Saturday, March 20
Indianapolis, Ind. (Lucas Oil Stadium)
2:30 PM
Creighton University
vs
UC Santa Barbara
First Team All-BIG EAST guard Marcus Zegarowski leads Creighton's return to the NCAA Tournament
Photo by: Porter Binks
Men's Basketball Ready For NCAA Tournament Opener vs. UC Santa Barbara
3/16/2021 11:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Bluejays and Gauchos have not met since 1976
Game #29: UC Santa Barbara vs. #19 Creighton • Saturday, March 20, 2021 • 2:30 p.m. CST
UC Santa Barbara Gauchos vs. #19 Creighton Bluejays
Lucas Oil Stadium • Indianapolis, Ind.
Radio: KOZN 1620 AM (John Bishop, Nick Bahe)
Westwood One Sports/SiriusXM: Sirius 135; XM 202 (Jason Benetti, Robbie Hummel)
Television: truTV (Lisa Byington, Steve Smith, Lauren Shehadi)
Series History vs. UCSB: Series tied, 1-1
Last Meeting: UC Santa Barbara 83, Creighton 81 on Jan. 1, 1976 in Santa Barbara, Calif.
CU NOTES PDF | UCSB NOTES | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | DIGITAL PROGRAM
Next Game
Fifth-seeded Creighton (20-8, 14-6 BIG EAST) heads to Indianapolis, Ind., as it returns to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018.
The Bluejays will open the event on Saturday, March 20th against 12th-seeded UC Santa Barbara (22-4, 13-3 Big West).
Tip-off at Lucas Oil Stadium is set for 2:30 p.m. Central. The game will take place on the "Unity" court on the south end of the facility.
The winner of the Creighton/UC Santa Barbara game will meet the Virginia/Ohio winner on Monday at a time, venue and network to be determined late on Saturday night.
Radio Broadcast Information
KOZN (1620 AM) will broadcast all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2020-21 season. KOOO (101.9 FM) will also broadcast all home games that start after 5 p.m.
John Bishop will call the action with Nick Bahe.
Westwood One Sports will also air the game nationwide outside the Omaha market, with Jason Benetti and Robbie Hummel on the call. The game can be heard on Sirius channel 135 and XM channel 202.
Only the Westwood One feed will be available over the internet and other mobile devices. Games can be heard by locating the audio by game at http://ncaa.com/marchmadnesslive. A listing of Westwood One affiliates can be found at http://westwoodonesports.com/stations,
Television Broadcast Information
Saturday's game will be televised nationally on truTV, with Lisa Byington, Steve Smith and Lauren Shehadi on the broadcast.
Of Creighton's last 159 games, all but the three contests at the 2018 Cayman Islands Classic have been televised. CU is 107-52 in those contests.
Video Webcast Information
Live streaming video of all NCAA Tournament games will be available at http://www.ncaa.com/marchmadnesslive.
Scouting No. 19 Creighton
Creighton is 20-8 overall and ranked 19th nationally after finishing as the runner-up in the BIG EAST in both the regular-season and the conference tournament. CU's 14 league wins were three more than any other school, but the Bluejays settled for the second seed because Villanova owned a better winning percentage.
The Bluejays return four starters and five of its top six scorers from last season's team that finished 24-7 and won a share of its first BIG EAST regular-season title. CU's 2019-20 team was ranked No. 7 in the year-end Associated Press poll.
For the first time in program history, three Bluejays were named to the All-BIG EAST team in the same season.
Junior point guard Marcus Zegarowski (15.5 ppg., 4.3 apg.) was an All-American last year and Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year. He was named First Team All-BIG EAST and also chosen to the All-Tournament Team at the BIG EAST Tournament.
Senior wing Denzel Mahoney (12.5 ppg.) won the BIG EAST's Sixth Man Award last season and brought home Honorable Mention All-BIG EAST acclaim. Mahoney owns five more steals (39) than fellow senior Damien Jefferson (12.1 ppg., 5.5 rpg.), who was a Second Team All-BIG EAST choice.
Not to be forgotten are junior forward Christian Bishop (10.8 ppg., 5.9 rpg.) and Mitch Ballock (10.2 ppg.). Bishop leads the BIG EAST in field goal percentage (.672), while Ballock tops the league with 72 three-pointers made.
Creighton leads the BIG EAST in scoring margin (+8.7), three-point percentage (.367), three-pointers made per game (9.71), field goal percentage (.476), field goal percentage defense (.406).
Scouting UC Santa Barbara
The regular-season champ in the Big West Conference, UC Santa Barbara is 22-4 on the season and earned the automatic bid by also winning its league tournament.
JaQuori McLaughlin (16.2 ppg.) leads the team in scoring and assists (5.2) per game, while Amadou Sow (13.7 ppg., 7.6 rpg.) provides a post presence inside.
UCSB averages 76.5 points per game and holds teams to 62.8 per contest.
This will be the first NCAA Tournament appearance for the Gauchos since 2011.
The Series With UC Santa Barbara
Creighton and UC Santa Barbara have split two meetings, with the home team winning each time.
Creighton won 72-61 on Feb. 9, 1975 in Omaha behind 22 points from Charles Butler. Don Ford led the Gauchos with 21 points.
UCSB evened the series with an 83-81 win in Santa Barbara on Jan. 2, 1976. The Gauchos led 25-9 to start the game and were up 54-37 with 16:44 remaining before a frantic rally. Trailing 79-77 with 1:07 left, CU missed two free throws and got no closer. John Service led UCSB with 26 points and Creighton was paced by 25 points from Robert Scrutchens and 24 more by Rick Apke.
Greg McDermott has never coached against UCSB. He is 5-1 in his career against the teams currently in the Big West, including a 3-0 mark as Creighton coach.
The Creighton Coaches
Greg McDermott (Northern Iowa, 1988) owns a 250-124 record in his 11th season with the Bluejays. He owns a career mark of 530-319 in 27 seasons, and is 399-255 in his 20th Division I campaign.
McDermott led Creighton to its first BIG EAST regular-season title last season, taking a Bluejay team that was picked seventh in the league's preseason poll and ending the year ranked seventh nationally. For those efforts, he was recognized as the BIG EAST Coach of the Year as well as the USBWA District VI Coach of the Year, NABC District 5 Coach of the Year and Basketball Times Midlands District Coach of the Year.
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, Paul Lusk and Terrence Rencher.
About Creighton
Creighton is a private, Jesuit institution located in Omaha, Neb., with 8,770 students. The University was founded in 1878 by Mary Lucretia Creighton, who established it in memory of her husband, telegraph pioneer Edward Creighton.
Prominent alumni include Bob Gibson (Hall of Fame pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals), Paul Silas (former NBA player and head coach), Kyle Korver (former NBA player), Doug McDermott (Indiana Pacers), Pat Venditte (ambidextrous baseball pitcher and MLB veteran) and J. Joseph Ricketts (Chicago Cubs owner and founder of TD Ameritrade),
Creighton picked up the Bluejays moniker in 1924 after a newspaper coordinated a public contest to select a nickname and mascot.
Creighton officially joined the BIG EAST on July 1, 2013.
With A Win...
• Creighton would improve to 21-8 on the season, increasing its BIG EAST-leading win total.
• Improve Creighton to 13-22 all-time in the NCAA Tournament with its first NCAA Tournament victory since 2014.
• Creighton would win for the 14th time in a row in the game immediately following a loss of 20 or more points.
• Would give Greg McDermott his 400th career Division I win (251 at Creighton, 59 at Iowa State, 90 at Northern Iowa).
• Greg McDermott would improve to 4-5 as Creighton's head coach in the NCAA Tournament, breaking a tie with John "Red" McManus for most NCAA Tournament wins in program history.
• Creighton would improve to 141-54 all-time as a nationally-ranked team.
• Advance Creighton to Monday's Second Round game vs. either Virginia or Ohio. Creighton has never played Virginia and beat Ohio 57-55 in 1962 in the only previous meeting vs. the Bobcats.
Story Lines
There's numerous story lines as it relates to Creighton's trip to Indianapolis.
Creighton's roster boasts one player from the state of Indiana, as senior forward Damien Jefferson is from East Chicago, Ind.
Australian native Jacob Epperson finished high school at La Lumiere in La Porte, Ind. Assistant coach Alan Huss is a former head coach at La Lumiere, though he did not overlap with Epperson.
Assistant coach Paul Lusk served as an assistant coach at Purdue from 2004-11.
Former National Player of the Year Doug McDermott plays for the Indiana Pacers. He played under his father, Greg McDermott, who remains the head coach at Creighton.
Creighton has never played an NCAA Tournament game in the state of Indiana.
Common Opponents
Creighton and UC Santa Barbara do not share any common opponents this season.
Postseason Wins In 9 of Last 11 Appearances
Creighton has won at least one game in nine of its last 11 postseason appearances. The streak began in 2008.
Creighton's Last 12 Postseason Appearances
Year Tournament First Game
2006-07 NCAA Lost to Nevada, 77-71 (OT)
2007-08 NIT Beat Rhode Island, 74-73
2008-09 NIT Beat Bowling Green, 73-71
2009-10 CIT Beat South Dakota, 89-78
2010-11 CBI Beat San Jose State, 85-74
2011-12 NCAA Beat Alabama, 58-57
2012-13 NCAA Beat Cincinnati, 67-63
2013-14 NCAA Beat Louisiana, 76-66
2015-16 NIT Beat Alabama, 72-54
2016-17 NCAA Lost to Rhode Island, 84-72
2017-18 NCAA Lost to Kansas State, 69-59
2018-19 NIT Beat Loyola (Chicago), 70-61
NCAA Tournament History
Creighton is making its 22nd NCAA Tournament appearance, and 13th in the last 23 years. The Bluejays are 12-22 all-time in NCAA action, including a 9-12 record in its first game.
Creighton's last NCAA Tournament game came in 2018, when the Bluejays lost to Kansas State.
Creighton's last NCAA Tournament win came in 2014, when the Bluejays topped Louisiana.
Creighton owns a 3-4 record all-time in the West Region. The Bluejays were 1-1 in 2014 (beat Louisiana; lost to Baylor), 0-1 in 2003 (losing to Central Michigan), 1-1 in 1991 (beating New Mexico State, losing to Seton Hall) and 1-1 in 1941 (losing to Washington State, beating Wyoming).
In 33 previous NCAA or NIT appearances, Creighton has won consecutive games in the same event just twice, with that happening in the 2016 and 2019 NIT's.
CU has not reached the Round of 16 or beyond since 1974, when the tournament was 25 teams and CU won its first game before losing by one point to Kansas.
Creighton has now had at least one sport reach the NCAA Tournament in each of the last 34 academic calendar years.
Including the NCAA's, NIT, CBI and CIT, Creighton will be making its 22nd postseason appearance in the last 24 seasons on Friday. Last year's team was one of those exceptions, but was likely headed for a 2 or 3 seed in the NCAA's before COVID-19 canceled the event.
Merfeld's One Shining Moment Turns 20
Currently an assistant to the head coach at Creighton, Steve Merfeld coached one of the biggest upsets in NCAA Tournament history when his 15th-seeded Hampton team defeated second-seeded Iowa State, 58-57, in Boise, Idaho, in 2001.
Merfeld's team closed the game on a 14-2 run, capped by a Travis Williams basket with 6.9 seconds left. ISU All-American Jamaal Tinsley's coast-to-coast lay-up attempt rolled out as time expired.
As the final horn sounded, Merfeld raced across the court from his bench area to the other side, where he was picked up by forward David Johnson in an enduring image as Merfeld kicked his feet in jubilation.
That video clip is still shown annually in March Madness intros and highlights worldwide.
Coaching Experience In The Dance
Creighton's full-time coaching staff boasts a combined 37 Division I NCAA Tournament games under their collective belts as either a player (3-9), assistant coach (7-7) or head coach (3-8), winning 13 of those games.
Greg McDermott is 3-8 in NCAA Tournament action as a Division head coach. He went 0-3 at Northern Iowa (0-1 in 2004, 2005 and 2006) and is 3-5 at Creighton (1-1 in 2012, 2013 and 2014 and 0-1 in 2017 and 2018).
Alan Huss is 1-4 in NCAA Tournament action, going three times as a player at Creighton (1-1 in 1999 and 0-1 in both 2000 and 2001). He is also 0-1 as an assistant coach thanks to a 2018 Creighton loss.
Paul Lusk owns a 7-9 record in NCAA Tournament action. He was an assistant coach at Purdue from 2004-11 and the Boilermakers made five straight NCAA trips from 2007-11. Purdue went 1-1 in 2007, 2008 and 2011 and 2-1 in 2009 and 2010. He was also an assistant at Southern Illinois in the 2004 NCAA Tournament, where the Salukis went 0-1. As a player, Lusk appeared in three NCAA Tournaments while with Southern Illinois, losing his first game in 1993, 1994 and 1995. He averaged 11.7 points and 3.0 rebounds per game.
Terrence Rencher went 2-3 as a player at Texas in the NCAA Tournament, going 0-1 in 1992 and 1-1 in 1994 and 1995. In five games as a player, Rencher averaged 18.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.4 assists. This will be his first NCAA Tournament game as an assistant coach.
NCAA Experience
Four players on the Creighton team have been a part of an NCAA Tournament squad before, and two of them have appeared for the Bluejays in the Big Dance.
Mitch Ballock played 32 minutes in Creighton's 2018 loss to Kansas State. He scored 16 points, becoming CU's first freshman to lead his team in scoring in his NCAA Tournament debut since Kevin McKenna in 1977.
Jacob Epperson played 16 minutes in Creighton's 2018 loss to Kansas State, scoring two points and adding one rebound and one blocked shot.
Damien Jefferson redshirted on Creighton's 2017-18 team and was not allowed to travel to Charlotte per NCAA policy regarding transfers at the time.
Alex O'Connell played in seven NCAA Tournament games at Duke, including a pair of starts, as the Blue Devils went 5-2 in those contests. Duke also won one other game in which he didn't appear in. The Blue Devils reached the Elite Eight in both seasons. He averaged 1.6 points and 1.6 rebounds in those games and started Duke's Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games in 2019 in place of an injured Cam Reddish.
NCAA Jays
In addition to Creighton's current roster, there's at least six others with ties to the program who are involved in this year's NCAA Tournament.
Loyola (Chicago) head coach Porter Moser played at Creighton from 1986-90, appearing in the 1989 NCAA Tournament with the Bluejays.
Wichita State assistant coach Billy Kennedy is a former Creighton assistant coach from 1991-93.
Darian DeVries is now the head coach at Drake. He was Creighton's graduate manager from 1998-01 and Bluejay assistant coach from 2001-18.
Former Creighton assistant coach Steve Lutz (2010-17) is now an assistant coach at Purdue.
Oregon head coach Dana Altman coached at Creighton from 1994-2010.
Oregon assistant coach Kevin McKenna played at Creighton from 1977-81 and was an assistant coach from 1994-2001 and again from 2005-07.
Against NCAA Tournament Opponents
Creighton went 5-4 against teams that made the 2021 NCAA Tournament. The Jays were 3-0 against UConn, 1-1 vs. Villanova, 1-2 vs. Georgetown and 0-1 against Kansas.
All five Creighton starers averaged in double-figures during those games, a group led by Marcus Zegarowski (14.4 ppg., 3.9 apg.). Mitch Ballock made 27 three-pointers in those nine games, and Christian Bishop hauled in a team-leading 7.0 rebounds per game.
CU held opponents to 39.3 percent shooting from the field, and 33.3 percent marksmanship from three-point territory. The Bluejays were outscored 618-617 in the nine games.
History As A No. 5 Seed
Creighton is a No. 5 seed for the first time. It is Creighton's second-best seed slot since the NCAA began seeding all the teams in 1979, trailing only CU's No. 3 seed in 2014. This is also the sixth straight NCAA berth that will see the Bluejays as a better seed and in its "home whites" for its initial NCAA Tournament game.
Creighton and Villanova this year are the 17th and 18th BIG EAST teams to ever earn a No. 5 seed, after just one team since 2012 (Marquette in 2019). The previous 16 teams went 15-16. The only three BIG EAST teams to reach the Regional semifinals as a fifth seed are Syracuse (2004), Notre Dame (2003) and Syracuse (1998). Four teams went winless and nine other squads were exactly 1-1.
Since 1985, No. 5 seeds are 90-50 (.643) against No. 12 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, including a 25-15 mark (.600) since 2011. In 30 of the last 35 years, the 12 seed has won at least one first round game. The only exceptions came in 1988, 2000, 2007, 2015 and 2018.
Since 1985, 47 No. 5 seeds have advanced to the Sweet 16, and seven have reached the Final Four, including Auburn in 2019.
Creighton's NCAA Tourney Seeds
(since seeding began in 1979)
Year Seed Record
1981 8th 0-1
1989 14th 0-1
1991 11th 1-1
1999 10th 1-1
2000 10th 0-1
2001 10th 0-1
2002 12th 1-1
2003 6th 0-1
2005 10th 0-1
2007 10th 0-1
2012 8th 1-1
2013 7th 1-1
2014 3rd 2-1
2017 6th 0-1
2018 8th 0-1
2021 5th ? ? ?
BIG EAST Success
Creighton was one of four BIG EAST teams to make the NCAA Tournament this season, down from six clubs in 2019 and seven programs in 2018.
The BIG EAST has had a Sweet 16 squad in 24 of the past 26 tournaments, and multiple Sweet 16 teams in 13 of the last 18 tournaments.
Even when you remove Louisville's 2013 title, the BIG EAST Conference has won a combined 14 NCAA men's and women's basketball titles in the previous 20 tournaments.
McDermott In The Postseason
Creighton coach Greg McDermott is making his ninth postseason appearance at Creighton, and 12th overall as a Division I head coach when you include his time at Northern Iowa.
McDermott's Division I teams own an 11-12 record in 11 previous postseason appearances, including a 11-9 mark in eight previous appearances at Creighton.
McDermott's Division I Postseason Appearances
Year (School) Tourney Postseason W-L
2003-04 (UNI) NCAA 0-1
2004-05 (UNI) NCAA 0-1
2005-06 (UNI) NCAA 0-1
2010-11 (CU) CBI 4-2
2011-12 (CU) NCAA 1-1
2012-13 (CU) NCAA 1-1
2013-14 (CU) NCAA 1-1
2015-16 (CU) NIT 2-1
2016-17 (CU) NCAA 0-1
2017-18 (CU) NCAA 0-1
2018-19 (CU) NIT 2-1
2020-21 (CU) NCAA ? ? ?
Most Postseason Bids By CU Coaches
This year's bid to the NCAA is the ninth postseason bid for Greg McDermott at Creighton. Only Dana Altman (13) has taken the Bluejays to more postseason appearances in men's basketball.
McDermott's three NCAA Tournament wins tie a school record, also held by John J. "Red" McManus.
McDermott's six NCAA Tournament trips are second-most in program history as well, trailing only Altman's seven.
McDermott's 11 postseason wins at Creighton are the most in school history, four more than Altman's seven.
McDermott (11-8) is one of two coaches in program history with a winning record in postseason play, joining Eddie Sutton (2-1).
Coach (Bids) NCAA NIT CBI CIT NCIT Total
Hickey (3) 1-1 2-2 0-0 0-0 0-0 3-3
Belford (1) 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-1 0-1
McManus (3) 3-3 0-0 0-0 0-0 1-1 4-4
Sutton (1) 2-1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 2-1
Apke (4) 0-3 0-1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-4
Barone (3) 1-2 0-1 0-0 0-0 0-0 1-3
Altman (13) 2-7 3-5 0-0 2-1 0-0 7-13
McDermott (9*) 3-5 4-2 4-2 0-0 0-0 11-8
*The 2021 NCAA Tournament is McDermott's 9th appearance
NBA or NFL For NCAA's
Each of Creighton's four most recent NCAA Tournament appearances had been played inside NBA arenas (2013-Philadelphia; 2014-San Antonio; 2017-Sacramento; 2018-Charlotte).
This year, Creighton's first game will take place inside an NFL venue and the Indianapolis Colts facility of Lucas Oil Stadium.
It'll be Creighton's second NCAA Tournament trip to a domed facility, as CU's 2000 squad played at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis.
Creighton's last game it has played inside a domed facility came on Jan. 11, 2006, when Creighton played beat Northern Iowa 55-52 at the UNI-Dome. Northern Iowa's head coach that day was none other than current CU head coach Greg McDermott.
And when it comes to playing in a cavernous dome or stadium, no Bluejay has more experience than Alex O'Connell. While playing at Duke the previous three seasons, O'Connell had a career-high 20 points as a sophomore at Syracuse's Carrier Dome, then had 11 points in 15 minutes as a junior at Syracuse.
Super Six
Greg McDermott will join some select company when he directs his troops to a sixth NCAA Tournament this weekend. That puts him in the company of some of the greatest coaches in CU Athletics history.
McDermott is one of six head coaches in Creighton history to lead six different NCAA Tournament teams.
Name Sport NCAA's @CU
Bob Warming Men's Soccer 11
Kirsten Bernthal Booth Volleyball 9
Dana Altman Men's Basketball 7
Brent Vigness Softball 7
Elmar Bolowich Men's Soccer 6
Greg McDermott Men's Basketball 6
Milestone Watch
• A few approaching milestones...
Mitch Ballock
• Is one start shy of making his 100th career start, and 100th consecutive start.
• Is 11 points shy of tying Marcus Foster (1,292) for 21st in CU history and 22 points shy of tying Elton Tuttle (1,303) for 20th in CU history.
Greg McDermott
• Is one win shy of 400 in his Division I career (251 at Creighton, 59 at Iowa State, 90 at Northern Iowa).
• Is one win shy of his fourth NCAA Tournament win on the Creighton sideline, which would break a tie with John J. "Red" McManus.
Marcus Zegarowski
• Is three steals shy of 100.
• Is one three-pointer of tying Jahenns Manigat for eighth in CU history with 206 career three-pointers, five behind Ty-Shon Alexander (210) for seventh and seven behind Rodney Buford (212) for sixth place.
• Is one point shy of tying Ben Walker (1,238) for 27th in CU history, four shy of tying Ty-Shon Alexander (1,241) for 26th, 17 shy of Gary Swain (1,254) for 25th place and 35 points shy of tying legendary two-sport star Bob Gibson for 23rd in CU history.
Twenty Wins, Again
Creighton has 20 wins this season, its sixth consecutive campaign with 20 or more victories.
Only 21 teams have won 20 games or more in each of the previous five seasons: Belmont, Cincinnati, Creighton, Duke, East Tennessee State, Florida State, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, Michigan State, New Mexico State, Oregon, Saint Mary's, Seton Hall, Vermont, Villanova, Virginia, Wichita State and Wright State.
Of those 21 teams, the only 14 programs to do it without a coaching change are: Creighton, Duke, Florida State, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State, Oregon, Saint Mary's, Seton Hall, Vermont, Villanova and Virginia.
21 of 23 Seasons With 20 Wins
Creighton has won 20 or more games in 21 of the last 23 seasons (including 2020-21), 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, and Florida 20 times so far and in need of a national title to make reach 20 wins this year.
Most 20-Win Seasons, Last 23 Years (Includes 2020-21)
Team 20-Win Seasons 2020-21 W-L* Next Game
Gonzaga 23 26-0 3/20
Kansas 23 20-8 3/20
Duke 22 13-11 Season Over
Creighton 21 20-8 3/20
Kentucky 21 9-16 Season Over
Florida 20 14-9 3/19
*after games of March 18, 2021
Zegarowski Goes Streaking
Marcus Zegarowski has made a three-pointer in each of his last 20 games, a streak that started on Dec. 17th. That's the 10th-longest streak in program history, as seen below.
Streak Name Dates of Streak
33 Ty-Shon Alexander Feb. 27, 2018-March 6, 2019
31 Booker Woodfox Nov. 25, 2008-March 23, 2009
28 Kyle Korver Feb. 4, 2001-Feb. 6, 2002
27 Kyle Korver Feb. 13, 2002-Jan. 20, 2003
25 Rodney Buford Jan. 25, 1997-Jan. 10, 1998
23 Ethan Wragge Nov. 8, 2013-Feb. 9, 2014
23 Mitch Ballock Nov. 12, 2019-Feb. 8, 2020
22 Khyri Thomas Jan. 28-Dec. 5, 2017
21 Ethan Wragge Jan. 3-March 24, 2010
20 Johnny Mathies Dec. 22, 2004-Feb. 28, 2005
20 Marcus Foster Dec. 31, 2017-March 16, 2018
20 Marcus Zegarowski Dec. 17, 2020 - Present
Bouncing Back
Creighton doesn't lose many games by 20 or more points, as it did last Saturday vs. Georgetown. However, each of the previous 13 times it has happened, Creighton has answered with a victory in its next game.
Creighton's Losses by 20+ Points Since 2000
Date Loss by 20+ Points Next Game Result
03/07/08 Illinois State 73, CU 49 03/18/09 CU 73, Bowling Green 71
02/11/12 Wichita State 89, #17 CU 68 02/14/12 CU 88, Southern Illinois 69
03/23/14 #23 Baylor 85, #16 CU 55 11/14/14 CU 104, Central Arkansas 77
01/25/15 #4 Villanova 71, CU 50 01/28/15 CU 77, St. John's 74
01/31/15 #21 Georgetown 67, CU 40 02/04/15 CU 79, Xavier 72 (OT)
11/19/15 #14 Indiana 86, CU 65 11/23/15 CU 85, Rutgers 75
02/03/16 #3 Villanova 83, CU 58 02/06/16 CU 88, DePaul 66
01/25/17 Georgetown 71, #16 CU 51 01/28/17 #16 CU 83, DePaul 66
01/13/18 #10 Xavier 92, #25 CU 70 01/17/18 CU 80, #19 Seton Hall 63
02/01/18 #1 Villanova 98, CU 78 02/07/18 CU 76, DePaul 75
02/20/18 Butler 93, CU 70 02/24/18 CU 89, #3 Villanova 83 (OT)
11/28/19 San Diego State 83, CU 52 11/29/19 CU 83, #12 Texas Tech 76 (OT)
03/01/20 St. John's 91, #10 CU 71 03/04/20 #11 CU 91, Georgetown 76
03/13/21 Georgetown 73, CU 48 03/20/21 #17 CU vs. UC Santa Barbara
History on truTV
Saturday will mark Creighton's third game ever played on truTV. Creighton's victory vs. Louisiana in 2014 remains Creighton's most recent NCAA Tournament victory.
Two days later, CU lost on truTV to Baylor.
Bluejays vs. Gauchos In the Postseason
Saturday won't the first time that Creighton has faced off vs. UC Santa Barbara in the postseason.
In 2011, Creighton men's soccer defeated UCSB, 2-1 in the Round of 16. That Bluejay squad would eventually reached the College Cup, which is soccer's equivalent to the Final Four.
You Can't Spell Marcus Without March
Marcus Zegarowski was named to BIG EAST's All-Tournament Team last weekend after averaging 16.0 points,, 4.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds as Creighton reached the final.
He shot 62.5 percent from the floor (20-32) and 61.5 percent from deep (8-13).
Zegarowski is the fourth Bluejay ever named to the BIG EAST's All-Tournament Team, joining Doug McDermott (2014), Austin Chatman (2014) and Marcus Foster (2017).
Postseason Features Last-Second Drama
Eleven of Creighton's last 16 postseason runs (all but 2010, 2014 and 2016, 2017 and 2019) have included a game that was decided in the final seconds, but it hasn't happened since 2013.
In fact, Creighton's past 16 postseason openers have been decided by an average of 6.69 points and feature four games decided by one point (including a double-OT finish), two by two points, one game by four points, two by six points (including an OT finish), two games by 10 points, three games by 11 points one by 12 points, and one decided by 18 points.
In 2013 Cincinnati missed a game-tying three-pointer in the final 20 seconds and Creighton guard Austin Chatman made 3-of-4 free throws down the stretch to hold on to a 67-63 win.
In 2012 Creighton edged Alabama in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, 58-57, as Trevor Releford's game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer came up short.
Creighton's 2010-11 campaign ended in heartbreaking fashion in the CBI title game at Oregon. Creighton had the ball in a tie game with the shot clock off, but committed a backcourt violation on Oregon's "unique" floor. The Ducks' E.J. Singler then banked in a game-winning shot with 2.0 seconds left. A desperation three-pointer by Creighton was off the mark.
In 2009, Creighton rallied from a 14-point deficit and would hang on to beat Bowling Green, 73-71 in the first round of the NIT. The Jays needed a last-second defensive stand, as BGSU's Darryl Clements' game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer was off the mark.
The following game, Creighton led Kentucky by one with 36 seconds left, only to miss two free throws and see UK All-American Jodie Meeks convert a three-point play. CU's Booker Woodfox, the nation's No. 2 three-point shooter, missed an open trey as time expired, and Creighton lost 65-63.
In 2008, Creighton rallied from a 12-point deficit in the final 3:07 to top Rhode Island, 74-73, in the first round of the NIT. Cavel Witter hit the game-winner with 3.2 seconds left to give CU its first lead of the game since 3-0.
In 2007, Creighton had the ball for a final shot in a tie game against Nevada in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Nate Funk's shot attempt missed, and a tip-in try was also not converted. The Jays would eventually lose 77-71 in overtime.
In second round of the 2006 NIT, Miami (Fla.) guard Guilermo Diaz drained a free throw with 2.6 seconds left to beat Creighton 53-52. A last-second shot attempt by Bluejay senior Johnny Mathies was knocked out of his hands.
In the 2005 NCAA Tourney, Nate Funk had his three-point try with seven seconds left blocked by Tyrone Sally, and Sally raced downcourt for a breakaway dunk with 2.4 seconds left to give West Virginia a 63-61 win. Funk's three-point try from the corner missed at the buzzer.
In 2004, Creighton fell 71-70 to Nebraska in the NIT. The Jays led nearly the entire second half before NU's go-ahead basket with 12 seconds left. Nate Funk's game-winning jumper from 18-feet away was blocked by Husker guard Jake Muhleisen.
In 2003 Creighton lost 79-73 to Central Michigan in the NCAA's. The Jays trailed 50-24 with 16:24 left but a furious rally got them within two points (72-70) with 1:20 left, only to turn it over the next three possessions.
In the 2002 NCAA's, Creighton beat #15 Florida, 83-82, in Chicago. Terrell Taylor hit a game-winning trey with 0.2 seconds left in double-overtime, his final three of 28 points after a scoreless first half.
All-BIG EAST Trio
Creighton's Marcus Zegarowski (First Team), Damien Jefferson (Second Team) and Denzel Mahoney (Honorable Mention) each picked up All-BIG EAST recognition in a vote of league coaches
This year marks the first time that Creighton had three players named All-BIG EAST in the same season.
In addition, Mitch Ballock brought home the league's Sportsmanship Award.
Only In 2020-21
Though Creighton's 14 BIG EAST wins were three more than any other team in the BIG EAST, the Bluejays were the second seed in this week's conference tournament since the league decided before the year to go by winning percentage to determine a league champion and seeds.
The BIG EAST isn't alone in this. It's one of eight leagues that saw the top team in winning percentage not be the same team that had the most conference wins.
Wins Leader Not League Champ, Nationally
League Wins Leader Conf Champ
American Houston, 14-3 Wichita St., 11-2
BIG EAST Creighton, 14-6 Villanova, 11-4
Big 10 Illinois, 16-4 Michigan, 14-3
Conf-USA UAB, 13-5 Louisiana Tech, 12-4
MEAC Norfolk St., 8-4 North Carolina A&T, 7-1
Coppin State, 8-4
MWC Utah State, 15-4 San Diego St., 14-3
Pac-12 USC, 15-5 Oregon, 14-4
Summit South Dakota, 11-4 South Dakota St., 9-3
N. Dakota St., 11-4
Ballock Reaches 300 Treys
Mitch Ballock owns 304 three-pointers in his Bluejay career, including a season-high eight on Dec. 14 vs. Marquette. That puts him in third place in program history in that category, and ahead of Doug McDermott (274).
His 232 career treys entering the year were second-most in school history after a junior season, trailing only Kyle Korver (242).
Ballock ranked 19th nationally with 93 three-pointers made and 11th in three-point percentage (.435) last season.
Two of Ballock's teammates also have made 200 or more career triples. Marcus Zegarowski owns 205, while Denzel Mahoney owns 209 if you include the 121 he made at Southeast Missouri State.
Most Career 3FG, Creighton History
Rank 3FG Name Years
1. 371 Kyle Korver 1999-03
2. 334 Ethan Wragge 2009-14
3. 304 Mitch Ballock 2017-Pres.
4. 274 Doug McDermott 2010-14
5. 245 Ryan Sears 1997-01
6. 212 Rodney Buford 1995-99
7. 210 Ty-Shon Alexander 2017-20
8. 206 Jahenns Manigat 2010-14
9. 205 Marcus Zegarowski 2018-Pres.
10. 200 Nate Funk 2002-07
The Great Eight
Mitch Ballock made nine three-pointers in Creighton's first five games of the season before erupting on Dec. 14 vs. Marquette. The senior guard from Eudora, Kan., made 8-of-14 three-pointers en route to 26 points.
His eight trifectas were tied for fourth-most in a game in Bluejay history, but three behind his record 11 vs. DePaul on March 9, 2019.
Ballock joined Kyle Korver as the only players in school history with multiple games of eight or more triples.
In addition, Ballock's 14 three-point attempts were also tied for fourth-most in program history and one behind the program record.
Ballock made 182 career three-pointers in BIG EAST games, which ranks fifth all-time.
Ballock's 26 points were the most by a Bluejay in any conference opener since 2012, when Doug McDermott scored 29 points vs. Evansville. That came when CU belonged to the Missouri Valley Conference.
3-Pointers Made, Game, Creighton History
3FG Name, Opponent Date
11 Mitch Ballock vs. DePaul 03/09/19
9 Kyle Korver vs. Evansville 01/15/03
Ethan Wragge at Villanova 01/20/14
8 Tad Ackerman at Drake 01/23/95
Kyle Korver at Xavier 12/31/02
Terrell Taylor vs. Florida 03/15/02
Isaiah Zierden at DePaul 01/17/16
Mitch Ballock vs. Marquette 12/14/20
Most Career 3FG Made, BIG EAST Games Only
Rank 3FG Name, School
1. 245 Markus Howard, Marquette
2. 201 Jeremy Hazell, Seton Hall
3. 189 Colin Falls, Notre Dame
4. 183 Gerry McNamara, Syracuse
5. 182 Mitch Ballock, Creighton
6. 180 Myles Powell, Seton Hall
Three-Ballock, Corner Pocket
Mitch Ballock enters Saturday's game with 304 career three-pointers made, which ranks eighth nationally among active players.
He's the third Bluejay to make 300 or more trifectas, joining Kyle Korver (371) and Ethan Wragge (334) in that elite grouping. Ballock is the first of that trio to drain 300 three-pointers while also dishing 300 or more career assists (currently 338 and counting).
Korver reached 300 treys in his 108th game as a Bluejay, while Wragge achieved that milestone in his 134th career contest. It took Ballock 124 contests.
Inbounds, In Range
Mitch Ballock has frequently displayed his long-range marksmanship. Per research from WhiteAndBlueReview.com writer Matt DeMarinis using Synergy Sports database, Ballock has made 8-of-13 three-pointers this season taken from between 30-40 feet away.
Over the past two seasons, he's 13-of-26 from 30-40 feet away.
On Any Given Day
For the second consecutive season, Creighton beat every other team in the BIG EAST during the regular-season.
Creighton went 2-0 against four programs and 1-1 against six schools this season.
Creighton was the only BIG EAST team with a win over all other 10 teams in the league this year.
Up, Up, And Away
Since Feb. 19, 2019, Creighton owns a 32-11 mark in regular-season BIG EAST games. That's six more wins than anyone else in the league in that time.
Not only that, but Creighton owned the most wins to close the 2018-19 season after Feb. 19th, tied for the most wins in 2019-20, and has the most wins in 2020-21 as well.
Conference Records Since Feb. 19, 2019
Team After 2/19/19 '19-20 '20-21 Total
Creighton 5-0 13-5 14-6 32-11
Villanova 2-3 13-5 11-4 26-12
Seton Hall 2-3 13-5 10-9 25-17
Providence 3-2 12-6 9-10 24-18
UConn 2-4# 10-8# 11-6 23-18
Butler 1-4 10-8 8-12 19-24
Xavier 4-1 8-10 6-7 18-18
Marquette 2-4 8-10 8-11 18-25
Georgetown 4-2 5-13 7-9 16-24
St. John's 1-4 5-13 10-9 16-26
DePaul 2-3 3-15 2-13 7-31
#includes 2018-19 and 2019-20 in the AAC
Quad Squad
Creighton owns a 12-6 record against teams that are either Quad 1 (7-3) or Quad 2 (5-3) this season according to Monday morning's edition of the NET.
Creighton is one of 10 clubs nationwide with 12 or more victories against teams in the top two quadrants, joining Alabama (17-5), Illinois (17-6), Ohio State (15-9), Gonzaga (14-0), Michigan (14-4), Purdue (13-8), Iowa (13-8), Oklahoma State (12-6) and Arkansas (12-6).
Creighton's seven Quad 1 wins are tied for 10th-most nationally.
Creighton was 26th in the March 15th edition of the NET at the end of the regular-season.
Fool Me Once...But Eight Times?
Creighton has met or exceeded its preseason BIG EAST prognostication every year since joining the league, as seen below.
This year also marks the fifth straight season that Creighton has finished in first, second or a tie for third place.
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)
Up Is Down; Down Is Up
Creighton finished in second place in the BIG EAST standings with a 14-6 league record, trailing only Villanova's 11-4 mark. Though CU had three more wins, it has a worse winning percentage (.700) than Villanova (.733).
What's unusual is how Creighton got to that point. The Bluejays went 7-1 against the top five seeds in this year's BIG EAST Tournament, but 7-5 against the bottom six seeds.
Matching that trend, Creighton was 1-0 against top-five seeds during the BIG EAST Tournament, but 1-1 against teams seeded 6-11.
Fourteen Is Fine
Creighton won 14 conference games this season, tied for its most in any of its eight seasons in the BIG EAST (also 2013-14).
This year's squad is just the seventh team in Creighton history with 14 or more league victories. Six have won exactly 14 while the 2002-03 squad led by Kyle Korver finished 15-3 in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Creighton has now won 10 or more league games in 22 of the last 25 seasons.
.500 Or Better in League Play, Again
Creighton went 14-6 in league play, clinching a .500 mark or better in league play for the 26th time in the last 27 seasons.
The only BIG EAST teams to finish .500 or better in league play each of the last five seasons (including 2020-21) are Creighton, Villanova and Seton Hall.
Top 25 Success
Creighton had six wins over top-25 teams last season, breaking the school-record of four set in 2016-17 and 2017-18.
This year's team owns top-25 wins vs. No. 5 Villanova, No. 22 Xavier and No. 23 UConn. It marks the 10th Bluejay team in history with multiple top-25 victories, and sixth straight year that's happened.
On a national basis, the only 11 teams that have posted multiple top-25 wins in each of the last six seasons (including 2020-21) are Baylor, Creighton, Florida State, Gonzaga, Kansas, Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State, Purdue, Texas Tech, Villanova and West Virginia.
The following schools have had multiple top-25 wins each year from 2015-16 to 2019-20, but aren't yet there in 2020-21: Duke, Kentucky, Oregon, Seton Hall and Virginia.
Creighton's Most Top-25 Wins, Season
Wins Season Top-25 Victims
6 2019-20 #8 Villanova, #10 Seton Hall,
#12 Texas Tech, #19 Marquette,
#21 Butler, #8 Seton Hall
4 2016-17 #9 Wisconsin, #12 Butler,
#16 Butler, #22 Xavier
4 2017-18 #3 Villanova, #19 Seton Hall,
#20 Northwestern, #23 UCLA
3 2020-21 #5 Villanova, #22 Xavier, #23 UConn
2 1973-74 #6 Marquette, #16 Louisville
2 2001-02 #15 Florida, #17 Western Kentucky
2 2006-07 #11 Southern Illinois, #24 Xavier
2 2013-14 #4 Villanova, #6 Villanova
2 2015-16 #5 Xavier, #18 Butler
2 2018-19 #10 Marquette, #16 Clemson
On The Double
Marcus Zegarowski had his second career double-double on Feb. 27th when the junior point guard turned in 15 points and 10 assists against Xavier.
Zegarowski's only previous double-double came on Dec. 1 vs. Nebraska-Omaha, when he had 11 points and a career-best 11 assists.
Zegarowski is one of four Bluejays with a double-dip this season, as Christian Bishop (4), Damien Jefferson (2) and Denzel Mahoney (1) have also done it.
Winning On the Road
Creighton owns a 35-38 record in BIG EAST road games since the league's 2013-14 realignment. Those 35 victories trail only Villanova's 50.
Since the start of the 2018-19 campaign, Creighton's 16 BIG EAST road wins lead the league.
BIG EAST Road Records (through 2020-21)
Team Since 2013-14 Since 2018-19
Butler 28-45 7-21
Connecticut 5-4 5-4
Creighton 35-38 16-12
DePaul 13-57 5-20
Georgetown 23-47 8-17
Marquette 28-45 13-15
Providence 33-40 11-17
Seton Hall 32-41 14-14
St. John's 19-54 8-20
Villanova 50-20 14-11
Xavier 31-36 9-15
Road Warriors
Creighton went 7-3 in BIG EAST road games this season, tying a program record for most road wins in a league season.
Creighton, Baylor, Illinois, USC, Oregon and Alabama were the nation's only major conference (Power 5 or BIG EAST) teams with seven or more league road wins this season.
League Road After After After
Year Games 1-6 W-L 7 Road 8 Road 9 Road
2020-21 5-1 6-1 7-1 7-2
2019-20 3-3 4-3 5-3 5-4
2018-19 2-4 2-5 3-5 3-6
2017-18 2-4 3-4 3-5 3-6
2016-17 5-1 5-2 5-3 5-4
2015-16 4-2 4-3 4-4 4-5
2014-15 1-5 1-6 2-6 2-7
2013-14 4-2 5-2 5-3 5-4
2012-13 3-3 3-4 4-4 5-4
2011-12 5-1 5-2 6-2 7-2
2010-11 3-3 3-4 3-5 3-6
2009-10 2-4 2-5 2-6 3-6
2008-09 4-2 5-2 6-2 7-2
2007-08 3-3 3-4 3-5 3-6
2006-07 4-2 5-2 5-3 5-4
2005-06 3-3 4-3 4-4 4-5
2004-05 3-3 3-4 4-4 5-4
2003-04 4-2 4-3 4-4 4-5
2002-03 5-1 5-2 6-2 7-2
2001-02 5-1 6-1 6-2 7-2
2000-01 2-4 3-4 4-4 5-4
1999-00 2-4 3-4 3-5 4-5
1998-99 4-2 4-3 4-4 4-5
1997-98 4-2 5-2 5-3 5-4
1996-97 2-4 3-4 3-5 3-6
High Wire Act
Creighton went 7-3 in conference road games this season. Since a 94-76 win at St. John's on Dec. 17th, five of Creighton's last nine league road tilts have been tied at some point in the last 3:02 of regulation. In one of the games that wasn't, Creighton won by three after Marquette missed a tying three-pointer in the final seconds.
Creighton beat UConn 76-74 in overtime on Dec. 20th, as Damien Jefferson tied the game with 0.2 seconds left in regulation.
Creighton won 67-65 at Providence on Jan. 2nd on Christian Bishop's dunk with 0.8 seconds left.
Creighton lost 70-66 in overtime at Butler on Jan. 16th.
On Jan. 27th at Seton Hall, Mitch Ballock's three-pointer with 37.8 seconds left broke an 81-all tie and helped Creighton to an 85-81 victory.
On Jan. 30th at DePaul, Creighton trailed 60-59 before Denzel Mahoney made two free throws with 3:02 left to start a game-ending 10-2 run.
In Creighton's 10 BIG EAST road games this season, Marcus Zegarowski averaged 15.0 points and 4.1 rebounds per game while shooting 40.1 percent from three-point range.
Denzel Mahoney averaged 11.0 points per game and Damien Jefferson averaged 12.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game.
Mitch Ballock averaged 11.9 points per game and shooting 45.3 percent from downtown.
Give Me 10
The Feb. 24 win vs. DePaul was Creighton's 10th home win of the season. It's the 24th time in the last 25 seasons CU has done that.
The only exception in that time came in 2014-15, when the Jays won nine times at home.
Double-Double Duo
Creighton had a pair of players record a double-double in the Feb. 13 victory vs. Villanova as Christian Bishop (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Damien Jefferson (10 points, 10 rebounds) each did it.
Bishop (11 points, 10 rebounds) and Jefferson (10 points, 10 rebounds) also accomplished the feat earlier this season in CU's Dec. 17 win at St. john's.
Before Bishop and Jefferson (twice), the last Bluejay duo to record double-doubles in the same contest since Dec. 9, 2017, when both Martin Krampelj and Ronnie Harrell Jr. did it.
Bishop The Ultimate Chess Piece
Christian Bishop is a tad undersized to play the center position, but his versatility has made him a match-up nightmare for some opponents.
For the year, Bishop is shooting 67.2 percent from the field, far ahead of the next best competitor in the BIG EAST (Nate Watson, 60.2 percent).
In league play only, Bishop's 65.4 percent marksmanship easily outpaced St. John's Isaih Moore's 60.7 percent.
Not Just A Hoops Powerhouse
Creighton is one of seven schools in the country to have a top-25 team in both volleyball and men's basketball this week.
Creighton is joined in that elite grouping by Texas, Baylor, Ohio State, Purdue, Florida State and BYU.
Creighton's 24th-ranked volleyball team is seeking a seventh straight BIG EAST title, while the Bluejays' 19th-ranked men's basketball squad starts NCAA Tournament action on Saturday in Indianapolis.
A Nice Problem To Have
Creighton continues to find ways to win when scoring 69 points or less. The Bluejays own six wins this winter when scoring 69 point or less, a figure that exceeds its total number of wins (4) in that situation during the previous four years combined.
This year is the first season since 2012-13 that Creighton has won six games in the same season when scoring 69 points or less. It hasn't happened more than six times in a year since 2010-11 (8 times).
Release, Rotation, Splash, Repeat
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 910 straight games. The streak is tied for 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.
Below is a list of the nation's longest active three-point streaks.
Longest Active 3-Point Streaks (3/14)
Rk. Streak School Next
1. 1,129 UNLV Season Over
2. 1,113 Duke Season Over
3. 1,072 Arkansas 3/19
4. 1,060 Western Kentucky 3/17
5. 1,051 East Tennessee State Season Over
6. 1,031 Oakland Season Over
7. 1,031 Pacific Season Over
8. 1,022 Texas 3/20
9. 969 Marshall Season Over
10. 958 Princeton Season Canceled
11. 956 Baylor 3/19
12. 944 Gonzaga 3/20
13. 926 Long Island Season Over
14. 910 Mount St. Mary's 3/18
910 Creighton 3/20
16. 899 Tennessee State Season Over
Let It Fly
Creighton made 17-of-35 three-pointers on Jan. 27th at Seton Hall. The 17 three-pointers were tied for fifth-most in program history for a single game, and second-most ever in a road contest.
Creighton started the night by making 8-of-9 three-point shots and would also hit 6-of-8 trifectas in the final 5:22.
Creighton's Most 3-Pointers, Game
Rk. 3FG-3FGA Opponent Date
1. 22-37 Coe 12-20-18
2. 21-35 at #4 Villanova 01-20-14
3. 20-30 Chattanooga 02-19-05
4. 19-34 USC Upstate 12-20-17
5. 17-33 #21 Marquette 01-09-19
17-36 Georgetown 03-04-20
17-35 at Seton Hall 01-27-21
8. 16-30 Evansville 01-04-99
16-27 Drake 01-08-13
16-25 Chicago State 12-29-13
16-26 vs. Ole Miss 11-21-16
16-33 Alcorn State 11-12-17
16-36 at Georgetown 01-06-18
16-36 St. John's 01-09-21
No. 19 Bluejays
After starting the year ranked 11th in both the AP and Coaches polls, Creighton ascended into the top 10 for three weeks in the AP edition. CU is currently 19th in the AP poll and 19th in the Coaches poll.
The No. 19 AP ranking is 12 spots behind the best mark in program history, which was done on Jan. 16, 2017, March 9, 2020, March 16, 2020 and Jan. 4, 2021.
This season is the sixth time that Creighton has been ranked in the year-end AP poll, joining 2002-03 (15th), 2011-12 (19th), 2012-13 (22nd), 2013-14 (16th) and 2019-20 (7th).
This year marked the first time that Creighton has been ranked in every AP poll of the same season.
Creighton is one of six teams that have been ranked in all 24 AP polls since Feb. 3, 2020, joining Gonzaga (95), Villanova (40), Baylor (37), Houston (26) and Iowa (26). The 24 straight weeks in the rankings is the longest stretch in program history, six more than the 17-week streak done from Feb. 27, 2012 - Feb. 4, 2013.
After being ranked 30th in the inaugural NET rankings that were released on Jan. 4th, Creighton was 26th in Monday's (March 15) latest update.
Firing On All Cylinders
Creighton continues to be highly regarded by KenPom.com, and is currently 19th. That includes the nation's No. 14 offense, and No. 40 defense.
Creighton has not finished with a top-35 defense since 2006-07, and has not finished better than 30th since 2001-02.
Last season was the fourth different time in the last 10 seasons that Creighton has had a top-10 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 14 40 20-8 so far
Moving On Up
Last year Damien Jefferson scored in double-figures in just 13-of-30 contests, and he finished the season averaging 9.4 points per game.
This year, the senior forward has scored in double-figures in 22-of-28 games and he's upped his average to 12.1 points per contest.
Jefferson pumped in a career-high 26 points on Jan. 20th vs. Providence, six more than his previous best.
Big Wins In The BIG EAST
Creighton never trailed in its 89-53 win over Seton Hall on Jan. 6th. The 36-point win was Creighton's second-largest ever in BIG EAST action.
The 36-point loss tied for Seton Hall's third-largest ever in league play for the charter member of the BIG EAST, and was its largest league setback since falling 99-57 vs. UConn on Feb. 11, 2006.
Creighton's Largest BIG EAST Winning Margins
Margin Score Date
41 at Creighton 100, St. John's 59 02/28/16
36 at Creighton 89, Seton Hall 53 01/06/21
35 Creighton 93, at DePaul 58 02/11/17
29 at Creighton 93, DePaul 64 02/15/20
28 at Creighton 88, Butler 60 01/14/14
28 Creighton 68, at #4 Villanova 68 01/20/14
25 at Creighton 82, DePaul 57 02/27/18
Major Success
Among teams in the leagues considered the "Power Five", plus the BIG EAST, Creighton has enjoyed almost more success than anyone else recently.
Creighton's 44 victories since the start of the 2019-20 season trail only Kansas and Baylor,
Best Records Since 2019-20 (through 3/14)
(Power 5 Conferences + BIG EAST)
Team 2019-20 2020-21 Total
Baylor 26-4 22-2 48-6
Kansas 28-3 20-8 48-11
Creighton 24-7 20-8 44-15
Oregon 24-7 20-6 44-13
Illinois 21-10 23-6 44-16
USC 22-9 22-7 44-16
Colorado 21-11 22-8 43-19
Zegarowski Earns National Honor
NCAA.com correspondent Andy Katz named Creighton guard Marcus Zegarowski as his National Player of the Week on Feb. 15th.
The junior averaged 17.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists as Creighton picked up double-digit wins vs. Georgetown and No. 5 Villanova.
Zegarowski opened his week with nine points, six rebounds, and four assists as Creighton defeated Georgetown on the road, 63-48. He also had two of Creighton's school-record 19 steals in the triumph.
Zegarowski finished his week with a season-high 25 points in Creighton's 86-70 victory vs. No. 5 Villanova and added five assists and three rebounds. He made 10-of-18 field goal attempts in the victory, and his 17 points in the first half matched the most by a Bluejay all season before intermission.
Big Deficits, No Big Deal
Creighton owns 23 victories since the start of the 2010-11 season after trailing by double-figures at some point, including three this season. Twelve of those 23 comebacks have come away from home.
Creighton's comeback from 16 points down at Seton Hall on Jan. 27th was its largest since trailing by 18 vs. No. 18 Oklahoma on Nov. 19, 2014.
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.
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.
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
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
Ballock Nears 1,300; Zegarowski Not Far Behind
Mitch Ballock owns 1,281 career points after surpassing the 1,000 point mark on Nov. 29 vs. North Dakota State in CU's season-opener, which was also his 100th career game.
Ballock entered last season's BIG EAST Tournament with 996 points and scored nine points in the first half vs. St. John's on March 12th, but those points were erased when the game was abandoned at halftime.
Marcus Zegarowski became the 44th Bluejay in school history to surpass 1,000 career points on Jan. 20 vs. Providence when he scored 17 points. Zegarowski needed 75 games to reach the milestone. He owns 1,237 career points.
Games To 1,000 Points, Last 19 Bluejays
Name CU Games to 1,000 pts. Date
Marcus Zegarowski 75 01/20/21
Mitch Ballock 100 11/29/20
Ty-Shon Alexander 85 01/15/20
Khyri Thomas 94 02/10/18
Marcus Foster 54 01/17/18
Austin Chatman 138 03/11/15
Ethan Wragge 132 01/18/14
Gregory Echenique 101 03/24/13
Doug McDermott 57 01/15/12
Antoine Young 115 12/10/11
Kenny Lawson Jr. 108 11/21/10
P'Allen Stinnett 86 01/16/10
Dane Watts 115 01/22/08
Anthony Tolliver 124 03/16/07
Johnny Mathies 91 03/03/06
Nate Funk 92 02/28/05
Kyle Korver 81 01/30/02
Ben Walker 105 01/06/01
Ryan Sears 97 12/01/00
Rodney Buford 59 03/01/97
Most Career Points, Creighton History
Rank Pts. Name Years
1. 3,150 Doug McDermott 2010-14
2. 2,116 Rodney Buford 1995-99
3. 2,110 Bob Harstad 1987-91
4. 1,983 Chad Gallagher 1987-91
5. 1,876 Bob Portman 1966-69
6. 1,801 Kyle Korver 1999-03
7. 1,754 Nate Funk 2002-07
8. 1,682 Rick Apke 1974-78
9. 1,661 Paul Silas 1961-64
10. 1,654 Vernon Moore 1981-85
11. 1,575 Benoit Benjamin 1982-85
12. 1,526 John C. Johnson 1975-79
13. 1,500 Kevin McKenna 1977-81
14. 1,437 Eddie Cole 1951-55
15. 1,369 Gene Harmon 1971-74
16. 1,361 Duan Cole 1987-92
17. 1,342 Antoine Young 2008-12
18. 1,313 Kenny Lawson Jr. 2006-11
19. 1,309 Ryan Sears 1997-01
20. 1,303 Elton Tuttle 1951-54
21. 1,292 Marcus Foster 2016-18
22. 1,281 Mitch Ballock 2017-Pres.
23. 1,272 Bob Gibson 1954-57
24. 1,267 Wally Anderzunas 1965-67, 1968-69
25. 1,254 Gary Swain 1983-87
26. 1,241 Ty-Shon Alexander 2017-20
27. 1,238 Ben Walker 1997-01
28. 1,237 Marcus Zegarowski 2018-Pres.
29. 1,196 Ray Yost 1951-54
30. 1,172 Dick Harvey 1956-59
Are You Experienced?
Year after year, one common theme to success in college basketball is to have veteran players. This year's Creighton team is full of experienced players.
CU's starting five features two juniors and three seniors who have combined for 20 years of college experience. They've combined for 4,522 career points at Creighton, and 5,766 career points if you add in Mahoney and Jefferson's points at their previous stops.
Off the bench, Alex O'Connell and Jacob Epperson are in their fourth college campaign, Antwann Jones in his third year and Shereef Mitchell in his second season. Of the regular Bluejay rotation, only Ryan Kalkbrenner is a freshman.
On March 20th, Creighton's potential starting five (Mitch Ballock, Christian Bishop, Damien Jefferson, Denzel Mahoney and Marcus Zegarowski) will be a collective 41,136 days old. By comparison, the starting line-up used by the Chicago Bulls in its first four games this season (Wendell Carter Jr., Zach Lavine, Lauri Markkanen, Coby White and Patrick Williams) will be a combined 41,187 days old on March 20th.
High-Powered Offense
Creighton has pumped in 93 or more points in six games this season, one of 10 teams in the country (with Iowa, Gonzaga, Baylor, The Citadel, Eastern Kentucky, Sam Houston State, Southern Utah, Oral Roberts and McNeese State) who can say that. Last year's BIG EAST champion squad only cracked the 93-point barrier three times all season.
Creighton is 48-3 in since 2010-11 when scoring 93 points or more. The nation's only teams to score 93+ more than 51 times since 2010-11 are Gonzaga (71), North Carolina (69) and Belmont (52).
By comparison, McDermott's teams scored 93+ points just once in his four seasons at Iowa State (96 on 11/22/09 vs. Mississippi Valley State), and also just once in five years at Northern Iowa (99 on 12/1/04 vs. Iowa State).
They Scored How Many?
Creighton put up 56 points in the first half on Jan. 9 vs. St. John's, its highest output before intermission in a league game since joining the BIG EAST.
After a total of eight halves of 52 points or more in its first seven years in the league, Creighton scored 52 points or more in three different halves this BIG EAST season.
Creighton's Highest Scoring BIG EAST Halves
Points Opponent (Half) Date
56 Xavier (2nd) 01/12/14
56 St. John's (1st) 01/09/21
54 at #4 Villanova (1st) 01/20/14
54 Marquette (2nd) 01/21/17
54 at DePaul (2nd) 02/11/17
53 Butler (1st) 01/14/14
53 St. John's (1st) 02/28/16
53 #23 Seton Hall (1st) 12/28/17
53 Marquette (1st) 02/17/18
53 at St. John's (2nd) 12/17/20
52 Seton Hall (2nd) 01/09/21
51 #6 Villanova (1st) 02/16/14
51 DePaul (2nd) 02/15/20
50 #6 Villanova (1st) 02/16/14
50 Seton Hall (1st) 12/28/16
50 at Georgetown (2nd) 01/21/19
50 DePaul (2nd) 03/09/19
Numbers Never Lie (Unless they Do)
Need some other random figures to watch?
Creighton is 17-1 all-time when Marcus Zegarowski has 19 or more points, 7-1 when he has eight or more assists and 29-6 when he makes three or more three-pointers.
Creighton is 15-2 all-time when Mitch Ballock scores 17 or more points, 11-0 when he has six or more assists and 12-0 when he makes three or more free throws.
Creighton is 19-6 all-time when Christian Bishop has seven or more rebounds.
Finally, Creighton is also 21-3 when Shereef Mitchell grabs two or more rebounds, and also 20-4 when he dishes multiple assists.
Balance Is Big
All five Creighton starters are averaging 10.2 points or more this season, and the Bluejays have had at least five men score in double-digits in six contests overall.
Creighton has won 19 games in a row when five or more players score 10 or more points.
Nine different players have scored 10 or more points in a game this season, a list that doesn't include Jacob Epperson. Epperson's done it four times as a Bluejay in 2017-18 or 2018-19.
In the last 5:01 of play at UConn, Creighton had 12 points, with each starter scoring either two or three points.
In league play, all five Bluejay starters averaged 10.6 points per game or more.
CHI Health Center Omaha Success
Creighton has played 308 regular and postseason contests at CHI Health Center Omaha all-time in the 18-year-old facility.
The Bluejays own a 254-54 (.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 24,184-20,244 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 29-33 all-time in the 62 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 35-27 when trailing at halftime at CHI Health Center Omaha.
Creighton is 157-36 (.813) at CHI Health Center Omaha since 2010-11 and hasn't trailed in 60 of those games. In that same span, CU owns an 87-6 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 273-54 (.835) at home since the start of the 2002-03 campaign.
Dame Time
Damien Jefferson came two assists shy of producing Creighton's first traditional triple-double when he posted 10 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists on Thursday at St. John's.
His performance made him the only Creighton player in the last 34 seasons with at least 10 points, 10 rebounds and eight or more assists in the same game.
Creighton has had only three triple-doubles in program history, but all three were of the points/rebounds/blocks variety by Benoit Benjamin.
Jefferson is just the second Bluejay player with a game of at least eight points, rebounds and assists in the last 11 seasons. Khyri Thomas had 16 points, eight rebounds and eight assists vs. DePaul on Feb. 27, 2018.
Here's a list of Creighton players with at least 7+ points, 7+ rebounds and 7+ assists in the same game since 1987-88.
7+ Point, 7+ Rebound, 7+ Assist Games, Since 1987-88
Pts. Reb. Ast. Name Date
16 9 7 Mike Amos 1/30/1993
24 11 7 Rodney Buford 11/18/1998
25 8 8 Ryan Sears 1/8/2000
9 7 10 Grant Gibbs 12/19/2011
12 10 7 Grant Gibbs 1/13/2012
12 7 9 Austin Chatman 11/11/2013
9 7 7 Austin Chatman 1/25/2014
7 9 7 Khyri Thomas 12/9/2015
16 8 7 Maurice Watson Jr. 1/26/2016
14 12 7 Khyri Thomas 2/28/2017
16 8 8 Khyri Thomas 2/27/2018
10 10 8 Damien Jefferson 12/17/2020
Big Ryan's Big Night
Freshman center Ryan Kalkbrenner had a season-high 15 points in just 16 minutes of work on Dec. 17 at St. John's, including four baskets in a three-minute span during the decisive 22-4 second half run.
For the season, Kalkbrenner has averaged 6.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.3 blocked shots while playing just 13.0 minutes per game. Kalkbrenner ranks fifth nationally among freshmen with 37 blocked shots, and first in the BIG EAST among classmates.
Creighton is 14-3 when he has a blocked shot (6-5 when he doesn't), 20-5 when he scores a field goal (0-3 when he doesn't) and 7-0 when he scores in double-figures (13-8 when he doesn't).
Kalkbrenner became CU's first true freshman since Benoit Benjamin (1982-83) to have a blocked shot in each of CU's first three games of the season.
Creighton is 20-5 this year when he makes a field goal, and 0-3 when he does not. The Bluejays are also 14-4 when he blocks a shot, and 6-4 when he does not. Finally, CU is 7-0 when Kalkbrenner scores 10 or more points (13-8 when he doesn't).
3's Are Falling
Creighton is tied for sixth in the country with seven different games of 13 three-pointers this year. Among power conference teams, no one has done it more.
Creighton has three of the six players in the BIG EAST with 59 or more three-pointers made, with Mitch Ballock (72) leading the way, two more than Marcus Zegarowski (70) and 13 ahead of Denzel Mahoney (59). Julian Champagnie (St. John's) has made 60, and Jair Bolden (Butler) has made 65.
O'Connell Makes Creighton Debut
A vote by the NCAA Division I Council on Dec. 16 made Alex O'Connell immediately eligible. He made his debut one day later at St. John's with six points, two rebounds a steal, and an assist in 12 minutes of action.
A senior guard from Roswell, Ga., O'Connell had not played in Creighton's first six games this season while sitting out after an off-season transfer from Duke University. He had been awaiting a ruling on a waiver that Creighton had filed on his behalf with the NCAA.
While at Duke, O'Connell appeared in 101 games, including 14 starts. He contributed 431 points and 182 rebounds for the Blue Devils with single-game highs of 20 points, seven rebounds and four steals.
Though a senior, O'Connell will also be eligible to return to Creighton for the 2021-22 season as a result of a previous NCAA decision that indicated winter sport student-athletes who compete during 2020-21 in Division I will receive both an additional season of competition and an additional year in which to complete it.
Creighton is 16-5 since O'Connell became eligible.
Preseason Acclaim
Junior guard Marcus Zegarowski was named Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year on Oct. 28th. In addition, senior guard Mitch Ballock was also voted as a Preseason Second Team All-BIG EAST performer in the annual survey of league coaches.
The Bluejays, along with Kansas, are one of six schools with a Watch List candidate for both the Bob Cousy and Jerry West Awards, joining Baylor (MaCio Teague & Jared Butler), Florida State (MJ Walker & Scottie Barnes), Gonzaga (Joel Ayayi & Jalen Suggs), Kansas (Ochai Agbaji & Marcus Garrett) and Villanova (Justin Moore & Collin Gillespie).
Zegarowski is Creighton's second player ever named Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year, joining Doug McDermott (2013-14). McDermott would go on to win BIG EAST Player of the Year honors, as well as 14 National Player of the Year accolades, at season's end.
In addition, both men have been recognized among the best in the nation at their position. Zegarowski is one of 20 players on the Preseason Watch List for the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award, and Ballock one of 20 players on the Preseason Watch List for the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award.
Home Run
Since the start of the 2010-11 season, Creighton is averaging 81.30 points per home game (15,690 points in 193 home games), a figure that climbs to 85.14 points in non-conference home games (7,918 points in 93 home games).
Creighton is 122-6 all-time at CHI Health Center Omaha when scoring 80 or points.
Jays Mourn Loss Of Two Greats
Two prominent members of the Creighton Basketball family passed away in the off-season, as Eddie Sutton died on May 23rd and Bob Gibson lost his battle with pancreatic cancer a few months later on October 2nd. Both men were 84.
Sutton went 82-50 as Creighton's head coach and athletic director between 1969-74. His 806-329 overall mark in 37 years of coaching ranks 11th on the all-time Division I wins list. In April he was announced as part of the Class of 2020 that will be enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame -- part of a group that also contains Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant. However, COVID-19 has pushed that induction ceremony back to 2021.
Gibson starred in both baseball and basketball with the Bluejays from 1954-57, finishing his college career third with 1,272 career points (he's currently 22nd). He remains in the top-five in CU history in free throws made (418), free throw attempts (575) and scoring average (20.19 ppg.), and his No. 45 basketball jersey is retired. He would play a year with the Harlem Globetrotters before joining the St. Louis Cardinals organization full-time. Gibson is a member of the Hall of Fame's for Creighton Athletics (1968 induction), Missouri Valley Conference (2005) and St. Louis Cardinals (2014), and was honored with a spot on Major League Baseball's All-Century Team in 1999. Gibson was named the best athlete in state history by the Omaha World-Herald in both 2005 and 2015, one spot ahead of Gale Sayers. Tragically, Sayers died nine days before Gibson.
Preseason BIG EAST Poll
Creighton was picked second in the preseason BIG EAST Conference poll that was selected via a vote of league coaches.
Villanova earned 9-of-11 first place votes to top the poll with 99 points, just ahead of Creighton's two first place votes and 91 overall points. Third in the poll was Providence (79), who was just ahead of UConn (69), Seton Hall (67) and Marquette (50).
Rounding out the bottom half of the poll were Xavier (47) in seventh place, Butler (37), St. John's (33), DePaul (20) and Georgetown (13).
Seton Hall edged Villanova by one point to be named league favorites for the first time since 1992-93, as both the Pirates and Wildcats garnered five first place votes.
Xavier was third, with Marquette and Providence tying for fourth place. Georgetown was tabbed sixth, just ahead of Creighton, while Butler, St. John's and DePaul round out the poll.
Creighton's Marcus Zegarowski was tabbed Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year, and was joined on the Preseason All-BIG EAST team by Charlie Moore (DePaul), David Duke (Providence), Sandro Mamukelashvili (Seton Hall), Collin Gillespie (Villanova) and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (Villanova).
Creighton 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
Creighton has three players in the NBA this season, Doug McDermott (Indiana Pacers), Ty-Shon Alexander (Phoenix Suns) and Justin Patton (Houston Rockets).
Including 2020-21, Creighton has now had an NBA player in 37 of the last 38 years.
McDermott is in his seventh season in the NBA, and third with the Indiana Pacers. He averaged a career-high 10.3 points per game last season and is the only player in the NBA to rank in the top-20 in three-point percentage each of the previous three seasons. This year he's averaging 13.4 points and 4.0 rebounds per game.
Alexander bypassed his senior season to turn pro. After going undrafted, he signed a two-way contract with the Phoenix Suns. He made his NBA debut on December 27th.
Patton was in the G-League with the Westchester Knicks but recently signed a 2-way contract and was called up by the Houston Rockets. He made his first career NBA start on Feb. 28th and scored a then-career-high 10 points. He's averaging 6.8 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.
In addition, three other Bluejays played in the NBA last season but are currently in the G-League or unsigned...Kyle Korver, Anthony Tolliver and Khyri Thomas.
McDermott Ranks Second On CU Wins List
Greg McDermott currently has 250 victories at Creighton, good for second place on CU's all-time wins list.
McDermott's .668 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. 250-124 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
Triple Trouble
During Creighton's current streak of 910 straight games with a three-pointer, the Jays have drained 7,200 trifectas, an average of 7.91 treys per game.
That's not surprising since during the streak, Creighton has made exactly 7 three-pointers 136 times, more than any figure.
Only four times in the streak has Creighton made just one three-pointer, but on 260 occasions the Bluejays have made 10 or more trifectas, including three games of 20 or more.
Creighton has also made at least one three-pointer before halftime in 281 consecutive contests (since 0-7 at Drake on 1/23/13).
Since the start of the 2019-20 season, the Bluejays are 35-6 when making eight or more three-pointers, compared to a 7-8 mark when making seven treys or fewer.
Team 3FG Made During Creighton's 3-Point Streak
1: 4 times 2: 15 times 3: 31 times
4: 71 times 5: 96 times 6: 95 times
7: 136 times 8: 115 times 9: 87 times
10: 76 times 11: 52 times 12: 49 times
13: 44 times 14: 18 times 15: 7 times
16: 7 times 17: 3 times 19: 1 time
20: 1 time 21: 1 time 22: 1 time
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 March 14, 2021
Category CU Stat CU Rank
3FG Percentage .384 2nd
3FG Made 3,368 2nd
FG Percentage .480 3rd
Assists 6,074 4th
FG Made 10,263 8th
Wins 251 28th
Winning Percentage .669 33rd
Getting Votes A Good Sign
Creighton was ranked 11th in the Associated Press preseason poll.
It's the sixth time that Creighton has picked up votes in the preseason poll since 2010-11. Five times when that happened, the Bluejays would finish top three in the league, reach the finals of the conference tournament, and play in the NCAA Tournament. Last year's team shared the BIG EAST title before the Conference and NCAA Tournaments were canceled.
Preseason Poll Votes Since 2010-11
Year Preseason Rank League Finish NCAA's?
2011-12 34th 2nd, MVC Yes
2012-13 16th 1st, MVC Yes
2013-14 27th 2nd, BIG EAST Yes
2016-17 22nd T-3rd, BIG EAST Yes
2019-20 40th T-1st; BIG EAST No Tourney
2020-21 11th 2nd, BIG EAST Yes
What Does #11 Mean?
Creighton was ranked 11th in the preseason Associated Press poll. Below is a listing of how teams ranked 11th in the preseason have done since 1999-2000.
Year School Year-End Rank* NCAA's (Wins)
2020-21: Creighton 19 Yes (TBD)
2019-20: Virginia 16 Tourney Canceled
2018-19: Kansas State 15 Yes (0)
2017-18: West Virginia 14 Yes (2)
2016-17: Indiana NR No (0)
2015-16: Gonzaga 21 Yes (2)
2014-15: Wichita State 14 Yes (2)
2013-14: Ohio State 22 Yes (0)
2012-13: North Carolina NR Yes (1)
2011-12: Memphis NR Yes (0)
2010-11: Kentucky 11 Yes (4)
2009-10: Butler 11 Yes (5)
2008-09: Purdue 17 Yes (2)
2007-08: Marquette 25 Yes (1)
2006-07: Alabama NR No (0)
2005-06: Boston College 7 Yes (2)
2004-05: Duke 3 Yes (2)
2003-04: Kentucky 2 Yes (1)
2002-03: Oregon NR Yes (0)
2001-02: Virginia NR No (0)
2000-01: Florida 8 Yes (1)
1999-00: Kansas NR Yes (1)
*based on final poll before NCAA Tournament
Torn ACL's End Two Seasons Early
Creighton will be without Rati Andronikashvili and Modestas Kancleris during the 2020-21 season after both men tore the anterior cruciate ligaments in their left knee three days apart during practices in early November.
Andronikashvili was injured on Nov. 1, with Kancleris three days last on Nov. 4. The two men, who are roommates, hail from the countries of Georgia and Lithuania, respectively.
UC Santa Barbara Gauchos vs. #19 Creighton Bluejays
Lucas Oil Stadium • Indianapolis, Ind.
Radio: KOZN 1620 AM (John Bishop, Nick Bahe)
Westwood One Sports/SiriusXM: Sirius 135; XM 202 (Jason Benetti, Robbie Hummel)
Television: truTV (Lisa Byington, Steve Smith, Lauren Shehadi)
Series History vs. UCSB: Series tied, 1-1
Last Meeting: UC Santa Barbara 83, Creighton 81 on Jan. 1, 1976 in Santa Barbara, Calif.
CU NOTES PDF | UCSB NOTES | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | DIGITAL PROGRAM
Next Game
Fifth-seeded Creighton (20-8, 14-6 BIG EAST) heads to Indianapolis, Ind., as it returns to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018.
The Bluejays will open the event on Saturday, March 20th against 12th-seeded UC Santa Barbara (22-4, 13-3 Big West).
Tip-off at Lucas Oil Stadium is set for 2:30 p.m. Central. The game will take place on the "Unity" court on the south end of the facility.
The winner of the Creighton/UC Santa Barbara game will meet the Virginia/Ohio winner on Monday at a time, venue and network to be determined late on Saturday night.
Radio Broadcast Information
KOZN (1620 AM) will broadcast all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2020-21 season. KOOO (101.9 FM) will also broadcast all home games that start after 5 p.m.
John Bishop will call the action with Nick Bahe.
Westwood One Sports will also air the game nationwide outside the Omaha market, with Jason Benetti and Robbie Hummel on the call. The game can be heard on Sirius channel 135 and XM channel 202.
Only the Westwood One feed will be available over the internet and other mobile devices. Games can be heard by locating the audio by game at http://ncaa.com/marchmadnesslive. A listing of Westwood One affiliates can be found at http://westwoodonesports.com/stations,
Television Broadcast Information
Saturday's game will be televised nationally on truTV, with Lisa Byington, Steve Smith and Lauren Shehadi on the broadcast.
Of Creighton's last 159 games, all but the three contests at the 2018 Cayman Islands Classic have been televised. CU is 107-52 in those contests.
Video Webcast Information
Live streaming video of all NCAA Tournament games will be available at http://www.ncaa.com/marchmadnesslive.
Scouting No. 19 Creighton
Creighton is 20-8 overall and ranked 19th nationally after finishing as the runner-up in the BIG EAST in both the regular-season and the conference tournament. CU's 14 league wins were three more than any other school, but the Bluejays settled for the second seed because Villanova owned a better winning percentage.
The Bluejays return four starters and five of its top six scorers from last season's team that finished 24-7 and won a share of its first BIG EAST regular-season title. CU's 2019-20 team was ranked No. 7 in the year-end Associated Press poll.
For the first time in program history, three Bluejays were named to the All-BIG EAST team in the same season.
Junior point guard Marcus Zegarowski (15.5 ppg., 4.3 apg.) was an All-American last year and Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year. He was named First Team All-BIG EAST and also chosen to the All-Tournament Team at the BIG EAST Tournament.
Senior wing Denzel Mahoney (12.5 ppg.) won the BIG EAST's Sixth Man Award last season and brought home Honorable Mention All-BIG EAST acclaim. Mahoney owns five more steals (39) than fellow senior Damien Jefferson (12.1 ppg., 5.5 rpg.), who was a Second Team All-BIG EAST choice.
Not to be forgotten are junior forward Christian Bishop (10.8 ppg., 5.9 rpg.) and Mitch Ballock (10.2 ppg.). Bishop leads the BIG EAST in field goal percentage (.672), while Ballock tops the league with 72 three-pointers made.
Creighton leads the BIG EAST in scoring margin (+8.7), three-point percentage (.367), three-pointers made per game (9.71), field goal percentage (.476), field goal percentage defense (.406).
Scouting UC Santa Barbara
The regular-season champ in the Big West Conference, UC Santa Barbara is 22-4 on the season and earned the automatic bid by also winning its league tournament.
JaQuori McLaughlin (16.2 ppg.) leads the team in scoring and assists (5.2) per game, while Amadou Sow (13.7 ppg., 7.6 rpg.) provides a post presence inside.
UCSB averages 76.5 points per game and holds teams to 62.8 per contest.
This will be the first NCAA Tournament appearance for the Gauchos since 2011.
The Series With UC Santa Barbara
Creighton and UC Santa Barbara have split two meetings, with the home team winning each time.
Creighton won 72-61 on Feb. 9, 1975 in Omaha behind 22 points from Charles Butler. Don Ford led the Gauchos with 21 points.
UCSB evened the series with an 83-81 win in Santa Barbara on Jan. 2, 1976. The Gauchos led 25-9 to start the game and were up 54-37 with 16:44 remaining before a frantic rally. Trailing 79-77 with 1:07 left, CU missed two free throws and got no closer. John Service led UCSB with 26 points and Creighton was paced by 25 points from Robert Scrutchens and 24 more by Rick Apke.
Greg McDermott has never coached against UCSB. He is 5-1 in his career against the teams currently in the Big West, including a 3-0 mark as Creighton coach.
The Creighton Coaches
Greg McDermott (Northern Iowa, 1988) owns a 250-124 record in his 11th season with the Bluejays. He owns a career mark of 530-319 in 27 seasons, and is 399-255 in his 20th Division I campaign.
McDermott led Creighton to its first BIG EAST regular-season title last season, taking a Bluejay team that was picked seventh in the league's preseason poll and ending the year ranked seventh nationally. For those efforts, he was recognized as the BIG EAST Coach of the Year as well as the USBWA District VI Coach of the Year, NABC District 5 Coach of the Year and Basketball Times Midlands District Coach of the Year.
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, Paul Lusk and Terrence Rencher.
About Creighton
Creighton is a private, Jesuit institution located in Omaha, Neb., with 8,770 students. The University was founded in 1878 by Mary Lucretia Creighton, who established it in memory of her husband, telegraph pioneer Edward Creighton.
Prominent alumni include Bob Gibson (Hall of Fame pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals), Paul Silas (former NBA player and head coach), Kyle Korver (former NBA player), Doug McDermott (Indiana Pacers), Pat Venditte (ambidextrous baseball pitcher and MLB veteran) and J. Joseph Ricketts (Chicago Cubs owner and founder of TD Ameritrade),
Creighton picked up the Bluejays moniker in 1924 after a newspaper coordinated a public contest to select a nickname and mascot.
Creighton officially joined the BIG EAST on July 1, 2013.
With A Win...
• Creighton would improve to 21-8 on the season, increasing its BIG EAST-leading win total.
• Improve Creighton to 13-22 all-time in the NCAA Tournament with its first NCAA Tournament victory since 2014.
• Creighton would win for the 14th time in a row in the game immediately following a loss of 20 or more points.
• Would give Greg McDermott his 400th career Division I win (251 at Creighton, 59 at Iowa State, 90 at Northern Iowa).
• Greg McDermott would improve to 4-5 as Creighton's head coach in the NCAA Tournament, breaking a tie with John "Red" McManus for most NCAA Tournament wins in program history.
• Creighton would improve to 141-54 all-time as a nationally-ranked team.
• Advance Creighton to Monday's Second Round game vs. either Virginia or Ohio. Creighton has never played Virginia and beat Ohio 57-55 in 1962 in the only previous meeting vs. the Bobcats.
Story Lines
There's numerous story lines as it relates to Creighton's trip to Indianapolis.
Creighton's roster boasts one player from the state of Indiana, as senior forward Damien Jefferson is from East Chicago, Ind.
Australian native Jacob Epperson finished high school at La Lumiere in La Porte, Ind. Assistant coach Alan Huss is a former head coach at La Lumiere, though he did not overlap with Epperson.
Assistant coach Paul Lusk served as an assistant coach at Purdue from 2004-11.
Former National Player of the Year Doug McDermott plays for the Indiana Pacers. He played under his father, Greg McDermott, who remains the head coach at Creighton.
Creighton has never played an NCAA Tournament game in the state of Indiana.
Common Opponents
Creighton and UC Santa Barbara do not share any common opponents this season.
Postseason Wins In 9 of Last 11 Appearances
Creighton has won at least one game in nine of its last 11 postseason appearances. The streak began in 2008.
Creighton's Last 12 Postseason Appearances
Year Tournament First Game
2006-07 NCAA Lost to Nevada, 77-71 (OT)
2007-08 NIT Beat Rhode Island, 74-73
2008-09 NIT Beat Bowling Green, 73-71
2009-10 CIT Beat South Dakota, 89-78
2010-11 CBI Beat San Jose State, 85-74
2011-12 NCAA Beat Alabama, 58-57
2012-13 NCAA Beat Cincinnati, 67-63
2013-14 NCAA Beat Louisiana, 76-66
2015-16 NIT Beat Alabama, 72-54
2016-17 NCAA Lost to Rhode Island, 84-72
2017-18 NCAA Lost to Kansas State, 69-59
2018-19 NIT Beat Loyola (Chicago), 70-61
NCAA Tournament History
Creighton is making its 22nd NCAA Tournament appearance, and 13th in the last 23 years. The Bluejays are 12-22 all-time in NCAA action, including a 9-12 record in its first game.
Creighton's last NCAA Tournament game came in 2018, when the Bluejays lost to Kansas State.
Creighton's last NCAA Tournament win came in 2014, when the Bluejays topped Louisiana.
Creighton owns a 3-4 record all-time in the West Region. The Bluejays were 1-1 in 2014 (beat Louisiana; lost to Baylor), 0-1 in 2003 (losing to Central Michigan), 1-1 in 1991 (beating New Mexico State, losing to Seton Hall) and 1-1 in 1941 (losing to Washington State, beating Wyoming).
In 33 previous NCAA or NIT appearances, Creighton has won consecutive games in the same event just twice, with that happening in the 2016 and 2019 NIT's.
CU has not reached the Round of 16 or beyond since 1974, when the tournament was 25 teams and CU won its first game before losing by one point to Kansas.
Creighton has now had at least one sport reach the NCAA Tournament in each of the last 34 academic calendar years.
Including the NCAA's, NIT, CBI and CIT, Creighton will be making its 22nd postseason appearance in the last 24 seasons on Friday. Last year's team was one of those exceptions, but was likely headed for a 2 or 3 seed in the NCAA's before COVID-19 canceled the event.
Merfeld's One Shining Moment Turns 20
Currently an assistant to the head coach at Creighton, Steve Merfeld coached one of the biggest upsets in NCAA Tournament history when his 15th-seeded Hampton team defeated second-seeded Iowa State, 58-57, in Boise, Idaho, in 2001.
Merfeld's team closed the game on a 14-2 run, capped by a Travis Williams basket with 6.9 seconds left. ISU All-American Jamaal Tinsley's coast-to-coast lay-up attempt rolled out as time expired.
As the final horn sounded, Merfeld raced across the court from his bench area to the other side, where he was picked up by forward David Johnson in an enduring image as Merfeld kicked his feet in jubilation.
That video clip is still shown annually in March Madness intros and highlights worldwide.
Coaching Experience In The Dance
Creighton's full-time coaching staff boasts a combined 37 Division I NCAA Tournament games under their collective belts as either a player (3-9), assistant coach (7-7) or head coach (3-8), winning 13 of those games.
Greg McDermott is 3-8 in NCAA Tournament action as a Division head coach. He went 0-3 at Northern Iowa (0-1 in 2004, 2005 and 2006) and is 3-5 at Creighton (1-1 in 2012, 2013 and 2014 and 0-1 in 2017 and 2018).
Alan Huss is 1-4 in NCAA Tournament action, going three times as a player at Creighton (1-1 in 1999 and 0-1 in both 2000 and 2001). He is also 0-1 as an assistant coach thanks to a 2018 Creighton loss.
Paul Lusk owns a 7-9 record in NCAA Tournament action. He was an assistant coach at Purdue from 2004-11 and the Boilermakers made five straight NCAA trips from 2007-11. Purdue went 1-1 in 2007, 2008 and 2011 and 2-1 in 2009 and 2010. He was also an assistant at Southern Illinois in the 2004 NCAA Tournament, where the Salukis went 0-1. As a player, Lusk appeared in three NCAA Tournaments while with Southern Illinois, losing his first game in 1993, 1994 and 1995. He averaged 11.7 points and 3.0 rebounds per game.
Terrence Rencher went 2-3 as a player at Texas in the NCAA Tournament, going 0-1 in 1992 and 1-1 in 1994 and 1995. In five games as a player, Rencher averaged 18.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.4 assists. This will be his first NCAA Tournament game as an assistant coach.
NCAA Experience
Four players on the Creighton team have been a part of an NCAA Tournament squad before, and two of them have appeared for the Bluejays in the Big Dance.
Mitch Ballock played 32 minutes in Creighton's 2018 loss to Kansas State. He scored 16 points, becoming CU's first freshman to lead his team in scoring in his NCAA Tournament debut since Kevin McKenna in 1977.
Jacob Epperson played 16 minutes in Creighton's 2018 loss to Kansas State, scoring two points and adding one rebound and one blocked shot.
Damien Jefferson redshirted on Creighton's 2017-18 team and was not allowed to travel to Charlotte per NCAA policy regarding transfers at the time.
Alex O'Connell played in seven NCAA Tournament games at Duke, including a pair of starts, as the Blue Devils went 5-2 in those contests. Duke also won one other game in which he didn't appear in. The Blue Devils reached the Elite Eight in both seasons. He averaged 1.6 points and 1.6 rebounds in those games and started Duke's Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games in 2019 in place of an injured Cam Reddish.
NCAA Jays
In addition to Creighton's current roster, there's at least six others with ties to the program who are involved in this year's NCAA Tournament.
Loyola (Chicago) head coach Porter Moser played at Creighton from 1986-90, appearing in the 1989 NCAA Tournament with the Bluejays.
Wichita State assistant coach Billy Kennedy is a former Creighton assistant coach from 1991-93.
Darian DeVries is now the head coach at Drake. He was Creighton's graduate manager from 1998-01 and Bluejay assistant coach from 2001-18.
Former Creighton assistant coach Steve Lutz (2010-17) is now an assistant coach at Purdue.
Oregon head coach Dana Altman coached at Creighton from 1994-2010.
Oregon assistant coach Kevin McKenna played at Creighton from 1977-81 and was an assistant coach from 1994-2001 and again from 2005-07.
Against NCAA Tournament Opponents
Creighton went 5-4 against teams that made the 2021 NCAA Tournament. The Jays were 3-0 against UConn, 1-1 vs. Villanova, 1-2 vs. Georgetown and 0-1 against Kansas.
All five Creighton starers averaged in double-figures during those games, a group led by Marcus Zegarowski (14.4 ppg., 3.9 apg.). Mitch Ballock made 27 three-pointers in those nine games, and Christian Bishop hauled in a team-leading 7.0 rebounds per game.
CU held opponents to 39.3 percent shooting from the field, and 33.3 percent marksmanship from three-point territory. The Bluejays were outscored 618-617 in the nine games.
History As A No. 5 Seed
Creighton is a No. 5 seed for the first time. It is Creighton's second-best seed slot since the NCAA began seeding all the teams in 1979, trailing only CU's No. 3 seed in 2014. This is also the sixth straight NCAA berth that will see the Bluejays as a better seed and in its "home whites" for its initial NCAA Tournament game.
Creighton and Villanova this year are the 17th and 18th BIG EAST teams to ever earn a No. 5 seed, after just one team since 2012 (Marquette in 2019). The previous 16 teams went 15-16. The only three BIG EAST teams to reach the Regional semifinals as a fifth seed are Syracuse (2004), Notre Dame (2003) and Syracuse (1998). Four teams went winless and nine other squads were exactly 1-1.
Since 1985, No. 5 seeds are 90-50 (.643) against No. 12 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, including a 25-15 mark (.600) since 2011. In 30 of the last 35 years, the 12 seed has won at least one first round game. The only exceptions came in 1988, 2000, 2007, 2015 and 2018.
Since 1985, 47 No. 5 seeds have advanced to the Sweet 16, and seven have reached the Final Four, including Auburn in 2019.
Creighton's NCAA Tourney Seeds
(since seeding began in 1979)
Year Seed Record
1981 8th 0-1
1989 14th 0-1
1991 11th 1-1
1999 10th 1-1
2000 10th 0-1
2001 10th 0-1
2002 12th 1-1
2003 6th 0-1
2005 10th 0-1
2007 10th 0-1
2012 8th 1-1
2013 7th 1-1
2014 3rd 2-1
2017 6th 0-1
2018 8th 0-1
2021 5th ? ? ?
BIG EAST Success
Creighton was one of four BIG EAST teams to make the NCAA Tournament this season, down from six clubs in 2019 and seven programs in 2018.
The BIG EAST has had a Sweet 16 squad in 24 of the past 26 tournaments, and multiple Sweet 16 teams in 13 of the last 18 tournaments.
Even when you remove Louisville's 2013 title, the BIG EAST Conference has won a combined 14 NCAA men's and women's basketball titles in the previous 20 tournaments.
McDermott In The Postseason
Creighton coach Greg McDermott is making his ninth postseason appearance at Creighton, and 12th overall as a Division I head coach when you include his time at Northern Iowa.
McDermott's Division I teams own an 11-12 record in 11 previous postseason appearances, including a 11-9 mark in eight previous appearances at Creighton.
McDermott's Division I Postseason Appearances
Year (School) Tourney Postseason W-L
2003-04 (UNI) NCAA 0-1
2004-05 (UNI) NCAA 0-1
2005-06 (UNI) NCAA 0-1
2010-11 (CU) CBI 4-2
2011-12 (CU) NCAA 1-1
2012-13 (CU) NCAA 1-1
2013-14 (CU) NCAA 1-1
2015-16 (CU) NIT 2-1
2016-17 (CU) NCAA 0-1
2017-18 (CU) NCAA 0-1
2018-19 (CU) NIT 2-1
2020-21 (CU) NCAA ? ? ?
Most Postseason Bids By CU Coaches
This year's bid to the NCAA is the ninth postseason bid for Greg McDermott at Creighton. Only Dana Altman (13) has taken the Bluejays to more postseason appearances in men's basketball.
McDermott's three NCAA Tournament wins tie a school record, also held by John J. "Red" McManus.
McDermott's six NCAA Tournament trips are second-most in program history as well, trailing only Altman's seven.
McDermott's 11 postseason wins at Creighton are the most in school history, four more than Altman's seven.
McDermott (11-8) is one of two coaches in program history with a winning record in postseason play, joining Eddie Sutton (2-1).
Coach (Bids) NCAA NIT CBI CIT NCIT Total
Hickey (3) 1-1 2-2 0-0 0-0 0-0 3-3
Belford (1) 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-1 0-1
McManus (3) 3-3 0-0 0-0 0-0 1-1 4-4
Sutton (1) 2-1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 2-1
Apke (4) 0-3 0-1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-4
Barone (3) 1-2 0-1 0-0 0-0 0-0 1-3
Altman (13) 2-7 3-5 0-0 2-1 0-0 7-13
McDermott (9*) 3-5 4-2 4-2 0-0 0-0 11-8
*The 2021 NCAA Tournament is McDermott's 9th appearance
NBA or NFL For NCAA's
Each of Creighton's four most recent NCAA Tournament appearances had been played inside NBA arenas (2013-Philadelphia; 2014-San Antonio; 2017-Sacramento; 2018-Charlotte).
This year, Creighton's first game will take place inside an NFL venue and the Indianapolis Colts facility of Lucas Oil Stadium.
It'll be Creighton's second NCAA Tournament trip to a domed facility, as CU's 2000 squad played at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis.
Creighton's last game it has played inside a domed facility came on Jan. 11, 2006, when Creighton played beat Northern Iowa 55-52 at the UNI-Dome. Northern Iowa's head coach that day was none other than current CU head coach Greg McDermott.
And when it comes to playing in a cavernous dome or stadium, no Bluejay has more experience than Alex O'Connell. While playing at Duke the previous three seasons, O'Connell had a career-high 20 points as a sophomore at Syracuse's Carrier Dome, then had 11 points in 15 minutes as a junior at Syracuse.
Super Six
Greg McDermott will join some select company when he directs his troops to a sixth NCAA Tournament this weekend. That puts him in the company of some of the greatest coaches in CU Athletics history.
McDermott is one of six head coaches in Creighton history to lead six different NCAA Tournament teams.
Name Sport NCAA's @CU
Bob Warming Men's Soccer 11
Kirsten Bernthal Booth Volleyball 9
Dana Altman Men's Basketball 7
Brent Vigness Softball 7
Elmar Bolowich Men's Soccer 6
Greg McDermott Men's Basketball 6
Milestone Watch
• A few approaching milestones...
Mitch Ballock
• Is one start shy of making his 100th career start, and 100th consecutive start.
• Is 11 points shy of tying Marcus Foster (1,292) for 21st in CU history and 22 points shy of tying Elton Tuttle (1,303) for 20th in CU history.
Greg McDermott
• Is one win shy of 400 in his Division I career (251 at Creighton, 59 at Iowa State, 90 at Northern Iowa).
• Is one win shy of his fourth NCAA Tournament win on the Creighton sideline, which would break a tie with John J. "Red" McManus.
Marcus Zegarowski
• Is three steals shy of 100.
• Is one three-pointer of tying Jahenns Manigat for eighth in CU history with 206 career three-pointers, five behind Ty-Shon Alexander (210) for seventh and seven behind Rodney Buford (212) for sixth place.
• Is one point shy of tying Ben Walker (1,238) for 27th in CU history, four shy of tying Ty-Shon Alexander (1,241) for 26th, 17 shy of Gary Swain (1,254) for 25th place and 35 points shy of tying legendary two-sport star Bob Gibson for 23rd in CU history.
Twenty Wins, Again
Creighton has 20 wins this season, its sixth consecutive campaign with 20 or more victories.
Only 21 teams have won 20 games or more in each of the previous five seasons: Belmont, Cincinnati, Creighton, Duke, East Tennessee State, Florida State, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, Michigan State, New Mexico State, Oregon, Saint Mary's, Seton Hall, Vermont, Villanova, Virginia, Wichita State and Wright State.
Of those 21 teams, the only 14 programs to do it without a coaching change are: Creighton, Duke, Florida State, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State, Oregon, Saint Mary's, Seton Hall, Vermont, Villanova and Virginia.
21 of 23 Seasons With 20 Wins
Creighton has won 20 or more games in 21 of the last 23 seasons (including 2020-21), 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, and Florida 20 times so far and in need of a national title to make reach 20 wins this year.
Most 20-Win Seasons, Last 23 Years (Includes 2020-21)
Team 20-Win Seasons 2020-21 W-L* Next Game
Gonzaga 23 26-0 3/20
Kansas 23 20-8 3/20
Duke 22 13-11 Season Over
Creighton 21 20-8 3/20
Kentucky 21 9-16 Season Over
Florida 20 14-9 3/19
*after games of March 18, 2021
Zegarowski Goes Streaking
Marcus Zegarowski has made a three-pointer in each of his last 20 games, a streak that started on Dec. 17th. That's the 10th-longest streak in program history, as seen below.
Streak Name Dates of Streak
33 Ty-Shon Alexander Feb. 27, 2018-March 6, 2019
31 Booker Woodfox Nov. 25, 2008-March 23, 2009
28 Kyle Korver Feb. 4, 2001-Feb. 6, 2002
27 Kyle Korver Feb. 13, 2002-Jan. 20, 2003
25 Rodney Buford Jan. 25, 1997-Jan. 10, 1998
23 Ethan Wragge Nov. 8, 2013-Feb. 9, 2014
23 Mitch Ballock Nov. 12, 2019-Feb. 8, 2020
22 Khyri Thomas Jan. 28-Dec. 5, 2017
21 Ethan Wragge Jan. 3-March 24, 2010
20 Johnny Mathies Dec. 22, 2004-Feb. 28, 2005
20 Marcus Foster Dec. 31, 2017-March 16, 2018
20 Marcus Zegarowski Dec. 17, 2020 - Present
Bouncing Back
Creighton doesn't lose many games by 20 or more points, as it did last Saturday vs. Georgetown. However, each of the previous 13 times it has happened, Creighton has answered with a victory in its next game.
Creighton's Losses by 20+ Points Since 2000
Date Loss by 20+ Points Next Game Result
03/07/08 Illinois State 73, CU 49 03/18/09 CU 73, Bowling Green 71
02/11/12 Wichita State 89, #17 CU 68 02/14/12 CU 88, Southern Illinois 69
03/23/14 #23 Baylor 85, #16 CU 55 11/14/14 CU 104, Central Arkansas 77
01/25/15 #4 Villanova 71, CU 50 01/28/15 CU 77, St. John's 74
01/31/15 #21 Georgetown 67, CU 40 02/04/15 CU 79, Xavier 72 (OT)
11/19/15 #14 Indiana 86, CU 65 11/23/15 CU 85, Rutgers 75
02/03/16 #3 Villanova 83, CU 58 02/06/16 CU 88, DePaul 66
01/25/17 Georgetown 71, #16 CU 51 01/28/17 #16 CU 83, DePaul 66
01/13/18 #10 Xavier 92, #25 CU 70 01/17/18 CU 80, #19 Seton Hall 63
02/01/18 #1 Villanova 98, CU 78 02/07/18 CU 76, DePaul 75
02/20/18 Butler 93, CU 70 02/24/18 CU 89, #3 Villanova 83 (OT)
11/28/19 San Diego State 83, CU 52 11/29/19 CU 83, #12 Texas Tech 76 (OT)
03/01/20 St. John's 91, #10 CU 71 03/04/20 #11 CU 91, Georgetown 76
03/13/21 Georgetown 73, CU 48 03/20/21 #17 CU vs. UC Santa Barbara
History on truTV
Saturday will mark Creighton's third game ever played on truTV. Creighton's victory vs. Louisiana in 2014 remains Creighton's most recent NCAA Tournament victory.
Two days later, CU lost on truTV to Baylor.
Bluejays vs. Gauchos In the Postseason
Saturday won't the first time that Creighton has faced off vs. UC Santa Barbara in the postseason.
In 2011, Creighton men's soccer defeated UCSB, 2-1 in the Round of 16. That Bluejay squad would eventually reached the College Cup, which is soccer's equivalent to the Final Four.
You Can't Spell Marcus Without March
Marcus Zegarowski was named to BIG EAST's All-Tournament Team last weekend after averaging 16.0 points,, 4.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds as Creighton reached the final.
He shot 62.5 percent from the floor (20-32) and 61.5 percent from deep (8-13).
Zegarowski is the fourth Bluejay ever named to the BIG EAST's All-Tournament Team, joining Doug McDermott (2014), Austin Chatman (2014) and Marcus Foster (2017).
Postseason Features Last-Second Drama
Eleven of Creighton's last 16 postseason runs (all but 2010, 2014 and 2016, 2017 and 2019) have included a game that was decided in the final seconds, but it hasn't happened since 2013.
In fact, Creighton's past 16 postseason openers have been decided by an average of 6.69 points and feature four games decided by one point (including a double-OT finish), two by two points, one game by four points, two by six points (including an OT finish), two games by 10 points, three games by 11 points one by 12 points, and one decided by 18 points.
In 2013 Cincinnati missed a game-tying three-pointer in the final 20 seconds and Creighton guard Austin Chatman made 3-of-4 free throws down the stretch to hold on to a 67-63 win.
In 2012 Creighton edged Alabama in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, 58-57, as Trevor Releford's game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer came up short.
Creighton's 2010-11 campaign ended in heartbreaking fashion in the CBI title game at Oregon. Creighton had the ball in a tie game with the shot clock off, but committed a backcourt violation on Oregon's "unique" floor. The Ducks' E.J. Singler then banked in a game-winning shot with 2.0 seconds left. A desperation three-pointer by Creighton was off the mark.
In 2009, Creighton rallied from a 14-point deficit and would hang on to beat Bowling Green, 73-71 in the first round of the NIT. The Jays needed a last-second defensive stand, as BGSU's Darryl Clements' game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer was off the mark.
The following game, Creighton led Kentucky by one with 36 seconds left, only to miss two free throws and see UK All-American Jodie Meeks convert a three-point play. CU's Booker Woodfox, the nation's No. 2 three-point shooter, missed an open trey as time expired, and Creighton lost 65-63.
In 2008, Creighton rallied from a 12-point deficit in the final 3:07 to top Rhode Island, 74-73, in the first round of the NIT. Cavel Witter hit the game-winner with 3.2 seconds left to give CU its first lead of the game since 3-0.
In 2007, Creighton had the ball for a final shot in a tie game against Nevada in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Nate Funk's shot attempt missed, and a tip-in try was also not converted. The Jays would eventually lose 77-71 in overtime.
In second round of the 2006 NIT, Miami (Fla.) guard Guilermo Diaz drained a free throw with 2.6 seconds left to beat Creighton 53-52. A last-second shot attempt by Bluejay senior Johnny Mathies was knocked out of his hands.
In the 2005 NCAA Tourney, Nate Funk had his three-point try with seven seconds left blocked by Tyrone Sally, and Sally raced downcourt for a breakaway dunk with 2.4 seconds left to give West Virginia a 63-61 win. Funk's three-point try from the corner missed at the buzzer.
In 2004, Creighton fell 71-70 to Nebraska in the NIT. The Jays led nearly the entire second half before NU's go-ahead basket with 12 seconds left. Nate Funk's game-winning jumper from 18-feet away was blocked by Husker guard Jake Muhleisen.
In 2003 Creighton lost 79-73 to Central Michigan in the NCAA's. The Jays trailed 50-24 with 16:24 left but a furious rally got them within two points (72-70) with 1:20 left, only to turn it over the next three possessions.
In the 2002 NCAA's, Creighton beat #15 Florida, 83-82, in Chicago. Terrell Taylor hit a game-winning trey with 0.2 seconds left in double-overtime, his final three of 28 points after a scoreless first half.
All-BIG EAST Trio
Creighton's Marcus Zegarowski (First Team), Damien Jefferson (Second Team) and Denzel Mahoney (Honorable Mention) each picked up All-BIG EAST recognition in a vote of league coaches
This year marks the first time that Creighton had three players named All-BIG EAST in the same season.
In addition, Mitch Ballock brought home the league's Sportsmanship Award.
Only In 2020-21
Though Creighton's 14 BIG EAST wins were three more than any other team in the BIG EAST, the Bluejays were the second seed in this week's conference tournament since the league decided before the year to go by winning percentage to determine a league champion and seeds.
The BIG EAST isn't alone in this. It's one of eight leagues that saw the top team in winning percentage not be the same team that had the most conference wins.
Wins Leader Not League Champ, Nationally
League Wins Leader Conf Champ
American Houston, 14-3 Wichita St., 11-2
BIG EAST Creighton, 14-6 Villanova, 11-4
Big 10 Illinois, 16-4 Michigan, 14-3
Conf-USA UAB, 13-5 Louisiana Tech, 12-4
MEAC Norfolk St., 8-4 North Carolina A&T, 7-1
Coppin State, 8-4
MWC Utah State, 15-4 San Diego St., 14-3
Pac-12 USC, 15-5 Oregon, 14-4
Summit South Dakota, 11-4 South Dakota St., 9-3
N. Dakota St., 11-4
Ballock Reaches 300 Treys
Mitch Ballock owns 304 three-pointers in his Bluejay career, including a season-high eight on Dec. 14 vs. Marquette. That puts him in third place in program history in that category, and ahead of Doug McDermott (274).
His 232 career treys entering the year were second-most in school history after a junior season, trailing only Kyle Korver (242).
Ballock ranked 19th nationally with 93 three-pointers made and 11th in three-point percentage (.435) last season.
Two of Ballock's teammates also have made 200 or more career triples. Marcus Zegarowski owns 205, while Denzel Mahoney owns 209 if you include the 121 he made at Southeast Missouri State.
Most Career 3FG, Creighton History
Rank 3FG Name Years
1. 371 Kyle Korver 1999-03
2. 334 Ethan Wragge 2009-14
3. 304 Mitch Ballock 2017-Pres.
4. 274 Doug McDermott 2010-14
5. 245 Ryan Sears 1997-01
6. 212 Rodney Buford 1995-99
7. 210 Ty-Shon Alexander 2017-20
8. 206 Jahenns Manigat 2010-14
9. 205 Marcus Zegarowski 2018-Pres.
10. 200 Nate Funk 2002-07
The Great Eight
Mitch Ballock made nine three-pointers in Creighton's first five games of the season before erupting on Dec. 14 vs. Marquette. The senior guard from Eudora, Kan., made 8-of-14 three-pointers en route to 26 points.
His eight trifectas were tied for fourth-most in a game in Bluejay history, but three behind his record 11 vs. DePaul on March 9, 2019.
Ballock joined Kyle Korver as the only players in school history with multiple games of eight or more triples.
In addition, Ballock's 14 three-point attempts were also tied for fourth-most in program history and one behind the program record.
Ballock made 182 career three-pointers in BIG EAST games, which ranks fifth all-time.
Ballock's 26 points were the most by a Bluejay in any conference opener since 2012, when Doug McDermott scored 29 points vs. Evansville. That came when CU belonged to the Missouri Valley Conference.
3-Pointers Made, Game, Creighton History
3FG Name, Opponent Date
11 Mitch Ballock vs. DePaul 03/09/19
9 Kyle Korver vs. Evansville 01/15/03
Ethan Wragge at Villanova 01/20/14
8 Tad Ackerman at Drake 01/23/95
Kyle Korver at Xavier 12/31/02
Terrell Taylor vs. Florida 03/15/02
Isaiah Zierden at DePaul 01/17/16
Mitch Ballock vs. Marquette 12/14/20
Most Career 3FG Made, BIG EAST Games Only
Rank 3FG Name, School
1. 245 Markus Howard, Marquette
2. 201 Jeremy Hazell, Seton Hall
3. 189 Colin Falls, Notre Dame
4. 183 Gerry McNamara, Syracuse
5. 182 Mitch Ballock, Creighton
6. 180 Myles Powell, Seton Hall
Three-Ballock, Corner Pocket
Mitch Ballock enters Saturday's game with 304 career three-pointers made, which ranks eighth nationally among active players.
He's the third Bluejay to make 300 or more trifectas, joining Kyle Korver (371) and Ethan Wragge (334) in that elite grouping. Ballock is the first of that trio to drain 300 three-pointers while also dishing 300 or more career assists (currently 338 and counting).
Korver reached 300 treys in his 108th game as a Bluejay, while Wragge achieved that milestone in his 134th career contest. It took Ballock 124 contests.
Inbounds, In Range
Mitch Ballock has frequently displayed his long-range marksmanship. Per research from WhiteAndBlueReview.com writer Matt DeMarinis using Synergy Sports database, Ballock has made 8-of-13 three-pointers this season taken from between 30-40 feet away.
Over the past two seasons, he's 13-of-26 from 30-40 feet away.
On Any Given Day
For the second consecutive season, Creighton beat every other team in the BIG EAST during the regular-season.
Creighton went 2-0 against four programs and 1-1 against six schools this season.
Creighton was the only BIG EAST team with a win over all other 10 teams in the league this year.
Up, Up, And Away
Since Feb. 19, 2019, Creighton owns a 32-11 mark in regular-season BIG EAST games. That's six more wins than anyone else in the league in that time.
Not only that, but Creighton owned the most wins to close the 2018-19 season after Feb. 19th, tied for the most wins in 2019-20, and has the most wins in 2020-21 as well.
Conference Records Since Feb. 19, 2019
Team After 2/19/19 '19-20 '20-21 Total
Creighton 5-0 13-5 14-6 32-11
Villanova 2-3 13-5 11-4 26-12
Seton Hall 2-3 13-5 10-9 25-17
Providence 3-2 12-6 9-10 24-18
UConn 2-4# 10-8# 11-6 23-18
Butler 1-4 10-8 8-12 19-24
Xavier 4-1 8-10 6-7 18-18
Marquette 2-4 8-10 8-11 18-25
Georgetown 4-2 5-13 7-9 16-24
St. John's 1-4 5-13 10-9 16-26
DePaul 2-3 3-15 2-13 7-31
#includes 2018-19 and 2019-20 in the AAC
Quad Squad
Creighton owns a 12-6 record against teams that are either Quad 1 (7-3) or Quad 2 (5-3) this season according to Monday morning's edition of the NET.
Creighton is one of 10 clubs nationwide with 12 or more victories against teams in the top two quadrants, joining Alabama (17-5), Illinois (17-6), Ohio State (15-9), Gonzaga (14-0), Michigan (14-4), Purdue (13-8), Iowa (13-8), Oklahoma State (12-6) and Arkansas (12-6).
Creighton's seven Quad 1 wins are tied for 10th-most nationally.
Creighton was 26th in the March 15th edition of the NET at the end of the regular-season.
Fool Me Once...But Eight Times?
Creighton has met or exceeded its preseason BIG EAST prognostication every year since joining the league, as seen below.
This year also marks the fifth straight season that Creighton has finished in first, second or a tie for third place.
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)
Up Is Down; Down Is Up
Creighton finished in second place in the BIG EAST standings with a 14-6 league record, trailing only Villanova's 11-4 mark. Though CU had three more wins, it has a worse winning percentage (.700) than Villanova (.733).
What's unusual is how Creighton got to that point. The Bluejays went 7-1 against the top five seeds in this year's BIG EAST Tournament, but 7-5 against the bottom six seeds.
Matching that trend, Creighton was 1-0 against top-five seeds during the BIG EAST Tournament, but 1-1 against teams seeded 6-11.
Fourteen Is Fine
Creighton won 14 conference games this season, tied for its most in any of its eight seasons in the BIG EAST (also 2013-14).
This year's squad is just the seventh team in Creighton history with 14 or more league victories. Six have won exactly 14 while the 2002-03 squad led by Kyle Korver finished 15-3 in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Creighton has now won 10 or more league games in 22 of the last 25 seasons.
.500 Or Better in League Play, Again
Creighton went 14-6 in league play, clinching a .500 mark or better in league play for the 26th time in the last 27 seasons.
The only BIG EAST teams to finish .500 or better in league play each of the last five seasons (including 2020-21) are Creighton, Villanova and Seton Hall.
Top 25 Success
Creighton had six wins over top-25 teams last season, breaking the school-record of four set in 2016-17 and 2017-18.
This year's team owns top-25 wins vs. No. 5 Villanova, No. 22 Xavier and No. 23 UConn. It marks the 10th Bluejay team in history with multiple top-25 victories, and sixth straight year that's happened.
On a national basis, the only 11 teams that have posted multiple top-25 wins in each of the last six seasons (including 2020-21) are Baylor, Creighton, Florida State, Gonzaga, Kansas, Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State, Purdue, Texas Tech, Villanova and West Virginia.
The following schools have had multiple top-25 wins each year from 2015-16 to 2019-20, but aren't yet there in 2020-21: Duke, Kentucky, Oregon, Seton Hall and Virginia.
Creighton's Most Top-25 Wins, Season
Wins Season Top-25 Victims
6 2019-20 #8 Villanova, #10 Seton Hall,
#12 Texas Tech, #19 Marquette,
#21 Butler, #8 Seton Hall
4 2016-17 #9 Wisconsin, #12 Butler,
#16 Butler, #22 Xavier
4 2017-18 #3 Villanova, #19 Seton Hall,
#20 Northwestern, #23 UCLA
3 2020-21 #5 Villanova, #22 Xavier, #23 UConn
2 1973-74 #6 Marquette, #16 Louisville
2 2001-02 #15 Florida, #17 Western Kentucky
2 2006-07 #11 Southern Illinois, #24 Xavier
2 2013-14 #4 Villanova, #6 Villanova
2 2015-16 #5 Xavier, #18 Butler
2 2018-19 #10 Marquette, #16 Clemson
On The Double
Marcus Zegarowski had his second career double-double on Feb. 27th when the junior point guard turned in 15 points and 10 assists against Xavier.
Zegarowski's only previous double-double came on Dec. 1 vs. Nebraska-Omaha, when he had 11 points and a career-best 11 assists.
Zegarowski is one of four Bluejays with a double-dip this season, as Christian Bishop (4), Damien Jefferson (2) and Denzel Mahoney (1) have also done it.
Winning On the Road
Creighton owns a 35-38 record in BIG EAST road games since the league's 2013-14 realignment. Those 35 victories trail only Villanova's 50.
Since the start of the 2018-19 campaign, Creighton's 16 BIG EAST road wins lead the league.
BIG EAST Road Records (through 2020-21)
Team Since 2013-14 Since 2018-19
Butler 28-45 7-21
Connecticut 5-4 5-4
Creighton 35-38 16-12
DePaul 13-57 5-20
Georgetown 23-47 8-17
Marquette 28-45 13-15
Providence 33-40 11-17
Seton Hall 32-41 14-14
St. John's 19-54 8-20
Villanova 50-20 14-11
Xavier 31-36 9-15
Road Warriors
Creighton went 7-3 in BIG EAST road games this season, tying a program record for most road wins in a league season.
Creighton, Baylor, Illinois, USC, Oregon and Alabama were the nation's only major conference (Power 5 or BIG EAST) teams with seven or more league road wins this season.
League Road After After After
Year Games 1-6 W-L 7 Road 8 Road 9 Road
2020-21 5-1 6-1 7-1 7-2
2019-20 3-3 4-3 5-3 5-4
2018-19 2-4 2-5 3-5 3-6
2017-18 2-4 3-4 3-5 3-6
2016-17 5-1 5-2 5-3 5-4
2015-16 4-2 4-3 4-4 4-5
2014-15 1-5 1-6 2-6 2-7
2013-14 4-2 5-2 5-3 5-4
2012-13 3-3 3-4 4-4 5-4
2011-12 5-1 5-2 6-2 7-2
2010-11 3-3 3-4 3-5 3-6
2009-10 2-4 2-5 2-6 3-6
2008-09 4-2 5-2 6-2 7-2
2007-08 3-3 3-4 3-5 3-6
2006-07 4-2 5-2 5-3 5-4
2005-06 3-3 4-3 4-4 4-5
2004-05 3-3 3-4 4-4 5-4
2003-04 4-2 4-3 4-4 4-5
2002-03 5-1 5-2 6-2 7-2
2001-02 5-1 6-1 6-2 7-2
2000-01 2-4 3-4 4-4 5-4
1999-00 2-4 3-4 3-5 4-5
1998-99 4-2 4-3 4-4 4-5
1997-98 4-2 5-2 5-3 5-4
1996-97 2-4 3-4 3-5 3-6
High Wire Act
Creighton went 7-3 in conference road games this season. Since a 94-76 win at St. John's on Dec. 17th, five of Creighton's last nine league road tilts have been tied at some point in the last 3:02 of regulation. In one of the games that wasn't, Creighton won by three after Marquette missed a tying three-pointer in the final seconds.
Creighton beat UConn 76-74 in overtime on Dec. 20th, as Damien Jefferson tied the game with 0.2 seconds left in regulation.
Creighton won 67-65 at Providence on Jan. 2nd on Christian Bishop's dunk with 0.8 seconds left.
Creighton lost 70-66 in overtime at Butler on Jan. 16th.
On Jan. 27th at Seton Hall, Mitch Ballock's three-pointer with 37.8 seconds left broke an 81-all tie and helped Creighton to an 85-81 victory.
On Jan. 30th at DePaul, Creighton trailed 60-59 before Denzel Mahoney made two free throws with 3:02 left to start a game-ending 10-2 run.
In Creighton's 10 BIG EAST road games this season, Marcus Zegarowski averaged 15.0 points and 4.1 rebounds per game while shooting 40.1 percent from three-point range.
Denzel Mahoney averaged 11.0 points per game and Damien Jefferson averaged 12.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game.
Mitch Ballock averaged 11.9 points per game and shooting 45.3 percent from downtown.
Give Me 10
The Feb. 24 win vs. DePaul was Creighton's 10th home win of the season. It's the 24th time in the last 25 seasons CU has done that.
The only exception in that time came in 2014-15, when the Jays won nine times at home.
Double-Double Duo
Creighton had a pair of players record a double-double in the Feb. 13 victory vs. Villanova as Christian Bishop (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Damien Jefferson (10 points, 10 rebounds) each did it.
Bishop (11 points, 10 rebounds) and Jefferson (10 points, 10 rebounds) also accomplished the feat earlier this season in CU's Dec. 17 win at St. john's.
Before Bishop and Jefferson (twice), the last Bluejay duo to record double-doubles in the same contest since Dec. 9, 2017, when both Martin Krampelj and Ronnie Harrell Jr. did it.
Bishop The Ultimate Chess Piece
Christian Bishop is a tad undersized to play the center position, but his versatility has made him a match-up nightmare for some opponents.
For the year, Bishop is shooting 67.2 percent from the field, far ahead of the next best competitor in the BIG EAST (Nate Watson, 60.2 percent).
In league play only, Bishop's 65.4 percent marksmanship easily outpaced St. John's Isaih Moore's 60.7 percent.
Not Just A Hoops Powerhouse
Creighton is one of seven schools in the country to have a top-25 team in both volleyball and men's basketball this week.
Creighton is joined in that elite grouping by Texas, Baylor, Ohio State, Purdue, Florida State and BYU.
Creighton's 24th-ranked volleyball team is seeking a seventh straight BIG EAST title, while the Bluejays' 19th-ranked men's basketball squad starts NCAA Tournament action on Saturday in Indianapolis.
A Nice Problem To Have
Creighton continues to find ways to win when scoring 69 points or less. The Bluejays own six wins this winter when scoring 69 point or less, a figure that exceeds its total number of wins (4) in that situation during the previous four years combined.
This year is the first season since 2012-13 that Creighton has won six games in the same season when scoring 69 points or less. It hasn't happened more than six times in a year since 2010-11 (8 times).
Release, Rotation, Splash, Repeat
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 910 straight games. The streak is tied for 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.
Below is a list of the nation's longest active three-point streaks.
Longest Active 3-Point Streaks (3/14)
Rk. Streak School Next
1. 1,129 UNLV Season Over
2. 1,113 Duke Season Over
3. 1,072 Arkansas 3/19
4. 1,060 Western Kentucky 3/17
5. 1,051 East Tennessee State Season Over
6. 1,031 Oakland Season Over
7. 1,031 Pacific Season Over
8. 1,022 Texas 3/20
9. 969 Marshall Season Over
10. 958 Princeton Season Canceled
11. 956 Baylor 3/19
12. 944 Gonzaga 3/20
13. 926 Long Island Season Over
14. 910 Mount St. Mary's 3/18
910 Creighton 3/20
16. 899 Tennessee State Season Over
Let It Fly
Creighton made 17-of-35 three-pointers on Jan. 27th at Seton Hall. The 17 three-pointers were tied for fifth-most in program history for a single game, and second-most ever in a road contest.
Creighton started the night by making 8-of-9 three-point shots and would also hit 6-of-8 trifectas in the final 5:22.
Creighton's Most 3-Pointers, Game
Rk. 3FG-3FGA Opponent Date
1. 22-37 Coe 12-20-18
2. 21-35 at #4 Villanova 01-20-14
3. 20-30 Chattanooga 02-19-05
4. 19-34 USC Upstate 12-20-17
5. 17-33 #21 Marquette 01-09-19
17-36 Georgetown 03-04-20
17-35 at Seton Hall 01-27-21
8. 16-30 Evansville 01-04-99
16-27 Drake 01-08-13
16-25 Chicago State 12-29-13
16-26 vs. Ole Miss 11-21-16
16-33 Alcorn State 11-12-17
16-36 at Georgetown 01-06-18
16-36 St. John's 01-09-21
No. 19 Bluejays
After starting the year ranked 11th in both the AP and Coaches polls, Creighton ascended into the top 10 for three weeks in the AP edition. CU is currently 19th in the AP poll and 19th in the Coaches poll.
The No. 19 AP ranking is 12 spots behind the best mark in program history, which was done on Jan. 16, 2017, March 9, 2020, March 16, 2020 and Jan. 4, 2021.
This season is the sixth time that Creighton has been ranked in the year-end AP poll, joining 2002-03 (15th), 2011-12 (19th), 2012-13 (22nd), 2013-14 (16th) and 2019-20 (7th).
This year marked the first time that Creighton has been ranked in every AP poll of the same season.
Creighton is one of six teams that have been ranked in all 24 AP polls since Feb. 3, 2020, joining Gonzaga (95), Villanova (40), Baylor (37), Houston (26) and Iowa (26). The 24 straight weeks in the rankings is the longest stretch in program history, six more than the 17-week streak done from Feb. 27, 2012 - Feb. 4, 2013.
After being ranked 30th in the inaugural NET rankings that were released on Jan. 4th, Creighton was 26th in Monday's (March 15) latest update.
Firing On All Cylinders
Creighton continues to be highly regarded by KenPom.com, and is currently 19th. That includes the nation's No. 14 offense, and No. 40 defense.
Creighton has not finished with a top-35 defense since 2006-07, and has not finished better than 30th since 2001-02.
Last season was the fourth different time in the last 10 seasons that Creighton has had a top-10 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 14 40 20-8 so far
Moving On Up
Last year Damien Jefferson scored in double-figures in just 13-of-30 contests, and he finished the season averaging 9.4 points per game.
This year, the senior forward has scored in double-figures in 22-of-28 games and he's upped his average to 12.1 points per contest.
Jefferson pumped in a career-high 26 points on Jan. 20th vs. Providence, six more than his previous best.
Big Wins In The BIG EAST
Creighton never trailed in its 89-53 win over Seton Hall on Jan. 6th. The 36-point win was Creighton's second-largest ever in BIG EAST action.
The 36-point loss tied for Seton Hall's third-largest ever in league play for the charter member of the BIG EAST, and was its largest league setback since falling 99-57 vs. UConn on Feb. 11, 2006.
Creighton's Largest BIG EAST Winning Margins
Margin Score Date
41 at Creighton 100, St. John's 59 02/28/16
36 at Creighton 89, Seton Hall 53 01/06/21
35 Creighton 93, at DePaul 58 02/11/17
29 at Creighton 93, DePaul 64 02/15/20
28 at Creighton 88, Butler 60 01/14/14
28 Creighton 68, at #4 Villanova 68 01/20/14
25 at Creighton 82, DePaul 57 02/27/18
Major Success
Among teams in the leagues considered the "Power Five", plus the BIG EAST, Creighton has enjoyed almost more success than anyone else recently.
Creighton's 44 victories since the start of the 2019-20 season trail only Kansas and Baylor,
Best Records Since 2019-20 (through 3/14)
(Power 5 Conferences + BIG EAST)
Team 2019-20 2020-21 Total
Baylor 26-4 22-2 48-6
Kansas 28-3 20-8 48-11
Creighton 24-7 20-8 44-15
Oregon 24-7 20-6 44-13
Illinois 21-10 23-6 44-16
USC 22-9 22-7 44-16
Colorado 21-11 22-8 43-19
Zegarowski Earns National Honor
NCAA.com correspondent Andy Katz named Creighton guard Marcus Zegarowski as his National Player of the Week on Feb. 15th.
The junior averaged 17.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists as Creighton picked up double-digit wins vs. Georgetown and No. 5 Villanova.
Zegarowski opened his week with nine points, six rebounds, and four assists as Creighton defeated Georgetown on the road, 63-48. He also had two of Creighton's school-record 19 steals in the triumph.
Zegarowski finished his week with a season-high 25 points in Creighton's 86-70 victory vs. No. 5 Villanova and added five assists and three rebounds. He made 10-of-18 field goal attempts in the victory, and his 17 points in the first half matched the most by a Bluejay all season before intermission.
Big Deficits, No Big Deal
Creighton owns 23 victories since the start of the 2010-11 season after trailing by double-figures at some point, including three this season. Twelve of those 23 comebacks have come away from home.
Creighton's comeback from 16 points down at Seton Hall on Jan. 27th was its largest since trailing by 18 vs. No. 18 Oklahoma on Nov. 19, 2014.
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.
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.
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
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
Ballock Nears 1,300; Zegarowski Not Far Behind
Mitch Ballock owns 1,281 career points after surpassing the 1,000 point mark on Nov. 29 vs. North Dakota State in CU's season-opener, which was also his 100th career game.
Ballock entered last season's BIG EAST Tournament with 996 points and scored nine points in the first half vs. St. John's on March 12th, but those points were erased when the game was abandoned at halftime.
Marcus Zegarowski became the 44th Bluejay in school history to surpass 1,000 career points on Jan. 20 vs. Providence when he scored 17 points. Zegarowski needed 75 games to reach the milestone. He owns 1,237 career points.
Games To 1,000 Points, Last 19 Bluejays
Name CU Games to 1,000 pts. Date
Marcus Zegarowski 75 01/20/21
Mitch Ballock 100 11/29/20
Ty-Shon Alexander 85 01/15/20
Khyri Thomas 94 02/10/18
Marcus Foster 54 01/17/18
Austin Chatman 138 03/11/15
Ethan Wragge 132 01/18/14
Gregory Echenique 101 03/24/13
Doug McDermott 57 01/15/12
Antoine Young 115 12/10/11
Kenny Lawson Jr. 108 11/21/10
P'Allen Stinnett 86 01/16/10
Dane Watts 115 01/22/08
Anthony Tolliver 124 03/16/07
Johnny Mathies 91 03/03/06
Nate Funk 92 02/28/05
Kyle Korver 81 01/30/02
Ben Walker 105 01/06/01
Ryan Sears 97 12/01/00
Rodney Buford 59 03/01/97
Most Career Points, Creighton History
Rank Pts. Name Years
1. 3,150 Doug McDermott 2010-14
2. 2,116 Rodney Buford 1995-99
3. 2,110 Bob Harstad 1987-91
4. 1,983 Chad Gallagher 1987-91
5. 1,876 Bob Portman 1966-69
6. 1,801 Kyle Korver 1999-03
7. 1,754 Nate Funk 2002-07
8. 1,682 Rick Apke 1974-78
9. 1,661 Paul Silas 1961-64
10. 1,654 Vernon Moore 1981-85
11. 1,575 Benoit Benjamin 1982-85
12. 1,526 John C. Johnson 1975-79
13. 1,500 Kevin McKenna 1977-81
14. 1,437 Eddie Cole 1951-55
15. 1,369 Gene Harmon 1971-74
16. 1,361 Duan Cole 1987-92
17. 1,342 Antoine Young 2008-12
18. 1,313 Kenny Lawson Jr. 2006-11
19. 1,309 Ryan Sears 1997-01
20. 1,303 Elton Tuttle 1951-54
21. 1,292 Marcus Foster 2016-18
22. 1,281 Mitch Ballock 2017-Pres.
23. 1,272 Bob Gibson 1954-57
24. 1,267 Wally Anderzunas 1965-67, 1968-69
25. 1,254 Gary Swain 1983-87
26. 1,241 Ty-Shon Alexander 2017-20
27. 1,238 Ben Walker 1997-01
28. 1,237 Marcus Zegarowski 2018-Pres.
29. 1,196 Ray Yost 1951-54
30. 1,172 Dick Harvey 1956-59
Are You Experienced?
Year after year, one common theme to success in college basketball is to have veteran players. This year's Creighton team is full of experienced players.
CU's starting five features two juniors and three seniors who have combined for 20 years of college experience. They've combined for 4,522 career points at Creighton, and 5,766 career points if you add in Mahoney and Jefferson's points at their previous stops.
Off the bench, Alex O'Connell and Jacob Epperson are in their fourth college campaign, Antwann Jones in his third year and Shereef Mitchell in his second season. Of the regular Bluejay rotation, only Ryan Kalkbrenner is a freshman.
On March 20th, Creighton's potential starting five (Mitch Ballock, Christian Bishop, Damien Jefferson, Denzel Mahoney and Marcus Zegarowski) will be a collective 41,136 days old. By comparison, the starting line-up used by the Chicago Bulls in its first four games this season (Wendell Carter Jr., Zach Lavine, Lauri Markkanen, Coby White and Patrick Williams) will be a combined 41,187 days old on March 20th.
High-Powered Offense
Creighton has pumped in 93 or more points in six games this season, one of 10 teams in the country (with Iowa, Gonzaga, Baylor, The Citadel, Eastern Kentucky, Sam Houston State, Southern Utah, Oral Roberts and McNeese State) who can say that. Last year's BIG EAST champion squad only cracked the 93-point barrier three times all season.
Creighton is 48-3 in since 2010-11 when scoring 93 points or more. The nation's only teams to score 93+ more than 51 times since 2010-11 are Gonzaga (71), North Carolina (69) and Belmont (52).
By comparison, McDermott's teams scored 93+ points just once in his four seasons at Iowa State (96 on 11/22/09 vs. Mississippi Valley State), and also just once in five years at Northern Iowa (99 on 12/1/04 vs. Iowa State).
They Scored How Many?
Creighton put up 56 points in the first half on Jan. 9 vs. St. John's, its highest output before intermission in a league game since joining the BIG EAST.
After a total of eight halves of 52 points or more in its first seven years in the league, Creighton scored 52 points or more in three different halves this BIG EAST season.
Creighton's Highest Scoring BIG EAST Halves
Points Opponent (Half) Date
56 Xavier (2nd) 01/12/14
56 St. John's (1st) 01/09/21
54 at #4 Villanova (1st) 01/20/14
54 Marquette (2nd) 01/21/17
54 at DePaul (2nd) 02/11/17
53 Butler (1st) 01/14/14
53 St. John's (1st) 02/28/16
53 #23 Seton Hall (1st) 12/28/17
53 Marquette (1st) 02/17/18
53 at St. John's (2nd) 12/17/20
52 Seton Hall (2nd) 01/09/21
51 #6 Villanova (1st) 02/16/14
51 DePaul (2nd) 02/15/20
50 #6 Villanova (1st) 02/16/14
50 Seton Hall (1st) 12/28/16
50 at Georgetown (2nd) 01/21/19
50 DePaul (2nd) 03/09/19
Numbers Never Lie (Unless they Do)
Need some other random figures to watch?
Creighton is 17-1 all-time when Marcus Zegarowski has 19 or more points, 7-1 when he has eight or more assists and 29-6 when he makes three or more three-pointers.
Creighton is 15-2 all-time when Mitch Ballock scores 17 or more points, 11-0 when he has six or more assists and 12-0 when he makes three or more free throws.
Creighton is 19-6 all-time when Christian Bishop has seven or more rebounds.
Finally, Creighton is also 21-3 when Shereef Mitchell grabs two or more rebounds, and also 20-4 when he dishes multiple assists.
Balance Is Big
All five Creighton starters are averaging 10.2 points or more this season, and the Bluejays have had at least five men score in double-digits in six contests overall.
Creighton has won 19 games in a row when five or more players score 10 or more points.
Nine different players have scored 10 or more points in a game this season, a list that doesn't include Jacob Epperson. Epperson's done it four times as a Bluejay in 2017-18 or 2018-19.
In the last 5:01 of play at UConn, Creighton had 12 points, with each starter scoring either two or three points.
In league play, all five Bluejay starters averaged 10.6 points per game or more.
CHI Health Center Omaha Success
Creighton has played 308 regular and postseason contests at CHI Health Center Omaha all-time in the 18-year-old facility.
The Bluejays own a 254-54 (.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 24,184-20,244 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 29-33 all-time in the 62 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 35-27 when trailing at halftime at CHI Health Center Omaha.
Creighton is 157-36 (.813) at CHI Health Center Omaha since 2010-11 and hasn't trailed in 60 of those games. In that same span, CU owns an 87-6 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 273-54 (.835) at home since the start of the 2002-03 campaign.
Dame Time
Damien Jefferson came two assists shy of producing Creighton's first traditional triple-double when he posted 10 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists on Thursday at St. John's.
His performance made him the only Creighton player in the last 34 seasons with at least 10 points, 10 rebounds and eight or more assists in the same game.
Creighton has had only three triple-doubles in program history, but all three were of the points/rebounds/blocks variety by Benoit Benjamin.
Jefferson is just the second Bluejay player with a game of at least eight points, rebounds and assists in the last 11 seasons. Khyri Thomas had 16 points, eight rebounds and eight assists vs. DePaul on Feb. 27, 2018.
Here's a list of Creighton players with at least 7+ points, 7+ rebounds and 7+ assists in the same game since 1987-88.
7+ Point, 7+ Rebound, 7+ Assist Games, Since 1987-88
Pts. Reb. Ast. Name Date
16 9 7 Mike Amos 1/30/1993
24 11 7 Rodney Buford 11/18/1998
25 8 8 Ryan Sears 1/8/2000
9 7 10 Grant Gibbs 12/19/2011
12 10 7 Grant Gibbs 1/13/2012
12 7 9 Austin Chatman 11/11/2013
9 7 7 Austin Chatman 1/25/2014
7 9 7 Khyri Thomas 12/9/2015
16 8 7 Maurice Watson Jr. 1/26/2016
14 12 7 Khyri Thomas 2/28/2017
16 8 8 Khyri Thomas 2/27/2018
10 10 8 Damien Jefferson 12/17/2020
Big Ryan's Big Night
Freshman center Ryan Kalkbrenner had a season-high 15 points in just 16 minutes of work on Dec. 17 at St. John's, including four baskets in a three-minute span during the decisive 22-4 second half run.
For the season, Kalkbrenner has averaged 6.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.3 blocked shots while playing just 13.0 minutes per game. Kalkbrenner ranks fifth nationally among freshmen with 37 blocked shots, and first in the BIG EAST among classmates.
Creighton is 14-3 when he has a blocked shot (6-5 when he doesn't), 20-5 when he scores a field goal (0-3 when he doesn't) and 7-0 when he scores in double-figures (13-8 when he doesn't).
Kalkbrenner became CU's first true freshman since Benoit Benjamin (1982-83) to have a blocked shot in each of CU's first three games of the season.
Creighton is 20-5 this year when he makes a field goal, and 0-3 when he does not. The Bluejays are also 14-4 when he blocks a shot, and 6-4 when he does not. Finally, CU is 7-0 when Kalkbrenner scores 10 or more points (13-8 when he doesn't).
3's Are Falling
Creighton is tied for sixth in the country with seven different games of 13 three-pointers this year. Among power conference teams, no one has done it more.
Creighton has three of the six players in the BIG EAST with 59 or more three-pointers made, with Mitch Ballock (72) leading the way, two more than Marcus Zegarowski (70) and 13 ahead of Denzel Mahoney (59). Julian Champagnie (St. John's) has made 60, and Jair Bolden (Butler) has made 65.
O'Connell Makes Creighton Debut
A vote by the NCAA Division I Council on Dec. 16 made Alex O'Connell immediately eligible. He made his debut one day later at St. John's with six points, two rebounds a steal, and an assist in 12 minutes of action.
A senior guard from Roswell, Ga., O'Connell had not played in Creighton's first six games this season while sitting out after an off-season transfer from Duke University. He had been awaiting a ruling on a waiver that Creighton had filed on his behalf with the NCAA.
While at Duke, O'Connell appeared in 101 games, including 14 starts. He contributed 431 points and 182 rebounds for the Blue Devils with single-game highs of 20 points, seven rebounds and four steals.
Though a senior, O'Connell will also be eligible to return to Creighton for the 2021-22 season as a result of a previous NCAA decision that indicated winter sport student-athletes who compete during 2020-21 in Division I will receive both an additional season of competition and an additional year in which to complete it.
Creighton is 16-5 since O'Connell became eligible.
Preseason Acclaim
Junior guard Marcus Zegarowski was named Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year on Oct. 28th. In addition, senior guard Mitch Ballock was also voted as a Preseason Second Team All-BIG EAST performer in the annual survey of league coaches.
The Bluejays, along with Kansas, are one of six schools with a Watch List candidate for both the Bob Cousy and Jerry West Awards, joining Baylor (MaCio Teague & Jared Butler), Florida State (MJ Walker & Scottie Barnes), Gonzaga (Joel Ayayi & Jalen Suggs), Kansas (Ochai Agbaji & Marcus Garrett) and Villanova (Justin Moore & Collin Gillespie).
Zegarowski is Creighton's second player ever named Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year, joining Doug McDermott (2013-14). McDermott would go on to win BIG EAST Player of the Year honors, as well as 14 National Player of the Year accolades, at season's end.
In addition, both men have been recognized among the best in the nation at their position. Zegarowski is one of 20 players on the Preseason Watch List for the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award, and Ballock one of 20 players on the Preseason Watch List for the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award.
Home Run
Since the start of the 2010-11 season, Creighton is averaging 81.30 points per home game (15,690 points in 193 home games), a figure that climbs to 85.14 points in non-conference home games (7,918 points in 93 home games).
Creighton is 122-6 all-time at CHI Health Center Omaha when scoring 80 or points.
Jays Mourn Loss Of Two Greats
Two prominent members of the Creighton Basketball family passed away in the off-season, as Eddie Sutton died on May 23rd and Bob Gibson lost his battle with pancreatic cancer a few months later on October 2nd. Both men were 84.
Sutton went 82-50 as Creighton's head coach and athletic director between 1969-74. His 806-329 overall mark in 37 years of coaching ranks 11th on the all-time Division I wins list. In April he was announced as part of the Class of 2020 that will be enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame -- part of a group that also contains Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant. However, COVID-19 has pushed that induction ceremony back to 2021.
Gibson starred in both baseball and basketball with the Bluejays from 1954-57, finishing his college career third with 1,272 career points (he's currently 22nd). He remains in the top-five in CU history in free throws made (418), free throw attempts (575) and scoring average (20.19 ppg.), and his No. 45 basketball jersey is retired. He would play a year with the Harlem Globetrotters before joining the St. Louis Cardinals organization full-time. Gibson is a member of the Hall of Fame's for Creighton Athletics (1968 induction), Missouri Valley Conference (2005) and St. Louis Cardinals (2014), and was honored with a spot on Major League Baseball's All-Century Team in 1999. Gibson was named the best athlete in state history by the Omaha World-Herald in both 2005 and 2015, one spot ahead of Gale Sayers. Tragically, Sayers died nine days before Gibson.
Preseason BIG EAST Poll
Creighton was picked second in the preseason BIG EAST Conference poll that was selected via a vote of league coaches.
Villanova earned 9-of-11 first place votes to top the poll with 99 points, just ahead of Creighton's two first place votes and 91 overall points. Third in the poll was Providence (79), who was just ahead of UConn (69), Seton Hall (67) and Marquette (50).
Rounding out the bottom half of the poll were Xavier (47) in seventh place, Butler (37), St. John's (33), DePaul (20) and Georgetown (13).
Seton Hall edged Villanova by one point to be named league favorites for the first time since 1992-93, as both the Pirates and Wildcats garnered five first place votes.
Xavier was third, with Marquette and Providence tying for fourth place. Georgetown was tabbed sixth, just ahead of Creighton, while Butler, St. John's and DePaul round out the poll.
Creighton's Marcus Zegarowski was tabbed Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year, and was joined on the Preseason All-BIG EAST team by Charlie Moore (DePaul), David Duke (Providence), Sandro Mamukelashvili (Seton Hall), Collin Gillespie (Villanova) and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (Villanova).
Creighton 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
Creighton has three players in the NBA this season, Doug McDermott (Indiana Pacers), Ty-Shon Alexander (Phoenix Suns) and Justin Patton (Houston Rockets).
Including 2020-21, Creighton has now had an NBA player in 37 of the last 38 years.
McDermott is in his seventh season in the NBA, and third with the Indiana Pacers. He averaged a career-high 10.3 points per game last season and is the only player in the NBA to rank in the top-20 in three-point percentage each of the previous three seasons. This year he's averaging 13.4 points and 4.0 rebounds per game.
Alexander bypassed his senior season to turn pro. After going undrafted, he signed a two-way contract with the Phoenix Suns. He made his NBA debut on December 27th.
Patton was in the G-League with the Westchester Knicks but recently signed a 2-way contract and was called up by the Houston Rockets. He made his first career NBA start on Feb. 28th and scored a then-career-high 10 points. He's averaging 6.8 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.
In addition, three other Bluejays played in the NBA last season but are currently in the G-League or unsigned...Kyle Korver, Anthony Tolliver and Khyri Thomas.
McDermott Ranks Second On CU Wins List
Greg McDermott currently has 250 victories at Creighton, good for second place on CU's all-time wins list.
McDermott's .668 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. 250-124 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
Triple Trouble
During Creighton's current streak of 910 straight games with a three-pointer, the Jays have drained 7,200 trifectas, an average of 7.91 treys per game.
That's not surprising since during the streak, Creighton has made exactly 7 three-pointers 136 times, more than any figure.
Only four times in the streak has Creighton made just one three-pointer, but on 260 occasions the Bluejays have made 10 or more trifectas, including three games of 20 or more.
Creighton has also made at least one three-pointer before halftime in 281 consecutive contests (since 0-7 at Drake on 1/23/13).
Since the start of the 2019-20 season, the Bluejays are 35-6 when making eight or more three-pointers, compared to a 7-8 mark when making seven treys or fewer.
Team 3FG Made During Creighton's 3-Point Streak
1: 4 times 2: 15 times 3: 31 times
4: 71 times 5: 96 times 6: 95 times
7: 136 times 8: 115 times 9: 87 times
10: 76 times 11: 52 times 12: 49 times
13: 44 times 14: 18 times 15: 7 times
16: 7 times 17: 3 times 19: 1 time
20: 1 time 21: 1 time 22: 1 time
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 March 14, 2021
Category CU Stat CU Rank
3FG Percentage .384 2nd
3FG Made 3,368 2nd
FG Percentage .480 3rd
Assists 6,074 4th
FG Made 10,263 8th
Wins 251 28th
Winning Percentage .669 33rd
Getting Votes A Good Sign
Creighton was ranked 11th in the Associated Press preseason poll.
It's the sixth time that Creighton has picked up votes in the preseason poll since 2010-11. Five times when that happened, the Bluejays would finish top three in the league, reach the finals of the conference tournament, and play in the NCAA Tournament. Last year's team shared the BIG EAST title before the Conference and NCAA Tournaments were canceled.
Preseason Poll Votes Since 2010-11
Year Preseason Rank League Finish NCAA's?
2011-12 34th 2nd, MVC Yes
2012-13 16th 1st, MVC Yes
2013-14 27th 2nd, BIG EAST Yes
2016-17 22nd T-3rd, BIG EAST Yes
2019-20 40th T-1st; BIG EAST No Tourney
2020-21 11th 2nd, BIG EAST Yes
What Does #11 Mean?
Creighton was ranked 11th in the preseason Associated Press poll. Below is a listing of how teams ranked 11th in the preseason have done since 1999-2000.
Year School Year-End Rank* NCAA's (Wins)
2020-21: Creighton 19 Yes (TBD)
2019-20: Virginia 16 Tourney Canceled
2018-19: Kansas State 15 Yes (0)
2017-18: West Virginia 14 Yes (2)
2016-17: Indiana NR No (0)
2015-16: Gonzaga 21 Yes (2)
2014-15: Wichita State 14 Yes (2)
2013-14: Ohio State 22 Yes (0)
2012-13: North Carolina NR Yes (1)
2011-12: Memphis NR Yes (0)
2010-11: Kentucky 11 Yes (4)
2009-10: Butler 11 Yes (5)
2008-09: Purdue 17 Yes (2)
2007-08: Marquette 25 Yes (1)
2006-07: Alabama NR No (0)
2005-06: Boston College 7 Yes (2)
2004-05: Duke 3 Yes (2)
2003-04: Kentucky 2 Yes (1)
2002-03: Oregon NR Yes (0)
2001-02: Virginia NR No (0)
2000-01: Florida 8 Yes (1)
1999-00: Kansas NR Yes (1)
*based on final poll before NCAA Tournament
Torn ACL's End Two Seasons Early
Creighton will be without Rati Andronikashvili and Modestas Kancleris during the 2020-21 season after both men tore the anterior cruciate ligaments in their left knee three days apart during practices in early November.
Andronikashvili was injured on Nov. 1, with Kancleris three days last on Nov. 4. The two men, who are roommates, hail from the countries of Georgia and Lithuania, respectively.
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/ Men's BasketballCreighton & Gonzaga Men's Basketball Press Conferences - 11/11/25
Wednesday, November 12
Creighton Men's Basketball Media Availability - 11/10/25
Monday, November 10
Creighton Men's Basketball vs. South Dakota Press Conference - 11/5/25
Tuesday, November 04
Creighton Men's Basketball Availability - 11/3/25
Monday, November 03
