We are profiling each member of the 2013-14 Creighton Bluejays men’s basketball team. Check in daily leading up to Creighton’s regular season opener against Alcorn State Nov. 8 for an introduction to this season’s Bluejays, from newcomers to seniors. Check out all the previews here.
Isaiah Zierden (#21 / G / 6-2 / 180 lbs / R-Fr.)
This time last year, Isaiah Zierden was an unknown commodity to Creighton basketball fans. He played in the team’s lone exhibition against University of Mary, then spent the rest of the 2012-2013 season redshirting. Highly regarded as a shooter out of Benilde-St. Margaret’s High School in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, Zierden delayed the beginning of his collegiate hoops career to build strength, adjust to the speed of the game, and retain a year of eligibility while learning from an experienced backcourt led by Grant Gibbs and Jahenns Manigat.
Starting his redshirt freshman season, Zierden again lines up among familiar faces in the Bluejays backcourt. Gibbs and Manigat are back, as is starting point guard Austin Chatman. Add newcomers Devin Brooks and James Milliken to the mix, and it is clear Greg McDermott and his staff are hoarding capable guards who can score in bunches. Zierden is no exception, as anyone who caught any of his performances in the Metro Summer League this year can attest.
Experienced lead guards plus the ever-potent Doug McDermott should equate to an ideal situation for Zierden when he does see the court this season. The Bluejays want to push the pace and tempo offensively, and the guards will have plenty of opportunities to get shots off from long range. If/when defenses decide to send a multitude of help to guard McDermott, a player like Zierden must be ready to make opposing coaches pay for that decision.
We caught up with Zierden at Creighton’s Media Day: