Men's Basketball Meets Georgia State Tonight at Cayman Islands Classic

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Game #5: Georgia State Panthers vs. Creighton Bluejays
Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2018 • 6:30 p.m. CST
John Gray Gymnasium (2,000) • George Town, Cayman Islands
Radio: KOZN 1620 AM, www.1620thezone.com
Television: None
Series History: Creighton leads, 2-0
Last Meeting: Creighton 81, Georgia State 74 on Dec. 9, 2000 in Omaha, Neb.

• On the heels of last night's 94-82 win over Boise State, Creighton (3-1) takes on Georgia State (3-1) on Tuesday, Nov. 20 at 6:30 p.m. CST.
   With a loss, the Bluejays would meet the Georgia/Clemson loser in the third-place game on Wednesday at 4:00 p.m. CST.
   With a win, the Bluejays would play for the Cayman Island Classic title against the Georgia/Clemson winner on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. CST.

• Tuesday's game vs. Georgia State will not be televised, but will be broadcast on Stadium at http://watchstadium.com/live.
    The game will also air in Omaha on the radio on KOZN (1620 The Zone), with John Bishop and Nick Bahe on the call.

• Creighton is 2-0 all-time against Georgia State, beating the Panthers 58-54 in Atlanta on Dec. 1, 1999 and winning the rematch on Dec. 9, 2000 by a 81-74 count in Omaha. Ryan Sears led the Bluejays in scoring with 19 points in 1999 and 25 in 2000 meeting.
   Those Creighton teams included Kyle Korver, who had four points in 1999 and 14 points in the 2000 encounter. Korver would later be employed in Atlanta as a member of the Hawks organization, earning All-Star accolades in 2015.
   Greg McDermott has never faced Georgia State.

• Creighton's 94 points were a season-best, and it's not the first time the Bluejays have piled up on the points on a neutral floor. Creighton scored 100 points vs. UCLA in the first neutral-site game of the Hall of Fame Classic, and in 2016 torched Washington State for 103 points in the first neutral site game of the Paradise Jam.

• The season is young, but Creighton's 94 points, 12 three-pointers, 57.9 percent shooting and 23 assists against Boise State were all season-highs.
   Individually, Damien Jefferson's 16 points were a career-high for the sophomore. Marcus Zegarowski's 14 points were a high for the freshman, and Jacob Epperson (10) and Connor Cashaw (6) also notched a season-bests in points.

• Speaking of Connor Cashaw, the grad transfer from Rice had his best regular-season game as a Bluejay, finishing with six points, three assists and two rebounds vs. Boise State.
   Cashaw is the lone Creighton player who has previously faced Georgia State, finishing with seven points, five rebounds and three assists against the Panthers last season in Houston when he played for Rice.

• Creighton has played just two seniors and two juniors this season, and last night it was the freshmen and sophomores that keyed the win over Boise State. Of Creighton's 94 points, the sophomore class scored a combined 52 points, and the freshmen added 20 points.
   For the season, Creighton's sophomores have accounted for 159 of CU's 307 overall points.

• Including last night, Greg McDermott is 55-2 as a Division I head coach when his teams score 90 or more points, including a 49-2 mark on the Creighton sideline.

• Want your son to grow up to be a college star and an NBA player? You might want to watch Tuesday's game between Creighton and Georgia State.
   Creighton's Greg McDermott coached his son, Doug McDermott, at Creighton from 2010-14. Doug scored 3,150 career points, was a three-time All-American and three-time Conference Player of the Year, and is currently with the Indianapolis Pacers in his fifth season in the NBA.
   Georgia State's Ron Hunter coached his son, R.J. Hunter, at Georgia State from 2012-15. R.J. scored 1,819 career points, was a two-time All-American and two-time Conference Player of the Year. R.J. played three seasons in the NBA, spending one season each with Boston, Chicago and Houston.
   Georgia State associate head coach Ray McCallum coached his son, Ray McCallum, for three seasons at Detroit from 2010-13, where his son scored 1,618 points for the Titans. Ray Jr. was named a Horizon League Player of the Year and played in the NBA with Sacramento, San Antonio and Memphis.

• Connor Cashaw made his first three-pointer as a Bluejay in Monday's win over Boise State. All 10 Creighton players to appear in at least one game this year have made a three-pointer, and also scored 10 or more points on the season.

• One key to Monday's win over Boise State was the performance of the Bluejay bench. Creighton got 41 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists in a combined 70 minutes of work. That depth could come in handy as this week continues and teams have to play on three straight days.

• Per Omaha World-Herald beatwriter Jon Nyatawa, Creighton had a 29-possession stretch on Monday night where it scored 53 points (18-of-26 FGs with 15 assists), helping to turn a three-point deficit into an 82-61 lead.

• After finishing the first half with no points and one assist, Mitch Ballock turned it up a notch in the second half vs. Boise State. The sophomore had eight points and six assists in 18 minutes of playing time after intermission.
   Tuesday marks the one-year anniversary of Ballock's breakout game as a Bluejay, as he had 22 points in 30 minutes to help Creighton topple No. 23 UCLA on Nov. 20, 2017 in Kansas City. Those 22 points remain a career-high.

• Both Creighton and Georgia State share one common opponent, East Tennessee State.
   Both teams trailed against ETSU late in the second half, only to rally and win by exactly six points. Creighton won by a 75-69 count, while Georgia State toppled the Buccaneers 74-68.

Men's Basketball Meets Georgia State Tonight at Cayman Islands Classic

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Players Mentioned

Mitch Ballock

Connor Cashaw

Jacob Epperson

Damien Jefferson

Marcus Zegarowski