Saturday, January 7
Storrs, Conn.
11:00 AM
Creighton University
at
Connecticut
Men's Basketball Visits #4 UConn on Saturday
1/5/2023 1:11:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Bluejays seek third top-25 win of the season
Game #16: Creighton Bluejays (9-6, 3-1 BIG EAST) at #4 Connecticut Huskies (14-2, 3-2 BIG EAST)
Saturday, Jan. 7, 2023 • 11:00 a.m. CST • Storrs, Conn. • Harry A. Gampel Pavilion
| LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | CU NOTES (PDF) | UCONN NOTES (PDF) |
Next Game
Creighton (9-6, 3-1 BIG EAST) plays its fifth top-25 opponent of the season on Saturday, Jan. 7, when it visits No. 4 Connecticut (14-2, 3-2 BIG EAST) for an 11 a.m. CST tip.
The Bluejays are 5-0 all-time vs. the Huskies, including a 76-74 overtime win in 2020 in its only visit to Harry A. Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Conn.
Radio Broadcast Information
KOZN (1620 AM) and KOOO (101.9 FM) will carry all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2022-23 season. John Bishop and Taylor Stormberg will call the action.
The audio is webcast live at www.1620thezone.com and can be heard on SiriusXM channel 382 and on SXM app channel 972.
Telecast Information
Saturday's game will be called by Brandon Gaudin and Donny Marshall and be televised on FOX. The game will also be video webcast on the FoxSports app or at http://foxsports.com/live. Cable authorization may be required.
Live Stats Information
All of Creighton's games this season will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the small bar graph icon on the scoreboard at the top of the page for the event of your choosing.
Home games can also be followed on mobile devices at www.gocreightonstats.com.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton started 6-0, including wins at the Maui Jim Maui Invitational over No. 21 Texas Tech and No. 9 Arkansas, then dropped its next six games before picking up BIG EAST wins by double-figures over Butler, DePaul and Seton Hall.
CU had three men named to the BIG EAST's All-Freshman Team last winter who are now sophomores. That trio includes BIG EAST Freshman of the Year Ryan Nembhard (11.5 ppg., 5.8 apg.) as well as Arthur Kaluma (12.7 ppg., 5.5 rpg.) and Trey Alexander (12.7 ppg., 4.2 rpg.).
Creighton's highest-impact newcomer to date has been South Dakota State transfer Baylor Scheierman (12.4 ppg., 9.2 rpg.), who also owns the team lead with eight double-doubles and 38 three-pointers made.
All-BIG EAST center Ryan Kalkbrenner (15.3 ppg., 7.0 rpg.), who was named 2022 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year, ranks second in the nation in field goal percentage (.762) this season. CU is 9-3 with him in the line-up this year.
Creighton was picked to win the BIG EAST Conference and earned its best preseason AP poll ranking ever (No. 9), thanks to the return of 10 lettermen and three starters from last year's team that finished 23-12.
CU averages 77.1 points while allowing just 67.5 points per contest. CU shoots 47.2 percent from the floor, 36.3 percent from deep and 71.4 percent at the line.
Scouting #4 Connecticut
Connecticut has suffered back-to-back double-digit losses after a 14-0 start, putting the Huskies in the unique predicament of being ranked fourth nationally but in fifth place of its own conference.
UConn boasts one of the nation's deepest teams, with eight regulars averaging at least five points per game. That group is headed by Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year Adama Sanogo, who leads the team with 17.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per game.
Jordan Hawkins is good for 14.6 points per game and Andre Jackson Jr. does a little bit of everything while averaging 6.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.0 assists per contest.
The Huskies average 80.9 points per game and shoot 46.9 percent from the field, 35.8 percent from three-point territory and 73.4 percent at the line. UConn outrebounds foes by 8.4 caroms per contest and the Huskies have 299 assists but just 198 turnovers.
The Series With Connecticut
Creighton is 5-0 all-time against UConn, with all five meetings taking place in the last 25 months and in four different cities. The five games have been decided by a total of 19 points.
After beating the Huskies in Storrs (76-74), Omaha (74-66) and New York City (59-56) in 2020-21, the Bluejays won match-ups last year in Hartford (59-55) and Omaha (64-62).
Greg McDermott is 5-0 against Connecticut.
McDermott is 5-1 all-time in head-to-head meetings vs. Dan Hurley, as Hurley's Rhode Island team defeated Creighton 84-72 in the First Round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament in a game contested in Sacramento, Calif.
The Creighton Coaches
Greg McDermott (Northern Iowa, 1988) owns a 285-143 record in his 13th season with the Bluejays. He owns a career mark of 565-338 in his 29th season, and is 434-274 in his 22nd Division I campaign.
McDermott led Creighton to its first BIG EAST regular-season title in 2019-20, taking a Bluejay team that was picked seventh in the league's preseason poll and ending the year ranked seventh nationally. The Cascade, Iowa native then coached Creighton to its first Sweet 16 since 1974 in 2020-21 and to a share of its first regular-season BIG EAST title in 2019-20.
McDermott has previously been a head coach at Iowa State (2006-10), Northern Iowa (2001-06), North Dakota State (2000-01) and Wayne State (1994-2000).
He is assisted by Alan Huss, Ryan Miller and Jalen Courtney-Williams.
With A Win...
- Creighton would win its fourth straight game.
- Creighton would improve to 6-0 against Connecticut all-time, becoming the fourth team ever to win its first six games against the Huskies.
- Creighton would earn its 50th top-25 win ever (50-159), improve to 7-40 all-time against top-five teams and 3-8 against teams ranked exactly fourth.
- Creighton would earn multiple top-10 wins in the same season for the third time (also 2013-14 and 2019-20).
- Creighton would make UConn just the third team since 2010-11 to start the year with 14 victories, then lose its next three games. Iowa State's 2013-14 team started 14-0 and lost three in a row, while the 2010-11 UCF squad opened 14-0 before losing eight games in a row.
Groundhog Day?
Connecticut has faced 35 different opponents since the start of the 2020-21 season, but only 10 of those schools have actually beaten the Huskies.
Only five of those opponents have beaten the Huskies multiple times, since 2020-21, a list that consists of Creighton (5-0), Villanova (3-2), Providence (3-1), Xavier (2-2) and Seton Hall (2-3).
Creighton is the only team that the UConn program has ever played four or more times without a victory.
The only teams to ever beat UConn each of its first five meetings have been Creighton, Fordham, UMass, New Hampshire, New York University, Syracuse and Worcester Polytechnic. Of that group, only New Hampshire (10), Syracuse (7) and New York University (6) have started 6-0 (or better) against the Huskies.
Neither Creighton nor UConn has ever led by more than 16 points at any time in any of the 205 minutes over any of the five meetings during the past three seasons, which has included 34 ties and 24 lead changes.
That being said, in last year's Bluejay victory in Omaha on March 2nd, Creighton never trailed and led by as much as 16 (34-18) before claiming a 64-62 triumph.
Top 5 Wins
Creighton owns six wins all-time over a team ranked in the top-five of the AP Poll, but has never beaten a team ranked higher than third at any site and never beaten a team higher than fourth away from home.
Creighton is 0-5 all-time against top-ranked teams, 0-7 against teams ranked second, 1-7 against No. 3 clubs, 2-8 versus No. 4 squads and 3-13 when facing teams ranked exactly fifth.
Creighton's last win over a team ranked exactly fourth in the AP poll was a 96-68 shellacking at Villanova on Jan. 20, 2014. That game started with Creighton making a three-pointer on each of its first nine possessions.
All told, the Jays are 6-40 against top-five clubs.
Date Opponent Result
01/28/80 #1 DePaul L 73-84
12/31/16 #1 Villanova L 70-80
02/01/18 at #1 Villanova L 78-98
12/01/18 #1 Gonzaga L 92-103
03/28/21 vs. #1 Gonzaga L 65-83
03/16/62 vs. #2 Cincinnati L 46-66
03/01/71 #2 Marquette L 61-66
02/19/72 at #2 Marquette L 61-70
12/20/74 at #2 Indiana L 53-71
02/25/17 at #2 Villanova L 63-79
03/11/17 vs. #2 Villanova L 60-74
12/01/22 at #2 Texas L 67-72
01/21/76 at #3 Marquette L 62-76
02/07/78 at #3 Marquette L 57-82
01/27/79 at #3 Indiana State L 69-77
02/09/81 at #3 DePaul L 57-83
12/19/15 at #3 Oklahoma L 74-87
02/03/16 at #3 Villanova L 58-83
02/24/18 #3 Villanova W 89-83 (OT)
03/19/22 vs. #3 Kansas L 72-79
02/25/63 at #4 Arizona State L 70-73
12/13/63 #4 Arizona State W 84-83
02/19/68 at #4 St. Bonaventure L 84-97
03/15/75 vs. #4 Maryland L 79-83
03/12/78 vs. #4 DePaul L 78-80
12/31/83 #4 DePaul L 57-59 (OT)
03/18/12 vs. #4 North Carolina L 73-87
01/20/14 at #4 Villanova W 96-68
01/25/15 at #4 Villanova L 50-71
03/03/15 #4 Villanova L 72-76
12/19/60 #5 North Carolina L 64-72
03/13/64 at #5 Wichita State L 68-84
02/13/67 #5 Houston L 80-87
01/29/70 #5 New Mexico State W 72-68
01/20/73 at #5 Long Beach State L 51-68
03/05/73 #5 Marquette L 49-61
03/08/75 #5 Marquette L 60-64
01/20/79 #5 Indiana State L 80-90
01/11/82 #5 DePaul L 67-76
12/04/89 at #5 Missouri L 79-86
03/13/99 vs. #5 Maryland L 63-75
02/09/16 #5 Xavier W 70-56
03/05/16 at #5 Xavier L 93-98
02/10/18 #5 Xavier L 71-72
12/08/20 at #5 Kansas L 72-73
02/13/21 #5 Villanova W 86-70
Ranking News & Notes
- Creighton is 49-159 all-time against top 25 teams.
- Creighton is 31-44 under Greg McDermott against nationally-ranked teams, 24 more top 25 wins than any other coach in Creighton history. Prior to McDermott's arrival, Creighton was 18-115 all-time against top 25 foes.
- Creighton's 31 top 25 wins since McDermott took over in 2010 are 36th-most nationally and more than schools like Maryland (24), LSU (18), Houston (17), Auburn (16), Wichita State (14), Memphis (13), USC (12) and Saint Mary's (8) in that time. In that same window, Connecticut has 36 wins against top 25 teams.
- Creighton is 26-27 since the start of the 2016-17 season against ranked teams. The 26 wins over ranked teams in that time are tied for 13th-most nationally with Florida State. CU's 26 top 25 wins trails only Villanova (33) among BIG EAST programs in that span. Connecticut has seven wins against the top 25 since 2016-17.
- Creighton has beaten at least one ranked team in each of the last nine seasons (including 2022-23), and multiple ranked foes in each of the last eight seasons (including 2022-23).
On a national basis, the only 19 teams with a top-25 win each of the previous eight seasons (entering 2022-23) were Baylor, Creighton, Duke, Florida State, Indiana, Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas Tech, Villanova, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Xavier.
- Creighton is 9-20 in true road games vs. the top 25 under Greg McDermott, compared to a 2-63 mark before his arrival.
- Creighton's Nov. 22nd victory vs. No. 9 Arkansas extended Creighton's streak of seasons with at least one top-10 win to eight.
The only schools with at least one top-10 win every season since 2015-16 (including 2022-23) are Creighton and Kansas. Schools still trying to extend their streak to eight (or longer) this winter are Duke, Michigan, Texas Tech and Virginia Tech.
Another Top 25 Foe
Saturday's game at No. 4 UConn will be the fifth top-25 team that Creighton has faced this season, all of which have been away from home (2 road, 3 neutral).
Through games of Jan. 6th, Creighton's four top-25 games are tied for third-most nationally and trail only Alabama (6) and Gonzaga (5).
Through games of Jan. 4th, the only teams with more than Creighton's two top-25 victories this year are Arizona (4) and Alabama (4). Purdue chases a third top-25 win at Ohio State on Thursday.
The Schedule...It Is Strong
Creighton ranks 120th nationally in winning percentage, but owns a NET of 28 (through Jan. 4) thanks in part to a challenging schedule that ranks ninth-toughest nationally among average opponent NET rankings.
That number figures to increase in difficulty with games vs. NET No. 3 UConn, No. 26 Xavier and No. 33 Providence on the upcoming docket in the next eight days.
Creighton has already played 10 teams with a top-100 NET ranking:
NET Opponent CU Result
3 at UConn Saturday
4 vs. Arizona L 79-81
10 vs. Arkansas W 90-87
13 at Texas L 67-72
26 at Xavier Jan. 11th
23 at Marquette L 58-69
33 Providence Jan. 14
45 vs. Texas Tech W 76-65
55 vs. Arizona State L 71-73
71 Butler W 78-56
87 Nebraska L 53-63
90 Seton Hall W 83-61
94 vs. BYU L 80-83
144 UC Riverside W 80-51
173 St. Thomas W 72-60
193 DePaul W 80-65
311 North Dakota W 96-61
334 Holy Cross W 94-65
On A Run
Creighton has won each of its last three games by 15 points or more, topping Butler by 22, DePaul by 15 and Seton Hall by 22.
It's just the second time in Creighton's 10 years in the BIG EAST that it has won three straight league games by 15 or more points, joining a run in February of 2021 when it topped Georgetown (63-48), No. 5 Villanova (86-70) and DePaul (77-53).
Creighton has not won four straight games by 15+ points, all in league play, since defeating South Dakota State (52-15 and 38-22), North Dakota (32-10) and North Dakota State (34-15) consecutively in January of 1924.
Connecticut has not trailed by more than 14 points this season in any game and Creighton has won the previous five meetings vs. Huskies by a combined 19 points. The Huskies haven't lost any game by more than 15 points since Jan. 1, 2020.
FOX Rocks
Saturday will mark Creighton's second of five appearances on FOX this season.
After a rough start on FOX, the network has been a good luck charm for the Bluejays in recent seasons, helping CU improve to 10-15 on the channel.
Creighton lost its first seven appearances and was 2-10 on FOX in its first six seasons as a BIG EAST member. Since then, Creighton is 8-5 on the network, and 1-0 this season after a Christmas Day win vs. DePaul.
Creighton's Record on FOX Since 2013-14
Year W-L
2013-14 0-0
2014-15 0-0
2015-16 0-1
2016-17 0-4
2017-18 1-3 (lost first 2)
2018-19 1-2 (won last 1)
2019-20 2-0
2020-21 5-2 (won first 4)
2021-22 0-3
2022-23 1-0 (so far)
Holiday Hoops Proves Popular
Creighton's Christmas Day victory over DePaul scored 2.99 million viewers on FOX - the network's most-watched college hoops game ever.
Per FOX Sports PR, it was the most-watched college basketball game on any network this season, far ahead of the Kentucky/Michigan State game on ESPN (2.03 million).
In the last three years, the only regular-season game higher was North Carolina/Duke in Mike Krzyzewski's final home game last March (3.98 million) on ESPN.
SWAT Team
Creighton owned nine blocked shots in Tuesday's victory over Seton Hall.
The nine blocked shots were tied for the most in a game under 13th-year head coach Greg McDermott (also done 2/13/18 vs. Bemidji State and 11/27/21 vs. SIU Edwardsville).
The nine rejections also tied Creighton's CHI Health Center Omaha record for team blocked shots in a game (also done 1/9/08 vs. Evansville, 2/13/18 vs. Bemidji State and 11/27/21 vs. SIU Edwardsville).
Combined with its 11 three-pointers made, Creighton fell just one block away from its first game with 10 blocks and 10 three-pointers for the first time since Feb. 17, 2002 vs. Wichita State when it had 10 of each.
Kalkbrenner Invites You To His Block Party
Ryan Kalkbrenner tied his career-high with six blocked shots vs. Seton Hall, giving him exactly 150 swats as a Bluejay. The six blocks are tied for the most by any BIG EAST player in a game this season, and the most in a conference game.
Kalkbrenner ranks fifth in program history in blocked shots, but just three behind Kenny Lawson Jr. (2006-11) for fourth place.
Most Creighton Blocked Shots, Since 1979-80
Blk. Name Years
411 Benoit Benjamin 1982-85
183 Chad Gallagher 1987-91
174 Gregory Echenique 2010-13
153 Kenny Lawson Jr. 2006-11
150 Ryan Kalkbrenner 2020-Pres.
138 Brody Deren 2001-04
136 Anthony Tolliver 2003-07
109 Doug Swenson 1997-99
104 Joe Dabbert 2000-04
82 Christian Bishop 2018-21
The Kalkbrenner Difference
Here's a look at the difference with and without Ryan Kalkbrenner this season.
Stat Kalkbrenner Plays Kalkbrenner Out
Team W-L 9-3 0-3
Team FG% .489 .403
Team 3FG% .369 .338
Team FG/Game 29.1 27.0
Team Dunks/Game 3.75 5.00
Rebound Margin +6.6 -8.6
Off. Rebounds/Game 8.8 5.7
CU Points/Game 79.0 69.7
Opp. Points/Game 65.6 75.0
Scoring Margin +13.4 -5.3
Turnovers/Game 11.5 13.0
Opp. FG% .424 .440
Kalkbrenner vs. Sanogo
Centers Ryan Kalkbrenner and Adama Sanogo are two of the best big men in the country, with both earning Preseason All-BIG EAST honors.
The duo own remarkably similar career stats and both are key pieces of teams with postseason aspirations.
Here's how they compare in their careers, as well as head-to-head.
Sanogo vs. Kalkbrenner Career Stats When They Play
Name Team W-L FG% 3FG% FT% REB BLK PTS
Sanogo 50-18 .542 .375 .689 474 86 875
Kalkbrenner 64-23 .669 .292 .679 453 150 809
Sanogo vs. Kalkbrenner Career Head-to-Head
Name Team W-L FG% 3FG% FT% REB BLK PTS
Sanogo 0-5 .458 --- .727 39 8 52
Kalkbrenner 5-0 .563 .000 .643 26 1 45
Last Five For The Five
Creighton is 3-2 in its last five games but has gotten tremendous production from its "five" men who man the center position.
In those five games, Ryan Kalkbrenner and Fredrick King have combined for 83 points, 47 rebounds and 21 blocked shots, while shooting 36-for-46 from the field (78.3 percent) and 10-for-13 (76.9 percent) at the line.
Trèy's Bien
Sophomore Trey Alexander scored a career-high 32 points in a Christmas Day win over DePaul in Creighton's last game, easily surpassing his previous high of 18 points.
Alexander had 14 points in the first half and 18 more after the break. He made a career-high seven three-pointers.
Creighton's largest lead of the game was 17, done four times. Each came after an Alexander hoop.
Alexander is the first Bluejay in more than 55 years to have a game with 30 or more points before finishing a game with 20-29 points.
Trèy's Bien, Part II
Creighton made 16 three-point shots in its Christmas Day victory over DePaul, including 10 in the first half.
It was Creighton's most three-pointers in a game since sinking 17 trifectas at Seton Hall on Jan. 27, 2021.
CU made 10 triples in the first half of that Seton Hall contest, which was also the last time CU made 10 treys in one half.
Individually, Trey Alexander made a career-high seven three-pointers. That's the most by any Bluejay since Ryan Hawkins made eight shots from downtown at Georgetown on Feb. 12, 2022.
Arc's-manship
After making just 4-of-20 three-pointers in its BIG EAST opening loss at Marquette, Creighton shot 50 percent or better from deep in lopsided wins against both Butler (8-16) and DePaul (16-29).
Prior to those two wins, CU had shot 50 percent from deep just once all season (7-14 in a win vs. No. 9 Arkansas).
Creighton is 71-4 under Greg McDermott when making at least half of its three-point attempts, including a 43-1 mark in the past 10 seasons. The lone loss as a BIG EAST member was a 106-104 overtime setback to No. 21 Marquette on Jan. 9, 2019.
According to Basketball-Reference.com, since McDermott was hired in 2010, Creighton's 75 games shooting 50 percent or better from downtown trail only Weber State (78).
Fool Me Once...But Nine Times?
Creighton has met or exceeded its preseason BIG EAST prognostication every year since joining the league, as seen below.
Last year marked the sixth straight season that Creighton has finished in fourth place or better.
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)
2021-22 8th 4th None
2022-23 1st ?? Ryan Kalkbrenner (1st); Arthur Kaluma (2nd)
Ryan Nembhard (2nd); Baylor Scheierman (HM)
Strong League Start Projects To Postseason
Creighton has started 5-2 or better in league play in seven of Greg McDermott's first 12 seasons at the helm.
Six of those teams to start like that reached the NCAA Tournament, while a seventh reached the quarterfinals of the NIT.
Each of Creighton's 15 teams since 1988-89 to start 5-2, 6-1 or 7-0 after seven games in league play have reached the postseason, a stretch that includes 10 NCAA Tournaments and five NIT's.
Among The Best
Since the league's 2013 realignment, Villanova has 132 league wins to lead the BIG EAST by a wide margin, but Creighton's 98 league victories are second-most.
Most Men's Basketball BIG EAST Wins
(2013-14 to 1/5/22)
Team W L Pct.
Villanova 132 33 .800
Creighton 98 71 .580
Providence 97 69 .584
Xavier 92 70 .568
Seton Hall 88 80 .524
Marquette 83 86 .491
Butler 80 91 .468
St. John's 63 105 .375
Georgetown 58 107 .352
DePaul 37 130 .222
Connecticut 27 14 .659
On The Rebound
Baylor Scheierman gets lots of attention for his shooting and passing skills, but he did lead the Summit League in rebounding last year as well.
Scheierman has grabbed 10 or more rebounds in nine of his first 15 games this season, and has eight double-doubles to date. The eight double-doubles rank sixth nationally, while his 8.20 defensive rebounds per game are fifth-most in the country, ahead of even Oscar Tshiebwe (8.08) and Zach Edey (8.00).
Since 2012-13, the only BIG EAST player to finish a season averaging at least 8.0 defensive rebounds per game was Seton Hall's Angel Delgado (8.03) in 2016-17, and the only BIG EAST player to average at least 8.25 defensive rebounds per game since 2004-05 was Notre Dame's Luke Harangody (8.29) in 2008-09.
Since 2009-10, Scheierman is the nation's only major conference player to average at least 8.00 defensive rebounds and 2.00 three-pointers per game.
The Aurora, Neb., product's current 9.2 rebounds per game average is the best mark by a Bluejay since Benoit Benjamin averaged 14.1 rebounds per game in 1984-85.
Scheierman remains on pace to become the first man in school history to average at least 8.0 rebounds and 2.0 three-pointers per game.
Earlier this year Scheierman became the first Bluejay with four straight double-doubles since Doug McDermott from Nov. 25-Dec. 10, 2011.
Since the 1994-95 season, Scheierman, Ryan Hawkins, Martin Krampelj and McDermott (twice) are the only four Bluejays to record three straight double-doubles.
Here's a list of the Creighton players with seven or more double-doubles in a season under Greg McDermott:
Most Double-Doubles, Season, Since 2010-11
D-D Creighton Player Year
11 Doug McDermott 2011-12
11 Ryan Hawkins 2021-22
10 Doug McDermott 2012-13
9 Doug McDermott 2010-11
8 Baylor Scheierman 2022-23
7 Doug McDermott 2013-14
7 Martin Krampelj 2018-19
3-Ball Falling For Scheierman
Baylor Scheierman has made multiple three-pointers in every game this season. Going back to last season when he played for South Dakota State, Scheierman has made two or more three-pointers in each of his past 22 games. That's easily the longest active streak in the nation.
Scheierman has drained at least one triple in each of his last 25 contests dating to last season.
Fantastic Five
Much has been written about Creighton's starting five this season, and the success CU has had when Ryan Nembhard, Ryan Kalkbrenner, Trey Alexander, Arthur Kaluma and Baylor Scheierman are on the floor together.
The quintet has played 212:28 (of a possible 600 minutes) together this season, outscoring the opposition 428-335 in those minutes.
In four games against ranked foes, the group has been paired together for 88:18 (of a possible 160 minutes) and outscored opponents 185-165.
With All 5 Regular Starters On the Floor
Opponent CU Pts. Opp Pts. Diff. Time
St. Thomas 36 34 +2 20:10
North Dakota 41 31 +10 18:42
Holy Cross 24 11 +13 9:28
UC Riverside 37 14 +23 17:31
#21 Texas Tech 58 49 +9 22:36
#9 Arkansas 33 25 +8 19:36
#14 Arizona 50 51 (-1) 21:17
#2 Texas 44 40 +4 24:49
Nebraska 17 22 (-5) 15:22
Butler 20 19 +1 13:09
DePaul 40 24 +16 14:57
Seton Hall 28 15 +13 14:51
TOTAL 428 335 +93 212:28
Magic Number 11?
Creighton has had 11 or more assists in all 15 games this season.
UConn's opponents have had just one game all year with more than 11 assists. That came last Saturday when Xavier dished 20 assists on 28 hoops and became the only team to shoot better than 46 percent from the field against the Huskies this season.
A Good Start
Here's a look at how Creighton has done statistically after 15 games under Greg McDermott. Notably, the Bluejays have been 9-6 or better each campaign.
Outside of CU's record, what season does 2022-23 most closely resemble? The 2019-20 team that won the BIG EAST title comes to mind.
Creighton Stats Through 15 Games, Since 2010-11
Year W-L FG% 3FG% FT% PPG Opp PPG
2022-23 9-6 .472 .363 .714 77.1 67.5
2021-22 10-5 .471 .309 .697 70.6 66.8
2020-21 11-4 .491 .364 .658 80.6 69.1
2019-20 12-3 .469 .364 .707 78.3 68.6
2018-19 10-5 .516 .436 .640 83.7 74.6
2017-18 12-3 .515 .383 .739 90.2 72.3
2016-17 14-1 .535 .422 .678 88.1 72.5
2015-16 10-5 .500 .384 .682 85.8 75.5
2014-15 9-6 .420 .332 .754 70.1 66.3
2013-14 13-2 .483 .431 .757 81.5 63.7
2012-13 14-1 .512 .437 .757 79.5 62.4
2011-12 13-2 .513 .454 .707 83.2 69.3
2010-11 10-5 .430 .315 .762 66.7 62.2
Big Fred's Big Night
Making his second career start, freshman center Fredrick King had career-highs with 16 points, 11 rebounds and five blocked shots in the Dec. 12 game vs. Arizona State.
King was just the second Bluejay of any age in Greg McDermott's 13 years on the CU sideline to post a game with at least 16/11/5, joining Gregory Echenique (18 points, 14 rebounds, 5 blocks) vs. Houston Christian on Dec. 17, 2011.
Per Basketball-Reference.com, King is the seventh different freshmen with 16 points, 11 rebounds, five blocks and no turnovers in the same game since 2010-11, a list that includes Chet Holmgren, Armando Bacot, Mo Bamba, Anthony Davis (twice), Thik Bol and Chris Horton.
Freshmen With 16 Pts., 11 Reb., 5 Blk, 0 Turnovers
(Since 2010-11)
Name, School Date PTS REB BLK
Anthony Davis, Kentucky 01/17/12 27 14 7
Anthony Davis, Kentucky 03/25/12 18 11 6
Chris Horton, Austin Peay 12/05/12 21 11 5
Thik Bol, Southern Illinois 02/19/17 19 11 6
Mo Bamba, Texas 12/29/17 22 15 8
Armando Bacot, N. Carolina 11/29/19 23 12 6
Chet Holmgren, Gonzaga 03/17/22 19 17 7
Fredrick King, Creighton 12/12/22 16 11 5
King Him!
After 38 total points and 25 total rebounds in the first 10 games of his college career, Fredrick King put together back-to-back double-doubles after being pressed into a starting role when Ryan Kalkbrenner was sidelined by a non-COVID illness in mid-December. King had 16 points and 11 rebounds vs. Arizona State on Dec. 12th, then added 16 points and 10 rebounds at Marquette four days later.
King is CU's freshman with multiple double-doubles in a season since Justin Patton had three in 2016-17.
King is CU's first true freshman with multiple double-doubles in a season since Doug McDermott had nine in 2010-11. McDermott had also been the last Bluejay freshman with back-to-back double-doubles, having done it on Feb. 1 and Feb. 5, 2011.
For his efforts, King was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week on Dec. 19.
After shooting 8-for-8 vs. Marquette, King was 3-for-3 from the field against Butler to move him to 11-for-11 in league play with eight dunks. He is currently 12-for-14 from the field with nine dunks in conference contests.
Simply Perfect
Below is a list of Creighton players to shoot 100 percent from the field on eight or more attempts in a game since the start of the 1991-92 campaign:
Most FGA, 100% Shooting, Since 1991-92
FGA Name, Opponent Date
11 Anthony Tolliver vs. Illinois State 01/01/07
10 Ryan Kalkbrenner vs. Holy Cross 11/14/22
8 Geoffrey Groselle vs. Coppin State 12/28/15
8 Justin Patton vs. Loyola (Md.) 12/07/16
8 Fredrick King at Marquette 12/16/22
Big Fred's World
Fredrick King had four points (on two dunks) and three blocked shots in his first career start on Saturday vs. BYU.
King was the first Bluejay true freshman to start a game at center since Kenton Walker on Feb. 5, 2008, when the Jays topped UNI, 74-50.
One of the other Creighton starters that night was Nick Bahe, who was on the call for FS1 for each of King's first two starts.
King is the first true freshman center to make multiple starts for Creighton since Joel Templeman in 1994-95.
Scheierman's Great Start
Baylor Scheierman has scored 186 points in his first 15 games as a Bluejay. Since 1995-96, that's the seventh-most by a Creighton newcomer.
Most Points, Newcomers First 15 Games Since 1995-96
Pts. Name, Class Year After 16
281 Marcus Foster, Jr. 2016-17 298
208 Justin Patton, Fr. 2016-17 228
201 Ryan Hawkins, Sr. 2021-22 214
197 Doug McDermott, Fr. 2010-11 202
194 Maurice Watson Jr., Jr. 2015-16 221
187 Ryan Nembhard, Fr. 2021-22 205
186 Baylor Scheierman, So. 2022-23 ? ? ?
179 Rodney Buford, Fr. 1995-96 189
177 P'Allen Stinnett, Fr. 2007-08 189
176 Cole Huff, Jr. 2015-16 176
162 Brody Deren, So. 2001-02 170
156 Gregory Echenique, So. 2010-11 167
155 Marcus Zegarowski, Fr. 2018-19 168
152 Ryan Sears, Fr. 1997-98 168
Paul Silas Passes Away at 79
Paul Silas, Creighton's first Academic All-American and one of the top players in Bluejay men's basketball history, has passed away at the age of 79. Bob Ryan, longtime Boston Globe reporter and a close friend of Silas over many decades, reported the news the morning of Dec. 11th.
Silas was recruited to Creighton by John J. "Red" McManus out of McClymonds High School in Oakland, Calif., the same high school that produced Bill Russell. Silas arrived on campus in 1960 when freshmen were ineligible to play for the varsity but quickly made a difference a year later when he led CU to the 1961-62 NCAA Tournament and the team closed with a 21-5 record. His 1963-64 team returned to the Big Dance and finished 22-7.
Silas is the only player in NCAA history with three or more seasons of 557 rebounds and owns the top three single-season rebound totals in Bluejay annals, including 631 as a senior in 1963-64. That figure remains fifth-most in NCAA history and is the most by any player since 1960. He's first in CU history with 1,751 rebounds, ninth in career points (1,661), third in career scoring average (20.51) and also in the top-10 in field goals made (8th) and free throws made (6th).
Silas' 21.6 career rebounds per game are third-most in NCAA history and his 1,751 rebounds are sixth in NCAA history as well as the most ever by a three-year player. Silas, along with Bill Russell, Julius Erving, Artis Gilmore and Kermit Washington is one of five players to average at least 20 points and 20 rebounds for an NCAA career. Silas owns the top 29 single-game rebound performances in Creighton history, including a 38 rebound effort vs. Centenary on Feb. 19, 1962 that ranks tied for ninth-most in NCAA history.
He was the first Creighton student-athlete to be named a CoSIDA Academic All-American in 1963-64, was a member of Alpha Sigma Nu, the Jesuit Honor Society, and received the College of Business Administration's Alumni Merit Award in 1993.
In an old article, Silas boasted about his education, saying "I'm more proud of my academic success at Creighton than of all my athletic accomplishments. What Creighton University does for an athlete or any student is that they teach you how to think, how to deal with everyday living. What I learned at Creighton has helped me close the gap between professional sports and the business world."
A two-time All-Star and five-time NBA All-Defensive team member, he scored 11,782 points and grabbed 12,357 rebounds while winning three titles (Boston 1974 & 1976, Seattle 1979) during a 16-year NBA career from 1964-80. He later coached 12 seasons in the NBA for the Clippers, Hornets, Bobcats and Cavalier organizations. He was LeBron James' first NBA head coach. His son, Stephen Silas, is the current head coach of the NBA's Houston Rockets.
Paul was inducted into the Creighton Athletics Hall of Fame in 1974, the Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Fame in 2012 and the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2017.
Deep Dive Into The Rankings
The Creighton men's basketball team was ranked ninth in the Associated Press Preseason Top 25 poll, its highest preseason AP ranking ever.
The Oct. 17th announcement marked just the fifth time in program history the writers have voted CU to the top-25 in the preseason, joining 2006-07 (No. 19), 2012-13 (No. 16) and 2016-17 (No. 22) and 2020-21 (No. 11). All four of those Bluejay teams would end up in the NCAA Tournament.
Creighton was 10th in the AP poll released on Nov. 14th and Nov. 21 and was seventh last Nov. 28th. The team fell to No. 21 on Dec. 5th.
The Nov. 28 week was the 21st time in program history that Creighton has been in the top-10 at any point, with all but one of those weeks happening under head coach Greg McDermott. Creighton's best ranking in program history is seventh, done five times (Jan. 16, 2017, March 10, 2020, March 18, 2020, Jan. 7, 2021 and Nov. 28, 2022).
Creighton has been ranked 118 times in program history, with 90 of those weeks under the direction of McDermott. Creighton is 148-60 all-time as a ranked team, including a 114-46 mark under McDermott. Creighton has been ranked at least one week in nine of McDermott's 13 seasons on The Hilltop after doing it just five different seasons in program history before his 2010 arrival.
Creighton was also ninth in the preseason USA Today Coaches poll, its best preseason mark ever in the Coaches poll. The Jays remained ninth in the Nov. 14 Coaches poll and climbed to eighth in the Nov. 21 Coaches poll and were seventh on Nov. 28. CU was 21st on Dec. 5th. The program's best slotting ever in the Coaches poll is fifth, done on Jan. 4, 2021.
Sophomores Standing Tall
Legendary Marquette coach Al McGuire once said that the best thing about freshmen is that they become sophomores. The Bluejay trio of Arthur Kaluma, Trey Alexander and Ryan Nembhard were all part of the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team last season, and all three are off to fantastic starts as sophomores.
This year the trio have combined to average 36.8 points per contest.
Collectively, they shoot 43.1 percent from the field (188-436), 37.0 percent from downtown (67-181) and 76.2 percent at the line (109-143) while also contributing 185 rebounds and 144 assists against just 84 turnovers.
Creighton is 15-1 in the last two seasons when all three men play and they combine for 13 or more rebounds.
An Area for Improvement
One area that Creighton will look to improve in 2022-23 is its marksmanship from behind the arc, as last year's 30.8 percent shooting from deep was its worst as a team since 1993-94.
The Creighton staff is confident those numbers can improve as its talented freshman class is now sophomores. Thus far, Creighton is second in the BIG EAST with 9.21 three-pointers made per game and with 36.3 percent marksmanship from deep, but leads both categories in league games only.
Last year's freshmen combined to shoot 27.2 percent from deep (85-313), but they're not the first Bluejay freshmen to struggle early on from downtown, as seen in the chart below of some other prominent marksmen.
Even that chart is a little misleading, as Doug McDermott shot 15-of-53 (.283) from deep in his first 20 games of his freshman year before finishing 32-of-63 (.508) in his last 19 games. Likewise, Kyle Korver was shooting 11-for-41 (.268) from downtown after his first 14 contests before blistering the nets to the tune of 52-of-104 (.500).
As a Freshman Other College Years
Name 3FG-3FGA 3FG% 3FG-3FGA 3FG%
Ky. Korver 63-145 .434 308-674 .457
McDermott 47-116 .405 237-482 .492
Ty. Alexander 32-96 .333 178-469 .380
Ballock 44-135 .326 264-638 .414
Tr. Alexander 18-64 .281 26-58 .448
Kaluma 27-102 .265 21-61 .344
Nembhard 33-106 .311 20-62 .323
Nationally Relevant
Through games of Jan. 4, Creighton ranked third in the country in fewest fouls per game (12.60).
The Jays are also 11th in defensive rebounds per game (29.13) and 30th in assist/turnover ratio (1.42).
Individually, Baylor Scheierman ranks sixth nationally with eight double-doubles and fifth with 8.20 defensive rebounds per game.
Teammate Ryan Kalkbrenner is second in field goal percentage (76.2%) among players to make five field goals per game. Kalkbrenner is the only player in the top 10 who has made four or more three-pointers.
Ryan Nembhard ranks 18th in assist/turnover ratio (3.22) and 12th in total assists (87).
Wooden Award Watch List
The Creighton duo of Baylor Scheierman and Ryan Kalkbrenner have been named to the Preseason Top 50 Watch List for the John R. Wooden Award® presented by Wendy's®.
The players on the list are considered strong candidates for the 2023 John R. Wooden Award Men's Player of the Year presented by Wendy's. Players not chosen to the preseason list are still eligible for the Wooden Award™ midseason list, late season list, and the National Ballot. The National Ballot consists of 15 top players who have proven to their universities that they meet or exceed the qualifications of the Wooden Award. Nearly 1,000 voters will rank in order 10 of those 15 players when voting opens prior to the NCAA Tournament and will allow voters to take into consideration performance during early round games. The Wooden Award All American Team™ will be announced the week of the "Elite Eight" round of the NCAA Tournament. The winner of the 2023 John R. Wooden Award will be presented in Los Angeles in April.
Scheierman and Kalkbrenner give Creighton nine Preseason John R. Wooden Award Watch List recognitions in 13 seasons under Greg McDermott. Marcus Zegarowski made the list in 2020-21, one year after Ty-Shon Alexander was listed prior to the 2019-20 campaign. Others to make the list include Marcus Foster (2017-18), Maurice Watson Jr. (2016-17), Doug McDermott (2013-14, 2012-13 and 2011-12). Creighton's lone recipient of the John R. Wooden Award® is Doug McDermott, who was recognized following the completion of the 2013-14 campaign.
Turnover Free At The Point
Ryan Nembhard's 12 assists without a turnover vs. Holy Cross on Nov. 14 made him just the fourth player in Bluejay history to accomplish that feat. He's the first to do it inside CHI Health Center Omaha and the first Bluejay to do it at any site since 2002.
Here's the single-game assist leaders at Creighton, along with their turnover statistics on that night:
Ast. Name, Opponent Date TO
17 Ralph Bobik vs. Bradley 01/22/74 0
Ralph Bobik at St. Francis (Pa.) 02/23/73 ??
16 Ralph Bobik vs. BYU 12/17/73 4
14 Maurice Watson Jr. at Providence 01/07/17 2
Maurice Watson Jr. at Seton Hall 01/09/16 4
13 Maurice Watson Jr. vs. Washington St. 11/18/16 4
Maurice Watson Jr. vs. Akron 12/03/16 5
Jason Bey vs. Southern Illinois 02/27/95 1
Latrell Wrightsell vs. Nebraska 12/07/91 1
12 Ryan Nembhard vs. Holy Cross 11/14/22 0
Grant Gibbs vs. Northwestern 12/22/11 4
Tyler McKinney at Nebraska 12/21/02 0
Ed St. Fleur at CS-Sacramento 01/13/96 0
Latrell Wrightsell vs. N. Iowa 02/01/92 4
Duan Cole at Iowa State 01/16/90 5
Vernon Moore at Southern Illinois 01/17/85 2
Randy Eckker at Gonzaga 01/14/77 2
Randy Eckker at Bradley 01/12/77 4
Speaking Of Assists
Ryan Nembhard's 12 assists vs. Holy Cross were the second double-figure assist game of his Bluejay career, joining the 10 helpers he dished in his collegiate debut last November vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
Nembhard is the seventh different Bluejay with 10 or more assists in a game under Greg McDermott, joining Maurice Watson Jr. (12 times), Grant Gibbs (4), Marcus Zegarowski (4), Austin Chatman (3), Antoine Young (2) and Malik Albert (1).
Also worth noting regarding Nembhard's big night? He played just 19 minutes in the win, making him the nation's only player with 12 assists against a Division I opponent this year while playing less than 30 minutes.
McDermott Among The Best
A Nov. 10th article on CBSSports.com ranked the nation's best Top 25 And 1 coaches, with Creighton's Greg McDermott making that list.
McDermott and Providence's Ed Cooley were the lone BIG EAST coaches named to the list.
McDermott and Cooley both rank in the top-13 in league history for BIG EAST victories.
Most League Wins, BIG EAST MBB Coaches (1/4)
Rk. Wins Name, School
1. 366 Jim Boeheim, Syracuse
2. 274 Jim Calhoun, UConn
3. 244 Jay Wright, Villanova
4. 198 John Thompson Sr., Georgetown
5. 136 Mike Brey, Notre Dame
6. 131 John Thompson III, Georgetown
7. 127 Lou Carnesecca, St. John's
8. 115 Jamie Dixon, Pittsburgh
9. 111 Rick Pitino, Providence/Louisville
111 Ed Cooley, Providence
11. 110 Rollie Massimino, Villanova
12. 105 Kevin Willard, Seton Hall
13. 98 Greg McDermott, Creighton
14. 87 Steve Lappas, Villanova
Kalkbrenner Up For Naismith Award
Ryan Kalkbrenner has been named one of 50 players to watch during the season-long competition for the 2023 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Men's Player of the Year honor, as announced by The Atlanta Tipoff Club.
A junior from Florissant, Mo., Kalkbrenner averaged 13.1 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.6 blocked shots per game while starting CU's first 34 contests last season. He was an Honorable Mention All-BIG EAST choice, BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year and named to the All-BIG EAST Tournament Team while ranking fourth nationally in both field goal percentage (.646) and offensive rebounds per game (3.9). He was the lone Bluejay named Preseason First Team All-BIG EAST last month for ninth-ranked team in the nation, who are predicted to win the BIG EAST.
Kalkbrenner's recognition makes him the fourth different Bluejay in 13-year head coach Greg McDermott's tenure to be on a Naismith Award watch list. Doug McDermott was on the Preseason watch list in 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013-14 and was a finalist in 2012-13 before winning the award in 2013-14. Marcus Foster was named to the Midseason watch list in 2016-17, then made the Preseason and Midseason watch list in 2017-18. More recently, Marcus Zegarowski was on the Preseason and Midseason watch list in 2020-21.
The midseason 30 team will be announced in February, and then the competition will be narrowed down to 10 national semifinalists in early March. Following those results, four finalists will be named on March 21, 2023, and the winner of the 2023 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy for Men's Player of the Year will be announced on April 2, 2023.
Top 10 Under McDermott
Prior to Greg McDermott's 2010 arrival, Creighton had spent one week ranked in the top 10 of the Associated Press poll in program history (10th on Jan. 20, 2003, when Dana Altman's team led by Kyle Korver lost at Steve Merfeld's Evansville team).
Under McDermott, Creighton has spent 21 weeks in the top 10, including at least one week in five different seasons (1 week in 2012-13; 8 weeks in 2016-17, 3 weeks in 2019-20, 5 weeks in 2020-21 and 4 weeks so far this year).
Creighton's best AP ranking ever is seventh, done five times (Jan. 16, 2017; March 10, 2020; March 18, 2020; Jan. 7, 2021 and Nov. 28, 2022).
CHI Health Center Omaha Success
Creighton has played 331 regular and postseason contests at CHI Health Center Omaha all-time in the 20-year-old facility.
The Bluejays own a 272-59 (.822) record all-time at the facility, and have never lost there on a Friday (22-0).
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 25,865-21,671 in games at CHI Health Center Omaha, an average margin of 12.67 points per game. Creighton has not trailed 88 different times, including twice this year (Holy Cross, DePaul).
Incredibly, Creighton hasn't trailed in its home opener in 10 of the past 23 seasons (2000-01, 2002-03, 2003-04, 2004-05, 2005-06, 2009-10, 2011-12, 2014-15, 2016-17 and 2019-20).
Creighton is also 32-35 all-time in the 67 games at the arena in which it's fallen behind by double-figures at any point, 8-11 when down by 10+ points at halftime in the facility, and 40-29 when trailing at halftime at CHI Health Center Omaha.
Creighton is 175-41 (.810) at CHI Health Center Omaha under Greg McDermott and hasn't trailed in 63 of those games. In that same span, CU owns a 95-9 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 291-59 (.831) at home since the start of the 2002-03 campaign.
Home Run
Under Greg McDermott Creighton is averaging 80.42 points per home game (17,371 points in 216 home games), a figure that climbs to 83.84 points in non-conference home games (8,719 points in 104 home games).
Creighton is 132-6 all-time at CHI Health Center Omaha when scoring 80 or points.
Who's Back?
With Creighton returning eight of the 13 men who appeared in a game last season, it's no surprise that a similar ratio of the production from 2021-22 is also gone. Below is a breakdown of what is back:
Stat Returners Departures
Blocks 118 (79.2%) 31 (20.8%)
Assists 284 (60.9%) 182 (39.1%)
Starts 104 (59.4%) 71 (40.6%)
Points 1,360 (56.2%) 1,062 (43.8%)
Minutes 3,881 (54.9%) 3,194 (45.1%)
Charges Taken 7 (53.8%) 6 (46.2%)
Rebounds 663 (53.3%) 580 (46.7%)
Steals 98 (51.0%) 94 (49.0%)
3FG Made 83 (35.3%) 152 (64.7%)
Youth Is Served
In case you've forgotten, Creighton had at least one freshman on the floor for every second of every game last season, and actually had a late stretch of 1:28 vs. Colorado State when all five of its players on the floor were freshmen.
All told, 3171:36 of Creighton's 7,075 total minutes (44.83 percent) were played by freshmen last season.
By comparison, in 2020-21 Creighton had a freshman on the floor just 32.4 percent of the time and had multiple freshmen on the floor just 17 minutes (of 1,250) all season (1.4 percent). Only 7.5 percent (465:52 of 6250) of CU's overall minutes were played by freshmen in 2020-21.
Through 15 games this season, Creighton's freshmen have played 431:36 of 3000 possible minutes (14.39 percent).
2021-22 Minute Breakdown
Freshmen Time Score Margin
0 freshmen: Never -- --
1 freshman: 34:23 59-49 +10
2 freshmen: 962:14 1,692-1,578 +114
3 freshmen: 347:15 611-407 +4
4 freshmen: 45:54 54-85 (-31)
5 freshmen: 1:28 5-2 +3
Watch This
Creighton has four men that made a preseason watch list for their respective position.
Ryan Nembhard is one of 20 candidates on the watch list for the 2023 Bob Cousy Award, given to the nation's best point guard. Nembhard is the fourth different Bluejay in the last 12 years named to the Bob Cousy Award watch list, joining Antoine Young (2011-12), Maurice Watson Jr. (2016-17) and Marcus Zegarowski (2020-21).
Baylor Scheierman is one of 20 candidates on the watch list for the 2023 Julius Erving Award, given to the nation's best small forward. Scheierman is Creighton's first player in the nine seasons of the Julius Erving Award to be named to the watch list at any point.
Arthur Kaluma is one of 20 candidates on the watch list for the 2023 Karl Malone Award, given to the nation's best power forward. Kaluma is Creighton's first player in the nine seasons of the Karl Malone Award to be named to the watch list at any point.
Ryan Kalkbrenner is one of 20 candidates on the watch list for the 2023 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, given to the nation's best center. Kalkbrenner joins Justin Patton (2016-17) as Creighton's second player in the nine seasons of the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award to be named to the watch list at any point.
Creighton (4) is one of six schools with four or more MBB players on a watch list, joining Duke (5), Kentucky (5), Arizona (4), Gonzaga (4) and UCLA (4).
CU's four watch list student-athletes match the totals of the rest of the BIG EAST combined (Xavier 2, Villanova 1, UConn 1).
Preseason BIG EAST Poll
The Creighton men's basketball team was picked to win the BIG EAST Conference in the annual survey of league coaches, which was unveiled as part of BIG EAST Media Day on Oct. 18th at Madison Square Garden.
It's the first time since 2012-13 that Creighton has been chosen as a preseason favorite in its league, though that recognition came in CU's final season in the Missouri Valley Conference.
This is the 10th time Creighton has been tabbed as the preseason favorite (also 1989-90, 1990-91, 1998-99, 2000-01, 2002-03, 2006-07, 2008-09, 2011-12 and 2012-13), though the first nine occurrences all happened in the Missouri Valley Conference. Four of those MVC teams finished first (1990-91, 2000-01, 2008-09, 2012-13), while the other five took second place. Six of those nine Bluejay squads went on to win the MVC Tournament (1990-91, 1998-99, 2002-03, 2006-07, 2011-12, 2012-13) and seven of the nine squads played in the NCAA Tournament (1990-91, 1998-99, 2000-01, 2002-03, 2006-07, 2011-12, 2012-13).
The Bluejays collected eight first-place votes and earned 98 points in the poll. Xavier was picked second in the poll with 86 points, including two first-place votes. Villanova, the defending BIG EAST Tournament champion, was one point behind Xavier with 85 points and received one first-place vote from the men's basketball head coaches, who did not vote for their own teams. Connecticut was picked fourth with 77 points and Providence was fifth with 62 points. St. John's and Seton Hall finished sixth and seventh with 62 and 52 points, respectively. Butler was eighth with 36 points, four points ahead of ninth-place Marquette with 32 points. Georgetown was 10th with 21 points and DePaul 11th with 12 points.
Creighton is the only school in the league that has met or exceeded its preseason BIG EAST prognostication every year since joining the league, as seen below:
Creighton's BIG EAST Preseason Poll History
Year Preseason Actual Preseason All-BIG EAST
2013-14 3rd 2nd Doug McDermott (1st)
2014-15 9th T-9th -
2015-16 9th 6th -
2016-17 3rd T-3rd Maurice Watson Jr. (1st); Marcus Foster (HM)
2017-18 5th T-3rd Marcus Foster (1st); Khyri Thomas (HM)
2018-19 9th T-3rd Martin Krampelj (HM)
2019-20 7th T-1st Ty-Shon Alexander (1st)
2020-21 2nd 2nd Marcus Zegarowski (1st); Mitch Ballock (2nd)
2021-22 8th 4th -
2022-23 1st ?? Ryan Kalkbrenner (1st); Arthur Kaluma (2nd)
Ryan Nembhard (2nd); Baylor Scheierman (HM)
#ProJays
Former Creighton All-American Doug McDermott is back for a second season with the San Antonio Spurs, giving Creighton at least one NBA player in 39 of the last 40 seasons. McDermott is in his ninth season in the NBA.
Other famous Bluejays to play in the NBA in the past include Paul Silas, Kyle Korver, Benoit Benjamin and Anthony Tolliver.
We're Jamming!
Ryan Kalkbrenner owns 126 dunks in his career, including 69 last year. He has more career dunks than any other Bluejay player since Greg McDermott's arrival in 2010.
Here's a look at the Creighton student-athletes with 20 or more dunks in a season, and 25 or more dunks in a career, under Greg McDermott:
Most Creighton Dunks, Season, Since 2010-11
Dunks Name Year
74 Martin Krampelj 2018-19
72 Justin Patton 2016-17
69 Ryan Kalkbrenner 2021-22
50 Christian Bishop 2020-21
38 Christian Bishop 2019-20
36 Gregory Echenique 2012-13
33 Martin Krampelj 2017-18
30 Gregory Echenique 2011-12
29 Marcus Foster 2017-18
29 Ryan Kalkbrenner 2020-21
28 Ryan Kalkbrenner 2022-23
24 Gregory Echenique 2010-11
23 Marcus Foster 2016-17
22 Kenny Lawson Jr. 2010-11
21 Alex O'Connell 2021-22
21 Arthur Kaluma 2021-22
20 Khyri Thomas 2017-18
Most Creighton Dunks, Career, Since 2010-11
Dunks Name Years
126 Ryan Kalkbrenner 2020-Pres.
121 Martin Krampelj 2015-19
103 Christian Bishop 2018-21
90 Gregory Echenique 2010-13
72 Justin Patton 2016-17
52 Marcus Foster 2016-18
51 Khyri Thomas 2015-18
38 Will Artino 2011-15
33 Zach Hanson 2013-17
31 Arthur Kaluma 2021-Pres.
25 Geoffrey Groselle 2012-16
25 Damien Jefferson 2018-21
Most Creighton Dunks, Team, Season, Since 2010-11
Dunks Year Team W-L
144 2016-17 25-10 (NCAA)
132 2021-22 23-12 (NCAA)
107 2017-18 21-12 (NCAA)
106 2018-19 20-15 (NIT)
90 2020-21 22-9 (NCAA)
60 2019-20 24-7 (Postseason Canceled)
60 2022-23 9-6 so far (Postseason TBD)
58 2015-16 20-15 (NIT)
56 2010-11 23-16 (CBI)
54 2012-13 28-8 (NCAA)
42 2011-12 29-6 (NCAA)
Fun Fact
Creighton is the only school in the BIG EAST with 12 or more league wins each of the previous three seasons.
Among the other BIG EAST or "Power 5" Conference schools, only Baylor, Illinois, Kansas, UCLA and Virginia have done so.
20 Wins, Again
Creighton had 23 wins in 2021-22, securing a seventh straight 20-win season.
Creighton is one of six schools with 20 or more wins in each of the previous seven seasons, joining Belmont, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas and Oregon.
22 of 24 Seasons With 20 Wins
Creighton has won 20 or more games in 22 of the last 24 seasons, a feat that puts the Jays among an exclusive group, nationally.
Just two schools have had 20 or more wins each of the last 24 years: Gonzaga and Kansas. Duke has done it 23 times, Creighton and Kentucky 22 times.
Most 20-Win Seasons, Last 24 Seasons
Team 20-Win Seasons 2021-22 W-L
Gonzaga 24 28-4
Kansas 24 34-6
Duke 23 32-7
Creighton 22 23-12
Kentucky 22 26-8
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 to Jan. 4, 2023
Category CU Stat CU Rank
3FG Made 3,764 4th
FG Percentage .477 4th
3FG Percentage .377 5th
Assists 6,831 6th
FG Made 11,660 8th
Points 32,609 10th
Wins 285 28th
Winning Percentage .666 35th
Multiple Choices
For the first time since 1964-65, Creighton had five men average in double-figures for an entire season last season. Last year's double-figure group included Ryan Hawkins (13.8 ppg.), Ryan Kalkbrenner (13.1), Alex O'Connell (11.8), Ryan Nembhard (11.3) and Arthur Kaluma (10.4).
Creighton had not had five or more men finish a season averaging 10 or more points per game since the 1964-65 club had SIX men average in double- figures (Neil Johnson, 17.3; Elton McGriff, 15.0; Fritz Pointer, 14.3; Tim Powers, 12.6; Bob Miles, 11.9; Charlie Brown (11.6), though Johnson only played in 8-of-23 games.
This year's team has five players averaging 11.5 points per game or more, Ryan Kalkbrenner (15.3), Trey Alexander (12.7), Ryan Nembhard (11.5), Arthur Kaluma (12.7), Baylor Scheierman (12.4).
Creighton has won each of its last 26 games when five or more players score in double-figures, a streak that dates to Jan. 9, 2019 vs. Marquette.
Dynamic Duo
Creighton was one of 11 schools to earn at-large bids in the NCAA Tournament in both men's and women's basketball in 2021-22, a list that featured Arkansas, Baylor, Creighton, Indiana, Iowa State, LSU, Miami (Fla.), Michigan, North Carolina, Notre Dame and Ohio State.
Those 11 schools, in addition to 13 others (Arizona, Delaware, Gonzaga, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Longwood, Montana State, Tennessee, Texas, UConn, Villanova and Virginia Tech) were the only 24 schools with both men's and women's basketball teams to make the Big Dance.
This season, Creighton was one of nine teams with a preseason top-25 squad on both the men's and women's side, joining Arizona, Baylor, Indiana, Michigan, North Carolina, Oregon, Tennessee and Texas.
Big Deficits, No Big Deal
Creighton owns 27 victories since the start of the 2010-11 season after trailing by double-figures at some point, including four such rallies last season. In its NCAA Tournament win vs. San Diego State, Creighton trailed 35-21 late in the first half.
Thirteen of those 27 comebacks have come away from home.
If you're curious, CU's largest comeback win since 2000 came on Jan. 28, 2006, when the Jays trailed 25-6 early before rallying to beat Wichita State on a buzzer-beater by Anthony Tolliver.
CU's Double-Digit Comebacks Under McDermott
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
16 SIU Edwardsville 11/27/21
15 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 11/09/21
14 Evansville 02/21/12
14 vs. San Diego State 03/17/22
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
11 DePaul 01/22/22
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
McDermott Ranks Second On CU Wins List
Greg McDermott has 285 victories at Creighton, good for second place on CU's all-time wins list.
McDermott's .666 winning percentage is Creighton's best since Arthur A. Schabinger's .714 win rate more than 85 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. 285-143 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
Super Seven
Greg McDermott joined some select company when he directed his troops to a seventh NCAA Tournament last season. That put him in the company of some of the greatest coaches in CU Athletics history.
McDermott is one of five head coaches in Creighton history to lead seven different NCAA Tournament teams.
Name Sport NCAA's @CU
Kirsten Bernthal Booth Volleyball 12
Bob Warming Men's Soccer 11
Dana Altman Men's Basketball 7
Brent Vigness Softball 7
Greg McDermott Men's Basketball 7
McDermott's Coaching Tree
A bunch of former Greg McDermott protégés are thriving at the Division I level.
Eric Henderson led South Dakota State to the first 18-0 season in Summit League history. The Jackrabbits went 30-5 after winning the Summit League Tournament and clinching an NCAAA bid.
North Dakota State's Dave Richman went 23-10 overall and finished as the runner-up in the Summit League standings and Summit League Tournament to Henderson's SDSU team.
Ben Jacobson won the MVC regular-season title while coaching Northern Iowa. The Panthers went 20-12 and reached the NIT.
Drake's Darian DeVries led the Bulldogs to a 25-11 mark and runner-up finish in the MVC (to Jacobson's UNI team) in the regular-season and the league tournament. Drake played in the CBI.
Steve Lutz led his Texas A&M-Corpus Christi team to a 24-12 record and a Southland Conference Tournament title in his first year as a head coach, with the Islanders reaching the NCAA Tournament First Four. He inherited a 5-19 team that hadn't won 20 games or had a winning record since 2016-17.
TJ Otzelberger turned around Iowa State in his first year in Ames. He inherited a 2-22 team (0-18 Big 12) and turned it into a team that reached the Sweet 16 and finished 22-13.
Patrick Sellers led Central Connecticut State to an 8-24 record in his first season with the Blue Devils, including a victory in the Northeast Conference Tournament.
Paul Sather is the head coach at North Dakota after successful tenures at Black Hills State and Northern State.
CHI Health Center Omaha Dramatics
Creighton is 8-8 in games with a game-winning go-ahead score in the final 10 seconds at CHI Health Center Omaha, which opened in the fall of 2003.
Creighton's Go-Ahead Scores in Wins at
CHI Health Center Omaha, Last 10 Seconds
Date Opponent Score Player/Score Time
11/26/05 Dayton W 91-90* Funk FG :5.7
01/28/06 Wichita St. W 57-55 Tolliver FG :0.0
11/25/06 George Mason W 58-56 Watts FT :7.5
03/18/08 Rhode Island W 74-73 Witter 3FG :3.2
01/13/10 Southern Illinois W 71-69 Young FG :1.3
02/18/12 Long Beach St. W 81-79 Young FG :0.3
01/28/14 St. John's W 63-60 McDermott 3FG :2.8
01/18/20 Providence W 78-74 Zegarowski 3FG :3.2
*double-overtime
Opponent Go-Ahead Scores in CU Losses at
CHI Health Center Omaha, Last 10 Seconds
Date Opponent Score Player/Score Time
03/20/06 Miami (Fla.) L 53-52 G. Diaz FT :2.6
01/20/07 Southern Illinois L 58-57 B. Mullins FG :4.1
01/10/15 #19 Seton Hall L 68-67 S. Gibbs 3FG :2.2
02/16/15 #19 Butler L 58-56 R. Jones FG :1.9
03/07/15 Xavier L 74-73 D. Davis FT's :6.3
01/12/16 #12 Providence L 50-48 K. Dunn FG :0.0
02/22/17 Providence L 68-66 K. Cartwright 3FG :2.4
02/10/18 #5 Xavier L 71-72 Q. Goodin FT's :0.3
Firing On All Cylinders
Creighton finished last season ranked 50th overall by KenPom.com. That included the nation's No. 112 offense, and No. 19 defense. Creighton's No. 19 defense was its best mark in the 20 seasons of the KenPom era.
Creighton has had a top-25 offense per KenPom in six of the previous 11 seasons.
Here's where Creighton ranked after games on Dec. 30.
Year Off. Rating Def. Rating Team W-L
2010-11 66 174 23-16
2011-12 5 166 29-6
2012-13 5 66 28-8
2013-14 2 124 27-8
2014-15 59 138 14-19
2015-16 43 76 20-15
2016-17 32 46 25-10
2017-18 25 58 21-12
2018-19 47 83 20-15
2019-20 3 78 24-7
2020-21 25 32 22-9
2021-22 112 19 23-12
2022-23 28 24 9-6 so far
Top-20 Crowds
Here's a look at Creighton's top-20 home crowds all-time.
Rank Att. Opponent Date
1. 18,868 Providence 03/08/14
2. 18,859 Georgetown 01/25/14
3. 18,831 #1 Villanova 12/31/16
4. 18,797 #6 Villanova 02/16/14
5. 18,759 #1 Gonzaga 12/01/18
6. 18,742 Seton Hall 02/23/14
7. 18,735 Wichita State 02/11/12
8. 18,613 Wichita State 03/02/13
9. 18,525 Marquette 12/31/13
10. 18,519 #8 Seton Hall 03/07/20
11. 18,518 Georgetown 01/27/18
12. 18,495 Marquette 02/17/18
13. 18,494 Illinois State 02/09/13
14. 18,458 Evansville 12/29/12
15. 18,436 Bradley 01/28/12
16. 18,323 DePaul 02/07/14
17. 18,321 #3 Villanova 02/24/18
18. 18,294 #19 Iowa State 12/04/21
19. 18,257 #5 Xavier 02/10/18
20. 18,192 Marquette 02/20/22
Release, Rotation, Splash, Repeat
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 963 straight games. The streak is the nation's 13th-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 (through 1/4)
Rk. Streak School Next Game
1. 1,175 UNLV 1/7
2. 1,166 Duke 1/7
3. 1,107 Western Kentucky 1/5
4. 1,099 East Tennessee State 1/7
5. 1,077 Oakland 1/6
6. 1,076 Pacific 1/5
7. 1,071 Texas 1/7
8. 1,018 Marshall 1/5
9. 1,010 Baylor 1/7
10. 1,001 Princeton 1/6
11. 997 Gonzaga 1/5
12. 970 Long Island 1/5
13. 963 Creighton 1/7
14. 956 Mount St. Mary's 1/8
15. 945 Tennessee State 1/5
Triple Trouble
During Creighton's current streak of 963 straight games with a three-pointer, the Jays have drained 7,595 trifectas, an average of 7.89 treys per game.
That's not surprising since during the streak, Creighton has made exactly 7 three-pointers 143 times, more than any figure.
Only five times in the streak has Creighton made just one three-pointer, but on 274 occasions the Bluejays have made 10 or more trifectas, including three games of 20 or more.
Since the start of the 2019-20 season, the Bluejays are 53-13 when making eight or more three-pointers, compared to a 23-20 mark when making seven treys or fewer.
Team 3FG Made During Creighton's 3-Point Streak
1: 5 times 2: 17 times 3: 34 times
4: 75 times 5: 101 times 6: 101 times
7: 143 times 8: 121 times 9: 92 times
10: 80 times 11: 55 times 12: 54 times
13: 44 times 14: 19 times 15: 7 times
16: 8 times 17: 3 times 19: 1 time
20: 1 time 21: 1 time 22: 1 time
Ticket Information
Single-game tickets for the 2022-32 season went on sale on October 14th. Fans can purchase single-game tickets at CHI Health Center Omaha Box Office, Ryan Athletic Center, by calling Ticketmaster or visiting Ticketmaster.com.
For more information, call the Creighton Ticket Office at (402) 280-JAYS.
Saturday, Jan. 7, 2023 • 11:00 a.m. CST • Storrs, Conn. • Harry A. Gampel Pavilion
| LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | CU NOTES (PDF) | UCONN NOTES (PDF) |
Next Game
Creighton (9-6, 3-1 BIG EAST) plays its fifth top-25 opponent of the season on Saturday, Jan. 7, when it visits No. 4 Connecticut (14-2, 3-2 BIG EAST) for an 11 a.m. CST tip.
The Bluejays are 5-0 all-time vs. the Huskies, including a 76-74 overtime win in 2020 in its only visit to Harry A. Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Conn.
Radio Broadcast Information
KOZN (1620 AM) and KOOO (101.9 FM) will carry all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2022-23 season. John Bishop and Taylor Stormberg will call the action.
The audio is webcast live at www.1620thezone.com and can be heard on SiriusXM channel 382 and on SXM app channel 972.
Telecast Information
Saturday's game will be called by Brandon Gaudin and Donny Marshall and be televised on FOX. The game will also be video webcast on the FoxSports app or at http://foxsports.com/live. Cable authorization may be required.
Live Stats Information
All of Creighton's games this season will have free live stats. Visit www.gocreighton.com and click on the small bar graph icon on the scoreboard at the top of the page for the event of your choosing.
Home games can also be followed on mobile devices at www.gocreightonstats.com.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton started 6-0, including wins at the Maui Jim Maui Invitational over No. 21 Texas Tech and No. 9 Arkansas, then dropped its next six games before picking up BIG EAST wins by double-figures over Butler, DePaul and Seton Hall.
CU had three men named to the BIG EAST's All-Freshman Team last winter who are now sophomores. That trio includes BIG EAST Freshman of the Year Ryan Nembhard (11.5 ppg., 5.8 apg.) as well as Arthur Kaluma (12.7 ppg., 5.5 rpg.) and Trey Alexander (12.7 ppg., 4.2 rpg.).
Creighton's highest-impact newcomer to date has been South Dakota State transfer Baylor Scheierman (12.4 ppg., 9.2 rpg.), who also owns the team lead with eight double-doubles and 38 three-pointers made.
All-BIG EAST center Ryan Kalkbrenner (15.3 ppg., 7.0 rpg.), who was named 2022 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year, ranks second in the nation in field goal percentage (.762) this season. CU is 9-3 with him in the line-up this year.
Creighton was picked to win the BIG EAST Conference and earned its best preseason AP poll ranking ever (No. 9), thanks to the return of 10 lettermen and three starters from last year's team that finished 23-12.
CU averages 77.1 points while allowing just 67.5 points per contest. CU shoots 47.2 percent from the floor, 36.3 percent from deep and 71.4 percent at the line.
Scouting #4 Connecticut
Connecticut has suffered back-to-back double-digit losses after a 14-0 start, putting the Huskies in the unique predicament of being ranked fourth nationally but in fifth place of its own conference.
UConn boasts one of the nation's deepest teams, with eight regulars averaging at least five points per game. That group is headed by Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year Adama Sanogo, who leads the team with 17.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per game.
Jordan Hawkins is good for 14.6 points per game and Andre Jackson Jr. does a little bit of everything while averaging 6.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.0 assists per contest.
The Huskies average 80.9 points per game and shoot 46.9 percent from the field, 35.8 percent from three-point territory and 73.4 percent at the line. UConn outrebounds foes by 8.4 caroms per contest and the Huskies have 299 assists but just 198 turnovers.
The Series With Connecticut
Creighton is 5-0 all-time against UConn, with all five meetings taking place in the last 25 months and in four different cities. The five games have been decided by a total of 19 points.
After beating the Huskies in Storrs (76-74), Omaha (74-66) and New York City (59-56) in 2020-21, the Bluejays won match-ups last year in Hartford (59-55) and Omaha (64-62).
Greg McDermott is 5-0 against Connecticut.
McDermott is 5-1 all-time in head-to-head meetings vs. Dan Hurley, as Hurley's Rhode Island team defeated Creighton 84-72 in the First Round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament in a game contested in Sacramento, Calif.
The Creighton Coaches
Greg McDermott (Northern Iowa, 1988) owns a 285-143 record in his 13th season with the Bluejays. He owns a career mark of 565-338 in his 29th season, and is 434-274 in his 22nd Division I campaign.
McDermott led Creighton to its first BIG EAST regular-season title in 2019-20, taking a Bluejay team that was picked seventh in the league's preseason poll and ending the year ranked seventh nationally. The Cascade, Iowa native then coached Creighton to its first Sweet 16 since 1974 in 2020-21 and to a share of its first regular-season BIG EAST title in 2019-20.
McDermott has previously been a head coach at Iowa State (2006-10), Northern Iowa (2001-06), North Dakota State (2000-01) and Wayne State (1994-2000).
He is assisted by Alan Huss, Ryan Miller and Jalen Courtney-Williams.
With A Win...
- Creighton would win its fourth straight game.
- Creighton would improve to 6-0 against Connecticut all-time, becoming the fourth team ever to win its first six games against the Huskies.
- Creighton would earn its 50th top-25 win ever (50-159), improve to 7-40 all-time against top-five teams and 3-8 against teams ranked exactly fourth.
- Creighton would earn multiple top-10 wins in the same season for the third time (also 2013-14 and 2019-20).
- Creighton would make UConn just the third team since 2010-11 to start the year with 14 victories, then lose its next three games. Iowa State's 2013-14 team started 14-0 and lost three in a row, while the 2010-11 UCF squad opened 14-0 before losing eight games in a row.
Groundhog Day?
Connecticut has faced 35 different opponents since the start of the 2020-21 season, but only 10 of those schools have actually beaten the Huskies.
Only five of those opponents have beaten the Huskies multiple times, since 2020-21, a list that consists of Creighton (5-0), Villanova (3-2), Providence (3-1), Xavier (2-2) and Seton Hall (2-3).
Creighton is the only team that the UConn program has ever played four or more times without a victory.
The only teams to ever beat UConn each of its first five meetings have been Creighton, Fordham, UMass, New Hampshire, New York University, Syracuse and Worcester Polytechnic. Of that group, only New Hampshire (10), Syracuse (7) and New York University (6) have started 6-0 (or better) against the Huskies.
Neither Creighton nor UConn has ever led by more than 16 points at any time in any of the 205 minutes over any of the five meetings during the past three seasons, which has included 34 ties and 24 lead changes.
That being said, in last year's Bluejay victory in Omaha on March 2nd, Creighton never trailed and led by as much as 16 (34-18) before claiming a 64-62 triumph.
Top 5 Wins
Creighton owns six wins all-time over a team ranked in the top-five of the AP Poll, but has never beaten a team ranked higher than third at any site and never beaten a team higher than fourth away from home.
Creighton is 0-5 all-time against top-ranked teams, 0-7 against teams ranked second, 1-7 against No. 3 clubs, 2-8 versus No. 4 squads and 3-13 when facing teams ranked exactly fifth.
Creighton's last win over a team ranked exactly fourth in the AP poll was a 96-68 shellacking at Villanova on Jan. 20, 2014. That game started with Creighton making a three-pointer on each of its first nine possessions.
All told, the Jays are 6-40 against top-five clubs.
Date Opponent Result
01/28/80 #1 DePaul L 73-84
12/31/16 #1 Villanova L 70-80
02/01/18 at #1 Villanova L 78-98
12/01/18 #1 Gonzaga L 92-103
03/28/21 vs. #1 Gonzaga L 65-83
03/16/62 vs. #2 Cincinnati L 46-66
03/01/71 #2 Marquette L 61-66
02/19/72 at #2 Marquette L 61-70
12/20/74 at #2 Indiana L 53-71
02/25/17 at #2 Villanova L 63-79
03/11/17 vs. #2 Villanova L 60-74
12/01/22 at #2 Texas L 67-72
01/21/76 at #3 Marquette L 62-76
02/07/78 at #3 Marquette L 57-82
01/27/79 at #3 Indiana State L 69-77
02/09/81 at #3 DePaul L 57-83
12/19/15 at #3 Oklahoma L 74-87
02/03/16 at #3 Villanova L 58-83
02/24/18 #3 Villanova W 89-83 (OT)
03/19/22 vs. #3 Kansas L 72-79
02/25/63 at #4 Arizona State L 70-73
12/13/63 #4 Arizona State W 84-83
02/19/68 at #4 St. Bonaventure L 84-97
03/15/75 vs. #4 Maryland L 79-83
03/12/78 vs. #4 DePaul L 78-80
12/31/83 #4 DePaul L 57-59 (OT)
03/18/12 vs. #4 North Carolina L 73-87
01/20/14 at #4 Villanova W 96-68
01/25/15 at #4 Villanova L 50-71
03/03/15 #4 Villanova L 72-76
12/19/60 #5 North Carolina L 64-72
03/13/64 at #5 Wichita State L 68-84
02/13/67 #5 Houston L 80-87
01/29/70 #5 New Mexico State W 72-68
01/20/73 at #5 Long Beach State L 51-68
03/05/73 #5 Marquette L 49-61
03/08/75 #5 Marquette L 60-64
01/20/79 #5 Indiana State L 80-90
01/11/82 #5 DePaul L 67-76
12/04/89 at #5 Missouri L 79-86
03/13/99 vs. #5 Maryland L 63-75
02/09/16 #5 Xavier W 70-56
03/05/16 at #5 Xavier L 93-98
02/10/18 #5 Xavier L 71-72
12/08/20 at #5 Kansas L 72-73
02/13/21 #5 Villanova W 86-70
Ranking News & Notes
- Creighton is 49-159 all-time against top 25 teams.
- Creighton is 31-44 under Greg McDermott against nationally-ranked teams, 24 more top 25 wins than any other coach in Creighton history. Prior to McDermott's arrival, Creighton was 18-115 all-time against top 25 foes.
- Creighton's 31 top 25 wins since McDermott took over in 2010 are 36th-most nationally and more than schools like Maryland (24), LSU (18), Houston (17), Auburn (16), Wichita State (14), Memphis (13), USC (12) and Saint Mary's (8) in that time. In that same window, Connecticut has 36 wins against top 25 teams.
- Creighton is 26-27 since the start of the 2016-17 season against ranked teams. The 26 wins over ranked teams in that time are tied for 13th-most nationally with Florida State. CU's 26 top 25 wins trails only Villanova (33) among BIG EAST programs in that span. Connecticut has seven wins against the top 25 since 2016-17.
- Creighton has beaten at least one ranked team in each of the last nine seasons (including 2022-23), and multiple ranked foes in each of the last eight seasons (including 2022-23).
On a national basis, the only 19 teams with a top-25 win each of the previous eight seasons (entering 2022-23) were Baylor, Creighton, Duke, Florida State, Indiana, Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas Tech, Villanova, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Xavier.
- Creighton is 9-20 in true road games vs. the top 25 under Greg McDermott, compared to a 2-63 mark before his arrival.
- Creighton's Nov. 22nd victory vs. No. 9 Arkansas extended Creighton's streak of seasons with at least one top-10 win to eight.
The only schools with at least one top-10 win every season since 2015-16 (including 2022-23) are Creighton and Kansas. Schools still trying to extend their streak to eight (or longer) this winter are Duke, Michigan, Texas Tech and Virginia Tech.
Another Top 25 Foe
Saturday's game at No. 4 UConn will be the fifth top-25 team that Creighton has faced this season, all of which have been away from home (2 road, 3 neutral).
Through games of Jan. 6th, Creighton's four top-25 games are tied for third-most nationally and trail only Alabama (6) and Gonzaga (5).
Through games of Jan. 4th, the only teams with more than Creighton's two top-25 victories this year are Arizona (4) and Alabama (4). Purdue chases a third top-25 win at Ohio State on Thursday.
The Schedule...It Is Strong
Creighton ranks 120th nationally in winning percentage, but owns a NET of 28 (through Jan. 4) thanks in part to a challenging schedule that ranks ninth-toughest nationally among average opponent NET rankings.
That number figures to increase in difficulty with games vs. NET No. 3 UConn, No. 26 Xavier and No. 33 Providence on the upcoming docket in the next eight days.
Creighton has already played 10 teams with a top-100 NET ranking:
NET Opponent CU Result
3 at UConn Saturday
4 vs. Arizona L 79-81
10 vs. Arkansas W 90-87
13 at Texas L 67-72
26 at Xavier Jan. 11th
23 at Marquette L 58-69
33 Providence Jan. 14
45 vs. Texas Tech W 76-65
55 vs. Arizona State L 71-73
71 Butler W 78-56
87 Nebraska L 53-63
90 Seton Hall W 83-61
94 vs. BYU L 80-83
144 UC Riverside W 80-51
173 St. Thomas W 72-60
193 DePaul W 80-65
311 North Dakota W 96-61
334 Holy Cross W 94-65
On A Run
Creighton has won each of its last three games by 15 points or more, topping Butler by 22, DePaul by 15 and Seton Hall by 22.
It's just the second time in Creighton's 10 years in the BIG EAST that it has won three straight league games by 15 or more points, joining a run in February of 2021 when it topped Georgetown (63-48), No. 5 Villanova (86-70) and DePaul (77-53).
Creighton has not won four straight games by 15+ points, all in league play, since defeating South Dakota State (52-15 and 38-22), North Dakota (32-10) and North Dakota State (34-15) consecutively in January of 1924.
Connecticut has not trailed by more than 14 points this season in any game and Creighton has won the previous five meetings vs. Huskies by a combined 19 points. The Huskies haven't lost any game by more than 15 points since Jan. 1, 2020.
FOX Rocks
Saturday will mark Creighton's second of five appearances on FOX this season.
After a rough start on FOX, the network has been a good luck charm for the Bluejays in recent seasons, helping CU improve to 10-15 on the channel.
Creighton lost its first seven appearances and was 2-10 on FOX in its first six seasons as a BIG EAST member. Since then, Creighton is 8-5 on the network, and 1-0 this season after a Christmas Day win vs. DePaul.
Creighton's Record on FOX Since 2013-14
Year W-L
2013-14 0-0
2014-15 0-0
2015-16 0-1
2016-17 0-4
2017-18 1-3 (lost first 2)
2018-19 1-2 (won last 1)
2019-20 2-0
2020-21 5-2 (won first 4)
2021-22 0-3
2022-23 1-0 (so far)
Holiday Hoops Proves Popular
Creighton's Christmas Day victory over DePaul scored 2.99 million viewers on FOX - the network's most-watched college hoops game ever.
Per FOX Sports PR, it was the most-watched college basketball game on any network this season, far ahead of the Kentucky/Michigan State game on ESPN (2.03 million).
In the last three years, the only regular-season game higher was North Carolina/Duke in Mike Krzyzewski's final home game last March (3.98 million) on ESPN.
SWAT Team
Creighton owned nine blocked shots in Tuesday's victory over Seton Hall.
The nine blocked shots were tied for the most in a game under 13th-year head coach Greg McDermott (also done 2/13/18 vs. Bemidji State and 11/27/21 vs. SIU Edwardsville).
The nine rejections also tied Creighton's CHI Health Center Omaha record for team blocked shots in a game (also done 1/9/08 vs. Evansville, 2/13/18 vs. Bemidji State and 11/27/21 vs. SIU Edwardsville).
Combined with its 11 three-pointers made, Creighton fell just one block away from its first game with 10 blocks and 10 three-pointers for the first time since Feb. 17, 2002 vs. Wichita State when it had 10 of each.
Kalkbrenner Invites You To His Block Party
Ryan Kalkbrenner tied his career-high with six blocked shots vs. Seton Hall, giving him exactly 150 swats as a Bluejay. The six blocks are tied for the most by any BIG EAST player in a game this season, and the most in a conference game.
Kalkbrenner ranks fifth in program history in blocked shots, but just three behind Kenny Lawson Jr. (2006-11) for fourth place.
Most Creighton Blocked Shots, Since 1979-80
Blk. Name Years
411 Benoit Benjamin 1982-85
183 Chad Gallagher 1987-91
174 Gregory Echenique 2010-13
153 Kenny Lawson Jr. 2006-11
150 Ryan Kalkbrenner 2020-Pres.
138 Brody Deren 2001-04
136 Anthony Tolliver 2003-07
109 Doug Swenson 1997-99
104 Joe Dabbert 2000-04
82 Christian Bishop 2018-21
The Kalkbrenner Difference
Here's a look at the difference with and without Ryan Kalkbrenner this season.
Stat Kalkbrenner Plays Kalkbrenner Out
Team W-L 9-3 0-3
Team FG% .489 .403
Team 3FG% .369 .338
Team FG/Game 29.1 27.0
Team Dunks/Game 3.75 5.00
Rebound Margin +6.6 -8.6
Off. Rebounds/Game 8.8 5.7
CU Points/Game 79.0 69.7
Opp. Points/Game 65.6 75.0
Scoring Margin +13.4 -5.3
Turnovers/Game 11.5 13.0
Opp. FG% .424 .440
Kalkbrenner vs. Sanogo
Centers Ryan Kalkbrenner and Adama Sanogo are two of the best big men in the country, with both earning Preseason All-BIG EAST honors.
The duo own remarkably similar career stats and both are key pieces of teams with postseason aspirations.
Here's how they compare in their careers, as well as head-to-head.
Sanogo vs. Kalkbrenner Career Stats When They Play
Name Team W-L FG% 3FG% FT% REB BLK PTS
Sanogo 50-18 .542 .375 .689 474 86 875
Kalkbrenner 64-23 .669 .292 .679 453 150 809
Sanogo vs. Kalkbrenner Career Head-to-Head
Name Team W-L FG% 3FG% FT% REB BLK PTS
Sanogo 0-5 .458 --- .727 39 8 52
Kalkbrenner 5-0 .563 .000 .643 26 1 45
Last Five For The Five
Creighton is 3-2 in its last five games but has gotten tremendous production from its "five" men who man the center position.
In those five games, Ryan Kalkbrenner and Fredrick King have combined for 83 points, 47 rebounds and 21 blocked shots, while shooting 36-for-46 from the field (78.3 percent) and 10-for-13 (76.9 percent) at the line.
Trèy's Bien
Sophomore Trey Alexander scored a career-high 32 points in a Christmas Day win over DePaul in Creighton's last game, easily surpassing his previous high of 18 points.
Alexander had 14 points in the first half and 18 more after the break. He made a career-high seven three-pointers.
Creighton's largest lead of the game was 17, done four times. Each came after an Alexander hoop.
Alexander is the first Bluejay in more than 55 years to have a game with 30 or more points before finishing a game with 20-29 points.
Trèy's Bien, Part II
Creighton made 16 three-point shots in its Christmas Day victory over DePaul, including 10 in the first half.
It was Creighton's most three-pointers in a game since sinking 17 trifectas at Seton Hall on Jan. 27, 2021.
CU made 10 triples in the first half of that Seton Hall contest, which was also the last time CU made 10 treys in one half.
Individually, Trey Alexander made a career-high seven three-pointers. That's the most by any Bluejay since Ryan Hawkins made eight shots from downtown at Georgetown on Feb. 12, 2022.
Arc's-manship
After making just 4-of-20 three-pointers in its BIG EAST opening loss at Marquette, Creighton shot 50 percent or better from deep in lopsided wins against both Butler (8-16) and DePaul (16-29).
Prior to those two wins, CU had shot 50 percent from deep just once all season (7-14 in a win vs. No. 9 Arkansas).
Creighton is 71-4 under Greg McDermott when making at least half of its three-point attempts, including a 43-1 mark in the past 10 seasons. The lone loss as a BIG EAST member was a 106-104 overtime setback to No. 21 Marquette on Jan. 9, 2019.
According to Basketball-Reference.com, since McDermott was hired in 2010, Creighton's 75 games shooting 50 percent or better from downtown trail only Weber State (78).
Fool Me Once...But Nine Times?
Creighton has met or exceeded its preseason BIG EAST prognostication every year since joining the league, as seen below.
Last year marked the sixth straight season that Creighton has finished in fourth place or better.
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)
2021-22 8th 4th None
2022-23 1st ?? Ryan Kalkbrenner (1st); Arthur Kaluma (2nd)
Ryan Nembhard (2nd); Baylor Scheierman (HM)
Strong League Start Projects To Postseason
Creighton has started 5-2 or better in league play in seven of Greg McDermott's first 12 seasons at the helm.
Six of those teams to start like that reached the NCAA Tournament, while a seventh reached the quarterfinals of the NIT.
Each of Creighton's 15 teams since 1988-89 to start 5-2, 6-1 or 7-0 after seven games in league play have reached the postseason, a stretch that includes 10 NCAA Tournaments and five NIT's.
Among The Best
Since the league's 2013 realignment, Villanova has 132 league wins to lead the BIG EAST by a wide margin, but Creighton's 98 league victories are second-most.
Most Men's Basketball BIG EAST Wins
(2013-14 to 1/5/22)
Team W L Pct.
Villanova 132 33 .800
Creighton 98 71 .580
Providence 97 69 .584
Xavier 92 70 .568
Seton Hall 88 80 .524
Marquette 83 86 .491
Butler 80 91 .468
St. John's 63 105 .375
Georgetown 58 107 .352
DePaul 37 130 .222
Connecticut 27 14 .659
On The Rebound
Baylor Scheierman gets lots of attention for his shooting and passing skills, but he did lead the Summit League in rebounding last year as well.
Scheierman has grabbed 10 or more rebounds in nine of his first 15 games this season, and has eight double-doubles to date. The eight double-doubles rank sixth nationally, while his 8.20 defensive rebounds per game are fifth-most in the country, ahead of even Oscar Tshiebwe (8.08) and Zach Edey (8.00).
Since 2012-13, the only BIG EAST player to finish a season averaging at least 8.0 defensive rebounds per game was Seton Hall's Angel Delgado (8.03) in 2016-17, and the only BIG EAST player to average at least 8.25 defensive rebounds per game since 2004-05 was Notre Dame's Luke Harangody (8.29) in 2008-09.
Since 2009-10, Scheierman is the nation's only major conference player to average at least 8.00 defensive rebounds and 2.00 three-pointers per game.
The Aurora, Neb., product's current 9.2 rebounds per game average is the best mark by a Bluejay since Benoit Benjamin averaged 14.1 rebounds per game in 1984-85.
Scheierman remains on pace to become the first man in school history to average at least 8.0 rebounds and 2.0 three-pointers per game.
Earlier this year Scheierman became the first Bluejay with four straight double-doubles since Doug McDermott from Nov. 25-Dec. 10, 2011.
Since the 1994-95 season, Scheierman, Ryan Hawkins, Martin Krampelj and McDermott (twice) are the only four Bluejays to record three straight double-doubles.
Here's a list of the Creighton players with seven or more double-doubles in a season under Greg McDermott:
Most Double-Doubles, Season, Since 2010-11
D-D Creighton Player Year
11 Doug McDermott 2011-12
11 Ryan Hawkins 2021-22
10 Doug McDermott 2012-13
9 Doug McDermott 2010-11
8 Baylor Scheierman 2022-23
7 Doug McDermott 2013-14
7 Martin Krampelj 2018-19
3-Ball Falling For Scheierman
Baylor Scheierman has made multiple three-pointers in every game this season. Going back to last season when he played for South Dakota State, Scheierman has made two or more three-pointers in each of his past 22 games. That's easily the longest active streak in the nation.
Scheierman has drained at least one triple in each of his last 25 contests dating to last season.
Fantastic Five
Much has been written about Creighton's starting five this season, and the success CU has had when Ryan Nembhard, Ryan Kalkbrenner, Trey Alexander, Arthur Kaluma and Baylor Scheierman are on the floor together.
The quintet has played 212:28 (of a possible 600 minutes) together this season, outscoring the opposition 428-335 in those minutes.
In four games against ranked foes, the group has been paired together for 88:18 (of a possible 160 minutes) and outscored opponents 185-165.
With All 5 Regular Starters On the Floor
Opponent CU Pts. Opp Pts. Diff. Time
St. Thomas 36 34 +2 20:10
North Dakota 41 31 +10 18:42
Holy Cross 24 11 +13 9:28
UC Riverside 37 14 +23 17:31
#21 Texas Tech 58 49 +9 22:36
#9 Arkansas 33 25 +8 19:36
#14 Arizona 50 51 (-1) 21:17
#2 Texas 44 40 +4 24:49
Nebraska 17 22 (-5) 15:22
Butler 20 19 +1 13:09
DePaul 40 24 +16 14:57
Seton Hall 28 15 +13 14:51
TOTAL 428 335 +93 212:28
Magic Number 11?
Creighton has had 11 or more assists in all 15 games this season.
UConn's opponents have had just one game all year with more than 11 assists. That came last Saturday when Xavier dished 20 assists on 28 hoops and became the only team to shoot better than 46 percent from the field against the Huskies this season.
A Good Start
Here's a look at how Creighton has done statistically after 15 games under Greg McDermott. Notably, the Bluejays have been 9-6 or better each campaign.
Outside of CU's record, what season does 2022-23 most closely resemble? The 2019-20 team that won the BIG EAST title comes to mind.
Creighton Stats Through 15 Games, Since 2010-11
Year W-L FG% 3FG% FT% PPG Opp PPG
2022-23 9-6 .472 .363 .714 77.1 67.5
2021-22 10-5 .471 .309 .697 70.6 66.8
2020-21 11-4 .491 .364 .658 80.6 69.1
2019-20 12-3 .469 .364 .707 78.3 68.6
2018-19 10-5 .516 .436 .640 83.7 74.6
2017-18 12-3 .515 .383 .739 90.2 72.3
2016-17 14-1 .535 .422 .678 88.1 72.5
2015-16 10-5 .500 .384 .682 85.8 75.5
2014-15 9-6 .420 .332 .754 70.1 66.3
2013-14 13-2 .483 .431 .757 81.5 63.7
2012-13 14-1 .512 .437 .757 79.5 62.4
2011-12 13-2 .513 .454 .707 83.2 69.3
2010-11 10-5 .430 .315 .762 66.7 62.2
Big Fred's Big Night
Making his second career start, freshman center Fredrick King had career-highs with 16 points, 11 rebounds and five blocked shots in the Dec. 12 game vs. Arizona State.
King was just the second Bluejay of any age in Greg McDermott's 13 years on the CU sideline to post a game with at least 16/11/5, joining Gregory Echenique (18 points, 14 rebounds, 5 blocks) vs. Houston Christian on Dec. 17, 2011.
Per Basketball-Reference.com, King is the seventh different freshmen with 16 points, 11 rebounds, five blocks and no turnovers in the same game since 2010-11, a list that includes Chet Holmgren, Armando Bacot, Mo Bamba, Anthony Davis (twice), Thik Bol and Chris Horton.
Freshmen With 16 Pts., 11 Reb., 5 Blk, 0 Turnovers
(Since 2010-11)
Name, School Date PTS REB BLK
Anthony Davis, Kentucky 01/17/12 27 14 7
Anthony Davis, Kentucky 03/25/12 18 11 6
Chris Horton, Austin Peay 12/05/12 21 11 5
Thik Bol, Southern Illinois 02/19/17 19 11 6
Mo Bamba, Texas 12/29/17 22 15 8
Armando Bacot, N. Carolina 11/29/19 23 12 6
Chet Holmgren, Gonzaga 03/17/22 19 17 7
Fredrick King, Creighton 12/12/22 16 11 5
King Him!
After 38 total points and 25 total rebounds in the first 10 games of his college career, Fredrick King put together back-to-back double-doubles after being pressed into a starting role when Ryan Kalkbrenner was sidelined by a non-COVID illness in mid-December. King had 16 points and 11 rebounds vs. Arizona State on Dec. 12th, then added 16 points and 10 rebounds at Marquette four days later.
King is CU's freshman with multiple double-doubles in a season since Justin Patton had three in 2016-17.
King is CU's first true freshman with multiple double-doubles in a season since Doug McDermott had nine in 2010-11. McDermott had also been the last Bluejay freshman with back-to-back double-doubles, having done it on Feb. 1 and Feb. 5, 2011.
For his efforts, King was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week on Dec. 19.
After shooting 8-for-8 vs. Marquette, King was 3-for-3 from the field against Butler to move him to 11-for-11 in league play with eight dunks. He is currently 12-for-14 from the field with nine dunks in conference contests.
Simply Perfect
Below is a list of Creighton players to shoot 100 percent from the field on eight or more attempts in a game since the start of the 1991-92 campaign:
Most FGA, 100% Shooting, Since 1991-92
FGA Name, Opponent Date
11 Anthony Tolliver vs. Illinois State 01/01/07
10 Ryan Kalkbrenner vs. Holy Cross 11/14/22
8 Geoffrey Groselle vs. Coppin State 12/28/15
8 Justin Patton vs. Loyola (Md.) 12/07/16
8 Fredrick King at Marquette 12/16/22
Big Fred's World
Fredrick King had four points (on two dunks) and three blocked shots in his first career start on Saturday vs. BYU.
King was the first Bluejay true freshman to start a game at center since Kenton Walker on Feb. 5, 2008, when the Jays topped UNI, 74-50.
One of the other Creighton starters that night was Nick Bahe, who was on the call for FS1 for each of King's first two starts.
King is the first true freshman center to make multiple starts for Creighton since Joel Templeman in 1994-95.
Scheierman's Great Start
Baylor Scheierman has scored 186 points in his first 15 games as a Bluejay. Since 1995-96, that's the seventh-most by a Creighton newcomer.
Most Points, Newcomers First 15 Games Since 1995-96
Pts. Name, Class Year After 16
281 Marcus Foster, Jr. 2016-17 298
208 Justin Patton, Fr. 2016-17 228
201 Ryan Hawkins, Sr. 2021-22 214
197 Doug McDermott, Fr. 2010-11 202
194 Maurice Watson Jr., Jr. 2015-16 221
187 Ryan Nembhard, Fr. 2021-22 205
186 Baylor Scheierman, So. 2022-23 ? ? ?
179 Rodney Buford, Fr. 1995-96 189
177 P'Allen Stinnett, Fr. 2007-08 189
176 Cole Huff, Jr. 2015-16 176
162 Brody Deren, So. 2001-02 170
156 Gregory Echenique, So. 2010-11 167
155 Marcus Zegarowski, Fr. 2018-19 168
152 Ryan Sears, Fr. 1997-98 168
Paul Silas Passes Away at 79
Paul Silas, Creighton's first Academic All-American and one of the top players in Bluejay men's basketball history, has passed away at the age of 79. Bob Ryan, longtime Boston Globe reporter and a close friend of Silas over many decades, reported the news the morning of Dec. 11th.
Silas was recruited to Creighton by John J. "Red" McManus out of McClymonds High School in Oakland, Calif., the same high school that produced Bill Russell. Silas arrived on campus in 1960 when freshmen were ineligible to play for the varsity but quickly made a difference a year later when he led CU to the 1961-62 NCAA Tournament and the team closed with a 21-5 record. His 1963-64 team returned to the Big Dance and finished 22-7.
Silas is the only player in NCAA history with three or more seasons of 557 rebounds and owns the top three single-season rebound totals in Bluejay annals, including 631 as a senior in 1963-64. That figure remains fifth-most in NCAA history and is the most by any player since 1960. He's first in CU history with 1,751 rebounds, ninth in career points (1,661), third in career scoring average (20.51) and also in the top-10 in field goals made (8th) and free throws made (6th).
Silas' 21.6 career rebounds per game are third-most in NCAA history and his 1,751 rebounds are sixth in NCAA history as well as the most ever by a three-year player. Silas, along with Bill Russell, Julius Erving, Artis Gilmore and Kermit Washington is one of five players to average at least 20 points and 20 rebounds for an NCAA career. Silas owns the top 29 single-game rebound performances in Creighton history, including a 38 rebound effort vs. Centenary on Feb. 19, 1962 that ranks tied for ninth-most in NCAA history.
He was the first Creighton student-athlete to be named a CoSIDA Academic All-American in 1963-64, was a member of Alpha Sigma Nu, the Jesuit Honor Society, and received the College of Business Administration's Alumni Merit Award in 1993.
In an old article, Silas boasted about his education, saying "I'm more proud of my academic success at Creighton than of all my athletic accomplishments. What Creighton University does for an athlete or any student is that they teach you how to think, how to deal with everyday living. What I learned at Creighton has helped me close the gap between professional sports and the business world."
A two-time All-Star and five-time NBA All-Defensive team member, he scored 11,782 points and grabbed 12,357 rebounds while winning three titles (Boston 1974 & 1976, Seattle 1979) during a 16-year NBA career from 1964-80. He later coached 12 seasons in the NBA for the Clippers, Hornets, Bobcats and Cavalier organizations. He was LeBron James' first NBA head coach. His son, Stephen Silas, is the current head coach of the NBA's Houston Rockets.
Paul was inducted into the Creighton Athletics Hall of Fame in 1974, the Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Fame in 2012 and the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2017.
Deep Dive Into The Rankings
The Creighton men's basketball team was ranked ninth in the Associated Press Preseason Top 25 poll, its highest preseason AP ranking ever.
The Oct. 17th announcement marked just the fifth time in program history the writers have voted CU to the top-25 in the preseason, joining 2006-07 (No. 19), 2012-13 (No. 16) and 2016-17 (No. 22) and 2020-21 (No. 11). All four of those Bluejay teams would end up in the NCAA Tournament.
Creighton was 10th in the AP poll released on Nov. 14th and Nov. 21 and was seventh last Nov. 28th. The team fell to No. 21 on Dec. 5th.
The Nov. 28 week was the 21st time in program history that Creighton has been in the top-10 at any point, with all but one of those weeks happening under head coach Greg McDermott. Creighton's best ranking in program history is seventh, done five times (Jan. 16, 2017, March 10, 2020, March 18, 2020, Jan. 7, 2021 and Nov. 28, 2022).
Creighton has been ranked 118 times in program history, with 90 of those weeks under the direction of McDermott. Creighton is 148-60 all-time as a ranked team, including a 114-46 mark under McDermott. Creighton has been ranked at least one week in nine of McDermott's 13 seasons on The Hilltop after doing it just five different seasons in program history before his 2010 arrival.
Creighton was also ninth in the preseason USA Today Coaches poll, its best preseason mark ever in the Coaches poll. The Jays remained ninth in the Nov. 14 Coaches poll and climbed to eighth in the Nov. 21 Coaches poll and were seventh on Nov. 28. CU was 21st on Dec. 5th. The program's best slotting ever in the Coaches poll is fifth, done on Jan. 4, 2021.
Sophomores Standing Tall
Legendary Marquette coach Al McGuire once said that the best thing about freshmen is that they become sophomores. The Bluejay trio of Arthur Kaluma, Trey Alexander and Ryan Nembhard were all part of the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team last season, and all three are off to fantastic starts as sophomores.
This year the trio have combined to average 36.8 points per contest.
Collectively, they shoot 43.1 percent from the field (188-436), 37.0 percent from downtown (67-181) and 76.2 percent at the line (109-143) while also contributing 185 rebounds and 144 assists against just 84 turnovers.
Creighton is 15-1 in the last two seasons when all three men play and they combine for 13 or more rebounds.
An Area for Improvement
One area that Creighton will look to improve in 2022-23 is its marksmanship from behind the arc, as last year's 30.8 percent shooting from deep was its worst as a team since 1993-94.
The Creighton staff is confident those numbers can improve as its talented freshman class is now sophomores. Thus far, Creighton is second in the BIG EAST with 9.21 three-pointers made per game and with 36.3 percent marksmanship from deep, but leads both categories in league games only.
Last year's freshmen combined to shoot 27.2 percent from deep (85-313), but they're not the first Bluejay freshmen to struggle early on from downtown, as seen in the chart below of some other prominent marksmen.
Even that chart is a little misleading, as Doug McDermott shot 15-of-53 (.283) from deep in his first 20 games of his freshman year before finishing 32-of-63 (.508) in his last 19 games. Likewise, Kyle Korver was shooting 11-for-41 (.268) from downtown after his first 14 contests before blistering the nets to the tune of 52-of-104 (.500).
As a Freshman Other College Years
Name 3FG-3FGA 3FG% 3FG-3FGA 3FG%
Ky. Korver 63-145 .434 308-674 .457
McDermott 47-116 .405 237-482 .492
Ty. Alexander 32-96 .333 178-469 .380
Ballock 44-135 .326 264-638 .414
Tr. Alexander 18-64 .281 26-58 .448
Kaluma 27-102 .265 21-61 .344
Nembhard 33-106 .311 20-62 .323
Nationally Relevant
Through games of Jan. 4, Creighton ranked third in the country in fewest fouls per game (12.60).
The Jays are also 11th in defensive rebounds per game (29.13) and 30th in assist/turnover ratio (1.42).
Individually, Baylor Scheierman ranks sixth nationally with eight double-doubles and fifth with 8.20 defensive rebounds per game.
Teammate Ryan Kalkbrenner is second in field goal percentage (76.2%) among players to make five field goals per game. Kalkbrenner is the only player in the top 10 who has made four or more three-pointers.
Ryan Nembhard ranks 18th in assist/turnover ratio (3.22) and 12th in total assists (87).
Wooden Award Watch List
The Creighton duo of Baylor Scheierman and Ryan Kalkbrenner have been named to the Preseason Top 50 Watch List for the John R. Wooden Award® presented by Wendy's®.
The players on the list are considered strong candidates for the 2023 John R. Wooden Award Men's Player of the Year presented by Wendy's. Players not chosen to the preseason list are still eligible for the Wooden Award™ midseason list, late season list, and the National Ballot. The National Ballot consists of 15 top players who have proven to their universities that they meet or exceed the qualifications of the Wooden Award. Nearly 1,000 voters will rank in order 10 of those 15 players when voting opens prior to the NCAA Tournament and will allow voters to take into consideration performance during early round games. The Wooden Award All American Team™ will be announced the week of the "Elite Eight" round of the NCAA Tournament. The winner of the 2023 John R. Wooden Award will be presented in Los Angeles in April.
Scheierman and Kalkbrenner give Creighton nine Preseason John R. Wooden Award Watch List recognitions in 13 seasons under Greg McDermott. Marcus Zegarowski made the list in 2020-21, one year after Ty-Shon Alexander was listed prior to the 2019-20 campaign. Others to make the list include Marcus Foster (2017-18), Maurice Watson Jr. (2016-17), Doug McDermott (2013-14, 2012-13 and 2011-12). Creighton's lone recipient of the John R. Wooden Award® is Doug McDermott, who was recognized following the completion of the 2013-14 campaign.
Turnover Free At The Point
Ryan Nembhard's 12 assists without a turnover vs. Holy Cross on Nov. 14 made him just the fourth player in Bluejay history to accomplish that feat. He's the first to do it inside CHI Health Center Omaha and the first Bluejay to do it at any site since 2002.
Here's the single-game assist leaders at Creighton, along with their turnover statistics on that night:
Ast. Name, Opponent Date TO
17 Ralph Bobik vs. Bradley 01/22/74 0
Ralph Bobik at St. Francis (Pa.) 02/23/73 ??
16 Ralph Bobik vs. BYU 12/17/73 4
14 Maurice Watson Jr. at Providence 01/07/17 2
Maurice Watson Jr. at Seton Hall 01/09/16 4
13 Maurice Watson Jr. vs. Washington St. 11/18/16 4
Maurice Watson Jr. vs. Akron 12/03/16 5
Jason Bey vs. Southern Illinois 02/27/95 1
Latrell Wrightsell vs. Nebraska 12/07/91 1
12 Ryan Nembhard vs. Holy Cross 11/14/22 0
Grant Gibbs vs. Northwestern 12/22/11 4
Tyler McKinney at Nebraska 12/21/02 0
Ed St. Fleur at CS-Sacramento 01/13/96 0
Latrell Wrightsell vs. N. Iowa 02/01/92 4
Duan Cole at Iowa State 01/16/90 5
Vernon Moore at Southern Illinois 01/17/85 2
Randy Eckker at Gonzaga 01/14/77 2
Randy Eckker at Bradley 01/12/77 4
Speaking Of Assists
Ryan Nembhard's 12 assists vs. Holy Cross were the second double-figure assist game of his Bluejay career, joining the 10 helpers he dished in his collegiate debut last November vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
Nembhard is the seventh different Bluejay with 10 or more assists in a game under Greg McDermott, joining Maurice Watson Jr. (12 times), Grant Gibbs (4), Marcus Zegarowski (4), Austin Chatman (3), Antoine Young (2) and Malik Albert (1).
Also worth noting regarding Nembhard's big night? He played just 19 minutes in the win, making him the nation's only player with 12 assists against a Division I opponent this year while playing less than 30 minutes.
McDermott Among The Best
A Nov. 10th article on CBSSports.com ranked the nation's best Top 25 And 1 coaches, with Creighton's Greg McDermott making that list.
McDermott and Providence's Ed Cooley were the lone BIG EAST coaches named to the list.
McDermott and Cooley both rank in the top-13 in league history for BIG EAST victories.
Most League Wins, BIG EAST MBB Coaches (1/4)
Rk. Wins Name, School
1. 366 Jim Boeheim, Syracuse
2. 274 Jim Calhoun, UConn
3. 244 Jay Wright, Villanova
4. 198 John Thompson Sr., Georgetown
5. 136 Mike Brey, Notre Dame
6. 131 John Thompson III, Georgetown
7. 127 Lou Carnesecca, St. John's
8. 115 Jamie Dixon, Pittsburgh
9. 111 Rick Pitino, Providence/Louisville
111 Ed Cooley, Providence
11. 110 Rollie Massimino, Villanova
12. 105 Kevin Willard, Seton Hall
13. 98 Greg McDermott, Creighton
14. 87 Steve Lappas, Villanova
Kalkbrenner Up For Naismith Award
Ryan Kalkbrenner has been named one of 50 players to watch during the season-long competition for the 2023 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Men's Player of the Year honor, as announced by The Atlanta Tipoff Club.
A junior from Florissant, Mo., Kalkbrenner averaged 13.1 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.6 blocked shots per game while starting CU's first 34 contests last season. He was an Honorable Mention All-BIG EAST choice, BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year and named to the All-BIG EAST Tournament Team while ranking fourth nationally in both field goal percentage (.646) and offensive rebounds per game (3.9). He was the lone Bluejay named Preseason First Team All-BIG EAST last month for ninth-ranked team in the nation, who are predicted to win the BIG EAST.
Kalkbrenner's recognition makes him the fourth different Bluejay in 13-year head coach Greg McDermott's tenure to be on a Naismith Award watch list. Doug McDermott was on the Preseason watch list in 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013-14 and was a finalist in 2012-13 before winning the award in 2013-14. Marcus Foster was named to the Midseason watch list in 2016-17, then made the Preseason and Midseason watch list in 2017-18. More recently, Marcus Zegarowski was on the Preseason and Midseason watch list in 2020-21.
The midseason 30 team will be announced in February, and then the competition will be narrowed down to 10 national semifinalists in early March. Following those results, four finalists will be named on March 21, 2023, and the winner of the 2023 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy for Men's Player of the Year will be announced on April 2, 2023.
Top 10 Under McDermott
Prior to Greg McDermott's 2010 arrival, Creighton had spent one week ranked in the top 10 of the Associated Press poll in program history (10th on Jan. 20, 2003, when Dana Altman's team led by Kyle Korver lost at Steve Merfeld's Evansville team).
Under McDermott, Creighton has spent 21 weeks in the top 10, including at least one week in five different seasons (1 week in 2012-13; 8 weeks in 2016-17, 3 weeks in 2019-20, 5 weeks in 2020-21 and 4 weeks so far this year).
Creighton's best AP ranking ever is seventh, done five times (Jan. 16, 2017; March 10, 2020; March 18, 2020; Jan. 7, 2021 and Nov. 28, 2022).
CHI Health Center Omaha Success
Creighton has played 331 regular and postseason contests at CHI Health Center Omaha all-time in the 20-year-old facility.
The Bluejays own a 272-59 (.822) record all-time at the facility, and have never lost there on a Friday (22-0).
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 25,865-21,671 in games at CHI Health Center Omaha, an average margin of 12.67 points per game. Creighton has not trailed 88 different times, including twice this year (Holy Cross, DePaul).
Incredibly, Creighton hasn't trailed in its home opener in 10 of the past 23 seasons (2000-01, 2002-03, 2003-04, 2004-05, 2005-06, 2009-10, 2011-12, 2014-15, 2016-17 and 2019-20).
Creighton is also 32-35 all-time in the 67 games at the arena in which it's fallen behind by double-figures at any point, 8-11 when down by 10+ points at halftime in the facility, and 40-29 when trailing at halftime at CHI Health Center Omaha.
Creighton is 175-41 (.810) at CHI Health Center Omaha under Greg McDermott and hasn't trailed in 63 of those games. In that same span, CU owns a 95-9 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 291-59 (.831) at home since the start of the 2002-03 campaign.
Home Run
Under Greg McDermott Creighton is averaging 80.42 points per home game (17,371 points in 216 home games), a figure that climbs to 83.84 points in non-conference home games (8,719 points in 104 home games).
Creighton is 132-6 all-time at CHI Health Center Omaha when scoring 80 or points.
Who's Back?
With Creighton returning eight of the 13 men who appeared in a game last season, it's no surprise that a similar ratio of the production from 2021-22 is also gone. Below is a breakdown of what is back:
Stat Returners Departures
Blocks 118 (79.2%) 31 (20.8%)
Assists 284 (60.9%) 182 (39.1%)
Starts 104 (59.4%) 71 (40.6%)
Points 1,360 (56.2%) 1,062 (43.8%)
Minutes 3,881 (54.9%) 3,194 (45.1%)
Charges Taken 7 (53.8%) 6 (46.2%)
Rebounds 663 (53.3%) 580 (46.7%)
Steals 98 (51.0%) 94 (49.0%)
3FG Made 83 (35.3%) 152 (64.7%)
Youth Is Served
In case you've forgotten, Creighton had at least one freshman on the floor for every second of every game last season, and actually had a late stretch of 1:28 vs. Colorado State when all five of its players on the floor were freshmen.
All told, 3171:36 of Creighton's 7,075 total minutes (44.83 percent) were played by freshmen last season.
By comparison, in 2020-21 Creighton had a freshman on the floor just 32.4 percent of the time and had multiple freshmen on the floor just 17 minutes (of 1,250) all season (1.4 percent). Only 7.5 percent (465:52 of 6250) of CU's overall minutes were played by freshmen in 2020-21.
Through 15 games this season, Creighton's freshmen have played 431:36 of 3000 possible minutes (14.39 percent).
2021-22 Minute Breakdown
Freshmen Time Score Margin
0 freshmen: Never -- --
1 freshman: 34:23 59-49 +10
2 freshmen: 962:14 1,692-1,578 +114
3 freshmen: 347:15 611-407 +4
4 freshmen: 45:54 54-85 (-31)
5 freshmen: 1:28 5-2 +3
Watch This
Creighton has four men that made a preseason watch list for their respective position.
Ryan Nembhard is one of 20 candidates on the watch list for the 2023 Bob Cousy Award, given to the nation's best point guard. Nembhard is the fourth different Bluejay in the last 12 years named to the Bob Cousy Award watch list, joining Antoine Young (2011-12), Maurice Watson Jr. (2016-17) and Marcus Zegarowski (2020-21).
Baylor Scheierman is one of 20 candidates on the watch list for the 2023 Julius Erving Award, given to the nation's best small forward. Scheierman is Creighton's first player in the nine seasons of the Julius Erving Award to be named to the watch list at any point.
Arthur Kaluma is one of 20 candidates on the watch list for the 2023 Karl Malone Award, given to the nation's best power forward. Kaluma is Creighton's first player in the nine seasons of the Karl Malone Award to be named to the watch list at any point.
Ryan Kalkbrenner is one of 20 candidates on the watch list for the 2023 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, given to the nation's best center. Kalkbrenner joins Justin Patton (2016-17) as Creighton's second player in the nine seasons of the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award to be named to the watch list at any point.
Creighton (4) is one of six schools with four or more MBB players on a watch list, joining Duke (5), Kentucky (5), Arizona (4), Gonzaga (4) and UCLA (4).
CU's four watch list student-athletes match the totals of the rest of the BIG EAST combined (Xavier 2, Villanova 1, UConn 1).
Preseason BIG EAST Poll
The Creighton men's basketball team was picked to win the BIG EAST Conference in the annual survey of league coaches, which was unveiled as part of BIG EAST Media Day on Oct. 18th at Madison Square Garden.
It's the first time since 2012-13 that Creighton has been chosen as a preseason favorite in its league, though that recognition came in CU's final season in the Missouri Valley Conference.
This is the 10th time Creighton has been tabbed as the preseason favorite (also 1989-90, 1990-91, 1998-99, 2000-01, 2002-03, 2006-07, 2008-09, 2011-12 and 2012-13), though the first nine occurrences all happened in the Missouri Valley Conference. Four of those MVC teams finished first (1990-91, 2000-01, 2008-09, 2012-13), while the other five took second place. Six of those nine Bluejay squads went on to win the MVC Tournament (1990-91, 1998-99, 2002-03, 2006-07, 2011-12, 2012-13) and seven of the nine squads played in the NCAA Tournament (1990-91, 1998-99, 2000-01, 2002-03, 2006-07, 2011-12, 2012-13).
The Bluejays collected eight first-place votes and earned 98 points in the poll. Xavier was picked second in the poll with 86 points, including two first-place votes. Villanova, the defending BIG EAST Tournament champion, was one point behind Xavier with 85 points and received one first-place vote from the men's basketball head coaches, who did not vote for their own teams. Connecticut was picked fourth with 77 points and Providence was fifth with 62 points. St. John's and Seton Hall finished sixth and seventh with 62 and 52 points, respectively. Butler was eighth with 36 points, four points ahead of ninth-place Marquette with 32 points. Georgetown was 10th with 21 points and DePaul 11th with 12 points.
Creighton is the only school in the league that has met or exceeded its preseason BIG EAST prognostication every year since joining the league, as seen below:
Creighton's BIG EAST Preseason Poll History
Year Preseason Actual Preseason All-BIG EAST
2013-14 3rd 2nd Doug McDermott (1st)
2014-15 9th T-9th -
2015-16 9th 6th -
2016-17 3rd T-3rd Maurice Watson Jr. (1st); Marcus Foster (HM)
2017-18 5th T-3rd Marcus Foster (1st); Khyri Thomas (HM)
2018-19 9th T-3rd Martin Krampelj (HM)
2019-20 7th T-1st Ty-Shon Alexander (1st)
2020-21 2nd 2nd Marcus Zegarowski (1st); Mitch Ballock (2nd)
2021-22 8th 4th -
2022-23 1st ?? Ryan Kalkbrenner (1st); Arthur Kaluma (2nd)
Ryan Nembhard (2nd); Baylor Scheierman (HM)
#ProJays
Former Creighton All-American Doug McDermott is back for a second season with the San Antonio Spurs, giving Creighton at least one NBA player in 39 of the last 40 seasons. McDermott is in his ninth season in the NBA.
Other famous Bluejays to play in the NBA in the past include Paul Silas, Kyle Korver, Benoit Benjamin and Anthony Tolliver.
We're Jamming!
Ryan Kalkbrenner owns 126 dunks in his career, including 69 last year. He has more career dunks than any other Bluejay player since Greg McDermott's arrival in 2010.
Here's a look at the Creighton student-athletes with 20 or more dunks in a season, and 25 or more dunks in a career, under Greg McDermott:
Most Creighton Dunks, Season, Since 2010-11
Dunks Name Year
74 Martin Krampelj 2018-19
72 Justin Patton 2016-17
69 Ryan Kalkbrenner 2021-22
50 Christian Bishop 2020-21
38 Christian Bishop 2019-20
36 Gregory Echenique 2012-13
33 Martin Krampelj 2017-18
30 Gregory Echenique 2011-12
29 Marcus Foster 2017-18
29 Ryan Kalkbrenner 2020-21
28 Ryan Kalkbrenner 2022-23
24 Gregory Echenique 2010-11
23 Marcus Foster 2016-17
22 Kenny Lawson Jr. 2010-11
21 Alex O'Connell 2021-22
21 Arthur Kaluma 2021-22
20 Khyri Thomas 2017-18
Most Creighton Dunks, Career, Since 2010-11
Dunks Name Years
126 Ryan Kalkbrenner 2020-Pres.
121 Martin Krampelj 2015-19
103 Christian Bishop 2018-21
90 Gregory Echenique 2010-13
72 Justin Patton 2016-17
52 Marcus Foster 2016-18
51 Khyri Thomas 2015-18
38 Will Artino 2011-15
33 Zach Hanson 2013-17
31 Arthur Kaluma 2021-Pres.
25 Geoffrey Groselle 2012-16
25 Damien Jefferson 2018-21
Most Creighton Dunks, Team, Season, Since 2010-11
Dunks Year Team W-L
144 2016-17 25-10 (NCAA)
132 2021-22 23-12 (NCAA)
107 2017-18 21-12 (NCAA)
106 2018-19 20-15 (NIT)
90 2020-21 22-9 (NCAA)
60 2019-20 24-7 (Postseason Canceled)
60 2022-23 9-6 so far (Postseason TBD)
58 2015-16 20-15 (NIT)
56 2010-11 23-16 (CBI)
54 2012-13 28-8 (NCAA)
42 2011-12 29-6 (NCAA)
Fun Fact
Creighton is the only school in the BIG EAST with 12 or more league wins each of the previous three seasons.
Among the other BIG EAST or "Power 5" Conference schools, only Baylor, Illinois, Kansas, UCLA and Virginia have done so.
20 Wins, Again
Creighton had 23 wins in 2021-22, securing a seventh straight 20-win season.
Creighton is one of six schools with 20 or more wins in each of the previous seven seasons, joining Belmont, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas and Oregon.
22 of 24 Seasons With 20 Wins
Creighton has won 20 or more games in 22 of the last 24 seasons, a feat that puts the Jays among an exclusive group, nationally.
Just two schools have had 20 or more wins each of the last 24 years: Gonzaga and Kansas. Duke has done it 23 times, Creighton and Kentucky 22 times.
Most 20-Win Seasons, Last 24 Seasons
Team 20-Win Seasons 2021-22 W-L
Gonzaga 24 28-4
Kansas 24 34-6
Duke 23 32-7
Creighton 22 23-12
Kentucky 22 26-8
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 to Jan. 4, 2023
Category CU Stat CU Rank
3FG Made 3,764 4th
FG Percentage .477 4th
3FG Percentage .377 5th
Assists 6,831 6th
FG Made 11,660 8th
Points 32,609 10th
Wins 285 28th
Winning Percentage .666 35th
Multiple Choices
For the first time since 1964-65, Creighton had five men average in double-figures for an entire season last season. Last year's double-figure group included Ryan Hawkins (13.8 ppg.), Ryan Kalkbrenner (13.1), Alex O'Connell (11.8), Ryan Nembhard (11.3) and Arthur Kaluma (10.4).
Creighton had not had five or more men finish a season averaging 10 or more points per game since the 1964-65 club had SIX men average in double- figures (Neil Johnson, 17.3; Elton McGriff, 15.0; Fritz Pointer, 14.3; Tim Powers, 12.6; Bob Miles, 11.9; Charlie Brown (11.6), though Johnson only played in 8-of-23 games.
This year's team has five players averaging 11.5 points per game or more, Ryan Kalkbrenner (15.3), Trey Alexander (12.7), Ryan Nembhard (11.5), Arthur Kaluma (12.7), Baylor Scheierman (12.4).
Creighton has won each of its last 26 games when five or more players score in double-figures, a streak that dates to Jan. 9, 2019 vs. Marquette.
Dynamic Duo
Creighton was one of 11 schools to earn at-large bids in the NCAA Tournament in both men's and women's basketball in 2021-22, a list that featured Arkansas, Baylor, Creighton, Indiana, Iowa State, LSU, Miami (Fla.), Michigan, North Carolina, Notre Dame and Ohio State.
Those 11 schools, in addition to 13 others (Arizona, Delaware, Gonzaga, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Longwood, Montana State, Tennessee, Texas, UConn, Villanova and Virginia Tech) were the only 24 schools with both men's and women's basketball teams to make the Big Dance.
This season, Creighton was one of nine teams with a preseason top-25 squad on both the men's and women's side, joining Arizona, Baylor, Indiana, Michigan, North Carolina, Oregon, Tennessee and Texas.
Big Deficits, No Big Deal
Creighton owns 27 victories since the start of the 2010-11 season after trailing by double-figures at some point, including four such rallies last season. In its NCAA Tournament win vs. San Diego State, Creighton trailed 35-21 late in the first half.
Thirteen of those 27 comebacks have come away from home.
If you're curious, CU's largest comeback win since 2000 came on Jan. 28, 2006, when the Jays trailed 25-6 early before rallying to beat Wichita State on a buzzer-beater by Anthony Tolliver.
CU's Double-Digit Comebacks Under McDermott
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
16 SIU Edwardsville 11/27/21
15 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 11/09/21
14 Evansville 02/21/12
14 vs. San Diego State 03/17/22
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
11 DePaul 01/22/22
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
McDermott Ranks Second On CU Wins List
Greg McDermott has 285 victories at Creighton, good for second place on CU's all-time wins list.
McDermott's .666 winning percentage is Creighton's best since Arthur A. Schabinger's .714 win rate more than 85 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. 285-143 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
Super Seven
Greg McDermott joined some select company when he directed his troops to a seventh NCAA Tournament last season. That put him in the company of some of the greatest coaches in CU Athletics history.
McDermott is one of five head coaches in Creighton history to lead seven different NCAA Tournament teams.
Name Sport NCAA's @CU
Kirsten Bernthal Booth Volleyball 12
Bob Warming Men's Soccer 11
Dana Altman Men's Basketball 7
Brent Vigness Softball 7
Greg McDermott Men's Basketball 7
McDermott's Coaching Tree
A bunch of former Greg McDermott protégés are thriving at the Division I level.
Eric Henderson led South Dakota State to the first 18-0 season in Summit League history. The Jackrabbits went 30-5 after winning the Summit League Tournament and clinching an NCAAA bid.
North Dakota State's Dave Richman went 23-10 overall and finished as the runner-up in the Summit League standings and Summit League Tournament to Henderson's SDSU team.
Ben Jacobson won the MVC regular-season title while coaching Northern Iowa. The Panthers went 20-12 and reached the NIT.
Drake's Darian DeVries led the Bulldogs to a 25-11 mark and runner-up finish in the MVC (to Jacobson's UNI team) in the regular-season and the league tournament. Drake played in the CBI.
Steve Lutz led his Texas A&M-Corpus Christi team to a 24-12 record and a Southland Conference Tournament title in his first year as a head coach, with the Islanders reaching the NCAA Tournament First Four. He inherited a 5-19 team that hadn't won 20 games or had a winning record since 2016-17.
TJ Otzelberger turned around Iowa State in his first year in Ames. He inherited a 2-22 team (0-18 Big 12) and turned it into a team that reached the Sweet 16 and finished 22-13.
Patrick Sellers led Central Connecticut State to an 8-24 record in his first season with the Blue Devils, including a victory in the Northeast Conference Tournament.
Paul Sather is the head coach at North Dakota after successful tenures at Black Hills State and Northern State.
CHI Health Center Omaha Dramatics
Creighton is 8-8 in games with a game-winning go-ahead score in the final 10 seconds at CHI Health Center Omaha, which opened in the fall of 2003.
Creighton's Go-Ahead Scores in Wins at
CHI Health Center Omaha, Last 10 Seconds
Date Opponent Score Player/Score Time
11/26/05 Dayton W 91-90* Funk FG :5.7
01/28/06 Wichita St. W 57-55 Tolliver FG :0.0
11/25/06 George Mason W 58-56 Watts FT :7.5
03/18/08 Rhode Island W 74-73 Witter 3FG :3.2
01/13/10 Southern Illinois W 71-69 Young FG :1.3
02/18/12 Long Beach St. W 81-79 Young FG :0.3
01/28/14 St. John's W 63-60 McDermott 3FG :2.8
01/18/20 Providence W 78-74 Zegarowski 3FG :3.2
*double-overtime
Opponent Go-Ahead Scores in CU Losses at
CHI Health Center Omaha, Last 10 Seconds
Date Opponent Score Player/Score Time
03/20/06 Miami (Fla.) L 53-52 G. Diaz FT :2.6
01/20/07 Southern Illinois L 58-57 B. Mullins FG :4.1
01/10/15 #19 Seton Hall L 68-67 S. Gibbs 3FG :2.2
02/16/15 #19 Butler L 58-56 R. Jones FG :1.9
03/07/15 Xavier L 74-73 D. Davis FT's :6.3
01/12/16 #12 Providence L 50-48 K. Dunn FG :0.0
02/22/17 Providence L 68-66 K. Cartwright 3FG :2.4
02/10/18 #5 Xavier L 71-72 Q. Goodin FT's :0.3
Firing On All Cylinders
Creighton finished last season ranked 50th overall by KenPom.com. That included the nation's No. 112 offense, and No. 19 defense. Creighton's No. 19 defense was its best mark in the 20 seasons of the KenPom era.
Creighton has had a top-25 offense per KenPom in six of the previous 11 seasons.
Here's where Creighton ranked after games on Dec. 30.
Year Off. Rating Def. Rating Team W-L
2010-11 66 174 23-16
2011-12 5 166 29-6
2012-13 5 66 28-8
2013-14 2 124 27-8
2014-15 59 138 14-19
2015-16 43 76 20-15
2016-17 32 46 25-10
2017-18 25 58 21-12
2018-19 47 83 20-15
2019-20 3 78 24-7
2020-21 25 32 22-9
2021-22 112 19 23-12
2022-23 28 24 9-6 so far
Top-20 Crowds
Here's a look at Creighton's top-20 home crowds all-time.
Rank Att. Opponent Date
1. 18,868 Providence 03/08/14
2. 18,859 Georgetown 01/25/14
3. 18,831 #1 Villanova 12/31/16
4. 18,797 #6 Villanova 02/16/14
5. 18,759 #1 Gonzaga 12/01/18
6. 18,742 Seton Hall 02/23/14
7. 18,735 Wichita State 02/11/12
8. 18,613 Wichita State 03/02/13
9. 18,525 Marquette 12/31/13
10. 18,519 #8 Seton Hall 03/07/20
11. 18,518 Georgetown 01/27/18
12. 18,495 Marquette 02/17/18
13. 18,494 Illinois State 02/09/13
14. 18,458 Evansville 12/29/12
15. 18,436 Bradley 01/28/12
16. 18,323 DePaul 02/07/14
17. 18,321 #3 Villanova 02/24/18
18. 18,294 #19 Iowa State 12/04/21
19. 18,257 #5 Xavier 02/10/18
20. 18,192 Marquette 02/20/22
Release, Rotation, Splash, Repeat
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 963 straight games. The streak is the nation's 13th-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 (through 1/4)
Rk. Streak School Next Game
1. 1,175 UNLV 1/7
2. 1,166 Duke 1/7
3. 1,107 Western Kentucky 1/5
4. 1,099 East Tennessee State 1/7
5. 1,077 Oakland 1/6
6. 1,076 Pacific 1/5
7. 1,071 Texas 1/7
8. 1,018 Marshall 1/5
9. 1,010 Baylor 1/7
10. 1,001 Princeton 1/6
11. 997 Gonzaga 1/5
12. 970 Long Island 1/5
13. 963 Creighton 1/7
14. 956 Mount St. Mary's 1/8
15. 945 Tennessee State 1/5
Triple Trouble
During Creighton's current streak of 963 straight games with a three-pointer, the Jays have drained 7,595 trifectas, an average of 7.89 treys per game.
That's not surprising since during the streak, Creighton has made exactly 7 three-pointers 143 times, more than any figure.
Only five times in the streak has Creighton made just one three-pointer, but on 274 occasions the Bluejays have made 10 or more trifectas, including three games of 20 or more.
Since the start of the 2019-20 season, the Bluejays are 53-13 when making eight or more three-pointers, compared to a 23-20 mark when making seven treys or fewer.
Team 3FG Made During Creighton's 3-Point Streak
1: 5 times 2: 17 times 3: 34 times
4: 75 times 5: 101 times 6: 101 times
7: 143 times 8: 121 times 9: 92 times
10: 80 times 11: 55 times 12: 54 times
13: 44 times 14: 19 times 15: 7 times
16: 8 times 17: 3 times 19: 1 time
20: 1 time 21: 1 time 22: 1 time
Ticket Information
Single-game tickets for the 2022-32 season went on sale on October 14th. Fans can purchase single-game tickets at CHI Health Center Omaha Box Office, Ryan Athletic Center, by calling Ticketmaster or visiting Ticketmaster.com.
For more information, call the Creighton Ticket Office at (402) 280-JAYS.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's BasketballCreighton Men's Basketball Availability - 9/24/25
Wednesday, September 24
Meet the Jays - MBB Blake Harper
Friday, August 15
Meet the Jays - MBB Austin Swartz
Friday, August 15
Meet the Jays - MBB Jasen Green
Friday, August 15
