Thursday, November 11
Omaha, Neb.
7:30 PM
Creighton University
vs
Kennesaw State
Ryan Hawkins (44) and Ryan Nembhard (2) both had double-doubles in their Creighton debut on Tuesday.
Photo by: Corey Solotorovsky
Men's Basketball Welcomes Kennesaw State on Thursday
11/10/2021 12:01:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Bluejays look for 11th 2-0 start in last 12 seasons
Game #2: Kennesaw State Owls at Creighton Bluejays
Thursday, Nov. 11, 2021 • 7:30 p.m.
CHI Health Center Omaha (17,352) • Omaha, Neb.
Radio: KOZN 1620 AM, www.1620thezone.com; KOOO (101.9 FM)
Television: FS1 (Vince Welch, Nick Bahe)
Series History: Creighton leads, 3-0
Last Meeting: Creighton 93, Kennesaw State 58 on Dec. 4, 2020 in Omaha, Neb.
LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | CU NOTES (PDF) | KSU NOTES (PDF)
Next Game
Creighton (1-0) plays its second game in three days to open the season when it hosts Kennesaw State (0-1) on Thursday, November 11th.
Tip-off on First National Bank Court at CHI Health Center Omaha (17,352) in Omaha, Neb., is 7:30 p.m.
COVID-19 Precautions at CU Athletic Events
Creighton University strongly encourages all fans to wear a face mask while attending indoor Creighton athletic events to protect against the spread of COVID-19.
The University particularly encourages fans who are unvaccinated to wear a mask at all times during indoor Creighton athletic events for their own protection.
Fans who have recently tested positive for COVID-19, or are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, should not attend any Creighton athletic events, indoors or outdoors, for the health and safety of other guests for at least 10 days following a positive test or the onset of symptoms. They should also be fever-free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medications, and symptoms should be improving.
In addition, fans who have been in close contact with someone with COVID-19 should follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines regarding being around others.
Creighton will continue to closely monitor global, national and local COVID-19 data and trends, as well as public health guidelines, and adjust its response accordingly.
Radio Broadcast Information
KOZN (1620 AM) will broadcast all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2021-22 season.
KOOO (101.9 FM) will also broadcast all home games.
John Bishop and former Bluejay Brody Deren will call the action. The audio is also webcast live at www.1620thezone.com.
Broadcast Information
Thursday's game will be called by Vince Welch and Nick Bahe and be televised on FS1.
The game will also be video webcast online at http://foxsports.com/live or the FoxSports app.
Live Stats Information
All of Creighton's games this season will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the small bar graph icon on the scoreboard at the top of the page for the event of your choosing.
Home games can also be followed by those who have mobile devices with internet capability at www.gocreightonstats.com.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton returns seven lettermen but no starters from last year's team that finished 22-9 overall, runner-up in the BIG EAST, and reached the program's first Sweet 16 since 1974.
Of CU's scholarship returners, only Ryan Kalkbrenner (5.9 ppg.), Alex O'Connell (3.4 ppg.) and Shereef Mitchell (3.3 ppg.) are back after playing last season.
The Bluejays brought in grad transfers KeyShawn Feazell (13.1 ppg., 9.9 rpg. at McNeese State) and Ryan Hawkins (22.6 ppg., 8.8 rpg. at Division II Northwest Missouri State) to bolster the front line.
Creighton also features the nation's No. 7 recruiting class, including top-100 prospects Trey Alexander, Arthur Kaluma, Mason Miller and Ryan Nembhard. In addition, Rati Andronikashvili and Modestas Kancleris have been medically cleared after both men tore their ACL's three days apart last November and were forced to redshirt.
Creighton posted a 76-61 win vs. Upper Iowa on Oct. 30 in an exhibition game, with Hawkins leading four men in double-figures with 15 points. CU broke open a close game with a 23-2 run to end the first half, then started the second half with a 9-0 flurry.
Creighton fell behind 26-11 in the opening 11 minutes of its regular-season lid-lifter on Tuesday vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff before regaining its composure to pull away for a 90-77 win. O'Connell tied his career-high with 20 points, while Nembhard (15 points, 10 assists) and Hawkins (16 points, 11 rebounds) each debuted with double-doubles.
Scouting Kennesaw State
Kennesaw State battled before falling 84-73 at Iowa State on Tuesday in Ames. The Owls never led but trailed by just six points with under four minutes to play. The game featured 56 fouls (30 by ISU) and 69 free throw attempts (36 by KSU).
Terrell Burden drew an incredible 15 fouls and led KSU with 21 points, including 13-of-19 marksmanship at the line.
KSU returns its top six scorers from last year's team that finished 5-19 overall and 0-9 on the road, including Spencer Rodgers (16.3 ppg.), Chris Youngblood (12.4 ppg.), Burden (7.6 ppg.), Alex Peterson (7.3 ppg.), Brandon Stroud (5.5 ppg.) and Kasen Jennings (5.0 ppg.).
The Series With Kennesaw State
Creighton is 3-0 all-time against Kennesaw State, including an 81-55 win in 2019 and a 93-58 triumph last December. All three meetings have taken place in Omaha.
Greg McDermott is 3-0 against Kennesaw State, 2-0 against Amir Abdur-Rahim and 8-0 in his career against teams currently in the A-SUN.
Ryan Kalkbrenner led six Bluejays in double-figures in last season's match-up with 14 points on 7-of-8 shooting in just 15 minutes of action.
The Creighton Coaches
Greg McDermott (Northern Iowa, 1988) owns a 254-125 record in his 12th season with the Bluejays. He owns a career mark of 534-320 in his 28th season, and is 403-256 in his 21st Division I campaign.
McDermott led Creighton to its first BIG EAST regular-season title in 2019-20, taking a Bluejay team that was picked seventh in the league's preseason poll and ending the year ranked seventh nationally. The Cascade, Iowa native then coached Creighton to its first Sweet 16 since 1974 in 2020-21 and to a share of its first regular-season BIG EAST title in 2019-20.
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 is assisted by Alan Huss, Ryan Miller and Jalen Courtney-Williams.
With A Win...
- Creighton would improve to 2-0 for the 11th time in 12 seasons under Greg McDermott.
- Creighton would win its 20th straight non-conference home game.
- Creighton would improve to 4-0 all-time against Kennesaw State while beating the Owls for a third straight season.
- Teams with Ryan Hawkins would improve to 161-8 at the college level.
A One And A Two...
Not only is Creighton a perfect 12-0 in season-openers under Greg McDermott, but the Bluejays have started 2-0 in all but one campaign (2019-20) under McDermott.
Playing With The Lead
In 309 games at CHI Health Center Omaha all-time, Creighton has not trailed in 85 of those contests, a staggering 27.5 percent of the time.
Under Greg McDermott at home, Creighton is
158-36 and hasn't trailed in 60 of those games. He owns an 88-6 record vs. non-conference teams at CHI Health Center Omaha, including 19 straight wins.
Assists 'R' Us
Ryan Nembhard's 10 assists were the most by a Bluejay freshman in any game since Marcus Zegarowski had 10 on March 9, 2018 vs. DePaul. He was the nation's ONLY freshman with 10+ assists on Tuesday.
Prior to Nembhard, no Bluejay (of any year) had dished 10 or more assists in a season-opener since Edward St. Fleur on Nov. 22, 1996 at Wyoming.
Maurice Watson Jr. is the last Bluejay with 10+ assists in consecutive games, doing so in 2016.
Youth Is Served
Creighton has just seven non-freshmen on this year's roster, and is likely to play multiple freshmen on a consistent basis this season.
By comparison, last season Creighton had a freshman on the floor just 32.4 percent of the time and had multiple freshmen on the floor just 17 minutes (of 1,250) all season (1.4 percent).
Creighton had multiple freshmen on the floor every second of the regular-season opener vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and actually had a 32 second span late in the contest when four of its players were freshmen.
Creighton outscored UAPB by 33 when it had exactly two freshmen on the court, but were outscored by 20 when it had three or more frosh on the floor.
All told, 93:09 of 200 possible minutes (46.58 percent) were played by freshmen vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
Freshmen Time Score Margin
0 freshmen: Never -- --
1 freshmen: Never -- --
2 freshmen: 27:23 74-41 33
3 freshmen: 12:05 14-34 (-20)
4 freshmen: 0:32 2-2 0
5 freshmen: Never
Making An Entrance
Arthur Kaluma (15) and Ryan Nembhard (15) became CU's first true freshmen to debut with 10 points or more since Khyri Thomas had 18 points vs. Texas Southern in 2015.
Nembhard (15 pts., 10 ast) and Ryan Hawkins (16 pts., 11 reb.) were the first Bluejays since at least 1980 with double-doubles in the season-opener of their debut campaign. No CU player (of any year) had started the season with a double-double since Will Artino (14 pts., 10 reb.) in 2014-15 vs. Central Arkansas.
Kaluma's eight rebounds were the most by a true freshman in the regular-season opener since Martin Krampelj in 2015 and the most by any Bluejay freshman since redshirt freshman Justin Patton snared eight rebounds in his 2016 debut.
Kaluma had four blocked shots on Tuesday vs. UAPB. The last previous Bluejay newcomer with multiple blocked shots in a season-opener? That'd be Artino on Nov. 11, 2011 vs. North Carolina A&T. Kaluma's four swats were the most by any Bluejay (of any year) on Opening Day since Jeffrey Day had five swats vs. Alcorn State to open the 2004-05 campaign..
Kaluma (15 & 8) became Creighton's second freshman since at least 1973 to debut with 15+ points and 5+ rebounds, joining Doug McDermott (16 & 7) in 2010.
Ryan Hawkins grabbed 11 rebounds vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff, the most by a Bluejay since Damien Jefferson had 12 in 2018. Other than Jefferson, no one's had more than 11 rebounds in their CU debut since Cyril Baptiste snared 17 caroms in 1969.
Below is a list of some of Creighton's most famous players and how they performed in their regular-season debuts in a Bluejay uniform.
Name, Yr. Pts. Reb. Ast. Stl. Min. Result
Zegarowski, 2018 8 4 2 0 18 W 78-67
Foster, 2016 19 1 2 0 28 W 89-82
Patton, 2016 12 8 2 0 22 W 89-82
Thomas, 2015 18 3 0 2 26 W 93-70
McDermott, 2010 16 7 0 1 32 W 71-57
Stinnett, 2007 23 4 3 3 26 W 74-62
Tolliver, 2003 0 1 2 0 7 W 79-44
Funk, 2002 3 5 4 1 21 W 106-50
Kyle Korver, 1999 2 2 0 1 10 W 70-62
Buford, 1995 3 4 0 0 19 W 63-59
Harstad, 1987 4 5 1 1 21 L 49-70
Gallagher, 1987 10 3 0 0 37 L 49-70
Benjamin, 1982 14 4 1 0 22 W 98-54
McKenna, 1977 14 3 7 ? ? W 95-66
Harmon, 1971 21 7 ? ? ? W 74-62
C. Baptiste, 1969 24 17 ? ? ? W 84-62
Portman, 1966 9 ? ? ? ? W 78-76
Silas, 1961 22 29 ? ? ? W 85-51
Gibson, 1954 19 ? ? ? ? W 66-51
Hello, World
Creighton had seven players who made their Bluejay debuts on Tuesday vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff: Trey Alexander, Rati Andronikashvili, John Christofilis, KeyShawn Feazell, Ryan Hawkins, Arthur Kaluma and Ryan Nembhard.
Three others could still debut: Modestas Kancleris, Mason Miller and Zander Yates.
Below is a look at how Creighton's current players have done in their regular-season and Creighton debuts in a Division I uniform.
Name Pts. Reb. Ast. Stl. Min.
Hawkins (@CU) 16 11 3 1 35
Kaluma 15 8 3 0 24
Nembhard 15 4 10 1 36
Feazell (@CU) 11 3 2 1 23
Mitchell• 8 6 3 3 28
Kalkbrenner 8 2 1 1 11
O'Connell (@Duke) 8 3 1 0 13
O'Connell (@CU) 6 2 1 1 12
Alexander 5 4 1 2 22
Feazell (@MSU) 2 5 0 0 7
Andronikashvili 2 1 1 0 9
Davis 0 0 0 0 1
Osmani 0 0 0 0 1
Hawkins (@NWMS) 0 2 1 1 13
Christofilis 0 1 0 0 2
•indicates game started
Freshman Starts Almost Unheard Of
Between 1992-93 and 2020-21, only four true freshmen started Creighton's regular-season opener. Then on Nov. 9 vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff, both Ryan Nembhard and Arthur Kaluma got the nod on opening night. Nembhard had 15 points and 10 assists while Kaluma owned 15 points, eight rebounds and four blocks.
This season marked the first time Creighton started two true freshmen in a regular-season opener since 1991-92 (Eric Dantzler and Mike Amos).
About the other true freshmen to start...
Ryan Sears did so in 1997-98. The point guard would go on to start all 124 games of his CU career and remains the program's all-time career assist (570) and steals (283) leader.
Doug McDermott did so in 2010-11, and he went on to start all 145 games of his career. He would graduate as the fifth-leading scorer in NCAA history with 3,150 career points and is the only three-time First Team All-American since 1986. He now plays for the San Antonio Spurs.
Khyri Thomas got a start in 2015-16 and remained in CU's starting five each of his first 24 games, and 96-of-102 career contests with the Jays. He has spent parts of the past three seasons in the NBA.
Shereef Mitchell joined this elite group in 2019-20 when he got the starting nod against Kennesaw State. Mitchell finished with eight points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals in 28 minutes of work.
Name Game
Creighton started three players with the first name of Ryan in its regular-season opener, as Ryan Nembhard, Ryan Hawkins and Ryan Kalkbrenner all got the nod vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Nov. 9.
Creighton has not started multiple players with the same first name in the same regular-season game since Nov. 18, 2006, when both Nick Porter and Nick Bahe started against Nebraska.
Creighton has not had a season in which three players with the same first name all started at least once in the regular-season since at least 1980.
With so many men named Ryan (not to mention assistant coach Ryan Miller), the Bluejay staff has gone to referring to Hawkins as "Hawk", the 7-foot Kalkbrenner as "Big Ryan" and Nembhard as "R2", in honor of his uniform number.
Hoo Knew?
Did you know that Kennesaw State is one of four Division I teams nicknamed the Owls?
To find the others, check the very bottom of the column at the far left of page 4.
Big Deficits, No Big Deal
Creighton owns 24 victories since the start of the 2010-11 season after trailing by double-figures at some point, including one this season. Twelve of those 24 comebacks have come away from home.
Creighton's comeback from 15 points down in the season-opener vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff was its biggest since rallying from 16 points down at Seton Hall on Jan. 27th.
In that Seton Hall game Creighton trailed 68-52 with 10:40 to play before rallying to win thanks to a 33-13 run. It was the first time that Creighton overcame a 10-point halftime deficit to win since trailing 35-24 vs. No. 18 Oklahoma on Nov. 19, 2014, and the first road win after trailing by 10 or more points at halftime since overcoming a 32-21 margin at half in a 65-59 win at Missouri State on Feb. 24, 2009.
Tuesday's comeback win vs. UAPB marked Creighton's biggest rally in a season-opener since overcoming a 16 point hole in 2008 vs. New Mexico and 17 point deficit vs. DePaul in its 2007 opener. Thursday's FS1 analyst, Nick Bahe, was on that 2007 Bluejay team and on staff for the 2008 club.
If you're curious, CU's largest comeback win since 2000 came on Jan. 28, 2006, when the Jays trailed 25-6 early before rallying to beat Wichita State on a buzzer-beater by Anthony Tolliver.
CU's Double-Digit Comebacks Since 2010-11
Deficit Opponent Date
18 #18 Oklahoma 11/19/14
17 at San Diego State 11/30/11
16 at Evansville 02/16/13
16 at Seton Hall 01/27/21
15 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 11/09/21
14 Evansville 02/21/12
13 at Saint Joseph's 11/16/13
13 Xavier 01/12/14
13 #22 Xavier 12/23/20
12 Saint Joseph's 12/11/10
12 at DePaul 01/17/16
12 East Tennessee State 11/11/18
11 at Wichita State 12/31/11
11 Northern Iowa 01/10/12
11 vs. Alabama 03/16/12
11 vs. Ole Miss 11/21/16
11 vs. Connecticut 03/12/21
10 UAB 11/14/12
10 vs. Drake 03/02/12
10 at Nebraska 12/07/14
10 South Dakota 12/09/14
10 St. John's 01/03/18
10 at DePaul 02/07/18
10 Bemidji State 02/13/18
Release, Rotation, Splash, Repeat
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 914 straight games. The streak is the nation's 14th-longest active streak.
Creighton's last game without a three-pointer came at Illinois State on Feb. 20, 1993, when the Jays were 0-for-5. Creighton's last win without making a three-point basket came on March 3, 1991 when the Jays went 0-for-2 from three-point range in a 71-66 win over Southern Illinois in the championship game of the MVC Tournament.
Creighton has also made a trifecta in the first half of 285 straight games (since going 0-7 vs. Drake on Jan. 23, 2013). That streak was in serious jeopardy on Opening Day this season as CU missed its first 14 three-point tries before a man named Trey (Alexander) extended the streak.
Below is a list of the nation's longest active three-point streaks.
Longest Active 3-Point Streaks (11/10)
Rk. Streak School Next
1. 1,129 UNLV 11/10
2. 1,114 Duke 11/12
3. 1,077 Arkansas 11/13
4. 1,063 Western Kentucky 11/12
5. 1,051 East Tennessee State 11/12
6. 1,032 Oakland 11/12
7. 1,031 Pacific 11/10
8. 1,024 Texas 11/13
9. 969 Marshall 11/12
10. 962 Baylor 11/12
11. 959 Princeton 11/12
12. 951 Gonzaga 11/13
13. 927 Long Island 11/12
14. 914 Creighton 11/11
15. 912 Mount St. Mary's 11/11
16. 900 Tennessee State 11/13
Nifty Fifty Leads To Postseason?
Not counting 2019-20, when there was no postseason, Creighton has made the postseason each of the last nine times in which it has made at least 50 percent of its field goal attempts to open the year. Seven of those postseason trips were NCAA Tournament berths. The last time that didn't hold true was 1991-92, when CU shot 51.0 percent in the opener but finished just 9-19.
Creighton has shot 50 percent or better in seven of its last 10 season-openers, including 58.5 percent marksmanship vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff in this year's lid-lifter. That ranked as CU's best mark in an opener since shooting 59.4 percent in 2002-03. That 2002-03 squad featured All-American Kyle Korver and finished 29-5.
Creighton shot 75.9 percent in the second half, making its first 10 shots. That's the best field goal percentage by any Bluejay team in a half since doing it in BOTH halves of a Feb. 14, 2012 game at Southern Illinois. On that night, CU made 15-of-20 shots in the first half (75%), then drained 16-of-20 buckets (80%) after intermission, en route to setting an MVC record with its 77.5% shooting for the game.
CU Season-Opener Field Goal Percentage 50+%
Since 1993-94
FG% Year Opponent Postseason
.541 1997-98 UMKC NIT
.524 1998-99 Towson State NCAA
.569 2000-01 Western Illinois NCAA
.594 2002-03 UT Arlington NCAA
.500 2012-13 North Texas NCAA
.556 2013-14 Alcorn State NCAA
.528 2015-16 Texas Southern NIT
.508 2016-17 UMKC NCAA
.558 2017-18 Yale NCAA
.524 2019-20 Kennesaw St. Postseason CCD
.585 2021-22 Ark.-Pine Bluff TBD
The Push For 90
Of Creighton's 22 all-time NCAA Tournament teams, 10 have scored 90 or more points in their season-opener.
Put another way...of CU's first 17 teams (before 2021-22) to score 90 points in an opener, 10 would reach the NCAA Tournament.
Here's a look at Creighton's last nine teams to score 90 or more points in a season-opener, which includes this year's team that scored 90 points in the season-opener vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
Final Post-
Score Opponent Date W-L Season
93-47 UT-San Antonio 11/30/90 24-8 NCAA
93-48 Towson State 11/14/98 22-9 NCAA
96-50 Western Illinois 11/20/00 24-8 NCAA
106-50 Texas-Arlington 11/17/02 29-5 NCAA
97-65 N. Carolina A&T 11/11/11 29-6 NCAA
107-61 Alcorn State 11/08/13 27-8 NCAA
104-77 Central Arkansas 11/14/14 14-19 --
93-70 Texas Southern 11/14/15 20-15 NIT
92-76 Yale 11/10/17 21-12 NCAA
90-77 Ark.-Pine Bluff 11/09/21 TBD TBD
Paint By Numbers
Creighton scored 58 points in the paint during its season-opener vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Nov. 9. It was CU's most paint points since also scoring in the 2017-18 season-opener vs. Yale.
Jays At Home Against Winless Teams
Creighton's opponent on Thursday, Kennesaw State, is 0-1. The Bluejays have won 42 straight home games against teams that are winless entering the night, winning those games by an average of 24.76 points. Fifteen of those wins came by 30 points or more, and only four were decided by single-digits.
The streak dates to a 77-70 loss versus an 0-2 SMU team on Dec. 3, 1994. That game was Dana Altman's home debut at Creighton.
Since the start of the 2002-03 season Creighton has won 120 of its last 121 home games against teams that enter the night with a record of .500 or worse, with the lone exception coming Feb. 3, 2021 vs. Georgetown.
Creighton at Home vs. Winless Teams, Since 12/3/1994
Opp. W-L Opponent CU Result Date
0-4 UMKC W 75-61 12/17/94
0-1 UMKC W 70-68 11/25/96
0-0 UMKC W 81-59 11/14/97
0-0 Towson W 93-48 11/14/98
0-1 Western Illinois W 96-50 11/20/00
0-1 North Carolina A&T W 72-51 11/18/01
0-0 Texas-Arlington W 106-50 11/17/02
0-3 San Diego W 79-44 11/22/03
0-1 Bethune-Cookman W 69-49 12/03/03
0-0 Alcorn State W 74-40 11/15/04
0-0 Arkansas-Pine Bluff W 83-58 11/20/04
0-0 Arkansas-Pine Bluff W 87-55 11/19/05
0-1 Miss. Valley State W 78-42 11/13/06
0-4 Arkansas-Pine Bluff W 74-39 11/29/06
0-0 DePaul W 74-62 11/09/07
0-2 Miss. Valley State W 76-46 11/17/07
0-2 Arkansas-Pine Bluff W 82-50 11/20/08
0-9 Miss. Valley State W 82-58 12/02/08
0-7 Southern W 71-60 12/15/08
0-1 Florida A&M W 78-53 11/17/09
0-0 Alabama State W 71-57 11/12/10
0-1 Northern Arizona W 74-70 11/14/10
0-0 N. Carolina A&T W 97-65 11/11/11
0-1 Chicago State W 95-61 11/13/11
0-0 North Texas W 71-51 11/09/12
0-2 Presbyterian W 87-58 11/18/12
0-4 Longwood W 105-57 11/20/12
0-0 Alcorn State W 107-61 11/08/13
0-1 UMKC W 96-70 11/11/13
0-3 Tulsa W 82-72 11/23/13
0-0 Central Arkansas W 104-77 11/14/14
0-1 Chicago State W 84-66 11/16/14
0-1 Texas Southern W 93-70 11/14/15
0-2 UTSA W 103-78 11/17/15
0-0 UMKC W 89-82 11/11/16
0-0 Yale W 92-76 11/10/17
0-1 Alcorn State W 109-72 11/12/17
0-0 Western Illinois W 78-67 11/06/18
0-0 East Tennessee State W 75-69 11/11/18
0-0 Kennesaw State W 81-55 11/05/19
0-2 North Dakota State W 69-58 11/29/20
0-0 Ark.-Pine Bluff W 90-77 11/09/21
November Reign
Creighton is a 65-1 all-time in regular-season home games that take place on or before Nov. 26th. The lone loss came in 2018 when it lost to Ohio State.
Creighton has won 70 of its 72 regular-season November home games since 1990, falling only to Boise State in 2012 and Ohio State in 2018.
Overall, Creighton is 97-19 in regular-season November games at all sites since the start of the 1998-99 campaign.
Top-10 Class
Creighton signed four top-100 players en route to inking the No. 7 recruiting class in the country, per 247Sports. That also ranks as the best class in the BIG EAST Conference.
Here's how the nation's top-10 classes shake out:
1. Memphis
2. Michigan
3. Gonzaga
4. Tennessee
5. Duke
6. LSU
7. Creighton
8. Florida State
9. Connecticut
10. Kentucky
Season Opener History
Creighton owns a sparkling 89-15 record (.856) on opening day, including wins in 24 of its last 25 lid-lifters after Tuesday's 90-77 win vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
Creighton has won 13 of its last 22 season-openers by 20 or more points.
The Bluejays have outscored foes by an average of 85.04 to 61.68 in the last 22 openers.
My Name Is...
Only five men who played for Creighton last season are back this winter, and none of them averaged more than 15 minutes per game.
Per research by TCU, Creighton's 18.0 percent of minutes returning ranks third-lowest among all teams nationally, and is the least among all teams from the BIG EAST or a Power 5 Conference.
Lowest Percentage of Minutes Returning
School Pct. of Minutes Returning
Tennessee-Martin 0.0
Portland 8.5
Creighton 18.0
Missouri 19.7
Duquesne 23.2
Iowa State 25.1
Robert Morris 26.3
Boston College 27.6
South Alabama 28.6
TCU 29.2
Who's Back?
With Creighton returning only five of the 15 men who appeared in a game last season, it's no surprise that much of the production from 2020-21 is also gone. Below is a breakdown of what is back:
Stat Returners Departures
Starts 2 (1.3%) 153 (98.7%)
3FG Made 25 (8.5%) 268 (91.5%)
Assists 68 (14.0%) 417 (86.0%)
Points 371 (15.8%) 1,984 (84.2%)
Minutes 1,124 (18.0%) 5,126 (82.0%)
Steals 39 (18.1%) 177 (81.9%)
Rebounds 207 (20.7%) 794 (79.3%)
Charges Taken 5 (29.4%) 12 (70.6%)
Blocks 39 (37.9%) 64 (62.1%)
Preseason BIG EAST Poll
Creighton was picked eighth in the preseason BIG EAST Conference poll that was selected via a vote of league coaches.
Villanova was a unanimous selection to win the league, with Connecticut and Xavier finishing second and third, respectively. St. John's is fourth, followed by Seton Hall, Butler, Providence and Creighton. Rounding out the poll are Marquette, Georgetown and DePaul.
Villanova standout Collin Gillespie was named Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year, and was joined on the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team by Nate Watson (Providence), Julian Champagnie (St. John's), Jared Rhoden (Seton Hall), Paul Scruggs (Xavier) and Zach Freemantle (Xavier).
Creighton is the only school in the league that has met or exceeded its preseason BIG EAST prognostication every year since joining the league, as seen below:
Creighton's BIG EAST Preseason Poll History
Year Preseason Actual Preseason All-BIG EAST
2013-14 3rd 2nd Doug McDermott (1st)
2014-15 9th T-9th -
2015-16 9th 6th -
2016-17 3rd T-3rd Maurice Watson Jr. (1st); Marcus Foster (HM)
2017-18 5th T-3rd Marcus Foster (1st); Khyri Thomas (HM)
2018-19 9th T-3rd Martin Krampelj (HM)
2019-20 7th T-1st Ty-Shon Alexander (1st)
2020-21 2nd 2nd Marcus Zegarowski (1st); Mitch Ballock (2nd)
#ProJays
Former Creighton All-American Doug McDermott is a starter for the San Antonio Spurs, giving Creighton at least one NBA player in 38 of the last 39 seasons.
Last year five Bluejays appeared in an NBA game, as McDermott was joined by Ty-Shon Alexander, Justin Patton, Khyri Thomas and Anthony Tolliver.
McDermott is in his eighth season in the NBA. Last year he with Indiana he averaged a career-high 13.6 points per game.
Other famous Bluejays to play in the NBA in the past include Paul Silas, Kyle Korver, Benoit Benjamin and Anthony Tolliver.
Among The Nation's Best
Below is where Creighton ranks nationally since the start of the 2010-11 season, per Basketball-Reference.com.
2010-11 through 2020-21
Category CU Stat CU Rank
3FG Percentage .383 2nd
3FG Made 3,389 2nd
FG Percentage .480 3rd
Assists 6,114 5th
FG Made 10,344 8th
Wins 253 27th
Winning Percentage .669 34th
Who Are These Guys?
For the first time since at least 1980-81, Creighton will not return any of its five starters as Mitch Ballock, Christian Bishop, Damien Jefferson, Denzel Mahoney and Marcus Zegarowski are all gone after combining to make 152-of-155 possible starts last season.
In fact, there's only been four previous times in the last 40 years that just one starter has returned. Those four occurrences came in 1985-86 (went 12-16), 2007-08 (22-11), 2014-15 (14-19) and
2015-16 (20-15).
Shereef Mitchell started two games last season when Zegarowski was injured, and no other active Bluejay had ever started a game for CU prior to CU's Nov. 9 season-opener. In the previous 40 seasons, Creighton's always returned players who combined for at least 40 starts in the previous season.
Returning Returning Starts Final
Year Starters From Previous Year W-L
2021-22 0 2 ? ? ?
2020-21 5 124 22-9
2019-20 4 136 24-7
2018-19 2 57 20-15
2017-18 2 72 21-12
2016-17 4 130 25-10
2015-16 1 64 20-15
2014-15 1 49 14-19
2013-14 4 144 27-8
2012-13 4 140 28-8
2011-12 3 101 29-6
2010-11 4 123 23-16
2009-10 3 106 18-16
2008-09 3 83 27-8
2007-08 1 44 22-11
2006-07 4 120 22-11
2005-06 4 134 20-10
2004-05 2 58 23-11
2003-04 3 101 20-9
2002-03 5 159 29-5
2001-02 2 65 23-9
2000-01 3 90 24-8
1999-00 3 84 23-10
1998-99 3 84 22-9
1997-98 4 72 18-10
1996-97 4 126 15-15
1995-96 4 100 14-15
1994-95 2 52 7-19
1993-94 3 73 7-22
1992-93 2 64 8-18
1991-92 2 51 9-19
1990-91 4 132 24-8
1989-90 4 127 21-12
1988-89 4 123 20-11
1987-88 3 83 16-16
1986-87 2 65 9-19
1985-86 1 48 12-16
1984-85 4 124 20-12
1983-84 3 72 17-14
1982-83 3 77 8-19
1981-82 2 78 7-20
1980-81 4 112 21-9
21 of 23 Seasons With 20 Wins
Creighton has won 20 or more games in 21 of the last 23 seasons (entering 2021-22), a feat that puts the Jays among an exclusive group, nationally.
Just two schools have had 20 or more wins each of the last 23 years: Gonzaga and Kansas. Duke has done it 22 times, Creighton and Kentucky 21 times.
Most 20-Win Seasons, Previous 23 Seasons
Team 20-Win Seasons 2020-21 W-L
Gonzaga 23 31-1
Kansas 23 21-9
Duke 22 13-11
Creighton 21 22-9
Kentucky 21 9-16
Twenty Wins, Again
Creighton had 22 wins last season, its sixth consecutive campaign with 20 or more victories.
Only six teams have won 20 games or more in each of the previous six seasons: Belmont, Creighton, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas and Oregon.
McDermott Ranks Second On CU Wins List
Greg McDermott has 254 victories at Creighton, good for second place on CU's all-time wins list.
McDermott's .670 winning percentage is Creighton's best since Arthur A. Schabinger's .714 win rate more 80 years ago.
Below is a list of the most victorious Creighton coaches in program history.
Most Coaching Wins, Creighton History
Rk. W-L Name Years
1. 327-176 Dana Altman 1994-2010
2. 254-125 Greg McDermott 2010-Pres.
3. 165-66 Arthur A. Schabinger 1922-1935
4. 138-118 John J. "Red" McManus 1959-1969
5. 130-64 Tom Apke 1974-1981
CHI Health Center Omaha Dramatics
Creighton is 8-8 in games with a game-winning go-ahead score in the final 10 seconds at CHI Health Center Omaha, which opened in the fall of 2003.
Creighton's Go-Ahead Scores in Wins at
CHI Health Center Omaha, Last 10 Seconds
Date Opponent Score Player/Score Time
11/26/05 Dayton W 91-90* Funk FG :5.7
01/28/06 Wichita St. W 57-55 Tolliver FG :0.0
11/25/06 George Mason W 58-56 Watts FT :7.5
03/18/08 Rhode Island W 74-73 Witter 3FG :3.2
01/13/10 Southern Illinois W 71-69 Young FG :1.3
02/18/12 Long Beach St. W 81-79 Young FG :0.3
01/28/14 St. John's W 63-60 McDermott 3FG :2.8
01/18/20 Providence W 78-74 Zegarowski 3FG :3.2
*double-overtime
Opponent Go-Ahead Scores in CU Losses at
CHI Health Center Omaha, Last 10 Seconds
Date Opponent Score Player/Score Time
03/20/06 Miami (Fla.) L 53-52 G. Diaz FT :2.6
01/20/07 Southern Illinois L 58-57 B. Mullins FG :4.1
01/10/15 #19 Seton Hall L 68-67 S. Gibbs 3FG :2.2
02/16/15 #19 Butler L 58-56 R. Jones FG :1.9
03/07/15 Xavier L 74-73 D. Davis FT's :6.3
01/12/16 #12 Providence L 50-48 K. Dunn FG :0.0
02/22/17 Providence L 68-66 K. Cartwright 3FG :2.4
02/10/18 #5 Xavier L 71-72 Q. Goodin FT's :0.3
Top-20 Crowds
Here's a look at Creighton's top-20 home crowds all-time.
Rank Att. Opponent Date
1. 18,868 Providence 03/08/14
2. 18,859 Georgetown 01/25/14
3. 18,831 #1 Villanova 12/31/16
4. 18,797 #6 Villanova 02/16/14
5. 18,759 #1 Gonzaga 12/01/18
6. 18,742 Seton Hall 02/23/14
7. 18,735 Wichita State 02/11/12
8. 18,613 Wichita State 03/02/13
9. 18,525 Marquette 12/31/13
10. 18,519 Seton Hall 03/07/20
11. 18,518 Georgetown 01/27/18
12. 18,495 Marquette 02/17/18
13. 18,494 Illinois State 02/09/13
14. 18,458 Evansville 12/29/12
15. 18,436 Bradley 01/28/12
16. 18,323 DePaul 02/07/14
17. 18,321 #3 Villanova 02/24/18
18. 18,257 #5 Xavier 02/10/18
19. 18,191 DePaul 02/27/18
20. 18,160 Central Arkansas 11/14/14
Firing On All Cylinders
Creighton continued to be highly regarded by KenPom.com, and finished last season 22nd. That includes the nation's No. 25 offense, and No. 32 defense.
Creighton had not finished with a top-35 defense since 2006-07, and has not finished better than 30th since 2001-02.
Last season was the sixth different time in the last 10 seasons that Creighton has had a top-25 offense per KenPom.
Year Off. Rating Def. Rating Team W-L
2010-11 66 174 23-16
2011-12 5 166 29-6
2012-13 5 66 28-8
2013-14 2 124 27-8
2014-15 59 138 14-19
2015-16 43 76 20-15
2016-17 32 46 25-10
2017-18 25 58 21-12
2018-19 47 83 20-15
2019-20 3 78 24-7
2020-21 25 32 22-9
CHI Health Center Omaha Success
Creighton has played 309 regular and postseason contests at CHI Health Center Omaha all-time in the 19-year-old facility.
The Bluejays own a 255-54 (.825) record all-time at the facility, and have never lost there on a Friday (21-0).
Creighton's Nov. 25, 2017 win over SIU Edwardsville was the program's 200th at the facility, coming in its 242nd home game. CU's 100th win came on Nov. 17, 2010, a 63-58 win over Louisiana.
Creighton has outscored its opponents 24,274-20,321 in games at CHI Health Center Omaha, an average margin of 12.79 points per game. Creighton has not trailed 85 different times.
Creighton is also 30-33 all-time in the 63 games at the arena in which it's fallen behind by double-figures at any point, 7-11 when down by 10+ points at halftime in the facility, and 36-27 when trailing at halftime at CHI Health Center Omaha.
Creighton is 158-36 (.814) at CHI Health Center Omaha since 2010-11 and hasn't trailed in 60 of those games. In that same span, CU owns an 88-6 home record vs. non-conference teams.
Factor in a 17-0 home mark at the Omaha Civic Auditorium in 2002-03 and two wins at the Civic in the 2010 CIT, and the Bluejays are 274-54 (.835) at home since the start of the 2002-03 campaign.
Home Run
Since the start of the 2010-11 season, Creighton is averaging 81.34 points per home game (15,780 points in 194 home games), a figure that climbs to 85.19 points in non-conference home games (8,008 points in 94 home games).
Creighton is 123-6 all-time at CHI Health Center Omaha when scoring 80 or points.
Ticket Information
Single-game tickets for the 2021-22 season went on sale on October 18th.
Fans can purchase single-game tickets at CHI Health Center Omaha Box Office, Ryan Athletic Center, by calling Ticketmaster or visiting Ticketmaster.com, and charging by phone at (800) 745-3000.
For more information, call the Creighton Ticket Office at (402) 280-JAYS.
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/ Men's BasketballCreighton Men's Basketball vs. Xavier Press Conference - 1/20/26
Wednesday, January 21
Creighton Men's Basketball Media Availability - 1/20/26
Tuesday, January 20
Creighton Men's Basketball vs. Georgetown Press Conference - 1/13/26
Tuesday, January 13
Creighton Men's Basketball vs. St. John's Press Conference - 1/10/26
Friday, January 09
