matched the most before halftime by any Bluejay in a game this season, tying him with Rick Kreklow's 15 points vs. Marquette on February 14th.
• Creighton had just five turnovers in Wednesday's win over DePaul, tying a season-low. The Bluejays also had five miscues on Jan. 17 vs. Providence.
In five seasons under Greg McDermott, Creighton owns just three games with fewer than five turnovers.
• Thursday will be Creighton's first game on any March 12th since 1981. All three games in school history played on March 12th have been decided by four points or less.
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