The Creighton women’s basketball team enters its Sunday home game with Drake just a half game behind first-place Wichita State after the Shockers lost in the final second of their game at Illinois State on Thursday night. The Bluejays have posted 20 wins for the seventh time in 11 seasons under head coach Jim Flanery. The Jays are 12-3 in MVC play, including 6-0 at home in conference action. The ladies have won their last eight at home since dropping their first two home games of the year to nationally-ranked Big 12 opponents. Their official NCAA RPI entering this week was 24. They lead the NCAA with 9.5 three-pointers per game and with 248 three-pointers on the season, they need just 13 to set a new single-season school-record.
That’s all. What more do you need? Get yourself to D.J. Sokol Arena on Sunday and cheer on this incredibly exciting, talented and balanced team as it hosts Drake at 2:05 pm.
You want more than a paragraph? Fine, I’ll go on.
Creighton’s top four scorers from last year – Carli Tritz, Sarah Nelson, Ally Jensen and Taylor Johnson – are all scoring fewer points per game this year. Yet this team is far superior to last year’s team because of its depth. It’s well documented that Tritz, the preseason MVC Player of the Year, has been slowed by an ailing right knee – so much so that her scoring has been cut in half. The 2012 MVC Tournament MVP led the team with 14.4 points per game last year, but her scoring average has dropped to 7.2 this season, putting her fifth on the team. In fact, Tritz is scoring just 5.0 points per game in Valley games to rank seventh on the team, just one point ahead of Alexis Akin-Otiko for eighth.
Nelson’s average has dropped from 12.4 to 11.9 and Jensen is averaging 7.8 points after scoring 8.4 per game last year. Taylor Johnson scored 5.0 points per game last year, but is redshirting this season after suffering a torn ACL in the offseason.
It’s easy to point to the emergence of soon-to-be MVC Freshman of the Year Marissa Janning as the reason these other players can score less and the Jays can still succeed. Janning will likely become the first Bluejay freshman to lead the team in scoring since Creighton Hall of Famer Becky Flynn topped the Jays as a rookie 20 years ago. Janning is scoring 13.1 points per game on the year and bumps that mark to 14.7 in MVC action (which ranks third in the league). The left-handed sharp-shooter leads the MVC and ranks 11th in the NCAA in three-point accuracy, making 42.4 percent of her shots from long range. Her 41 triples in league play are tops in the MVC.
But Janning isn’t the only reason that the Jays have succeeded with fewer points from the aforementioned players. Credit improved play from returners McKenzie Fujan, Jordan Garrison, Alyssa Kamphaus and Akin-Otiko. Fujan’s scoring average is up 4.0 points per game this year and Garrison is scoring nearly two more points per game than she did last year. Kamphaus scored 73 points in 33 games last year, this year she’s more than doubled her scoring average with 136 points in 26 games. Akin-Otiko has bumped her scoring average from 3.5 last year to 4.1 this year. Going one step further, Sammy Jensen has even surprised with her scoring this year, as the sophomore role player has scored 48 points on the year, after accounting for just 14 points all of last year.
I think I’ll save my full “Sarah Nelson for MVC Player of the Year” argument for next week’s preview, but I’ll begin with this – the Bluejay forward leads the MVC in assist-turnover ratio and is tied for the team lead with 96 assists, she leads the league in blocked shots and is second in the league, shooting 49.6 percent from the field. So while her scoring is down, her all-around game is proving to be too much for opponents to handle.
On Sunday, Creighton (20-6, 12-3 MVC) hosts a Drake team which surrendered 98 points to the Jays when the teams met in early February. That point total equaled the most scored by the Jays under Flanery and CU’s 56 first-half points in Des Moines were their most in a half since the 2003 WNIT.
The Bulldogs are 9-17 on the year and 4-11 in Valley play under first-year head coach Jennie Baranczyk. The Bulldogs have proven to be a handful on offense recently, as they are averaging better than 80 points per game in their last three – which includes wins over Missouri State and UNI. Drake is shooting 47.7 percent from the field and averaging 9.5 three-pointers per game over their last four. During their 82-67 win at UNI last weekend, DU drained 13-of-23 three-pointers.
Drake sophomore guard Kyndal Clark is the reigning MVC Player of the Week after averaging 22.5 points and 7.5 assists per game last week. The Webb City, Mo., native leads the league with 70 steals and is among the best free-throw shooters in the MVC, making 96 freebies this year – that’s more 32 more than any Bluejay has attempted this year. Clark, who is averaging 21.4 points in her last five games, averages 14.9 points per game on the year.
Junior forward Morgan Reid is third in the MVC with seven double-doubles, as she tops the team with 7.8 rebounds per game to go along with her 10.9 points. Alyssa Marschner leads the MVC with 107 assists, but she’s also committed 115 turnovers on the season.
While DU’s offense has picked up lately, their defense has not done much to help their cause. Six times this year the Bulldogs have allowed their opponent to reach 80 points, including 93 points to Bradley last weekend and the 98 points to CU last month.
I’d expect a lot of offense again on Sunday, as the Bluejays look for the season sweep of the Bulldogs – at least more than the 47-44 final Drake used to beat Creighton the last time these teams met in Omaha.
Random Links, Thoughts and Numbers
– Creighton’s official NCAA RPI this week is 24.
– WarrenNolan.com had Creighton’s RPI as high as 21 on Saturday night.
– A Nebraska win over Penn State on Sunday in Lincoln would give NU a share of the Big Ten title. Why bring that up here? The Creighton win over NU continues to be CU’s best victory of the season, as NU’s RPI is currently at 13. Ideally a win over the Big Ten co-champions would play well during the selection process if Creighton fails to win the MVC Tournament.
– Creighton’s win over South Florida (RPI 59) is also solid, with the Bulls picking up wins over Louisville (23) and Syracuse (46) recently.
– If Creighton does not lose again in the regular-season, it’s hard to imagine them not getting an at-large bid into the NCAA. But according to ESPN’s most recent bracket projections, the Jays are among the “First Four Out,” while somehow USF is among the “Last Four In.”
– Creighton has made at least 200 3FG in six straight seasons and eight of 11 seasons under Flanery.
– CU enters Sunday with 248 3FGs on the season, 12 shy of the record 260 set by the 2003-04 WNIT Championship team. That team needed 33 games to reach 260, averaging 7.9 per game. This squad is averaging 9.5 triples per game.
– Carli Tritz eclipsed 1,000 career points last weekend, becoming the 12th fastest player in school history to reach that plateau.
– Marissa Janning’s 64 3FG this year are the most ever by a Bluejay freshmen. Her next triple will move her into the CU single-season top-10. Only fitting for the all-time leader in prep 3FG for the state of Minnesota.
– Marissa Janning has made 19 straight free-throws and McKenzie Fujan has made 18 straight at the line.
– Sarah Nelson is nine rebounds shy of 600 for her career.
– Nelson filled the stat sheet last weekend at Bradley, with 18 points, 8 rebounds and a career-high 8 assists.
– Nelson’s 19 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 blocked shots and 8-9 FG game at Drake last month earned her some national notice from ESPN’s Graham Hays.
– Alyssa Kamphaus had career-highs of 17 points and four blocked shots at Bradley last Saturday.
– Alexis Akin-Otiko scored a season-high 13 points on 6-9 FG at Drake last month.
– Listen to Brad Burwell and myself on the radio call at 1180 AM in Omaha and online here.
– Live stats and live video are also available for the game.
Rob Simms worked in the Creighton athletic department for 11 years, primarily working with the men’s soccer, women’s basketball and softball teams. He now serves as the color analyst for women’s basketball home radio broadcasts. He still tweets about Creighton a lot @IamRobSimms
