Men's Basketball

Creighton Men’s Basketball 2018-19 Viewing Guide

The 2018-19 basketball season is here.  Coming into this season, there are a lot of questions surrounding the Bluejays with various predictions on where Creighton will fit in the Big East standings.  Most prognosticators have the Bluejays as high as fifth in the league while others have them as far down as ninth or last in the league.  It is somewhat understandable when the Jay’s two biggest threats in the backcourt, Marcus Foster and Khyri Thomas, have moved on to the professional ranks, while Toby Hegner graduated and Ronnie Harrell transferred out.   Add on top the recovery of Martin Krampelj from a season ending knee injury and it creates questions from top to bottom to figure out even what the starting lineup will look like on opening night and how it will look by the end of the season.

The only questions answered at this point is how to watch the Bluejays this season.   Every Big East game from the non-conference through the conference season will be on TV or some type of easily accessible media this year. The Big East TV partners– FOX broadcast network, Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports Net, and CBS Sports Network will predominantly feature Creighton this season, but the Jays will also make appearances on the Big Ten Network and ESPNU, as well as streaming options for the Cayman Islands Classic tournament.

As a preseason primer, here’s the breakdown of where you can find each Creighton game on TV or online. Yes, we even have the cord cutters covered as that is becoming an even bigger option the past few years.

All times are Central Time

FS1

TV in Omaha: Cox 78 (SD), 1078 (HD); CenturyLink Prism 620 (SD), 1620 (HD); DirecTV 219; Dish Network 150
TV outside Omaha: FS1 Channel Finder
Cord Cutters:  See Bottom
Online Streaming Info: See Fox Sports Go Section below

Creighton will have up to 14 games on FS1:

  • 11/11 vs. East Tennessee State, 12:30 p.m.
  • 11/15 vs. Ohio St., 6:00 p.m.
  • 11/28 vs. Montana, 7:30 p.m.
  • 12/14 vs. Green Bay, 8:00 p.m.
  • 12/20 vs. Coe, 7:00 p.m.
  • 12/27 vs. UMKC, 7:00 p.m.
  • 12/31 @ Providence, 3:00 p.m.
  • 1/5 @ Butler, 11:00 a.m.
  • 1/16 @ St. John’s, 5:30 p.m.
  • 1/21  @ Georgetown, 7:30 p.m.
  • 1/25 Butler, 7:30 p.m.
  • 1/30 St. John’s, 7:30 p.m.
  • 2/17 Seton Hall, 2:00 p.m.
  • 3/3 @ Marquette, 2:00 p.m.

FS1 is the home for Big East basketball.  About half the schedule will be on here as the Bluejays will be on FS1 14 times, down one from last season.   The Bluejays make their debut in their opening weekend of the season against East Tennessee State, which is part of the Cayman Islands MTE for this season.  They jump back on FS1 a week later as they host Ohio State in the Gavitt Games.  The Bluejays have a four game stretch on the flagship to end conference play and into Big East conference play, including the New Year’s Eve rematch with Providence.  Both games of the home and home series against St. John’s and Butler during conference play on FS1 like it was last season.

There appear to be more afternoon games on FS1 than there have been in the past

FS2

TV in Omaha: Cox 216 (SD) 1216 (HD); CenturyLink Prism 621 (SD), 1621 (HD); DirecTV 618; Dish Network 397
TV outside Omaha: FS1 Channel Finder
Cord Cutters:  See bottom
Online Streaming Info: See Fox Sports Go Section below

Creighton has no games on FS2 this season after having three last season.  The Big East as a whole will still have 14 or 15 games on there featuring an appearance from all the other Big East teams, except Creighton!  It is always possible however, that the season finale on March 9th against DePaul may get relegated to FS2 depending on how the season turns out.  That final regular season game is part of all Big East teams playing that day with TV decided in the final weeks of the season.

FOX

TV in Omaha: Cox 10 (SD) 1010 (HD); CenturyLink Prism 42 (SD) 1042 (HD); DirecTV 42 ; Dish Network 42 or 5203
TV outside Omaha: Look for your local Fox Affiliate
Cord Cutters:  See Bottom
Online Streaming Info: See Fox Sports Go Section below

Creighton will have three games on FOX TV:

  • 12/1 vs Gonzaga, 1:00 p.m.
  • 1/13 vs. Villanova, 11:00 a.m.
  • 2/23 vs. Georgetown, 1:30 p.m.

Network FOX continues to showcase more and more Big East hoops.  This season is no different.   This year, Creighton will appear  three times — the Bluejays marquee non-conference home game against top 10 Gonzaga, the early test against the continued Big East favorite, Villanova, and a showcase with Patrick Ewing and Georgetown.

The game against Gonzaga on December 1st is part of a big day of hoops on FOX with the Jays sandwiched between Louisville at Seton Hall at 11:00 a.m. and Nevada at USC at 3:30 p.m. to close out the afternoon.  FOX games have generally received higher ratings than games on FS1, so featuring what should be (on paper) some of the best games the Big East can offer is a great strategy for all involved. The following weekend, Dec. 8,  has more Big East hoops with Seton Hall / Kentucky and Wisconsin / Marquette.

FOX will broadcast at least 15 games this season.   That ends up being a total of 11 conference matchups along with four non-conference games on broadcast TV.

Once again, Fox has reserved the final game of the year as a “wildcard,” meaning they’ll decide later in the season which games end up on FOX, FS1, FS2 or FSN to ensure the best matchup winds up on the network. From a programming perspective, that makes the most sense.  The likely 16th game on the final day of the regular season sounds like it is St. John’s / Butler according to the Big East website with time TBD.

FSN

TV in Omaha: Cox 47 (SD) 1047 (HD); CenturyLink Prism 748 or 749 (SD), 1748 or 1749 (HD); DirecTV 671; Dish Network 418
TV outside Omaha: Varies depending on region. Check the Big East TV Schedule for full details.
Cord Cutters:  See Bottom
Online Streaming Info: See Fox Sports Go Section below

Creighton will have up to four games on regional Fox Sports Networks:

  • 11/6 vs. Western Illinois, 7:30 p.m.
  • 2/3 vs. Xavier, 12:00 p.m.
  • 2/20 @ DePaul, 8:00 p.m.
  • *3/9 vs DePaul, TBD

These will be the hardest games to find on TV depending on where you live, as they’re not full national broadcasts. If previous years are any guide, the opening night Western Illinois game will be hardest to find if you’re outside the Omaha market, as it’s less likely to be picked up by FSN channels outside the viewing area. Additionally, Fox Regional Sports Networks (FSN) televise a variety of NBA and NHL games in their local markets, and when those telecasts conflict with a Big East game, the NBA/NHL game takes precedence. This could be the case with all 24 Big East games on the FSN platform, including the four appearances for Creighton.  For Creighton this season, the lineup was almost a plug & play of the schedule last season, including the season opener being on FSN. Surprisingly, the FSN games for a whole with the Big East have actually increased this season compared to the past.  With the Fox RSN’s currently in transition to Disney, you would have figured the Big East might start phasing out of the FSN games.

Around the country, several markets do not have FSN regional networks. For example, out east, look for Big East FSN games on networks like MSG, MSG+, YES, or other sports channels that have agreements with Fox to carry their regional sports programming. For example, out in Rhode Island, you will find FSN games for Providence on their local Cox channel called Yurview.

For the best bet on where to find these games if you live outside of Omaha, check our Big East TV Schedule page for the listing of regional networks carrying the game. We will also add up-to-date info on channels carrying the game in our Media Menu posts when needed.

Fox Sports Go

Online Streaming Info: Fox Sports Go

All FS1, FS2, and FOX games listed above will be available through the Fox Sports Go online or through the different mobile apps.

FSN games will be available on a game-by-game (and market-by-market, and in some cases, cable or satellite provider) basis depending on whether there is an agreement for the FSN channel in your area are to appear in the FS Go application.

For cord cutters, it will be even more confusing for FSN.  While the services do offer FSN sports as one of the channels, there is no guarantee which one you will get.

It’s very confusing. The safest bet for FSN games is just to find your local FSN channel and watch the game that way, or head to a sports bar that can pull in out-of-market games.

CBS Sports Network

TV in Omaha: Cox 234 (SD) 1234 (HD); CenturyLink Prism 643 (SD), 1643 (HD); DirecTV 221; Dish Network 158
TV outside Omaha: CBS Sports Network Channel Finder
Online Streaming Info: How you can watch

Creighton will have 5 games on CBSSN:

  • 1/9 vs. Marquette,  6:00 p.m.
  • 2/6 @ Villanova, 7:00 p.m.
  • 2/9 @ Seton Hall, 7:00 p.m.
  • 2/13 @ Xavier, 7:30 p.m.
  • 3/6 vs. Providence, 7:00 p.m.

CBS Sports Network has increased the number of Creighton games this season compared to last where they only had two games on the network.  This season, CBSSN carries a crucial stretch of games for the Bluejays when they go on their first ever Big East three-game road trip with visits at Villanova, Seton Hall, and Xavier.  The broadcast crew should just embed with the Jays for that stretch and we’ll be really familiar with them.  CBS Sports Network has been a major partner for Big East hoops the past several years.  increasing their count from 19 to 20 games this season.  They carried 25 Big East games two seasons ago.  Interesting note– Georgetown will be on the network six times this season.

BTW, watching online has a lot more services available this season compared to the past, including all of the major cord cutting services.

ESPN Family

ESPNU
TV in Omaha: 
Cox 220 (SD), 1229 (HD); CenturyLink Prism 605 (SD), 1605 (HD); DirecTV 208; Dish Network 141
TV outside of Omaha: Probably on a higher sports tier that you pay extra for.
Cord Cutters:  See Bottom
Online Streaming Info: WatchESPN FAQ

Creighton will play one game on ESPNU

  • 12/18 @ Oklahoma,  7:00 p.m.

The Bluejays get one game on the ESPN family of networks when they hit the road in the non-conference at the Sooners from the Big 12.  The return game in Omaha during the 2019-20 season could be part of the new scheduling agreement starting with the Big 12 in a series of games, similar to the Big 10 Gavitt Games.

Big Ten Network

TV in Omaha: Cox 80 (SD), 1080 (HD); CenturyLink Prism 650 (SD), 1650 (HD); DirecTV 610; Dish Network 405 or 410
TV outside of Omaha: Big Ten Network Channel Finder
Cord Cutters:  See Below
Online Streaming info: Fox Sports Go, BTN2Go, Iphone, Ipad, Android

Creighton will have 1 game on the Big 10 Network:

  • 12/8 @ Nebraska, 5:00 p.m. CST

Creighton will head down I-80 to take on their in-state rival.  For Nebraska, they are are thinking this is the year to get the Jays.  Well, we’ll wait and see on that.    For online streaming, the BTN apps on mobile devices are Chromecast enabled. That means you could easily cast this to your big screen and feel like you are watching it on TV.  Personally, the BTN app is not very good and I have always had problems with it.  The great news is that with the Big 10 now with Fox, the BTN games are also available on Fox Sports Go for streaming.

Facebook Watch (Stadium)

(“What?”  You might say)

With the shift to more online and streaming content, and the proliferation of the early season tournaments that pretty much all D-1 schools play in these days, the actual TV channels available for some of these games don’t have enough capacity.  At the same time, everyone wants to watch their team somehow even if it isn’t directly on TV.  Thus Creighton’s involvement in this season’s Cayman Islands Classic, Nov. 19-21st.

The TV channel called Stadium, yes it is a TV channel over the air in different markets, are the ones producing this game.  However they are making it exclusive to Facebook. Similar to a few years ago when Creighton played in a tournament that was broadcast exclusively on Youtube, Stadium is producing these games exclusively to the Facebook Watch platform, which, if you are familiar with Facebook is like those live videos you can watch when your best buddy Charlie goes LIVE.

Well, the production value will be better and at least you don’t have to pay for it like you did when the Jays exempt tournament was on FloSports.  The easy part is that there is one link to go to to watch all the games.

Live Stadium

You can cast Facebook Live videos just like you can cast other videos (like Fox Sports Go) to watch on your Big Screen. Don’t worry, if you want to watch these games, you will figure out how to watch them.

Cord Cutters

With satellite and cable TV prices continuing to go up, many fans have decided to cut the cord and go with strictly online streaming services to watch what they want when they want.  For sports fans it is a little harder because of all the live events and the channels involved are sports channels where costs can add up. Things have really improved from that standpoint in the past year, but the prices have gone up anywhere between $5-10 per month for these different services.

If you are considering cutting the cord, there are several services out there to choose from now.  Most can be streamed on various devices you may already have in your home if you are considering this.  Here are the most common ones and links to their streaming packages.

If you are trying to decide, here are the channels Creighton will be playing on and availability of the channels with the different services along with the monthly package you will need.

NetAppPS VueSlingHuluDirecTV NowFuboYoutube
BTNBTN2GO
Fox Sports Go
Yes ($49.99)NoYes ($40)Yes ($55)Yes ($44.99)Yes ($40)
CBSSNCBS Sports appYes ($49.99)NoYes ($40)Yes ($65)Yes ($44.99)Yes ($40)
ESPN, ESPN2WatchESPNYes ($44.99)Yes
($25-Sling Orange)
($40-For Fox Channels)
Yes ($40)Yes ($40)NoYes ($40)
ESPNUWatchESPNYes ($44.99)Yes
($25-Sling Orange)
($40-For Fox Channels)
Yes ($40)Yes ($55)NoYes ($40)
FS1, FS2Fox Sports GOYes ($44.99)Yes
($25-Sling Blue)
($40-For ESPN Channels)
Yes ($40) Yes ($40-$65 if you want FS2 too) Yes ($44.99)Yes ($40)
Fox RSNsFox Sports GOYes ($49.99)Yes
($25-Sling Blue)
($40-For ESPN Channels)
Yes ($40) Yes ($55)Yes ($44.99)Yes ($40)
FOXFox Sports GODon't needDon't needDon't needDon't needDon't needDon't need

On the Radio

No matter where you are, the audio call of every Creighton Basketball game is also available locally on 1620AM, and worldwide either on their website (if you’re on a computer) or via the 1620 The Zone app (if you’re on a mobile device).

Also, all home games this season will be available locally on 101.9 FM The Keg. John Bishop once again is the play-by-play voice of the Jays, with former Bluejay Nick Bahe as the analyst when he isn’t on the TV side for Fox Sports.  You may also get to hear former Bluejays Brody Deren or Josh Dotzler in the other chair when Nick is not on the radio.

In Omaha: 1620AM for all games, 101.9 FM The Keg for all HOME games.
From a Computer: 1620TheZone.com, 1019thekeg.com
From a Mobile Device: iPhone App, Android App

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