Men's Basketball Aims For Hall of Fame Classic Title Tuesday vs. No. 22 Baylor

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2017 Hall of Fame Classic
Game #5: Creighton vs. #22 Baylor
Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017 • 9:00 p.m.
Sprint Center (18,972) • Kansas City, Mo.
Radio: KOZN 1620 AM, www.1620thezone.com
Television: ESPN2
Series History: Creighton leads, 3-1
Last Meeting: Baylor 85, Creighton 55 on March 23, 2014 in San Antonio, Texas

• Creighton meets No. 22 Baylor on Tuesday in a battle of 4-0 teams for the title of the 2017 Hall of Fame Classic. The game will tip at 9:00 p.m. and air on ESPN2.

• Creighton has won 11 straight games in multi-team events dating to 2014-15, including titles in 2015 (MGM Grand Main Event in Las Vegas) and 2016 (Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands).
       CU has won seven titles in its last 12 multi-team events, a stretch that begins with CU's 2002 title in the Guardians Classic played in Kansas City at Municipal Auditorium.

• Creighton is 11-0 all-time in the Hall of Fame Classic, with 4-0 records (and titles) in 2002 and 2004 when it was known as the Guardians Classic before this year's 3-0 mark. Creighton was the first team to win the event twice (Missouri, Kansas and Texas have since joined them). A victory on Tuesday can make CU the first program to win the event three times.

• Creighton has defeated ranked teams (No. 20 Northwestern and No. 23 UCLA) in consecutive games for the first time in program history. Tuesday's foe, Baylor, is ranked 22nd.
       In fact, this marks just the second time Creighton has beaten multiple ranked teams in the same month. Last season's club beat No. 12 Butler, No. 22 Xavier and No. 16 Butler in January.

• Creighton has won six straight games against top-25 teams that aren't Villanova. Baylor is not named Villanova.

• Creighton has now beaten six top-25 teams since the start of last season, and is 11-20 under Greg McDermott against the top-25.

• Greg McDermott's 11 wins vs. ranked teams are the most in program history, four more than Dana Altman. Before McDermott's arrival, Creighton owned a total of 18 wins against the top-25.
• Creighton has beaten two or more ranked teams in seven different seasons. Four of those have come under Greg McDermott (2013-14, 2015-16, 2016-17). Last season's team won four games against the top-25, the highest figure in program history.

• Creighton is 29-135 all-time against the top-25.

• Creighton is 3-1 all-time against Baylor, and 1-1 on neutral floors. CU beat the Bears 90-69 on Dec. 28, 1962 in Oklahoma City, Okla., which doubled as the first meeting between the schools. Newly-inducted College Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Paul Silas had 23 points and 16 rebounds for CU in the victory.
       More recently, sixth-seeded Baylor topped third-seeded Creighton 85-55 in the Third Round of the 2014 NCAA Tournament. That game ended that career of Creighton seniors Doug McDermott, Ethan Wragge, Grant Gibbs and Jahenns Manigat. Current fifth-year seniors Tyler Clement and Toby Hegner redshirted on that Creighton team, but did not appear in the game.

• Greg McDermott is 2-3 in his career against Baylor. He was 2-2 as Iowa State coach against the Bears, and his 2013-14 Creighton team lost against BU.

• The only Bluejay student-athlete to have previously faced Baylor is senior guard Marcus Foster. Foster faced the Bears four times while at Kansas State from 2013-15. Foster averaged 16.5 points per game in those contests, including a high of 29 points late in his freshman season. Foster made 7-of-11 three-pointers in that game.

• Khyri Thomas has made a three-pointer in 18 straight games and Marcus Foster has scored in double-figures in 22 straight contests. Creighton has made a three-pointer in 787 straight games.

• Creighton's 100 points on Tuesday were the most in the history of the Hall of Fame Classic's championship rounds. The previous high of 99 also came in a semifinal, and was set by Creighton in a 99-52 win over IUPUI in 2002.

• Creighton put up 100 points against UCLA last night in 85 possessions. Making the production all the more impressive is that CU had just eight turnovers in the game. CU had just one turnover in the final 14 minutes, with that coming when the Jays lost the ball in the final minute because it did not own the possession arrow.

• Creighton has scored 100 or more points 17 times since 2010-11 (when Greg McDermott was hired), tied for fifth-most nationally. The Bluejays have won 31 straight games when scoring 100+ points dating to a loss in 1977.
       Creighton is one of five unranked teams in the past eight seasons to score 100+ points in regulation in a victory over a top-25 team, and first since Marquette topped No. 7 Creighton in Omaha on Jan. 21, 2017 by a 102-94 count. Those are the only two games of Davion Mintz's career when he's scored in double-figures.

• Creighton's 100 points last night were the most scored against UCLA in regulation since Arizona in 2004. It was the second-most points Creighton has ever scored against a top-25 opponent, as CU torched No. 6 Villanova for 101 points in Omaha on Feb. 16, 2014.

• Creighton has scored 90 points or more in each of its first four games for the first time in program history. Baylor hasn't allowed 90+ points in a game since a 100-91 overtime win vs. Iowa State on Feb. 16, 2016, and hasn't allowed 90+ points in regulation since a 102-74 loss at Kansas on Jan. 2, 2016.

• Last night improved Greg McDermott's Division I teams to 48-2 all-time when scoring 90 or more points.
   His Northern Iowa teams scored 90+ points just twice in 153 games from 2001-06, and four times total from 2006-10 at Iowa State in 127 contests.
   At Creighton, McDermott's charges have scored 90 or more points 44 times in 252 games.

• Creighton is averaging 98.2 points per game this season, and just 11.8 turnovers per game. CU owns a 71/47 assist/turnover ratio.

• Creighton has started 4-0 for the sixth time in eight seasons under Greg McDermott. Last year's team started 13-0, the program's best undefeated run to begin a campaign since 1942-43. Five of McDermott's CU teams have started 5-0 or better.

• Creighton's bench has keyed a pair of victories over top-25 foes in the last six days, combining for 73 of CU's 192 (38.0 percent) in the two wins. Newcomers Ty-Shon Alexander, Mitch Ballock and Manny Suarez have combined for 68 of those points (Ronnie Harrell Jr. came off the bench at Northwestern and had the other five).

• Creighton freshmen Ty-Shon Alexander and Mitch Ballock have combined for an average of 21.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game. The duo are also shooting a combined 90 percent (9-10) at the line.

• Ty-Shon Alexander was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week yesterday after he had 14 points, three rebounds and two assists in a win at No. 20 Northwestern last Friday last Wednesday.

• Mitch Ballock had 22 points last night vs. UCLA, after scoring 26 points combined in his first three games as a Bluejay. Ballock's 22 points are the most by a Creighton freshman since Justin Patton had 25 points at St. John's on Jan. 4, 2017 in the eventual BIG EAST Freshman of the Year's breakout game on a national level.

• Ronnie Harrell Jr.'s 15 rebounds were three more than his previous career-high, and the most by a Bluejay in any game since Doug McDermott had 15 boards vs. Tulsa on Nov. 23, 2013.
   Harrell's 14 defensive rebounds were the most by any Bluejay since Kenny Lawson Jr. had 18 rebounds (14 defensive) vs. Saint Joseph's on Dec. 11, 2010.

• All eight Creighton players to see the floor last night made at least one free throw and one field goal.
   On the season, Creighton has had 11 different men score, and all 11 men have drained at least one three-pointer.

• Doug McDermott scored 3,150 career points while playing for his father, Greg McDermott at Creighton. Bryce Drew scored 2,142 carer points while playing for his father, Homer, at Valparaiso. Baylor coach Scott Drew is the brother of Bryce and the son of Homer Drew.

Men's Basketball Aims For Hall of Fame Classic Title Tuesday vs. No. 22 Baylor

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Players Mentioned

Ty-Shon Alexander

Mitch Ballock

Tyler Clement

Marcus Foster

Ronnie Harrell Jr.

Toby Hegner

Davion Mintz

Manny Suarez

Khyri Thomas