In November of 2002, Creighton knocked off a then-unranked Notre Dame team in the Guardians Classic championship game. At the time, it was an impressive win; as the season went along and Notre Dame became a Top 10 team, it buoyed the Jays’ resume, cemented their reputation and became their signature non-conference victory. When the Jays moved into the Top 10 themselves in mid-January, the justification that many voters used in voting them that highly was the victory over the Irish.
While San Diego State is probably not going to become a Top 10 team, it’s entirely possible they turn into a Top 25 team — and as the Jays continue building their resume, it will be one of if not the signature non-conference victory. Come February and early March, when talking heads on TV discuss the Jays’ tournament resume, the first win they’ll mention will almost assuredly be San Diego State.
Suffice it to say a win over Nebraska will not be held in nearly the same regard.
Coming into the season with a sense of optimism, a lot of Husker fans thought they had a postseason-caliber team. Four starters returned from last year’s squad that won 19 games, and the only new starter is perhaps their best player — LSU transfer Bo Spencer, who leads them in points and assists, and gives them a dynamic playmaker on offense. They started out 3-0, looked pretty good in blowing out Rhode Island and beating USC on the road, then looked less good, if competent, in losing to Dana Altman’s Oregon Ducks. On Wednesday, they lost a nationally-televised game at home to Wake Forest, a team that won one ACC game a year ago, and is predicted to not be much better this year. They looked neither good nor competent in that game, and the way they lost — allowing a wide-open, uncontested layup with 3.4 seconds left in a tie game — was stunning.
In a lot of ways, that loss is the polar opposite of the Jays win later that night — it’s likely to be the signature defeat of Nebraska’s non-conference schedule, and barring some sort of improbable run to competence in the Big Ten, it will be the game that brands the Huskers as a mediocre team. That’s how terrible Wake Forest is, and how inexplicable it is to lose to them on your home court.
It’s that dichotomy that had some Bluejay fans fretting on the Underground late this week. Creighton is flying high, riding the wave of a huge road win and the praise heaped on them by several prominent national media outlets. Nebraska is a desperate team with nothing to lose — they’re 8.5 point dogs on the road and have been written off by most observers. Is Creighton prime to be upset, and be the first home team to lose in this series since 2004?
I don’t see it. The Creighton team that played in the second half Wednesday night was downright frightening — no wonder Doc Sadler slept on his office couch after watching the game film of his team and then the Jays. If this game is played in the high 70s or above, Creighton wins; Nebraska hasn’t shown the ability to score, or even to play, at that kind of pace. Nebraska’s best, and perhaps only, chance is to make this game a knock-down drag-out fight played in the low-60s. They cannot run with the Jays. Period. Let’s hope they try.
Meet the Huskers: The Huskers have lost two of their last three games since a 3-0 start, including a 55-53 defeat in the final seconds on Wednesday vs. Wake Forest … LSU transfer Bo Spencer leads the team with 15.5 points and 4.0 assists per game. He was held to six points in the season opener, has been in double figures in each of NU’s last five games … Nebraska is averaging 69.5 points per game, a jump of over three points from 2010-11, despite scoring just 53 against Wake Forest … 6’11” junior center Jorge Brian Diaz is averaging 11.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game. He has shot 78% in two career games against Creighton, and had nine points and four rebounds in Nebraska’s 59-54 win in Lincoln last December. … Brandon Ubel had a career high five assists in Wednesday’s loss to Wake Forest. His previous career best was three set twice last year … Nebraska’s four attempts from the foul line against Wake Forest were the lowest by a Husker team since Doc Sadler’s first season, when the Huskers had three in a 66-55 loss to No. 6 Texas A&M, and only the second time in six years that Nebraska had attempted less than five free throws in a game.
One Big Paragraph with Lots O’Dots™: This is the first year Creighton has hosted two games against Big Ten competition since 1939, and the first time since 1936 CU has hosted different Big Ten teams in the same season … Creighton has won 11 straight regular season games against BCS teams in Omaha, winning by an average of 11.5 points with none of the games decided by fewer than six points … Creighton has five players from the state of Nebraska, including two who play prominent roles (Antoine Young and Josh Jones). Meanwhile Nebraska has four players from the state on it’s roster, but none are key members and in fact, none of them have scored this season … Doug McDermott has scored in double figures in all six games so far. If he scores in double figures on Sunday, he’ll be the first Bluejay since 1979-80 to start consecutive seasons with seven games in double figures. He has a long way to go to catch the leader for most consecutive games in double figures, though — the great Vernon Moore scored in double figures in all 32 games in 1984-85.
The Last Time They Played: Nebraska started just 1-of-9 from the floor, while Creighton was 0-of-6 to start in a historic streak of cold shooting. The Jays warmed up and took a 29-21 lead into the locker room. After a 3-of-18 first half from three-point range, Nebraska hit six treys in the first seven minutes of the second half en route to a 59-54 comeback victory on December 5 of last year.
The Series: Nebraska leads 25-19, but Creighton has won nine of the last 12 regular-season games. The home team has won the last six years, with the last win for a visiting team in the series coming on Kellen Miliner’s buzzer-beater for the Jays in 2004.
Kenneth “Doc” Sadler is 3-2 all-time vs. Creighton. Greg McDermott is 6-3 all-time vs. Nebraska (0-1 as Creighton head coach), and also 6-3 against Sadler.
Gratuitous Linkage: Ex-Husker Ndamukong Suh crashed his car into a curb and through a light pole on Friday night in Portland. What I’m curious about, however, is whether he then got out of his car, held down the light pole, and stomped on it…just kidding.
Out of Context Seinfeld Quote: “You think people will still be using napkins in the year 2000? Or is this mouth vacuum thing for real?” -Cosmo Kramer
This Date in Creighton Hoops History: On December 4, 2002, Creighton opened up MVC play with a road victory over Northern Iowa. Panthers coach Greg McDermott took Jays’ All-American Kyle Korver out of the game with a box-and-one defensive scheme, holding him to a season-low eight points and only six shot attempts — and completely shut him out in the first half, as Korver was 0-2 from the floor in 17 minutes. Larry House was the beneficiary, scoring a career-high 20 points on 9-15 shooting, and had five assists and five rebounds in leading the 15th ranked Jays to a 65-52 win at the UNI-Dome.
Completely Random, Totally Rad Music Video of the Day: Kenneth, What is the Frequency?
The Bottom Line: Kenneth “Doc” Sadler, the man Jays fans love to despise, is going to find that the frequency of Jays baskets is more than his team can keep up with. As with every game this year except the SDSU win, this one’s going to be a blowout, and the walk-ons will see significant minutes.
Creighton 89, Nebraska 67