#19 Men's Basketball Looks to Bounce Back at Xavier

Game #24: #19 Creighton Bluejays (16-7, 7-5) at Xavier Musketeers (13-10, 7-5)
Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024 • 11:30 a.m. CT • Xavier, Ohio • Cintas Center
| LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | CU NOTES | XU NOTES |

Next Game
No. 19 Creighton (16-7, 7-5 BIG EAST) wraps up a two-game road trip on Saturday, Feb. 10, when it visits Xavier (13-10, 7-5 BIG EAST) in a Quad 1 game for both programs.
   Tip-off at Cintas Center (10,224) in Cincinnati, Ohio, is set for 11:30 a.m. Central.

Radio Broadcast Information
KOZN (1620 AM) and KOOO (101.9 FM) will carry all Creighton men's basketball games during the 2023-24 season. John Bishop will call the action.
   The audio is webcast at 1620thezone.com and can also be heard on SiriusXM channel 138 or 201 as well as https://sxm.app.link/964.
   Additionally, the game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN Radio, with Mike Couzens and Bob Valvano on the call.

Telecast Information
Saturday's game will be called by Tim Brando and Robbie Hummel and televised on FOX. It will be Creighton's 90th consecutive game (and 252nd of its last 258) to be televised, a streak that dates to November of 2021. The game will be video webcast at https://FoxSports.com/live.

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.

Scouting No. 19 Creighton
Creighton is 16-7 this season, including home wins over Iowa (92-84), Alabama (85-82), No. 23 Providence (69-60), St. John's (66-64) and Xavier (85-78), and road victories at Oklahoma State (79-65), Nebraska (89-60) and Seton Hall (97-94 in 3OT). The five BIG EAST losses have come by a combined 26 points, including back-to-back setbacks by a combined five points.
   The nucleus of the team is formed by three returning starters as senior forward Baylor Scheierman (18.6, 8.4 rpg., 3.6 apg), senior center Ryan Kalkbrenner (16.5 ppg., 7.6 rpg., 2.6 bpg., 62.5 FG%), and junior guard Trey Alexander (17.2 ppg., 6.0 rpg., 4.7 apg.) all put their professional aspirations on hold and came back.
   Add in senior transfer Steven Ashworth (10.4 ppg,. 3.8 apg.), the USBWA District VII Player of the Year last year at Utah State, and it's easy to see why CU was one of three BIG EAST teams picked in the top-10 nationally in the preseason.
   The Bluejays boast an offense that shoots 48.4 percent from the floor and 36.2 percent from three-point land while draining 10.5 three-pointers per contest (seventh-best nationally), which contributes to CU's 80.8 points per game. The Jays also outrebound foes by 5.0 caroms per contest.
   CU's defense has held teams to 69.6 points per game and allowed opponents to make just 135 three-pointers all year. Creighton's 11.26 fouls per game are the fewest in the nation.

Scouting Xavier
Xavier is 13-10 overall and 7-5 in BIG EAST play thanks to three straight victories, including a 56-53 triumph vs. Villanova on Wednesday in Cincinnati.
   Quincy Olivari (18.9 ppg., 5.3 rpg.) is second in the BIG EAST in scoring and has made a league-best 72 three-pointers at a 45.0 percent clip.
   Desmond Claude (16.0 ppg.) and Dayvion McKnight (11.6 ppg.) also score in double-figures for a Xavier squad with a new-look, as veteran big men Zach Freemantle and Jerome Hunter have yet to see action this season.
   Xavier averages 76.2 points per game and surrender 72.1 points per game. Xavier is also +3.5 rebounds per game and shoots 34.3 percent from three-point range.

The Series With Xavier
Xavier owns a 22-18 lead in the series with Creighton, including a 12-7 lead in Cincinnati. Twenty-four of the 40 all-time meetings have been within five points in the final minute, including 10 of the last 19 games.
    Greg McDermott is 12-13 against Xavier, and 2-2 against Sean Miller. Miller is 3-5 against Creighton.
   Xavier won 2-of-3 meetings a year ago, with the home team winning each regular-season contest before the Musketeers eliminated the Jays from the BIG EAST Tournament in New York City. Creighton won 85-78 in Omaha on Jan. 23rd earlier this year.

The Creighton Coaches
Greg McDermott (Northern Iowa, 1988) owns a 316-157 record in his 14th season with the Bluejays. He ranks 16th among active coaches in victories with a career mark of 596-352 in his 30th season, and is 465-288 in his 23rd 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 has coached Creighton to a share of its first regular-season BIG EAST title in 2019-20 its first Sweet 16 since 1974 in 2020-21 and first Elite Eight since 1941 in 2022-23.
   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 Ryan Miller, Jalen Courtney-Williams and Derek Kellogg.

With A Win...
- Creighton would sweep Xavier for the first time since 2019-20, and second time 11 years as BIG EAST rivals.
- Creighton would snap a two-game losing streak.
- Creighton would win for the third time in the last four meetings with Xavier.
- Creighton would win its fifth road game at Cintas Center, tying Seton Hall and trailing only Villanova for the most ever by any visiting team in the building.
- Creighton would improve to 6-4 in road games this season.
- Creighton would clinch its 25th winning season in the past 26 years.
- Creighton would win for the 200th time while in the USA Today Coaches poll, improving to 200-81.

Milestone Watch
Ryan Kalkbrenner is two steals shy of 50 in his career.
   Fredrick King owns 198 career points as the sophomore eyes 200.
   Trey Alexander owns 290 assists and is 10 shy of 300.

Uniform Success at Cintas
Xavier has been near unbeatable at Cintas Center since its 2000 opening, going 323-59 (.846) in the facility. The Musketeers are also an impressive 158-42 (.790) all-time in conference home games at Cintas Center.
    By comparison, Creighton is 288-62 (.823) overall and 141-47 (.750) in league play all-time at CHI Health Center Omaha, another place where visiting teams have had trouble winning thanks to a tremendous home-court advantage.
    Creighton (4x) is one of 12 visiting teams that have beaten Xavier at Cintas Center multiple times, joining Villanova (7x), Seton Hall (5x), Butler (3x), Marquette (3x), DePaul (2x), UMass (2x), Providence (2x), Richmond (2x), Saint Louis (2x), St. John's (2x) and Saint Joseph's (2x). A win on Saturday would make Creighton the third visiting team with five wins over Xavier at Cintas Center, along with Villanova's seven and Seton Hall's five.
    One of those rare Musketeer home losses came on Nov. 30, 2004, when Creighton overcame an early 33-22 deficit (including 35-26 at half) to stun the Musketeers, 73-72, on a Tyler McKinney hoop with 21.5 ticks left. At the time, it was just Xavier's third non-conference home loss ever in the building.
    On Feb. 4, 2015, Creighton picked up a 79-72 overtime win at Cintas Center. The Bluejays overcame a seven-point second half deficit to force overtime, and outscored the Muskies 14-7 in the extra session to hand the X-Men their first home loss of the year.
    On January 16, 2017 in Cincinnati, No. 7 Creighton earned a 72-67 victory over No. 22 Xavier thanks to a 6-0 run in the final 50 seconds. Justin Patton had a tip-in with 49.0 left to give CU the lead, and Cole Huff and Khyri Thomas made insurance free throws after defensive stops. The win improved Creighton to 18-1 for the first time, but national assist leader Maurice Watson Jr. suffered a knee injury early in the first half and would miss the rest of the season.
    In 2020 Creighton won 77-65 in Cincinnati as five men scored in double-figures to help Greg McDermott earn his 500th win as a head coach.

Horseshoes & Hand Grenades, The X-Men
Creighton's first 11 years in the BIG EAST have featured 25 games against Xavier decided by an average of 8.36 points.
   Avg. Margin   CU W-L   Opponent
   5.63   6-2   Connecticut
   6.82   11-11   Marquette
   8.36   12-13   Xavier
   9.92   11-14   Providence
   10.32   12-10   Seton Hall
   13.36   13-9   Butler
   13.48   16-5   St. John's
   14.08   8-16   Villanova
   14.30   13-10   Georgetown
   17.29   22-1   DePaul

Creighton &, Xavier To The Wire
Since both teams officially joined the BIG EAST in the summer of 2013, 17 of the 25 meetings (including the BIG EAST Tournament) between Creighton and Xavier have been decided by eight points or less, with two games going to overtime.
   Twenty-four of the 40 all-time meetings have been within five points in the final minute, including 10 of the last 19 games.
   Creighton is 5-4 this season in games decided by eight points or less. Xavier is 3-7 in such games.

Finding A Way
Since the start of the 2020-21 season, Xavier (18) and Creighton (16) lead the BIG EAST in victories by three points or fewer. Both are in the top 10 nationally in that span.
Wins By 3 Points or Less Since 2020-21 (thru 2/7)
   1.   18   Xavier
       18   Arizona State
       18   Cal State Fullerton
        18   Texas
   5.   17   Cleveland State
       17   Charleston
       17   Montana State
       17   San Diego State
       17   Wofford
   10.   16   Creighton
       16   Colorado State
       16   Milwaukee
       16   Southern Illinois
       16   Texas Southern
       16   Virginia

Repeat Performance?
Creighton coming off a high-scoring road game called by Dave Sims on FS1 that went to overtime.
   Xavier entering with a three-game winning streak.
   Baylor Scheierman with a 20 & 10 in the prior game.
   All of these things were true before Creighton beat Xavier on January 23rd.
   All of these things are also true heading into Saturday's Creighton/Xavier rematch in Cincinnati.

More Than A Number
Saturday's match-up features a pair of teams who have traditionally excelled in their respective conferences.
   Xavier entered the 2019-20 season with a streak of 37 straight seasons in which it has finished .500 or better in league play before going 8-10 in 2019-20, 6-7 in 2020-21 and 8-11 in 2021-22. XU reversed that streak last year, when it went 15-5 in league play.
   Creighton, meanwhile, entered this season having gone .500 or better in league play 28 of the past 29 seasons.

Collecting W's
Creighton and Xavier enter Saturday's game with a ton of similarities since the start of the 2010-11 season. Creighton owns 316 victories, which ranks 24th-most nationally in that time and 14 more than Xavier's 303 wins that rank 36th.
   Gonzaga (415), Kansas (400) and Duke (378) lead the nation in wins during the past 14 seasons, while Villanova (349) ranks ninth and is best among current BIG EAST schools.
   The 316 wins accumulated by Creighton ranks ahead of other schools with a national following such as UCLA (312), Florida (310), Syracuse (306), UConn (304), Louisville (299), Maryland (290), Marquette (285) and Texas (283), among others.

Come A Little Bit Closer
Creighton and Providence played 45 minutes of hoops on Wednesday night at Amica Mutual Pavilion, and the score was within five points for all but 1:47 of gametime.
   Last season when Creighton played 50 minutes against Providence at Amica Mutual Pavilion the teams played more than 42 straight minutes where neither team led by more than four points. That game featured 20 lead changes and 17 ties.

FOX Rocks
Saturday will mark Creighton's third of six scheduled 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 14-17 on the channel since joining the BIG EAST.
   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 12-7 on the network.
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   3-2
2023-24   2-0

Two Of The Best
Creighton's Baylor Scheierman and Xavier's Quincy Olivari rank as two of the best shot-makers in the BIG EAST Conference.
   Olivari ranks second in the league with 18.9 points per game, while Scheierman is third with 18.6 points per game.
   Both men are tied for the BIG EAST lead with 72 three-pointers made, as well.
   Scheierman shoots 83.8 percent from the line, while Olivari connects at an 83.6 percent clip.
   In their careers, Scheierman has scored 2,013 points, while Olivari is at 1,922 overall. Scheierman owns the career lead in three-pointers made (318-299), rebounds (1,135-645) and assists (525-207).

Working Overtime
Creighton has played in three different overtime games this season, losing to Villanova (Dec. 20), winning at Seton Hall in triple-overtime (Jan. 20) and losing at Providence (Feb. 7).
   Creighton's 97-94 triple-overtime win at Seton Hall on Jan. 20th was its second overtime contest of the season, having also gone an extra five minutes to Villanova one month earlier (losing 68-66) on Dec. 20th in Omaha.
   It was just the second triple-overtime game in history for Creighton, joining a Feb. 1, 1978 loss (85-82) in Omaha to No. 13 DePaul in a non-conference contest.
   Creighton's last overtime win had been its 72-69 win over San Diego State during the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
   Creighton is 62-53 all-time in all games with at least one overtime, including a 12-9 mark under Greg McDermott. The Jays are 10-10 in the next game after an overtime battle.

Back-to-Back Overtime?
Creighton has played back-to-back overtime games just five times in program history, and not since December of 2014.
Season   Game 1 (OT if more than 1)   Game 2
1963-64   CU 96, Utah St 91 (2OT)   CU 77, Iowa 72
1975-76   CU 50, San Diego 48   CU 79, Kansas St 76
1986-87   Dayton 83, CU 81   Nebraska 70, CU 65
1993-94   Drake 81, CU 75   Illinois State 92, CU 88
2014-15   CU 91, S. Dakota 88 (2OT)   St. Mary's 71, CU 67

You Can't Spell McDermott Without OT
Greg McDermott is 17-14 in single-overtime games (9-8 at Creighton), 6-3 in double-overtime games (2-1 at Creighton) and 1-0 in triple-overtime games (1-0 at Creighton).
   McDermott's first overtime game as a Division I head coach was a 2002 Northern Iowa win over Creighton. His first double-overtime game as a Division I coach was a 2004 victory over Missouri State in the MVC Tournament title game, which clinched his first appearance in the NCAA Tournament as a Division I head coach.

Extra, Extra, Extra!
Creighton has played five overtime sessions this season. That's already third-most in program history, trailing only the 1989-90 team (7 OTs) and the 2001-02 squad (6 OTs).
   This is the sixth time that Creighton's played an overtime game in three consecutive months, something also done in 1988-89, 1989-90, 1995-96, 1999-2000, 2014-15.
    This season also marks the 12th time in Creighton history that the Bluejays have played three or more overtime games in the same season. The program record is four such contests, done in 1989-90, 1993-94, 2001-02 and 2018-19.
   This is the third time that Creighton's played three or more conference games to go overtime in the same campaign, joining 1994-95 (4) and 2018-19 (4).
   Lastly, this is the third time in program history that Creighton has played an overtime road game in back-to-back seasons. It also happened in 1989 & 1990 at Wichita State (CU won both) as well as in 2010 & 2011 at Southern Illinois (CU won both).
Most Overtime Sessions, Creighton Season
   OT's   Year
   7   1989-90
   6   2001-02
   5   2023-24

Most Overtime Games, Creighton Season
   OT's   Year
   4   1989-90
   4   1993-94
   4   2001-02
   4   2018-19
   3   1983-84
   3   1988-89
   3   1995-96
   3   1999-00
   3   2005-06
   3   2007-08
   3   2014-15
   3   2023-24

7-Foot-1 With 7 Assists
Ryan Kalkbrenner averages 16.5 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, and earlier this year at Seton Hall had a game with seven blocked shots. On Wednesday in Providence, the 7-foot-1 center showed off his passing skills as he dished a career-high seven assists.
   The seven assists were three more than his previous best in a game.
   It was the first time in 122 career games that Kalkbrenner had led or shared the team-lead in assists.
   Kalkbrenner's seven helpers led to 18 Bluejay points.
   In his previous eight games, Kalkbrenner had collected a total of seven assists.
   Kalkbrenner is the nation's only player taller than 6-foot-7 to have different games with seven assists and seven blocks this season. The only other player to do it was 6-foot-6 Louisiana Tech forward Isaiah Crawford at (vs. Nicholls State on Dec. 6).

20 & 10 For Baylor
Baylor Scheierman had 26 points and 10 rebounds vs. Butler on February 2nd, then added 27 points and 12 rebounds five days later at Providence.
   He's the first Bluejay with back-to-back games of 20 points and 10 rebounds since Doug McDermott from March 1-4, 2014. McDermott was also the last Bluejay to do it in three straight games when he did it in four straight from Nov. 25-Dec. 10, 2011 early in his sophomore season.
   Scheierman is also the first Bluejay with back-to-back games of 26 points and 10 rebounds since Bob Harstad on Feb. 24 & 28, 1990. He's the first BIG EAST player since West Virginia's Kevin Jones on Jan. 21 & 25, 2012 to do it, as well.
   And if you're curious, the last BIG EAST player to do it in three straight games was Notre Dame's Luke Harangody's three-game stretch from Jan. 26-Feb. 4, 2009.

Scheierman Makes NCAA History
Baylor Scheierman owns 2,013 points, 1,135 rebounds, 525 assists and 318 career three-pointers. He is the nation's first Division I men's player in history with career totals of at least 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, 500 assists and 300 three-pointers.
   Even when you take away his gaudy scoring and rebounding totals, Scheierman is one of 28 players since 1992-93 with 500 or more assists and 300 or more three-pointers. Scheierman's 1,135 rebounds are well ahead of the next-most (658 by ASU/Toledo guard Marreon Jackson).
   Among the nation's active players Scheierman is fifth in rebounds, trailing only Armando Bacot (North Carolina), Fardaws Aimaq (California), Norchad Omier (Miami Fla.) and Enrique Freeman (Akron).
   Scheierman enters Saturday with exactly half (159) of his 318 career three-pointers coming in a Creighton uniform.

A True Unicorn
Just how good are Baylor Scheierman's career numbers?    Here's where the fifth-year senior would rank in Creighton history if all his stats were attained with the Bluejays:
   Category   CU Career Rank*   Baylor's Totals
   Games Played   1st   150
   Rebounds   2nd   1,135
   3-Point Field Goals Att.   2nd   814
   3-Point Field Goals   3rd   318
   Assists   3rd   525
   Points   4th   2,013
   Field Goals Made   6th   688
   Field Goals Attempted   6th   1,486
   Free Throw Percentage   7th   .808
   Steals   10th   142
*if all of Scheierman's stats had come at Creighton

Doing It All
Creighton's Baylor Scheierman and Providence's Devin Carter are the only men in the BIG EAST to average at least 17.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game this season.
   Prior to this year, only five BIG EAST players have ever accomplished that feat over the course of a full season, and none since Providence's Ryan Gomes in 2004-05.
   Up the average to 3.5 assists per game and prior to Scheierman and Carter, no one's done it since Syracuse's Billy Owens in 1989-90.
BIG EAST Players To Average 17 PPG, 8 RPG, 3 APG
Season   Name, School   PPG   RPG   APG
1989-90   Billy Owens, Syracuse   18.2   8.4   4.6
1990-91   Billy Owens, Syracuse   23.3   11.6   3.46
1995-96   Adrian Griffin, Seton Hall   19.5   8.3   3.1
1999-00   Ricardo Greer, Pitt   18.1   9.8   3.2
2004-05   Ryan Gomes, Providence   21.6   8.2   3.2
2023-24   Baylor Scheierman, CU   18.6   8.4   3.6
2023-24   Devin Carter, PC   19.0   8.0   3.5

Kalk Of The Walk
In a league that features three of the 10 Midseason finalists for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award (Kalkbrenner, Soriano, Clingan), Creighton's Ryan Kalkbrenner has performed at a high level as he's averaging 16.5 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.6 blocked shots per game.
   Prior to this year, only seven BIG EAST players since 1992-93 have averaged 16.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.5 blocks over the course of a full season, and none since Providence's Herbert Hill in 2006-07.
BIG EAST Players To Average 16 PPG, 7 RPG, 2.5 BPG
Season   Name, School   PPG   RPG   BPG
1993-94   Donyell Marshall, UConn   25.1   8.9   3.3
2000-01   Eddie Griffin, Seton Hall   17.8   10.8   4.4
2001-02   Ryan Humphrey, Notre Dame18.9   10.9   2.8
2002-03   Mike Sweetney, Georgetown   22.8   10.4   3.2
2003-04   Emeka Okafor, UConn   17.6   11.5   4.1
2006-07   Herbert Hill, Providence   18.1   8.8   2.9
2023-24   Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton   16.5   7.6   2.6

No Stopping Us Now
Creighton has scored 97, 85, 85, 98 and 87 points in its past five games. Believe it or not, it sets a program record for consecutive 85 point games in conference play.
   Creighton had previously done it three games in a row when it scored 94, 87 and 93 from Feb. 8-15, 2020 and 93, 85 and 95 from Jan. 15-20, 2003.
   The only other teams nationally with five straight conference games of 85+ points this year have been New Mexico (Jan. 13-28) and Kentucky (Jan. 6-20). No team has done it in six conference games in a row in the same season since Eastern Washington's seven game streak in February of 2021.
   The last time Creighton had scored 85 points or more in five consecutive games (conference or otherwise) was a five-game stretch from Nov. 19-Dec. 1, 2018. CU hasn't done it in six games in a row (conference or otherwise) since Jan. 9-28, 1971.
   The program record for consecutive 85-point games is seven from Jan. 27-Feb. 15, 1969.

Four Of A Kind
In the last five games, Trey Alexander (22.6), Baylor Scheierman (21.8), Ryan Kalkbrenner (19.6) and Steven Ashworth (17.2) have all averaged more than 17 points per game.
   Per Elias Sports Bureau, no collegiate quartet has each averaged 17.0 points in a five-game stretch since December of 2008, when VMI's Chavis Holmes (20.2), Keith Gabriel (17.8), Travis Holmes (17.6) and Austin Kenon (17.0) did so.

Making History
Baylor Scheierman (26), Steven Ashworth (26), Trey Alexander (22) and Ryan Kalkbrenner (20) all scored 20 or more points against Butler last Friday.
   It was the first time since at least 1980 that Creighton has had four men score 20 or more points in the same game.
   The 26 points were Creighton-highs for both Ashworth and Scheierman, though Scheierman scored 27 his next time out at Providence.
   Creighton was the first team nationally with four men to score 20 in the same game since March 5th, 2022 when North Carolina did it vs. Duke (Armando Bacot 23; Caleb Love 22; RJ Davis 21; Brady Manek 20).
   Creighton was the first BIG EAST school with four players with 20+ points since Syracuse vs. UConn in their famous six-OT thriller on March 12, 2009 (Jonny Flynn 34; Paul Harris 29; Eric Devendorf 22; Andy Rautins 20).
   It was just the fifth time in 14 seasons under Greg McDermott that Creighton's had three men score 20+ in the same game, but second time in two weeks (also Jan. 20th at Seton Hall).
   It was the first time that Creighton's had two men score 25 or more in the same game since Booker Woodfox (26) and P'Allen Stinnett (30) vs. New Mexico on Nov. 16, 2008.

Can't Stop Them All
Creighton has three different men who have scored in double-digits each of the last seven games or more, as Ryan Kalkbrenner (10), Baylor Scheierman (8) and Steven Ashworth (7) have all done so.
   It's the first time in at least 25 years that CU has had three men with active double-digit streaks of seven or longer at any point in the last 25 seasons.

Terrific Trio
The trio of Baylor Scheierman (18.6 ppg.), Trey Alexander (17.2) and Ryan Kalkbrenner (16.5) have accounted for 64.7 percent of Creighton's points this season.
   Creighton has not had three men finish a season averaging 14 points per game or more in the same year since 1983-84, when Benoit Benjamin (16.2), Vernon Moore (15.0) and Gregory Brandon (14.5) did it.
   Creighton has not had three men finish a season averaging 15 points per game or more in the same year since 1966-67, when Bob Portman (18.3), Tim Powers (17.5) and Wally Anderzunas (15.5) did it.
   Creighton has not had three men finish a season averaging 16 points per game or more in the same year since 1953-54, when Ray Yost (19.9), Eddie Cole (19.6) and Elton Tuttle (18.5) did it.

The Power of 3
Per Elias Sports Bureau, Creighton (Trey Alexander, Ryan Kalkbrenner, Baylor Scheierman) and Belmont (Malik Dia, Ja'Kobi Gillespie, Cade Tyson) are the only teams nationally that own three men scoring 16 points or more per game.
   No "Power 6" team has finished a season with three men averaging 16 points per game since LSU in 2020-21 (Ja'Vonte Smart, Cameron Thomas, Trendon Watford).

Splashworth!
Steven Ashworth has made four or more three-pointers in each of Creighton's last three games. Since joining the BIG EAST in 2013, it's just Creighton's 10th such streak.
   Ashworth is also the second Bluejay in the BIG EAST era to make four or more three-pointers while shooting 50 percent from deep in three straight games, joining Mitch Ballock (4 straight from Dec, 31, 2018 - Jan. 13, 2019).
Longest Creighton Streaks of 4+ 3FG, Since 2013-14
   Streak   Name   Dates
   5   Ethan Wragge   Nov. 29-Dec. 17, 2013
   4   Doug McDermott   March 1-13, 2014
   4   Mitch Ballock   Dec. 31, 2018 - Jan. 13, 2019
   3   Jahenns Maniget   Dec. 29, 2013-Jan. 4, 2014
   3   James Milliken   Feb. 28-March 5, 2016
   3   Mitch Ballock   Jan. 22-Feb. 1, 2022
   3   Ryan Hawkins   Feb. 12-17, 2022
   3   Steven Ashworth   Jan. 27, 2014-Present

Give Me Twenty
Creighton has had 32 individual scoring performances of 20 or more points this season, including 13 such outings in the past five games alone.
   Creighton is 17-3 all-time when Ryan Kalkbrenner scores 20 points or more.
   Creighton is 10-4 when Baylor Scheierman scores 20 points or more.
   Creighton is also 16-1 all-time when Trey Alexander scores 20 points or more.
   Nationally, when Alexander scores 20 or more points (min. 15 games of 20+ points) Creighton does as well as anyone, as seen below in this list from Elias Sports Bureau:
Best Team Record When Scoring 20+ Points
(Min. 15 games of 20+ points, active players only, thru 2/4)
   Win Pct.   W-L   Player, Team
   .941   16-1   Trey Alexander, Creighton
   .933   14-1   Austin Crowley, Southern Miss
   .933   14-1   Ja'Monta Black, Austin Peay
   .895   17-2   LJ Cryer, Houston/Baylor
   .895   17-2   Justin Wright, Loyola Marymount

Best Team Record When Scoring 20+ Points
(Min. 15 games of 20+ points, active Power 6 players)
(Through Feb. 4)
   Win Pct.   W-L   Player, Team
   .941   16-1   Trey Alexander, Creighton
   .895   17-2   LJ Cryer, Houston/Baylor
   .880   22-3   Tylor Perry, Kansas State/N. Texas
   .850   17-3   Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton
   .844   38-7   Zach Edey, Purdue

Twenty Is Plenty
Trey Alexander owns 12 games this season with 20 points or more, while Baylor Scheierman has done it 11 times.
   In 14 seasons under Greg McDermott, only Doug McDermott (3x), Marcus Foster (2x), Ryan Kalkbrenner and Marcus Zegarowski have also done that 10 or more times in an entire season.
Most Games With 20+ Points, Season, Since 2005-06
   20+ Pts.   Name   Season
   30   Doug McDermott, Sr.   2013-14
   26   Doug McDermott, Jr.   2012-13
   24   Doug McDermott, So.   2011-12
   18   Marcus Foster, Sr.   2017-18
   12   Marcus Foster, Jr.   2016-17
   12   Trey Alexander, Jr.   2023-24
   11   Nate Funk   2006-07
   11   Baylor Scheierman, Sr.   2023-24

The Quad Squad
Six of Creighton's final eight games are slated to be Quad 1 opportunities, with home games vs. Seton Hall (Quad 2) and Georgetown (Quad 4) the only exceptions.
   Creighton is 3-4 in Quad 1 games this season and entered this season 30-28 in Quad 1 contests since 2019-20.
   Creighton, Baylor and Kansas are the only three schools to have posted at least six Quad 1 wins in each of the previous four seasons.

Trey x 5
Trey Alexander has scored 23, 27, 23, 22 and 18 points in the last five games. Since 2005-06, he's just the fifth Creighton player with five straight games of 18+ points, joining Doug McDermott (who did it nine different times), Nate Funk, Austin Chatman and Marcus Foster (2x).
Longest CU Streaks of 18+ Points, Since 2005-06
   Streak   Name   Dates of Streak
   14   Doug McDermott   1/28/14-3/21/14
   12   Doug McDermott   12/3/13-1/20/14
   11   Doug McDermott   11/13/11-12/28/11
   8   Doug McDermott   3/22/13-11/29/13
   7   Nate Funk   1/18/07-2/7/07
   7   Doug McDermott   11/23/12-12/15/12
   7   Doug McDermott   1/11/13-2/2/13
   7   Marcus Foster   1/17/18-2/10/18
   5   Doug McDermott   1/25/12-2/7/12
   5   Doug McDermott   2/14/12-3/2/12
   5   Doug McDermott   2/23/13-3/9/13
   5   Austin Chatman   12/3/14-12/19/14
   5   Marcus Foster   2/15/17-2/28/17
   5   Trey Alexander   1/20/24-Present

One Of A Kind
Creighton lost 99-98 to Butler last Friday, its first one-point setback since a 57-56 loss to San Diego State in last year's Elite Eight.
   Creighton is now 10-11 in one-point games under Greg McDermott and 83-79 in program history in one-point games.
   Creighton had played just one previous game vs. Butler decided by exactly one point, a slightly less offensive 33-32 loss in Omaha on Feb. 5, 1934.
   Creighton's 98 points were its most ever in regulation in a one-point game, and trail only the 111 it scored in a double-overtime win vs. Bradley on March 1, 2008 for its most in any one-point game.
   The 99-98 game was the first BIG EAST game where both teams scored more than 96 points in regulation since Providence's 108-102 win over UConn on Jan. 19, 1991. The other two times in the last 35 years that it happened also involved Providence (Pitt 117, PC 102 on 2/11/90 and Syracuse 100, PC 96 on 1/28/89).
   It was the first regular-season BIG EAST game in almost six years where both teams shot over 54.5 percent from the field for the game, as it hadn't happened since Marquette (.563) topped Creighton (.561) in Omaha on Feb. 17, 2018.

Watch This
Three Bluejays have made the Midseason Top 10 Lists at their respective position
   Trey Alexander is one of 10 men up for the Jerry West Award, given to the nation's top shooting guard.
   Baylor Scheierman is one of 10 men up for the Julius Erving Award, given to the nation's top small forward.
   Ryan Kalkbrenner is one of 10 men up for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, given to the nation's top center.
   Creighton, Kansas, North Carolina and UConn are the only teams with three men on the Top 10 lists.

Give Me 10
Currently 10-2 inside CHI Health Center Omaha, Creighton now owns at least 10 home wins for the 27th time in the last 28 seasons. The only exception in that time came in 2014-15, when the Jays won nine times at home.
   Creighton also surpassed 200,000 total home fans for the season last Friday. It is the 18th time in the last 19 years that's happened. The only exception was the 2020-21 season that was impacted by COVID-19, which restricted crowds nationwide.

The BIG EAST Is Booming
Through games of Feb. 7th, the BIG EAST....
- Second strongest conference per KenPom.
- Leads the nation in Q1 wins per team (3.09).
- Leads the nation in combined Q1 + Q2 wins per team (6.0).
- Leads the nation with eight teams owning at least seven or more Q1 + Q2 combined wins.
- Leads the nation with most Q1 games played per team (8.91).
- Owns the national lead with 14.09 Q1 and Q2 combined games per team.
- Nation-leading 10 teams with a Top 50 strength of schedule.

Yearly Pink Out Totals
Creighton has raised $605,089.18 since the start of the 2011-12 season during its annual men's basketball Pink Out auctions, plus additional money collected on gameday, underwriting or matching donations.
2011-12:   $20,600
2012-13:   $24,444
2013-14:   $48,247.11
2014-15:   $16,384.03
2015-16:   $16,527.90
2016-17:   $26,361.64
2017-18:   $28,796
2018-19:   $19,595
2019-20:   $31,803.18
2020-21:   $40,381
2021-22:   $24,165
2022-23:   $27,432
2023-24:   $36,002.46
Additional Donations:   $244,349.86
13-Year Totals: $605,089.18

Pink Out Auction Raises $36,002.46
When Creighton hosted DePaul on January 27th in its 14th Annual Pink Out game, Bluejay players wore pink shooting shirts and pink-trimmed jerseys for the game.
   Fans had the opportunity to honor a friend or family member who has battled cancer or is currently battling cancer by purchasing the apparel via auction.
   All funds raised went to benefit American Cancer Society Hope Lodge Omaha, which provides a free home away from home for cancer patients and their caregivers who must travel to Omaha to receive their lifesaving treatment. More than just a roof over their heads, it's a nurturing community that helps patients access the care they need. This year Nebraska Cancer Specialists generously agreed to match all donations to Hope Lodge raised at the game, up to $30,000.
   The annual Creighton Men's Basketball Pink Out game has raised over $605,089.18 (including the 2023-24 auction) benefiting the Hope Lodge facility in Omaha and the guests it serves.
   This year's auction ran from Jan. 11-21 and raised $36,002.46, while the matching donation and in-game donations generated an additional $72,119.54.
   Below is the final numbers for each jersey/item in the auction this year.
#0   $945   #1   $2025   #2   $1050
#4   $887   #5   $1725   #10   $870
#11   $3600   #12   $847.46   #13   $2000
#14   $872   #15   $2250   #23   $3650
#32   $1005   #33   $1675   #41   $1825
#55   $3150   Golf:   $3250
Greg McDermott's Shoes   $935   Ball 1: $710
Ball 2: $710 Ball 3: $680 Ball 4: $655   Ball 5: $686

McDermott Among The Best
Greg McDermott ranks 10th in league history with 116 regular-season league wins.
   McDermott, along with Ed Cooley and Pitino, are the only three active coaches with 100 regular-season BIG EAST wins. The list contains six different coaches who have won at least one national title.
   McDermott has been at his current job (14 seasons) longer than any active BIG EAST coach, but since his first three years were as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference, Cooley's 13 years in the BIG EAST lead all active league coaches.
Most League Wins, BIG EAST MBB Coaches (thru 2/9)
   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.   122   Ed Cooley, Providence/G'Town
   9.   118   Rick Pitino, Prov./Louisville/SJU
   10.   116   Greg McDermott, Creighton
   11.   115   Jamie Dixon, Pittsburgh

The Road Less Traveled
Creighton, Purdue, Marquette, Dayton and North Carolina are the nation's only teams in the top 20 of the NET with five or more true road wins this season.
   Creighton, Dayton, Marquette, North Carolina, Purdue, Saint Mary's and South Carolina are the nation's only teams with five or more true road wins and three or more Quad 1 wins.
   Creighton, Marquette, North Carolina, Pitt, Purdue and South Carolina are the nation's only "Power 6" teams with five or more true road wins this season.
   Creighton and South Carolina are the nation's only teams from a "Power 6" conference with five road wins in both men's and women's basketball this season.
   Creighton's four true road wins by 14 points or more are tied for the most the country. Auburn (3), Purdue (3), Duke (2), Illinois (2), Kansas State (2), Kentucky (2), Penn State (2) and Xavier (2) are the only other "Power 6" schools with more than one against "Power 6" competition.
   This season marks the first time that Creighton has picked up multiple road wins by 25 points or more since 1963-64.

The Road Difference
Creighton has outscored teams by 51 points in its nine true road games this season. That's the 13th-best mark in the nation, and better than all other "Power 6" schools except North Carolina (+52).
Best Point Differential, True Road Games (2/7)
   Rk.   Team   Road W-L   Differential
   1.   Saint Mary's   7-0   +102
   2.   UMass-Lowell   8-3   +84
   3.   Gonzaga   3-2   +70
   4.   Akron   6-2   +66
       Grand Canyon   7-1   +66
   6.   James Madison   8-2   +65
   7.   Princeton   8-3   +64
   8.   SMU   4-4   +63
   9.   McNeese State   7-3   +59
   10.   St. Thomas   6-6   +57
   11.   Charleston   7-2   +52
   12.   North Carolina   5-1   +52
   13.   Creighton   5-4   +51
       Louisiana Tech   5-6   +51

Kalkbrenner & Alexander Shoot Up Points List
Trey Alexander became the 46th player in Creighton history to reach 1,000 career points on Jan. 6 vs. No. 23 Providence. The milestone came in Alexander's 87th career contest.
Most Career Points, Creighton History
   Rank   Pts.   Name   Years
   1.   3,150   Doug McDermott   2010-14
   2.   2,116   Rodney Buford   1995-99
   3.   2,110   Bob Harstad    1987-91
   4.   1,983   Chad Gallagher    1987-91
   5.   1,876   Bob Portman    1966-69
   6.   1,801   Kyle Korver   1999-03
   7.   1,754   Nate Funk   2002-07
   8.   1,682   Rick Apke    1974-78
   9.   1,661   Paul Silas   1961-64
   10.   1,654   Vernon Moore    1981-85
   11.   1,575   Benoit Benjamin    1982-85
   12.   1,547   Ryan Kalkbrenner   2020-Pres.
   13.   1,526   John C. Johnson   1975-79
   14.   1,500   Kevin McKenna   1977-81
   15.   1,437   Eddie Cole   1951-55
   16.   1,369   Gene Harmon   1971-74
   17.   1,361   Duan Cole   1987-92
   18.   1,342   Antoine Young   2008-12
   19.   1,313   Kenny Lawson Jr.   2006-11
   20.   1,309   Ryan Sears   1997-01
   21.   1,304   Mitch Ballock   2017-21
   22.   1,303   Elton Tuttle   1951-54
   23.   1,293   Marcus Zegarowski   2018-21
   24.   1,292   Marcus Foster   2016-18
   26.   1,272   Bob Gibson   1954-57
   26.   1,267   Wally Anderzunas   1965-67, 1968-69
   27.   1,254   Gary Swain   1983-87
   28.   1,241   Ty-Shon Alexander   2017-20
   29.   1,238   Ben Walker   1997-01
   30.   1,196   Ray Yost   1951-54
   31.   1,172   Dick Harvey   1956-59
   32.   1,157   Trey Alexander   2021-Pres.
   33.   1,155   Ethan Wragge   2009-14

Fun With Numbers
Ryan Kalkbrenner played 53:34 on Jan. 20th at Seton Hall, including the final 45:57 without a break. Since 2005-06, the only other 7-footer to play 53 minutes or more in any college game was former Connecticut center Hasheem Thabeet. The 7-foot-3 UConn big man played 53 minutes in a memorable six-overtime loss to Syracuse that started on March 12, 2009 at the BIG EAST Tournament.
   Speaking of Kalkbrenner, his seven blocked shots that day tied the most ever by one of Greg McDermott's players in 23 seasons as a Division I head coach. Gregory Echenique also had seven vs. Missouri State on Jan. 22, 2011.
   Kalkbrenner became the first player from a "Power 6" conference with at least 28 points, nine rebounds and seven blocks in a game since Providence's Herbert Hill (29/15/8) vs. Syracuse on Feb. 24, 2007.
   Baylor Scheierman (20/10/6/0) became the first BIG EAST player since Georgetown's Jessie Govan (20/10/6/0) vs. UNC Greensboro on Dec. 22, 2016) to finish with at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and no turnovers.
   Kadary Richmond attempted 32 field goals were the most against Creighton by a single player in at least 40 seasons, four more than the 28 by Western Michigan's Jim Havrilla on Dec. 8, 1990.
   Creighton had 82 field goal attempts at Seton Hall, its most in a game in at least 35 years. Seton Hall had 86 field goal attempts, the most by a Creighton opponent in at least 35 years. It was the first BIG EAST game since at least 2010 in which both teams attempted 80 or more shots.
   Creighton made 13 three-pointers and blocked 10 shots in that game vs. Seton Hall. It was its first time with 10 or more in both categories since Feb. 17, 2002 vs. Wichita State.

Pure Charity
Creighton has shot 70 percent or better at the free throw line in each of its last 19 conference games.
   That's the program's longest such streak since at least 1987-88, and is also the nation's longest active such streak.
   Creighton is shooting 77.1 percent from the line this season, the second-best mark in program history. Last year's team set a program-record by converting 78.3 percent of its charity tries, but was at 74.4 percent through 23 games before shooting an incredible 84.8 percent in the final 14 contests.

On The Triple
The Jan. 20th triple-overtime thriller was the first BIG EAST game to go three overtimes or longer since No. 11 Providence beat Xavier 99-92 on Feb. 23, 2022.
   In fact, that's the only other triple-overtime game since the BIG EAST reconfigured on July 1, 2013.
   This season, there's only been six games nationally to go three overtimes or longer, as seen below:
Date   Winner   Loser   Score
11/16/23   Nicholls   at South Alabama   102-97
11/29/23   at Temple   La Salle   106-99
01/03/24   Fordham   at George Washington   119-113
01/13/24   at Winthrop   Radford   92-88
01/20/24   #18 Creighton   at Seton Hall   97-94

55 Minutes For Number 55
Baylor Scheierman played all 55 minutes on Jan. 20th at Seton Hall, setting a Creighton single-game record.
   He's the first BIG EAST player to play 55 minutes or more in a game since four men 60 by Eric Atkins; 56 each by Pat Connaughton, Chane Behanan and Russ Smith) did in a five-overtime Louisville/Notre Dame game on Feb. 9, 2013.
   He's the first BIG EAST player to play 55 minutes or more without leaving the floor since DePaul's Will Walker played all 55 minutes vs. St. John's on March 5, 2010.
   Scheierman is the second player in the country to play 55 minutes or more this season in a game, joining La Salle's Khalil Brantley at Temple on Nov. 29th.
   Scheierman leads the BIG EAST with 39.8 minutes per game in conference action this winter, a number made even more preposterous when you consider he logged only 60 of a possible 80 minutes in two games vs. DePaul this year.
   Scheierman is the nation's first player to log 478 or more minutes over a a 12-game stretch since Wyoming's Drake Jeffries late in the 2021-22 campaign.

Overtime Is Trey Time
Trey Alexander's three-pointer with 28.4 seconds left in triple-overtime gave Creighton a 93-91 lead it would not surrender at Seton Hall, but it's not the first time he's provided overtime heroics. He had also given CU a 90-89 lead with 55.6 left on a jumper.
   Alexander has been on the field for all 40 overtime minutes of each of Creighton's last five games to go beyond 40 minutes, and he's been excellent almost every time.
   He's shot 10-for-18 from the field (.556), including 1-for-3 from three-point range (.333) while making 7-of-8 free throws (.875). Alexander also has two assists, two blocked shots and two steals in that span.
   Alexander has scored 28 of Creighton's 70 overtime points in those five contests.

Block Party
Ryan Kalkbrenner owned a career-high seven blocked shots on Jan. 20 at Seton Hall. That made him the first Bluejay since Gregory Echenique had seven rejections on Jan. 22, 2011 at Missouri State.
   The only other Bluejays in the last 30 seasons with seven or more rejections in a game are Kenny Lawson Jr. (7 at Evansville on Jan. 3, 2010) and Doug Swenson (8 at UMKC on Nov. 18, 1998).
   Benoit Benjamin dominates Creighton's single-game blocked shot list, as seen below:
   Blk.   Name, Opponent   Date
   12   Benoit Benjamin at Bradley   02/02/85
   11   Benoit Benjamin vs. Tulsa   02/16/84
   10   Benoit Benjamin vs. Omaha   12/22/83
       Benoit Benjamin at Illinois State   03/08/84
       Benoit Benjamin vs. Southern Illinois   01/17/85
   9   Benoit Benjamin vs. West Texas A&M   01/21/84
   8   Benoit Benjamin vs. Iowa State   12/10/83
       Benoit Benjamin at Chaminade   12/19/84
       Benoit Benjamin at Tulsa   01/12/85
       Doug Swenson at UMKC   11/18/98

Ashworth Doing His Job
Steven Ashworth is first in the BIG EAST with a 3.31 assist/turnover ratio in league play as he's dished 53 assists against just 16 turnovers in league action.
   In the last eight games he's been even better with 38 helpers and just 10 miscues.
   Creighton is 12-2 this year when Ashworth has one turnover or less.

Scheierman Makes Wooden Award Cut
Creighton's Baylor Scheierman has landed a spot on the Midseason Top 25 for the John R. Wooden® Award presented by Principal®. Chosen by a poll of national college basketball experts, the list is comprised of 25 student-athletes who are the early front-runners for college basketball's most prestigious individual honor.
   This year marks the seventh time in the past 13 seasons that Creighton is represented on the Wooden Award Midseason 25 list. Creighton's Doug McDermott won the Wooden Award following the 2013-14 season after also being a finalist in both 2011-12 and 2012-13. Maurice Watson Jr. was on the list of 25 in 2016-17 and Marcus Foster was among those listed a year later, as was Marcus Zegarowski in 2020-21. None of those three most recent men advanced to the final cut.
   The only other BIG EAST players to make the Midseason Top 25 list are Tyler Kolek and Tristen Newton.

Chairmen Of The Boards
Ryan Kalkbrenner owns 752 career rebounds, and has grabbed eight or more boards in 12 of his last 134 games.
   He enters Saturday's contest eighth in program history, and 10 boards out of seventh place.
   Reb.   Name   Years
   1,751   Paul Silas   1961-64
   1,126   Bob Harstad   1987-91
   1,088   Doug McDermott   2010-14
   1,005   Benoit Benjamin   1982-85
   979   Bob Portman   1966-69
   891   Chad Gallagher   1987-91
   762   Kenny Lawson Jr.   2006-11
   752   Ryan Kalkbrenner   2020-Pres.
   716   Rodney Buford   1995-99
   709   Rick Apke   1974-78

Sultan of Swat
Ryan Kalkbrenner ranks second in program history in blocked shots with 258, with 21 of those coming against Xavier.
   With three swats on Wednesday at Providence, Kalkbrenner joined Benoit Benjamin as the only Bluejays with three seasons of 60 or more blocks. Kalkbrenner is just the 11th BIG EAST player since 1992-93 with three such campaigns, and first since St. John's Chris Obekpa from 2013-16.
Most Creighton Blocked Shots, Since 1979-80
   Blk.   Name   Years
   411   Benoit Benjamin   1982-85
   259   Ryan Kalkbrenner   2020-Pres.
   183   Chad Gallagher   1987-91
   174   Gregory Echenique   2010-13
   153   Kenny Lawson Jr.   2006-11

Most Creighton Blocked Shots, Since 1979-80
   Blk.   Name (Class)   Year
   162   Benoit Benjamin (Jr.)   1984-85
   157   Benoit Benjamin (So.)   1983-84
   92   Benoit Benjamin (Fr.)   1982-83
   89   Ryan Kalkbrenner (So.)   2021-22
   72   Ryan Kalkbrenner (Jr.)   2022-23
   70   Chad Gallagher (Sr.)   1990-91
   62   Chad Gallagher (Jr.)   1989-90
   62   Gregory Echenique (Sr.)   2012-13
   60   Ryan Kalkbrenner (Sr.)   2023-24
   57   Doug Swenson (Jr.)   1997-98
   57   Anthony Tolliver (Sr.)   2006-07
   57   Gregory Echenique (Jr.)   2011-12

Baylor Ball
Of the 1,135 career rebounds that Baylor Scheierman has snared, only 108 of them (9.5 percent) have come on the offensive glass.
   Scheierman leads all BIG EAST players with 176 defensive rebounds this season, but is tied for 44th with 18 offensive rebounds.
   Last year Scheierman became the only "Power 6" player in the last 25 seasons with at least 270 defensive rebounds and less than 40 offensive rebounds.
   Per Basketball-Reference.com, Scheierman owns 24 career games of 10 or more rebounds without snaring an offensive board. That makes him one of just two players nationally since 2010-11 with more than 10 such contests, joining Weber State's Dillon Jones (23).
   One other quirky stat about Scheierman? He owned 1,088 career rebounds in his first 145 career games. Those are the exact same numbers that Doug McDermott finished his college career with.

Meet The Alexander's
Though they're not related, the stats of Ty-Shon Alexander (2017-20) and Trey Alexander (2021-Present) are pretty similar through 95 career games.
   That's a positive development considering that Ty-Shon was a First Team All-BIG EAST choice who helped Creighton to a share of the 2020 BIG EAST title and later played for the 2021 NBA runner-up Phoenix Suns.
Through 95 Career Games
Name   PTS   REB   AST   BLK   STL   FG%   3FG%   FT%
Ty-Shon   1189   348   217   21   86   .419   .372   .810
Trey   1157   426   290   41   89   .442   .349   .819

Scheierman The Scorer?
Baylor Scheierman is third in the BIG EAST Conference in scoring at 18.6 points per game and second in the league with 427 points scored.
   Before being held to nine points on Jan. 6 vs. Providence, Scheierman had become just the third Creighton player in the last 25 seasons to score in double-figures each of the first 14 games of a year, joining Doug McDermott (all 35 games in 2011-12) and Marcus Foster (first 15 in 2017-18).
   The fifth-year senior is aiming to become the first Creighton player to lead the BIG EAST in scoring since Doug McDermott in 2013-14. McDermott led the nation with 26.7 points per game en route to National Player of the Year accolades.
   Keep in mind that Scheierman has proven he can do way more than score. Two years ago at South Dakota State, Scheierman led the Summit League in the rare combination of both rebounds and assists.

Biggest in the BIG EAST
Creighton's average height of 78.56 inches puts the Bluejays as the nation's 11th-tallest team, and the biggest in the BIG EAST.
   The second-tallest team in the BIG EAST is Connecticut, which ranks tied for 24th-biggest at 78.29 inches per player.

Fool Me Once...But Nine Times?
Creighton has met or exceeded its preseason BIG EAST prognostication all but one year since joining the league in 2013, as seen below.
   Last year marked the seventh straight year 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   -
2022-23   1st   3rd   Ryan Kalkbrenner (1st); Arthur Kaluma (2nd)
           Ryan Nembhard (2nd); Baylor Scheierman (HM)
2023-24   2nd   ??   Ryan Kalkbrenner (1st); Trey Alexander (1st)
           Baylor Scheierman (2nd)

Among The Best
Creighton owns more BIG EAST wins (60) than any other school in the last five seasons, five more than Villanova's 55.
   Since the league's 2013 realignment, Villanova has 145 league wins to lead the BIG EAST by a wide margin, but Creighton's 116 league victories are second-most.
Most Men's Basketball BIG EAST Wins
(2019-20 to 2/9/24)
Team   W   L   Pct.
Creighton   60   29   .674
Villanova   55   30   .647
Providence   54   32   .628
Marquette   52   35   .598
Seton Hall   52   36   .591
UConn   48   20   .706
Xavier   43   38   .531
Butler   36   54   .400
St. John's   36   52   .409
Georgetown   15   69   .179
DePaul   14   71   .165

Most Men's Basketball BIG EAST Wins
(2013-14 to 2/9/24)
Team   W   L   Pct.
Villanova   145   48   .751
Creighton   116   81   .589
Providence   112   82   .577
Xavier   110   80   .579
Seton Hall   105   91   .536
Marquette   104   91   .533
Butler   90   108   .455
St. John's   76   120   .388
Georgetown   61   131   .318
UConn   48   20   .706
DePaul   39   154   .202

Jays Don't Foul...Do You Follow?
Creighton leads the nation with just 11.26 fouls per game...let's take a minute to appreciate just how few that is.
   Miami (Fla.) is second-best at avoiding fouls, committing 12.7 per game.
   Creighton is one of two teams nationally (with Vermont) that has not had a player foul out this season, and the only "Power 6" team.
   Creighton has committed three fouls or less in 10 different halves this year.
   Creighton has had more than nine fouls in just three halves (including OT) this season, which means its opponents have been in the double-bonus just three times.
   Creighton has allowed just 20 made free throws in a 1-and-1 situation all year, and just 10 made free throws in the double bonus all season (6 of those came in an overtime session).
   Here's a look at how many fouls Creighton has been called for this season by half:
Creighton Fouls By Half
Opponent   First Half   Second Half
Florida A&M   4   5
North Dakota State   1   3
Iowa   6   8
Texas Southern   1   6
Loyola (Chicago)   3   7
Colorado State   2   5
Oklahoma State   6   7
Nebraska   7   7
Central Michigan   3   2
UNLV   5   5
Alabama   9   7
Villanova   5   4 (4 more in OT)
#10 Marquette   5   11
Georgetown   4   6
#23 Providence   5   6
St. John's   3   5
DePaul   6   10
#1 Connecticut   5   9
Seton Hall   3   5 (6 more in 3 OT's)
Xavier   6   8
DePaul   5   4
Butler   3   8
at Providence   5   3 (6 more in OT)
Total   102   146 (16 more in OT)

3 & D
Creighton leads the nation in fewest fouls per game (11.26) and is seventh in three-pointers per game (10.5).
   In its Dec. 9 romp over Central Michigan the Jays became the nation's only team since at least 2005-06 to score 102+ points and commit 5 fouls or less in the same game against a Division I opponent.

Jays Pass 27K at CHI
Creighton has scored 27,449 points all-time at CHI Health Center Omaha, passing the 27,000 mark on Dec. 20 vs. Villanova.
   Creighton has outscored the opposition 27,449-22,953 at the 21-year old facility in 350 all-time games in the building that count.
   Creighton is 25-2 all-time in games where it moves over any 1,000 point milestone at CHI Health Center Omaha, as seen below:
Date   Pts-Opp (CLCO Game #)   Who/How vs. Opp.
02/18/04   1,000-787 (14)   Lindeman FG vs. Indiana State
02/05/05   2,000-1,696 (28)   Funk FG vs. Missouri St.
01/18/06   3,000-2,504 (41)   Watts FT vs. Bradley
01/09/07   4,000-3,359 (56)   Tolliver FG vs. Drake
12/17/07   5,000-4,174 (69)   Kaleb Korver 3FG vs. Hou. Baptist
11/16/08   6,000-5,048 (82)   Dotzler FG vs. New Mexico
02/11/09   7,000-5,870 (95)   Witter 3FG vs. Bradley
01/16/10   8,000-6,750 (109)   Young FG vs. Wichita State
12/20/10   9,000-7,645 (123)   Wragge FG vs. W. Illinois
03/23/11   10,000-8,500 (136)   Lawson FG vs. UCF
01/21/12   11,000-9,310 (148)   McDermott FG vs. Ind. St.
12/19/12   12,000-10,136 (161)   Echenique FG vs. Tulsa
11/23/13   13,000-10,922 (173)   Artino FG vs. Tulsa
02/23/14   14,000-11,711 (185)   Gibbs FG vs. Seton Hall
01/28/15   15,000-12,612 (198)   Hanson FT vs. St. John's
12/28/15   16,000-13,498 (211)   Huff FG vs. Coppin State
11/15/16   17,000-14,349 (224)   Patton FG vs. #9 Wisconsin
01/28/17   18,000-15,166 (235)   Hanson FG vs. DePaul
12/18/17   19,000-15,927 (246)   Foster 3FG vs. UT Arlington
11/06/18   20,000-16,741 (258)   Ballock 3FG vs. W. Illinois
02/03/19   21,000-17,619 (270)   Zegarowski FG vs. Xavier
12/07/19   22,000-18,463 (282)   Ballock 3FG vs. Nebraska
03/07/20   23,000-19,280 (294)   Mahoney 3FG vs. #8 Seton Hall
02/13/21   24,000-20,103 (306)   Zegarowski FG vs. #5 Villanova
02/14/22   25,000-20,950 (320)   Hawkins 3FG vs. Georgetown
01/25/23   26,000-21,786 (333)   Nembhard 3FG vs. St. John's
12/20/23   27,000-22,535 (345)   Kalkbrenner lay-up vs. Villanova

Kalkbrenner's A Handful
Ryan Kalkbrenner swatted five shots on Dec. 16 at UNLV, then did it again on Jan. 17 at No. 1 UConn. He notched a career-high seven rejections on Jan. 20 in a triple-OT win at Seton Hall.
   That's now 11 times in his Bluejay career that he's had five or more rejections. During his four years at Creighton, all his teammates have combined for one such game, a five-swat effort by Fredrick King last year in Las Vegas. Kalkbrenner is the only Creighton player with multiple games of five or more swats since the Bluejays joined the BIG EAST in 2013 as King, Jacob Epperson and Justin Patton have each done it once.
   Kalkbrenner's 256 career blocked shots rank third among the nation's active players.
   In January, Kalkbrenner had four or more blocks in four straight games, Creighton's longest such streak since Benoit Benjamin did it in an incredible 12 straight games from Jan. 12-, Feb. 20, 1985. The streak featured games of 8, 10, 5, 4, 7, 12, 6, 5, 5, 6, 4 and 4 blocks.

Seeing Three's
Creighton has made 14 or more three-pointers in six different games this year, tied for second-most nationally behind BYU's eight. It's the second-most games of 14 three-pointers in any year under Greg McDermott, trailing only the 2018-19 squad that did it eight times in 35 games.
   Creighton owns four different games this season in which it has made 10 or more three-pointers than its opponent, which is also second-most behind Liberty (5).
   The Bluejays have had three different games this season in which they've made 10 or more triples before halftime.
   Creighton has made three or more three-pointers in all but three halves this season.

Circling The Target
Benoit Benjamin has the only three triple-doubles in Creighton history, but each one consisted of 10 or more points, rebounds and blocks.
   Though that means Creighton's never had a traditional points/rebound/assist triple-double, it seems like both Trey Alexander and Baylor Scheierman are flirting with one seemingly every time out.
   Here's a look at games this season when those men have had at least six points, six rebounds and six assists.
6+ Points, 6+ Rebounds, 6+ Assists This Season
Name   Opponent   Pts.   Reb.   Ast.
Alexander   Iowa   23   11   9
Scheierman   Texas Southern   23   9   6
Alexander   Texas Southern   20   7   8
Scheierman   Central Michigan   13   6   9
Alexander   Central Michigan   15   7   8
Scheierman   at UNLV   16   7   7
Scheierman   Alabama   20   6   9
Alexander   at #10 Marquette   18   6   6
Alexander   at Seton Hall   23   8   7
Scheierman   at Seton Hall   20   10   6
Kalkbrenner   at Seton Hall   28   9   7 blk

Don't Forget The Two's
While attention tends to focus on Creighton's proficiency from three-point range, the Bluejays are also pretty efficient from inside the arc.
   Through games of Feb. 7, CU ranked fourth in the country in two-point percentage (.598) in 2023-24 and third-best nationally (.548) among Division I schools to have played 100 or more games since Greg McDermott's arrival in 2010-11.
   Creighton shot 26-for-32 (.813) from two-point range on Dec. 9 vs. Central Michigan, just the third time in Greg McDermott's 14 seasons at CU its converted on better than 80 percent of its two-point shots. The only better game was when it shot 22-for-26 (.846) in a March 2, 2013 win over Wichita State in CU's final regular-season game as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference.

Century Mark
Creighton's 109 point effort on Dec. 9 vs. Central Michigan was the 25th time under Greg McDermott that Creighton has scored 100 or more points.
   That ranks third-most among all Power 5/BIG EAST teams nationally in that span, trailing only North Carolina (37) and Iowa (26).
   No other BIG EAST team has cracked the century mark more than 12 times since 2010-11.
   Greg McDermott's teams at Northern Iowa (153 games) and Iowa State (127 games) never scored more than 100 points in any game.

Road Dubs
Before its Dec. 13 loss at UNLV, Creighton had started 2-0 on the road this season, doing so in impressive fashion in both games.
   On Nov. 30 Creighton beat Oklahoma State 79-65, its second-biggest non-conference home loss since 1978.
   Four days later on Dec. 3, Creighton won 89-60 at Nebraska, handing the Cornhuskers their largest non-conference home loss since 1938.
   It's the first time that Creighton has won its first two true road games since 2016-17, when the Jays won their first five road contests.
   It's also just the 12th time in the last 50 seasons that CU has won each of its first two true road games. Ten of the 11 most recent teams to do so made the NCAA Tournament, and each won 20 or more games.
Started 2-0 Or Better On The Road, Last 50 Years
   Road W's to Start   Season   Final W-L (Postseason)
   2   1976-77   21-7 (NCAA)
   2   1980-81   21-9 (NCAA)
   2   1998-99   22-9 (NCAA)
   3   1999-00   23-10 (NCAA)
   2   2002-03   29-5 (NCAA)
   4   2003-04   20-9 (NIT)
   2   2004-05   23-11 (NCAA)
   2   2011-12   29-6 (NCAA)
   4   2012-13   28-8 (NCAA)
   4   2013-14   27-8 (NCAA)
   5   2016-17   25-10 (NCAA)
   2   2023-24   TBD

Powerful Performance
One of the few question marks heading into the season was which player would step up at the power forward position.
   On Dec. 9 against Central Michigan, the platoon of Mason Miller, Isaac Traudt and Jasen Green each played a starring role.
   The trio combined for 39 points and nine rebounds in 45 minutes of action. They shot 14-for-16 from the field, including 9-for-11 from three-point range. Both Miller and Traudt finished off a four-point play.
   For the season Miller is third in the BIG EAST with 43.2 percent marksmanship from three-point land.

Big Half Baylor
Baylor Scheierman has had at least 20 points before halftime twice this season.
   He had 21 points in the first 20 minutes against Loyola Chicago on Nov. 22, then poured in 20 points in the first half on Dec. 3 at Nebraska. Scheierman is the first Bluejay with multiple games of 20+ points at halftime in the same season since Marcus Foster did it three times in 2017-18 (22 vs. UT Arlington, 21 vs. Butler, 20 vs. Georgetown).
   For the year, Scheierman leads Creighton with 9.91 points per game before halftime. No Creighton player has averaged more than 10 points per first half since Doug McDermott averaged 14.0 points per first half in 2013-14, a season that saw McDermott lead the nation in scoring.

Ain't Life Grand?
Baylor Scheierman owns 2,013 points, 1,135 rebounds, 525 assists and has made 318 career three-pointers in 150 total games when you combine his Creighton and South Dakota State stats.
   Creighton's only other players to reach 1,000 career rebounds (only at Creighton) have been Paul Silas (1,751), Bob Harstad (1,126), Doug McDermott (1,088) and Benoit Benjamin (1,005).
   If you're curious, how many games it took to get to 1,000 rebounds for each man, we've got you covered:
Games to 1,000 Rebounds
Name   GP   Opponent, Date
Paul Silas   47   at Utah State, 2/23/63
Benoit Benjamin   89   at Bradley, 3/5/85
Bob Harstad   115   Siena, 2/3/91
Doug McDermott   132   DePaul, 2/7/14
Baylor Scheierman*   135   at Nebraska, 12/3/23
*includes games at South Dakota State

1,000+ Rebounds, 274+ 3FG Nationally, Since 1992-93
**Stats earned at Division I schools only**
Name, School(s)   REB   3FG
Baylor Scheierman, SDSU/Creighton   1,135   318
Doug McDermott, Creighton   1,088   274

1,100+ Rebounds, 500 Assists Nationally, Since 1992-93
**Stats earned at Division I schools only**
Name, School(s)   REB   AST
Brian Voelkel, Vermont   1,168   679
John Konchar, IPFW   1,149   553
Baylor Scheierman, SDSU/Creighton   1,135   525

Can't Stop Scheierman
Baylor Scheierman made a three-point basket in all 37 games he played last season and each of his first 11 contests this season, stretching his streak dating to last year to 58 in a row if you include his final 10 games at South Dakota State in 2021-22. The streak ended on Dec. 20, 2023 vs. Villanova, when Scheierman went 0-for-7 from deep.
   Scheierman's streak of 48 straight as a Bluejay was the longest streak in Creighton history, 15 more than Ty-Shon Alexander's 33.
   Since Scheierman's streak was snapped, he's made a three-ball in 11 straight games, meaning he's drained at least one triple in 69 of his past 70 contests.
Consecutive Games With A 3-Pointer, Creighton History
   Streak   Name   Dates of Streak
   48   Baylor Scheierman   Nov. 7, 2022 - Dec. 16, 2023
   33   Ty-Shon Alexander   Feb. 27, 2018-March 6, 2019
   31   Booker Woodfox-   Nov. 25, 2008-March 23, 2009
   28   Kyle Korver   Feb. 4, 2001-Feb. 6, 2002
   27   Kyle Korver   Feb. 13, 2002-Jan. 20, 2003

Road Openers
Creighton is 7-7 under Greg McDermott in its first true road game of the season.
   The road opener has been the barometer for Creighton's postseason plans in the previous 13 years. Creighton has made the NCAA Tournament all six times it has won the road opener, and missed the NCAA Tournament four of the other six years where a postseason was contested.
   That's encouraging since CU defeated Oklahoma State 79-65 in its road opener this winter.
   CU would have made the 2020 NCAA Tournament that was canceled even though it lost its road opener that year.
Creighton in Road Openers, Last 14 Years
Year   Opponent   Score   CU in NCAA's?
2010-11   Northwestern   L 52-65   No (CBI)
2011-12   UAB   W 70-60   Yes
2012-13   Nebraska   W 64-42   Yes
2013-14   Saint Joseph's   W 83-79   Yes
2014-15   Tulsa   L 64-77   No
2015-16   #14 Indiana   L 65-86   No (NIT)
2016-17   Nebraska   W 77-62   Yes
2017-18   #20 Northwestern   W 92-88   Yes
2018-19   Nebraska   L 75-94   No (NIT)
2019-20   Michigan   L 69-79   No (Postseason CCD)
2020-21   #5 Kansas   L 72-73   Yes
2021-22   Nebraska   W 77-69   Yes
2022-23   #2 Texas   L 67-72   Yes
2023-24   Oklahoma State   W 79-65   TBD

Among The Best...EVER!
Ryan Kalkbrenner has made 622 of 947 career shots, putting him at 65.68 percent overall. That places the senior center fifth in field goal percentage in NCAA history among players to make 500 or more field goals and at least four field goals per game.
   However, Kalkbrenner is first among all such players who have ever attempted 50 or more three-point field goal attempts.
Best Career FG%, NCAA History (min. 500 FG, 4FG/game)
   Pct. (FG-FGA)   Name, School   Years
   .678 (828-1222)   Steve Johnson, Oregon State   1976-81
   .668 (566-847)   Murray Brown, Florida State   1976-80
   .667 (740-1109)   Evan Bradds, Belmont   2013-17
   .664 (702-1058)   Todd MacCulloch, Washington   1995-99
   .657 (622-947)   Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton   2020-Pres.
   .656 (552-841)   Kevin Magee UC Irvine   1980-82

Trey's Bien
Trey Alexander has made the leap in his junior season. Here's how the start of the year compares to his first two years combined.
Category   2023-24   2021-23
Games Played   23   72
20-Point Games   12   5
Dunks   5   2
Double-Doubles   2   0
Points Per Game   17.2   10.6
Rebounds Per Game   6.0   4.0
Assists Per Game   4.7   2.5

Nationally Speaking
Through games of Feb. 7th, Creighton is all over the NCAA stat leaders. The Bluejays rank in the top 20 of eight different team and eight individual categories.
   Rank   Category   Stat
   1   Fouls Per Game   11.3
   3   Defensive Rebounds Per Game   30.48
   6   Average Home Attendance   17,202
   6   Blocks (Kalkbrenner)   60
   6   Blocks Per Game (Kalkbrenner)   2.61
   7   Three-Pointers Per Game   10.5
   7   Effective FG%   .571
   7   Def. Rebounds/Game (Scheierman)   7.65
   10   Total Home Attendance   206,428
   10   Three-Point Attempts Per Game   29.1
   10   Minutes Per Game (Alexander)   36.34
   13   3FG Made (Scheierman)   72
   14   3FG Attempts (Scheierman)   191
   17   Field Goal Pct. (Kalkbrenner)   .625
   18   Minutes Per Game (Scheierman)   36.16
   20   Free Throw Percentage   .771

Among The Nation's Best
Below is where Creighton ranks nationally since the start of the 2010-11 season among teams to have played more than 150 Division I games, per Basketball-Reference.com.
2010-11 to Feb. 7, 2024
Category   CU Stat   CU Rank
3FG Made   4,185   2nd
2-Point FG Percentage   .548   3rd
FG Percentage   .477   4th
Assists   7,541   6th
3-Point FG Percentage   .374   7th
FG Made   12,926   7th
Points   36,139   9th
Wins   316   24th
Winning Percentage   .668   30th

This Is 20/20
Trey Alexander started his junior season with 20 points vs. Florida A&M, 21 points vs. North Dakota State, 23 points vs. Iowa and 20 points vs. Texas Southern
   That made him just the second Bluejay in the last 25 years to score 20 or more in each of CU's first four games, joining Doug McDermott in 2013-14. McDermott did it the first six games of his senior season in 2013-14 and went on to be named National Player of the Year that season.
   Alexander is the first Bluejay to score 20 points or more in four consecutive games at any time of year since Marcus Foster did it in seven consecutive contests from Jan. 16-Feb. 10, 2018.

Bahamas Bounce
Creighton got a jump start on the season with nine practices in July before heading to the Bahamas to play in three games during the first week of August.
   Creighton won all three games by 14 points or more, averaged 98.3 points, and outrebounded foes by 21.3 caroms per contest.
   Trey Alexander led CU by averaging 20.0 points before missing the final contest, but Ryan Kalkbrenner (11.0 ppg.), Baylor Scheierman (10.0 ppg.) and Fredrick King (10.0 ppg.) also scored at a double-digit clip.
   Steven Ashworth led CU with 15 assists, King and Brock Vice had a team-high 18 rebounds and Kalkbrenner topped the team with 10 swats.
       A 2019 trip to Australia helped the Bluejays open the year 12-2.
   A 2015 trip to Italy helped the Bluejays start the season 5-1.
   A 2011 trip to the Bahamas helped get the Bluejays ready for a 7-0 start.
   A 2007 trip to Canada paid dividends as Creighton started 5-0.
   In 2003, the Bluejays also went to Canada and started the subsequent season 12-0.

Who's Back?
With Creighton returning seven of the 13 men who appeared in a game last season, it's no surprise that a similar ratio of the production from 2022-23 is also gone. Below is a breakdown of what is back:
Stat   Returners   Departures
Blocks   126 (82.9%)   26 (17.1%)
Rebounds   860 (67.9%)   411 (32.1%)
3FG Made   207 (64.9%)   112 (35.1%)
Points   1833 (64.8%)   995 (35.2%)
Steals   119 (64.3%)   66 (35.7%)
Minutes   4693 (63.0%)   2757 (37.0%)
Starts   111 (60.0%)   74 (40.0%)
Charges Taken   16 (59.3%)   11 (40.7%)
Assists   308 (53.0%)   273 (47.0%)

A Dozen Will Do
Creighton finished 14-6 in the BIG EAST last season and is the only school in the BIG EAST with 12 or more league wins each of the previous four seasons.
   Among the other BIG EAST or "Power 5" Conference schools, Kansas, UCLA and Virginia have also done it the previous four years.
   Creighton has now owned a .500 mark or better in league play 27 times in the last 28 seasons.
   The only BIG EAST teams to finish .500 or better in league play each of the previous six seasons are Creighton, Villanova and Seton Hall.

Preseason Top 10
The Creighton men's basketball team was ranked eighth in the Associated Press Preseason Top 25 poll, its highest preseason AP ranking ever. That's one spot better than the previous best, done last year, when the Bluejays started the season ranked ninth. CU is ranked 19th in the February 5th AP poll.
   The announcement marks just the sixth 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), 2020-21 (No. 11) and 2022-23 (No. 9). All five of those teams would end up in the NCAA Tournament, with the last two making the Sweet 16 and last year's club reaching the Elite Eight.
   Creighton has been ranked in the Top 10 on 27 different occasions in program history, with all but one of those occasions 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 now been ranked 134 times in program history, with 107 of those under the direction of McDermott. Creighton is 166-70 all-time as a ranked team, including a 132-58 mark under McDermott. Creighton has now been ranked at least one week in 10 of McDermott's 14 seasons on The Hilltop after doing it just five different seasons in program history before his 2010 arrival.
       Creighton is one of four schools to be ranked in the preseason top-10 each of the past two seasons, joining Kansas, Duke and Houston.
   Along with No. 5 Marquette, No. 6 Connecticut and No. 8 Creighton, this year marked the first time since 2011-12 that the BIG EAST had three Preseason Top-10 teams.
   Creighton was also eighth in the preseason USA Today Coaches poll, its best preseason mark ever. CU is 18th in the February 5th Coaches poll.

Downtown Duo
Only two players nationally that are returning in 2023-24 had 120+ assists, 87+ three-pointers and 38+ steals in 2022-23.
   Baylor Scheierman and Steven Ashworth.
   Both are playing for Creighton this season.

Let's Go On A Run
Creighton has won at least one NCAA Tournament game in 2021, 2022 and 2023. That makes CU one of seven teams in the country to have a win in each of the last three NCAA Tournaments, joining Arkansas, Baylor, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas and UCLA.
   The only other time that Creighton has won an NCAA Tournament game in consecutive seasons came in 2012, 2013 and 2014, also under Greg McDermott.
   Creighton is one of six schools with 20 or more wins in each of the last eight seasons, joining Belmont, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas and Oregon.
   Creighton is one of seven teams to post 22 or more wins in each of the last four seasons, joining Baylor, Gonzaga, Houston, Liberty, San Diego State and Southern California.
   Creighton is one of just eight teams to have reached at least two of the last three Sweet 16s. Gonzaga, Houston and UCLA have done it each of the last three seasons, while Alabama, Creighton, Michigan and Villanova have done it twice each.

23 of 25 Seasons With 20 Wins
Creighton has won 20 or more games in 23 of the previous 25 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 25 years: Gonzaga and Kansas. Duke has done it 24 times, Creighton and Kentucky 23 times.
Most 20-Win Seasons, Previous 25 Seasons
Team   20-Win Seasons       2022-23 W-L
Gonzaga   25   31-6
Kansas   25   28-8
Duke   24   27-9
Creighton   23   24-13
Kentucky   23   22-12

Dynamic Duo
Creighton is also one of eight schools to have men's and women's basketball programs to both own 22 wins or more each of the previous two seasons, a list that includes Creighton, Gonzaga, Liberty, Princeton, Tennessee, Texas, Toledo and UConn.
   This season, Creighton was one of eight teams with a preseason top-25 squad on both the men's and women's side, joining Baylor, Connecticut, Illinois, North Carolina, Southern California, Tennessee and Texas.
   The only five schools to be ranked in the preseason men's and women's basketball Top 25 of the AP Poll both this season and last season are Baylor, Creighton, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.
   Creighton is one of 11 schools to make the NCAA Tournament in both men's and women's basketball each of the past two seasons, a list that consists of Arizona, Baylor, Creighton, Gonzaga, Indiana, Iowa, Iowa State, Miami (Fla.), Tennessee, Texas and UConn.
   The only schools with at-large bids in each of the previous two years in both men's and women's basketball are Baylor, Creighton, Indiana and Miami (Fla.).

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.
   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

Release, Rotation, Splash, Repeat
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 1,008 straight games. The streak is the nation's 10th-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 (2/7)
   Rk.   Streak   School   Next Game
   1.   1,215   UNLV   2/10
   2.   1,211   Duke   2/10
   3.   1,148   East Tennessee State   2/10
   4.   1,121   Oakland   2/8
       1,121   Pacific   2/10
   6.   1,117   Texas   2/10
   7.   1,060   Marshall   2/15
   8.   1,045   Gonzaga   2/10
   9.   1,040   Princeton   2/10
   10.   1,008   Creighton   2/10
   11.   1,005   Long Island   2/8
   12.   996   Mount St. Mary's   2/8

Triple Trouble
During Creighton's current streak of 1,008 straight games with a three-pointer, the Jays have drained 8,027 trifectas, an average of 7.96 treys per game.
   That's not surprising since during the streak, Creighton has made exactly seven three-pointers 148 times, more than any figure.
   Only five times in the streak has Creighton made just one three-pointer, but on 296 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 76-19 when making eight or more three-pointers, compared to a 31-28 mark when making seven treys or fewer.
Team 3FG Made During Creighton's 3-Point Streak
1:    5 times   2: 19 times   3: 36 times
4:    75 times   5:   104 times   6: 105 times
7:   148 times   8:   126 times   9: 94 times
10: 84 times   11: 58 times   12: 60 times
13: 46 times   14: 23 times   15: 8 times
16: 8 times   17: 3 times   18: 1 time
19: 2 times   20: 1 time   21: 1 time   22: 1 time

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.   18,571   DePaul   01/27/24
   10.   18,525   Marquette   12/31/13
   11.   18,519   #8 Seton Hall   03/07/20
   12.   18,518   Georgetown   01/27/18
   13.   18,509   Villanova   02/04/23
   14.   18,495   Marquette   02/17/18
   15.   18,494   Illinois State   02/09/13
   16.   18,458   Evansville   12/29/12
   17.   18,436   Bradley   01/28/12
   18.   18,323   DePaul   02/07/14
   19.   18,321   #3 Villanova   02/24/18
   20.   18,294   #19 Iowa State   12/04/21

CHI Health Center Omaha Success
Creighton has played 350 regular and postseason contests at CHI Health Center Omaha all-time in the 21-year-old facility.
   The Bluejays own a 288-62 (.823) record all-time at the facility, and is 22-1 there on Friday's.
   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 27,449-22,953 in games at CHI Health Center Omaha, an average margin of 12.85 points per game. Creighton has not trailed 90 different times.
   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 32-36 all-time in the 68 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 41-29 when trailing at halftime at CHI Health Center Omaha.
   Creighton is 191-44 (.813) at CHI Health Center Omaha under Greg McDermott and hasn't trailed in 65 of those games. In that same span, CU owns a 101-9 home record (.918) 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 307-62 (.832) at home since the start of the 2002-03 campaign.

Home Run
Under Greg McDermott Creighton is averaging 80.66 points per home game (18,955 points in 235 home games), a figure that climbs to 84.37 points in non-conference home games (9,281 points in 110 home games).
   Creighton is 143-7 all-time at CHI Health Center Omaha when scoring 80 or points.

McDermott Ranks Second On CU Wins List
Greg McDermott has 316 victories at Creighton, good for second place on CU's all-time wins list.
   McDermott's .668 winning percentage is Creighton's best since Arthur A. Schabinger's .714 win rate more 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.   316-157   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

Elite Eight
Greg McDermott guided his team to the NCAA Tournament for the eighth time last season. That put him in the company of some of the greatest coaches in CU Athletics history, and most among basketball coaches.
   McDermott is one of three head coaches in Creighton history to lead eight or more NCAA Tournament teams.
Name   Sport   NCAA's @CU
Kirsten Bernthal Booth   Volleyball   13
Bob Warming   Men's Soccer   11
Greg McDermott   Men's Basketball   8
Dana Altman   Men's Basketball   7
Brent Vigness   Softball   7

Firing On All Cylinders
Creighton finished last season ranked 12th overall by KenPom.com. That included the nation's No. 23 offense, and No. 14 defense. Creighton's No. 14 defense was its best mark in the 21 seasons of the KenPom era.
   Creighton has had a top-25 offense per KenPom seven times in 13 seasons under Greg McDermott and a top-25 defense twice.
Year   Off. Rating   Def. Rating   Overall Rank
2010-11   66   174   98
2011-12   5   166   28
2012-13   5   66   15
2013-14   2   124   17
2014-15   59   138   79
2015-16   43   76   40
2016-17   32   46   28
2017-18   25   58   30
2018-19   47   83   55
2019-20   3   78   12
2020-21   25   32   22
2021-22   112   19   50
2022-23   23   14   12
2023-24   22   38   18

Kalkbrenner Repeats As Top Defender
Creighton center Ryan Kalkbrenner was named 2023 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year for the second straight season.
   Kalkbrenner became just the 11th player in league history to win the recognition more than once, joining the likes of Patrick Ewing, Alonzo Mourning, Dikembe Mutombo, Kris Dunn and Allen Iverson among those to win the award multiple times, and is the first repeat winner since former Bluejay guard Khyri Thomas in 2017 and 2018.
   Between Kalkbrenner and Thomas, Creighton has now had a BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year in four of the previous seven seasons.
Most BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year Honors
   Honors   Name, School   Years (*ties)
   4   Patrick Ewing, Georgetown   1982, 83, 84, 85
   3   Alonzo Mourning, Georgetown   1989, 90*, 92
   2   Dikembe Mutombo, Georgetown   1990, 91
   2   Allen Iverson, Georgetown   1995, 96
   2   Etan Thomas, Syracuse   1999, 00
   2   John Linehan, Providence   2001, 02
   2   Emeka Okafor, Connecticut   2003, 04
   2   Hasheem Thabeet, Connecticut   2008, 09
   2   Kris Dunn, Providence   2015*, 16
   2   Khyri Thomas, Creighton   2017*, 18
   2   Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton   2022, 23

Creighton Retires McDermott's No. 3 Jersey
Creighton Men's Basketball retired Doug McDermott's No. 3 jersey prior to its Dec. 20 game vs. Villanova. McDermott was a three-time All-American (2012, 2013, 2014) and consensus National Player of the Year (2014) during an incredible four-year career spanning from 2010-14.
   McDermott finished his career with an NCAA-record 135 double-figure scoring games and wrapped up his time on The Hilltop with 3,150 points, which was fifth in NCAA history. He was named winner of the Oscar Robertson, John R. Wooden and Naismith trophies as the National Player of the Year in 2013-14, when he led the country in scoring and helped Creighton to a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
   The son of current Bluejay head coach Greg McDermott, Doug McDermott was a three-time Conference Player of the Year and remains the sport's only three-time Associated Press First Team All-American since 1985.
   McDermott received his Marketing degree from Creighton in 2014 and is currently in his 10th year in the NBA, as a member of the San Antonio Spurs.
   McDermott's number hangs in the rafters on the west side of the arena alongside five other Bluejay greats (#25 Kyle Korver, #30 Bob Harstad, #33 Bob Portman, #35 Paul Silas, #45 Bob Gibson).

McDermott In The NBA
Doug McDermott is in his 10th year in an NBA career that saw him selected 11th overall by Denver, with stops in Chicago, Oklahoma City, New York, Dallas, Indiana and San Antonio.
   He is averaging 6.0 points per game this season and shooting 43.9 percent from three-point range for the Spurs, which ranks 10th in the NBA.
   In his career, McDermott has played in 637 games and averaged 9.1 points per game. He ranks 21st in NBA history with 41.2 percent marksmanship from three-point range in his career.
   The 10-year NBA vet gives Creighton at least one NBA player in 40 of the last 41 seasons. Other famous Bluejays to play in the NBA in the past include Paul Silas, Kyle Korver and Anthony Tolliver.

CHI Health Center Omaha Dramatics
Creighton is 8-8 in contests with a game-winning go-ahead score in the final 10 seconds at CHI Health Center Omaha, which opened in 2003.
   The last time such a game happened was in 2020 when Creighton's Marcus Zegarowski hit a shot with 3.2 seconds left to beat Providence.
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

Ticket Information
Single-game tickets for the 2023-24 season went on sale on September 28th.
   Fans can purchase single-game tickets at CHI Health Center Omaha Box Office, Ryan Athletic Center, by calling Ticketmaster or visiting Ticketmaster.com, and charging by phone at (800) 745-3000.
   For more information, call the Creighton Ticket Office at (402) 280-JAYS.

#19 Men's Basketball Looks to Bounce Back at Xavier

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Steven Ashworth

Jasen Green

Ryan Kalkbrenner

Arthur Kaluma

Fredrick King

Mason Miller

Ryan Nembhard

Baylor Scheierman

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Brock Vice