Game #22:  Creighton Bluejays (13-8, 7-3 BIG EAST) at Georgetown Hoyas (6-16, 1-10 BIG EAST)
Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2023 • 5:30 p.m. CST  • Washington, D.C. • Capital One Arena
| LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE STATS | CU NOTES (PDF) | GU NOTES (PDF) |

Next Game
Creighton (13-8, 7-3 BIG EAST) opens the second half of its BIG EAST schedule with a trip to the nation's capital for a road game at Georgetown (6-16, 1-10 BIG EAST) on Wednesday, Feb., 1 that tips at 5:30 p.m. Central.
    Capital One Arena (20,600) in Washington, D.C., will host the action.

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 will call the action.  
    The audio is webcast at 1620thezone.com and can be heard on SiriusXM channel 380 and on SXM app channel 970.

Telecast Information
Wednesday's game will be called by Tom McCarthy and Chris Walker and be televised on CBS Sports Network.
    The game will also be video webcast at https://www.cbssports.com/watch/cbs-sports-network.

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 is now 7-3 in BIG EAST play, including six double-digit wins.
    All-BIG EAST center Ryan Kalkbrenner (15.1 ppg., 6.9 rpg., 2.2 bpg.), who was named 2022 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year, leads in the nation in field goal percentage (.747) this season. CU is 13-5 with him in the line-up this year.
    CU had three men named to the BIG EAST's All-Freshman Team last winter who are now sophomores. That trio includes Ryan Nembhard (11.4 ppg., 5.4 apg.) as well as Arthur Kaluma (12.7 ppg., 6.3 rpg.) and Trey Alexander (13.0 ppg., 4.0 rpg.).
    Creighton's highest-impact newcomer to date has been South Dakota State transfer Baylor Scheierman (13.5 ppg., 8.3 rpg.), who also owns the team lead with nine double-doubles and 53 three-pointers made.
    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 78.0 points while allowing just 68.2 points per contest. CU shoots 47.6 percent from the floor, 35.2 percent from deep and 74.1 percent at the line.

Scouting Georgetown
Georgetown is 6-16 on the season and 1-10 in BIG EAST action.  The Hoyas picked up their first league win on Jan. 24 over DePaul in their last home game.
    Duquesne transfer Primo Spears (17.1 ppg.) leads the BIG EAST in scoring and ranks third in the league wih 5.4 assists per contest.
    LSU transfer Brandon Murray averages 14.6 points per game, while boomerang transfer Qudus Wahab is averaging 10.1 points and 7.4 rebounds per game in his return to the Hoyas.
    GU averages 72.4 points per game on 44.0 percent shooting from the field and 70.0 percent marksmanship at the line. However, GU also allows a league-high 78.3 points per game as foes shoot 38.1 percent from deep.

The Series With Georgetown
Creighton is 12-9 all-time against Georgetown and has won nine of the last 12 meetings in the series. Creighton is 4-5 on the road agains the Hoyas, but has won the past two meetings in the District.
    The series began in 1970 in West Palm Beach, Fla., before resuming in 2014 in BIG EAST play.
    Greg McDermott is 11-10 all-time (11-9 as Creighton coach) against Georgetown and 8-3 against Patrick Ewing.

The Creighton Coaches
Greg McDermott (Northern Iowa, 1988) owns a 289-145 record in his 13th season with the Bluejays. He owns a career mark of 569-340 in his 29th season, and is 438-276 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 fifth straight BIG EAST game, extending the league's longest active win streak.
- Creighton would win its 11th straight appearance on CBS Sports Network.
- Creighton would win at Georgetown for the fifth time in six seasons after losing its initial four tries.

Recently On CBS Sports Network
Wednesday will be the third and final scheduled appearance on CBS Sports Network this season for Creighton.
    Creighton has won each of its last 10 appearances on CBS Sports Network, and is 11-1 on CBS Sports Network the start of the 2019-20 campaign, with the lone loss coming at Georgetown.
    Eight of those 12 games have featured just three total lead changes or less.
Creighton on CBS Sports Network in Last 4 Seasons
Date    Game    Score    Lead Changes
1/1/20    Marquette    W 92-75    0
1/15/20    at Georgetown    L 83-80    9
1/22/20    at DePaul    W 83-68    1
2/8/20    St. John's    W 94-82    1
1/30/21    at DePaul    W 69-62    12
2/9/21    at Georgetown    W 63-48    0
2/24/21    DePaul    W 77-53    3
1/22/22    DePaul    W 60-47    3
2/8/22    Butler    W 54-52    14
2/17/22    at DePaul    W 71-59    8
11/14/22    Holy Cross    W 94-65    0
1/25/23    St. John's    W 10-76    3

The More, The Merrier
In 21 all-time meetings against the Hoyas, Creighton is 11-2 when scoring 74 points or more against Georgetown, but 1-7 when scoring 73 points or less.
    The Bluejays average 82.67 points in the 12 triumphs, but 61.11 points per game in the nine setbacks.
    Creighton is 13-4 this year when scoring 70 points or more, but 0-4 when being held to 69 points or less. CU is averaging exactly 78.0 points per game both in all games and in league action, and averaged 94.0 points in two wins last week.
    Creighton is fifth in the BIG EAST (and 45th nationally) with 78.0 points per game this season, and Georgetown is 11th in the BIG EAST in scoring defense (339th nationally), allowing 78.3 points per contest.

The Rare Three-Time All-Americans
Doug McDermott, the son of Creighton head coach Greg McDermott, wrapped up a memorable career in 2014 with his third straight First Team All-America honor and a sweep of all 14 National Player of the Year awards.
    On Wednesday, Creighton will face Georgetown and coach Patrick Ewing. Ewing starred from 1981-85 with the Hoyas and in 1985 was named National Player of the Year by the Associated Press, NABC, Sporting News and won the Naismith Award, finishing with 2,184 career points.
    Prior to McDermott (in 2012, 2013 and 2014), the last player to be a three-time First Team All-American  by the Associated Press had been Ewing and Oklahoma standout Wayman Tisdale, who both did so in 1983, 1984 and 1985. Other three-time First Team All-Americans by the AP are Oscar Robertson, Lew Alcindor, Pete Maravich, Ralph Sampson, David Thompson, Jerry Lucas, Tom Gola and Bill Walton.
    McDermott currently plays for the San Antonio Spurs.

Let's Go Streaking!
Creighton has outscored the opposition by an average of 18 points (83.5 - 65.5) during its four-game winning streak, which includes victories over No. 19 Providence and No. 13 Xavier.
    The Jays have shot 52.2 percent from the field and 81.7 percent at the line during this stretch while also dishing 65 assists against just 35 turnovers.
    Defensively, Bluejay opponents are shooting 42.1 percent from the field in those four games and have been outscored 171-124 before halftime.
    Eight different Bluejays have averaged at least 4.5 points per game in the run, led by Ryan Kalkbrenner (16.3 ppg., 7.3 rpg., 3.5 bpg., 77.1 FG)%. At the line, Arthur Kaluma is a perfect 14-for-14 in the last four games after starting the season 43-for-65 (66.2 percent).
    Not to be overlooked is the play of Trey Alexander in the past four games. The sophomore guard has averaged 14.0 points per game and has not committed a turnover in 121 minutes of action.

Pure Charity
Creighton has made 49-of-60 free throw attempts (81.7 percent) during its four game winning streak, including a season-best 88.9 percent (8-9) last Saturday vs. Xavier.
    For the season, Creighton is shooting 74.1 percent as a team from the charity stripe. That's the team's best mark since shooting 74.8 percent in 2017-18, and would be the fourth-best figure in Greg McDermott's 13-year tenure at CU.

Double-Digit BIG EAST Wins
Creighton leads all teams in BIG EAST play with a 10.8 scoring margin, so it shouldn't be a shock that it also shares the league lead with six double-digit conference wins this winter.
    Each of Creighton's last five victories over Georgetown have come by double-figures, including an 80-66 win at Capital One Arena in 2022 and a 63-48 triumph at McDonough Arena in 2021.
    10 Pt. BE Wins    Team
    6    Creighton
    6    Marquette
    5    Providence
    4    Seton Hall
    3    Connecticut
    3    St. John's
    3    Xavier
    2    Villanova
    1    Butler
    1    DePaul
    0    Georgetown

Nembhard Nears Triple-Double
Benoit Benjamin owns all three triple-doubles in Creighton history, but each were of the point/rebound/block variety and done in the 1980's.
    The Bluejays have never had a traditional point/rebound/assist triple-double, though Ryan Nembhard flirted with one last Saturday when he had 11 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists vs. Xavier.
    Nembhard is the third Bluejay with at least eight points, eight rebounds and eight assists in a game under Greg McDermott, joining Damien Jefferson (10 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists at St. John's on 12/17/20) and Khyri Thomas (16 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists vs. DePaul on 2/27/18).

Top BIG EAST Starts
Creighton is off to a 7-3 start in BIG EAST play this season, matching its second-best mark through 10 games since joining the league in the summer of 2013.
    Creighton started 9-1 in its debut season of 2013-14, and has previously been 7-3 in 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2020-21.
    Of those four previous teams to start 7-3 or 9-1, only the 2020-21 club won its 11th league game. That team made the Sweet 16.
    
Just Call Him Trey-lor Scheierman
Baylor Scheierman has made a three-point basket in all 21 games he's played this season, stretching his streak dating to last year to 31 in a row if you include the end of his time at South Dakota State.
    Ty-Shon Alexander owns the longest streak in Creighton history of 33, done from Feb. 27, 2018 - March 6, 2019.
    It's worth noting that Kyle Korver's third-place streak of 28 games with a trey was snapped when he did not attempt a field goal in 24 minutes of play during an 83-56 win over UNI (and head coach Greg McDermott) on Feb. 9, 2002. Korver then drained a triple in 27 more games in a row, a stretch from Feb. 13, 2002 to Jan. 20, 2003 before it was snapped against Evansville (and head coach Steve Merfeld).
Consecutive Games With A 3-Pointer
    Streak    Name    Dates of Streak
    33    Ty-Shon Alexander    Feb. 27, 2018-March 6, 2019
    31    Booker Woodfox    Nov. 25, 2008-March 23, 2009
    28    Kyle Korver    Feb. 4, 2001-Feb. 6, 2002
    27    Kyle Korver    Feb. 13, 2002-Jan. 20, 2003
    25    Rodney Buford    Jan. 25, 1997-Jan. 10, 1998
    23    Ethan Wragge    Nov. 8, 2013-Feb. 9, 2014
    23    Mitch Ballock    Nov. 12, 2019-Feb. 8, 2020
    23    Marcus Zegarowski    Dec. 17, 2020 - March 28, 2021
    22    Khyri Thomas    Jan. 28-Dec. 5, 2017
    21    Ethan Wragge    Jan. 3-March 24, 2010
    21    Baylor Scheierman    Nov. 7, 2022 - Present
    20    Johnny Mathies    Dec. 22, 2004-Feb. 28, 2005
    20    Marcus Foster    Dec. 31, 2017-March 16, 2018

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 11.0 points per game or more, Ryan Kalkbrenner (15.1), Trey Alexander (13.0), Ryan Nembhard (11.4), Arthur Kaluma (12.7), Baylor Scheierman (13.5).
    Creighton has won 28 of its last 29 games when five or more players score in double-figures, losing only at No. 12 Xavier on Jan. 11, 2023.

Giving It 100
Creighton won a 104-76 game vs. St. John's last Wednesday, bringing up a bevy of numbers related to the century mark.
    Creighton improved to 64-3 all-time when scoring 100 or more points, while Greg McDermott rose to 22-1 as a Division I head coach when his teams score 100 or more points.
    Creighton's 104 points were its second-most ever in regulation in a conference game, trailing only its 115 in a 35-point win vs. Indiana State on Jan. 19, 1985. No BIG EAST team had scored 104 points or more in regulation since 2017.
    It was Creighton's first game with 100+ points in regulation since Dec. 20, 2018 vs. Coe and the first time with 100+ points in regulation against a Division I team since Dec. 20, 2017 vs. USC Upstate.
    Last Wednesday was Creighton's first game scoring 50 points or more in both halves since Dec. 20, 2018 vs. Coe and first time exceeding 50 points in both halves since posting 58 in each half of a 116-62 rout of USC Upstate on Dec. 20, 2017.
    Creighton has not scored 100 points in a true road game since a 106-86 victory at UMKC on Dec. 18, 1989, though it has surpassed the century mark three times on neutral floors since then (most recently 100 on Nov. 20, 2017 vs. No. 22 UCLA).
    After never coaching a team to 100 or more points in nine combined seasons at Northern Iowa and Iowa State, Creighton has now scored 100 or more points 23 times under Greg McDermott, tied for the 10th-most nationally as seen below:

Most Games With 100+ Points Since 2010-11
    Rk.    100+ Pt. Games    School
    1.    45    Gonzaga
    2.    36    VMI
    3.    35    The Citadel
    4.    34    North Carolina
    5.    27    Charleston Southern
    6.    26    Central Michigan
        26    Fort Wayne
    8.    25    Houston Christian
    9.    24    Portland State
    10.    23    Creighton
        23    Indiana
        23    Winthrop

Kalkbrenner Recognized For Defense
Creighton center Ryan Kalkbrenner is one of 15 men on the Watch List for this year's Naismith Trophy Men's Defensive Player of the Year award, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced on Jan. 26.
    Kalkbrenner leads the BIG EAST with 2.39 blocked shots per game, which also ranks 13th nationally. Kalkbrenner also paces the conference with 3.00 blocked shots per league game.
    Last season the Florissant, Mo., native became Creighton's third BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year in six seasons following a vote of league coaches.
    Kalkbrenner has also been named to the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Watch List, the USBWA Oscar Robertson Midseason Watch List, the Wooden Award Preseason Watch List and Preseason Jersey Mike's Naismith Award Watch List during his junior campaign.
    Last year the 10 semifinalists for the award were named on March 1st, with the list being trimmed to four finalists on March 16. Auburn's Walker Kessler was announced as the winner on April 3rd at the Final Four. Other past winners include Baylor's Davion Mitchell (2020-21), Kansas' Marcus Garrett (2019-20), Washington's Matisse Thybulle (2018-19) and West Virginia's Jevon Carter (2017-18).

Another Top 25 Foe Bites The Dust
Saturday's win vs. No. 13 Xavier was the eighth top-25 team that Creighton has faced this season, but just the second such home game.
    Through games of Jan. 29th, Creighton's eight top-25 games are the most nationally, one more than Alabama, Iowa State, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas Tech and Michigan State.
    Through games of Jan. 28th, the only teams with more than Creighton's four top-25 victories this year are Alabama (5), Arizona (5) and Iowa State (5). Other teams with four top-25 wins include Missouri, Kansas State and TCU.
    And when it comes to ranked teams, keep in mind that Creighton also played both Arizona State and Marquette before both teams moved into the top-25 later in the season after facing the Bluejays.
Creighton's Most Top-25 Wins, Season
    Wins    Season    Top-25 Victims
    6    2019-20    #8 Villanova, #10 Seton Hall,
            #12 Texas Tech, #19 Marquette,
            #21 Butler, #8 Seton Hall
    5    2021-22    #9 Villanova, #11 Providence,
            #17 UConn, #18 UConn, #24 BYU
    4    2016-17    #9 Wisconsin, #12 Butler,
            #16 Butler, #22 Xavier
    4    2017-18    #3 Villanova, #19 Seton Hall,
            #20 Northwestern, #23 UCLA
    4    2022-23    #9 Arkansas, #13 Xavier,
            #19 Providence, #21 Texas Tech
    3    2020-21    #5 Villanova, #22 Xavier, #23 UConn
    2    1973-74    #6 Marquette, #16 Louisville
    2    2001-02    #15 Florida, #17 Western Kentucky
    2    2006-07    #11 Southern Illinois, #24 Xavier
    2    2013-14    #4 Villanova, #6 Villanova
    2    2015-16    #5 Xavier, #18 Butler
    2    2018-19    #10 Marquette, #16 Clemson

Most Games vs. Top 25 Teams, Season
    Games    Season    Coach
    12    2021-22    Greg McDermott
    10    2017-18    Greg McDermott
    8    2014-15    Greg McDermott
    8    2015-16    Greg McDermott
    8    2019-20    Greg McDermott
    8    2022-23    Greg McDermott
    7    2016-17    Greg McDermott
    6    1971-72    Eddie Sutton
    6    2018-19    Greg McDermott
    6    2020-21    Greg McDermott

What's Your 20?
Last Wednesday's game vs. St. John's was  Creighton's 20th contest of the season.  Creighton was .500 or better after exactly 20 games for the 27th time in the last 28 seasons.
Creighton -- First 20 Games, Since 1997-98
Year    First 20 W-L    Final W-L    Postseason
2022-23    12-8    ? ? ?    ? ? ?
2021-22    13-7    23-12    NCAA
2020-21    15-5    22-9    NCAA
2019-20    15-5    24-7    Canceled
2018-19    12-8    20-15    NIT
2017-18    15-5    21-12    NCAA
2016-17    18-2    25-10    NCAA
2015-16    14-6    20-15    NIT
2014-15    9-11    14-19    --
2013-14    17-3    27-8    NCAA
2012-13    17-3    28-8    NCAA
2011-12    18-2    29-6    NCAA
2010-11    13-7    23-16    CBI
2009-10    10-10    18-16    CIT
2008-09    15-5    27-8    NIT
2007-08    14-6    22-11    NIT
2006-07    13-7    22-11    NCAA
2005-06    15-5     20-10    NIT
2004-05    13-7    23-11    NCAA
2003-04    17-3    20-9    NIT
2002-03    18-2    29-5    NCAA
2001-02    14-6    23-9    NCAA
2000-01    14-6    24-8    NCAA
1999-00    14-6    23-10    NCAA
1998-99    14-6    22-9    NCAA
1997-98    14-6    18-10    NIT

Give Me 10
Creighton now owns 10 home wins for the 26th time in the last 27 seasons.
    The only exception in that time came in 2014-15, when the Jays won nine times at home.

Filling The Gym
Creighton ranks sixth nationally this season with 16,874 fans per home game.
2022-23 NCAA Home Attendance Per Game Leaders
Through 1/29/23
    Rank    School    Average
    1.    Kentucky    19,734
    2.    North Carolina    19,277
    3.    Arkansas    18,990
    4.    Tennessee    17,897
    5.    Syracuse    17,802
    6.    Creighton    16,874
    7.    Kansas    16,300
    8.    Indiana    15,634
    9.    Illinois    14,902
    10.    Purdue    14,876

Home Court Advantage
Entering the final day of January, BIG EAST teams have won conference home games at a 65.0 percent clip (39-21), the eighth-best mark in the league's 44 seasons, and the best figure since 2000-01.
    The league's previous best since the 2013-14 reconfiguration has been 61.1 percent in both 2013-14 and 2018-19.
Best Home Court Win %, BIG EAST Games Only
Year    Home Wins    Home Losses    Home Win %
1980-81    40    16    0.714
1990-91    49    23    0.681
1988-89    48    24    0.667
1995-96    77    40    0.658
1991-92    59    31    0.656
1985-86    47    25    0.653
2000-01    73    39    0.652
2022-23    39    21    0.650
2006-07    83    45    0.648
1987-88    46    26    0.639

Run It Up On The Road
The last time Creighton took the floor outside of Omaha, the Bluejays posted a 73-52 road win at Butler. It was Creighton's  seventh road win of 21 points or larger under Greg McDermott, and fourth-biggest in BIG EAST play.
    The 52 points surrendered were also the fifth-fewest in a road game under McDermott, and second-least allowed in a BIG EAST road game.
CU's Largest Winning Road Margins, Since 2010-11
    Margin    Score    Opponent (*BIG EAST)    Date
    35    93-58    at DePaul*    2/11/17
    30    81-51    at Southern Illinois    1/27/13
    28    96-68    at #4 Villanova*    1/20/14
    24    90-66    at Georgetown*    1/6/18
    22    64-42    at Nebraska    12/6/12
    22    74-52    at Missouri State    1/11/13
    21    73-52    at Butler*    1/17/23

Least Points Allowed in a Road Game, Since 2010-11
    Opp Pts.    Score    Opponent (*BIG EAST)    Date
    42    64-42    at Nebraska    12/6/12
    48    63-48    at Georgetown*    2/9/21
    51    81-51    at Southern Illinois    1/27/13
    52    74-52    at Missouri State    1/11/13
    52    73-52    at Butler*    1/17/23

The Double-Digit Kid
Ryan Nembhard had his first points/rebounds double-double at Butler when he finished with 12 points and a career-high 11 rebounds.
    It was the second double-double of his career, as he had 15 points and 10 assists in his Bluejay debut in November of 2021.
    It took the sophomore all of 10 days to do it again, as he had 11 points and 10 rebounds (as well as eight assists) on Jan. 28 vs. No. 13 Xavier.
    Though Creighton's never had a traditional points/rebounds/assists triple-double, Nembhard is the first Creighton player with (different) games of 10+ points, 10+ rebounds and 10+ assists in his CU career since Austin Chatman in his career from 2011-15.
    The last Bluejay with (different) games of 10+ points, 10+ rebounds and 10+ assists in the same season was Grant Gibbs in 2011-12.
    No Creighton player has had double-doubles in points/assists and points/rebounds in the same season since at least 1981-82.

Kalkbrenner On Watch List For An Oscar
Creighton center Ryan Kalkbrenner is one of 50 players nationally to be named to the Oscar Robertson Trophy Midseason Watch List, the United States Basketball Writers Association announced.
    Kalkbrenner is one of five BIG EAST players on the list, joining Souley Boum (Xavier), Bryce Hopkins (Providence), Adama Sonogo (Connecticut) and Joel Soriano (St. John's).
    He is just the second different Creighton player in head coach Greg McDermott's 13 seasons to make the Midseason Watch list for the Oscar Robertson Trophy, joining Doug McDermott in 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013-14. McDermott became the lone Creighton recipient ever to win the Oscar Robertson Trophy when he was recognized following the 2013-14 campaign.
    Kalkbrenner leads Creighton with 15.1 points per game and leads the BIG EAST with 2.4 blocked shots per contest. He ranks first nationally in field goal percentage (.747) and is second on the Bluejays with 6.9 rebounds per game.

Butler's Two-Point Conversions Failed
Creighton held Butler to just 27.3 percent shooting from two-point range on Jan. 18th, the seventh-best defensive mark in Greg McDermott's 13 years on the Bluejay sideline.
Creighton's Best Defensive 2FG%, Since 2010-11
    2FG%    2FG-2FGA    Opponent (*BIG EAST)    Date
    .222    8-36    Maryland-Eastern Shore    12-15-17
    .259    7-27    at Georgetown*    02-09-21
    .263    5-19    Coe    12-20-18
    .273    12-44    at Butler*    01-17-23
    .282    11-39    Wagner    03-19-16
    .289    11-38    Bemidji State    02-13-18
    .292    14-48    Butler*    01-23-16

Jays Surpass 26K at CHI
Creighton has scored 26,126 points all-time at CHI Health Center Omaha, surpassing 26,000 in the facility on Jan. 25 vs. St. John's.
    Creighton has outscored the opposition 26,126-21,881 at the 20-year old facility in 334 all-time games in the building that count.
    Creighton is 25-1 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

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 and are the only two 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 (13 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 12 years in the BIG EAST lead all active league coaches.
    McDermott needed to coach in 173 BIG EAST regular-season games to earn his 100th conference win, 10th-fastest in league history.
Most League Wins, BIG EAST MBB Coaches (1/30)
    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
        115    Ed Cooley, Providence
    10.    111    Rick Pitino, Providence/Louisville
    11.    110    Rollie Massimino, Villanova
    12.    105    Kevin Willard, Seton Hall
    13.    102    Greg McDermott, Creighton
    14.    87    Steve Lappas, Villanova

Fewest BIG EAST Games To 100 MBB League Wins
    Rk.    Wins    Name, School
    1.    136    John Thompson Sr., Georgetown
    2.    145    Jamie Dixon, Pittsburgh
    3.    152    Lou Carnesecca, St. John's
    4.    154    Jim Boeheim, Syracuse
    5.    156    Rick Pitino, Providence/Louisville
    6.    157    John Thompson III, Georgetown
    7.    168    Jim Calhoun, UConn
    8.    169    Mike Brey, Notre Dame
    9.    172    Jay Wright, Villanova
    10.    173    Greg McDermott, Creighton
    11.    174    Rollie Massimino, Villanova
    12.    190    Ed Cooley, Providence
    13.    211    Kevin Willard, Seton Hall

Offense Under The Christmas Tree
Trey Alexander was averaging 4.5 points per game in mid-January a year ago before averaging 9.6 points in his final 20 outings for an overall 7.4 points per game average for his rookie campaign.
    This season Alexander is averaging 13.0 points per game and has scored seven points or more in all but two contests.
    Alexander is in the midst of a career-long streak of eight straight double-figure scoring games, averaging 16.3 points per game in a stretch that started with his career-high 32 points on Christmas Day.
    Alexander continues to be rock solid at the free throw line, making 82.9 percent of his attempts from the charity stripe. He made 10-of-11 foul shots on Jan. 14 vs. Providence, including 6-for-6 marksmanship down the stretch.

What's Luck Got To Do With It?
In the KenPom.com rankings through Jan. 29th, Creighton ranks 356th of 363 teams in the site's "Luck" category, while Georgetown is 314th-luckiest.
    The KenPom.com site defines "Luck" as the deviation in winning percentage between a team's actual record and their expected record using the correlated gaussian method. The luck factor has nothing to do with the rating calculation, but a team that is very lucky (positive numbers) will tend to be rated lower by his system than their record would suggest.

Turning Point, Again?
This year has some similarities to the 2019-20 season, shooting 47.6 percent from the field, 35.2 percent from deep and 74.1 percent at the line while scoring 78.0 points per game and allowing 68.2 per contest.
    Through 21 games the 2019-20 squad shot 46.3 percent from the field, 37.0 percent from deep and 73.1 percent at the line while scoring 77.6 points per game and allowing 69.0 per contest.
    Creighton started the 2019-20 season with a 2-3 league record but the season flipped with a home win over Providence in mid-January. That team defeated Providence 78-74 on a go-ahead three-pointer by Marcus Zegarowski with 3.2 seconds left to start a four-game win streak. The Jays would win 11 of their final 13 games to finish 13-5 in league play and tie for the program's lone BIG EAST title in program history.
    This year's team started with a 3-3 league record before a 73-67 win over Providence and is now 7-3 in conference play.

Scheierman Drains 200th Trey
Baylor Scheierman enters Wednesday's tilt vs. Georgetown having made 212 three-pointers in his college career, doing so at a 40.9 percent clip. He made a season-high four treys on Jan. 11 at Xavier to surpass the 200-trifecta milestone in his career.
    Scheierman also owns 1,398 points, 810 rebounds, 387 assists and 106 career steals.
    Per Basketball-Reference.com, Scheierman is the nation's only player in the last 30 years with career totals of at least 200 three-pointers, 350 assists and 710 defensive rebounds.

The Schedule...It Is Strong
Creighton ranks 103rd nationally in winning percentage, but owns an NET of 18 (through Jan. 29) thanks in part to a challenging schedule that ranks fifth-toughest nationally among average opponent NET rankings.
    Creighton has already played 16 teams with a top-110 NET ranking:
    NET    Opponent    CU Result
    7    at UConn    L 60-69
    9    at Texas    L 67-72
    10    vs. Arizona    L 79-81
    12    at Marquette    L 58-69
    27    at Xavier    L 87-90
    27    Xavier    W 84-67
    28    vs. Arkansas    W 90-87
    32    Providence    W 73-67
    57    Seton Hall    W 83-61
    64    vs. Arizona State    L 71-73
    69    vs. Texas Tech    W 76-65
    87    St. John's    W 104-76
    95    vs. BYU    L 80-83
    99    Nebraska    L 53-63
    110    Butler    W 78-56
    110    at Butler    W 73-52
    142    UC Riverside    W 80-51
    163    DePaul    W 80-65
    219    St. Thomas    W 72-60
    241    at Georgetown    Wednesday
    313    North Dakota    W 96-61
    330    Holy Cross    W 94-65

Kaluma Pounds The Glass
Arthur Kaluma grabbed a career-high 16 rebounds on Jan. 7 at No. 4 UConn, four more than his previous best done twice previously.
    Kaluma's 16 rebounds were the most by a Bluejay since joining the BIG EAST 10 years ago, and last matched on Nov. 12, 2012 when Gregory Echenique also had 16 boards vs. UAB.
    After just one double-double in his first 45 career games, Kaluma posted back-to-back double-doubles vs. Seton Hall and UConn. He finished the Jan. 11 game at Xavier with 11 points and nine rebounds, coming up just one board short of joining Baylor Scheierman, Ryan Hawkins, Martin Krampelj and Doug McDermott (twice) as the only Bluejays to record three straight double-doubles since 1994-95.
Most Rebounds, Game, Since 1994-95
    Reb.    Player vs. Opponent    Date
    18    Kenny Lawson Jr. vs. St. Joseph's    12-11-2010
    17    Doug McDermott at Bradley    02-11-2011
    16    Donald Davenport at Missouri St.    01-21-1995
    16    Kenny Lawson Jr. vs. Drake    01-01-2011
    16    Doug McDermott at Akron    02-19-2011
    16    Gregory Echenique vs. UAB    11-12-2012
    16    Arthur Kaluma at UConn    01-07-2023
    15    Ben Walker at Baylor    12-04-1999
    15    Justin Carter vs. Kentucky    03-23-2009
    15    Doug McDermott vs. Tulsa    11-23-2013
    15    Ronnie Harrell Jr. vs. #23 UCLA    11-20-2017
    15    Christian Bishop vs. Ohio    03-22-2021
    15    Ryan Kalkbrenner at Georgetown    02-12-2022

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    13-5    0-3
Team FG%    .488    .403
Team 3FG%    .355    .338
Team FG/Game    29.4    27.0
Team Dunks/Game    3.50    5.00
Rebound Margin    +5.6    -8.6
Off. Rebounds/Game    9.1    5.7
CU Points/Game    79.4    69.7
Opp. Points/Game    67.1    75.0
Scoring Margin    +12.3    -5.3
Turnovers/Game    10.9    13.0
Opp. FG%    .424    .440

SWAT Team
Creighton owned nine blocked shots in its Jan. 3rd 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 on Jan. 3 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 fourth in program history in blocked shots with 170.
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
    170    Ryan Kalkbrenner    2020-Pres.
    153    Kenny Lawson Jr.    2006-11
    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

Arc's-manship
Creighton shoots 36.4 percent from three-point range in BIG EAST play, and it's been a telling stat.
    In seven league wins, Creighton is shooting 64-for-161 from deep (39.8 percent).
    In three league losses, Creighton is shooting 16-for-59 from deep (27.1 percent).
     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 (80).

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)

Nationally Relevant
Through games of Jan. 29, Creighton ranked second in the country in fewest fouls per game (13.0). The Jays are also 10th in defensive rebounds per game (28.71) and 20th in assist/turnover ratio (1.44).
    Individually, Baylor Scheierman ranks 23rd nationally with nine double-doubles and 12th with 7.43 defensive rebounds per game.
    Teammate Ryan Kalkbrenner is first in field goal percentage (74.7%) among players to make five field goals per game.
    Ryan Nembhard ranks 27th in assist/turnover ratio (2.71), 25th in assists per game (5.4) and 22nd in total assists (114).
 
Among The Best
Since the league's 2013 realignment, Villanova has 134 league wins to lead the BIG EAST by a wide margin, but Creighton's 102 league victories are  second-most.
Most Men's Basketball  BIG EAST Wins
(2013-14 to 1/29/22)
Team    W    L    Pct.
Villanova    134    37    .784
Creighton    102    73    .583
Providence    101    71    .587
Xavier    97    72    .574
Seton Hall    93    82    .531
Marquette    88    87    .503
Butler    81    97    .455
St. John's    67    108    .383
Georgetown    59    113    .343
DePaul    39    134    .225
Connecticut    29    18    .617

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 10 games this season, and has nine double-doubles to date. The nine double-doubles rank 23rd nationally, while his 7.43 defensive rebounds per game are 12th-most in the country.
    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 close to being 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 8.3 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
    9    Baylor Scheierman    2022-23
    7    Doug McDermott    2013-14
    7    Martin Krampelj    2018-19

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 328:05 (of a possible 840 minutes) together this season, outscoring the opposition 677-545 in those minutes.
    In eight games against ranked foes, the group has been paired together for 178:27 (of a possible 320 minutes), and outscored opponents 372-320.
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
#4 Connecticut    41    40    +1    24:51
#12 Xavier    58    55    +3    23:19
#19 Providence    40    21    +19    19:19
Butler    27    23    +4    14:00
St. John's    35    32    +3    11:28
#13 Xavier    48    39    +9    22:40
TOTAL    677    545    +132    328:05

3-Ball Falling For Scheierman
Baylor Scheierman nation-leading streak of 22 straight games with multiple three-pointers made was snapped on Jan. 7 at UConn, when he shot 1-for-7 from distance.
    Scheierman has still drained at least one triple in each of his last 31 contests dating to last season, and has made multiple three-pointers in 27 of his past 28 performances.

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 21-for-29 from the field with 12 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

Trèy's Bien
Sophomore Trey Alexander scored a career-high 32 points in a Christmas Day win over DePaul, 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.

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, passed away at the age of 79 on 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.
    Silas 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 36.5 points per contest.
    Collectively, they shoot 43.2 percent from the field (270-625), 35.3 percent from downtown (84-238) and 78.8 percent at the line  (156-198) while also contributing 290 rebounds and 191 assists against just 114 turnovers.
    Creighton is 18-3 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 third in the BIG EAST with 8.6 three-pointers made per game and fifth with 35.2 percent marksmanship from deep.
    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    32-78    .410
Kaluma    27-102    .265    24-74    .324
Nembhard    33-106    .311    28-86    .326

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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 334 regular and postseason contests at CHI Health Center Omaha all-time in the 20-year-old facility.
    The Bluejays own a 275-59 (.823) 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 26,126-21,881 in games at CHI Health Center Omaha, an average margin of 12.71 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 178-41 (.813) 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 294-59 (.833) at home since the start of the 2002-03 campaign.
 
Home Run
Under Greg McDermott Creighton is averaging 80.51 points per home game (17,632 points in 219 home games), a figure that climbs to 83.84 points in non-conference home games (8,719 points in 104 home games).
    Creighton is 134-6 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 21 games this season, Creighton's freshmen have played 532:25 of 4200 possible minutes (12.68 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).

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

We're Jamming!
Ryan Kalkbrenner owns 136 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 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
38    Ryan Kalkbrenner    2022-23
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
24    Gregory Echenique    2010-11
23    Marcus Foster    2016-17
22    Kenny Lawson Jr.    2010-11
22    Fredrick King    2022-23
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
136    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
34    Arthur Kaluma    2021-Pres.
33    Zach Hanson    2013-17
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)
78    2022-23    13-8 so far (Postseason TBD)
60    2019-20    24-7 (Postseason Canceled)
58    2015-16    20-15 (NIT)
56    2010-11    23-16 (CBI)
54    2012-13    28-8 (NCAA)
42    2011-12    29-6 (NCAA)

Among The Nation's Best
Below is where Creighton ranks nationally since the start of the 2010-11 season among teams to have played 100 or more Division I games, per Basketball-Reference.com.
2010-11 to Jan. 28, 2023
Category    CU Stat    CU Rank
3FG Made    3,805    4th    
FG Percentage    .477    4th
Assists    6,921    6th    
3FG Percentage    .376    6th
FG Made    11,840    8th    
Points    33,090    10th    
Wins    289    29th    
Winning Percentage    .666    34th

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

#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.

McDermott Ranks Second On CU Wins List
Greg McDermott has 289 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.    289-145    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.

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 of Jan. 29.
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    17    21    11

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

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.    18,277    #13 Xavier    01/28/23
    20.    18,257    #5 Xavier    02/10/18

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    None
2022-23    1st    ??    Ryan Kalkbrenner (1st); Arthur Kaluma (2nd)
            Ryan  Nembhard (2nd); Baylor Scheierman (HM)

Release, Rotation, Splash, Repeat
Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 969 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 1/29)
    Rk.    Streak    School    Next Game
    1.    1,182    UNLV    1/31
    2.    1,172    Duke    1/31
    3.    1,116    Western Kentucky    2/2
    4.    1,106    East Tennessee State    2/1
    5.    1,085    Oakland    2/2
    6.    1,082    Pacific    2/2
    7.    1,078    Texas    1/30
    8.    1,026    Marshall    2/2
    9.    1,017    Baylor    1/30
    10.    1,007    Princeton    2/3
    11.    1,004    Gonzaga    2/2
    12.    978    Long Island    2/2
    13.    969    Creighton    2/1
    14.    963    Mount St. Mary's    2/3
    15.    953    Tennessee State    2/2

Triple Trouble
During Creighton's current streak of 969 straight games with a three-pointer, the Jays have drained 7,636 trifectas, an average of 7.88 treys per game.
    That's not surprising since during the streak, Creighton has made exactly 7 three-pointers 144 times, more than any figure.
    Only five times in the streak has Creighton made just one three-pointer, but on 276 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 55-14 when making eight or more three-pointers, compared to a 25-21 mark when making seven treys or fewer.
Team 3FG Made During Creighton's 3-Point Streak
1:    5 times    2:  18 times    3:  35 times
4:    75 times    5:   101 times    6:  101 times
7:   144 times    8:   122 times    9:  92 times
10:  80 times    11:  56 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.