You got me, Doc. I hate to admit it, but you got me.
I don’t usually pay much attention to the Nebraska basketball program, because it hasn’t done anything of note for more than a decade. Sure, the Huskers occasionally beat my beloved Bluejays, but the wins for the Big Red have been few and far between. Still, a flurry of random comments from NU coach Doc Sadler about the unimportance of the Creighton-Nebraska game (and the Big Red football program’s influence on the cheering ability of Bluejays fans) left me a bid dazed and confused.
Despite his disheveled demeanor, Doc Sadler is not an idiot. He knows the best basketball program in the state resides in Omaha, in a 16,000-plus capacity building the folks in Lincoln are trying to replicate. During a decade of lackluster hoops in Lincoln, the opposite has blossomed in the Big O. And while Doc likely has greater designs than just beating the Bluejays every season — finishing above .500 in the Big 12 and perhaps making an NCAA Tournament surely have to be a few of those goals — deep down, Sadler must realize that statistically, the CU-NU matchup has been more important to the Huskers than the Bluejays since he arrived in Lincoln.
Even before Sunday’s Creighton win against the Huskers, CU has had much more to lose than their hoops neighbors to the southwest during the previous three seasons. Creighton played three opponents with better RPIs than Nebraska in last season’s non-conference schedule. The same goes for 2007-2008. In 2006-2007, the Bluejays played 6 teams in the non-conference with better RPIs than the Huskers. During those three seasons, the average RPI of Creighton’s non-conference wins was greater than Nebraska’s.
But coming into this season’s matchup, a Creighton loss would have been devastating. In all actuality, though, it wouldn’t have mattered who Dana Altman’s team played Sunday afternoon: coming off the 0-3 Fiasco in Florida during Thanksgiving weekend, a fourth straight loss would have signaled an emergency situation for a program that has seen very few similar situations in the past decade-plus, regardless of the opponent. For Nebraska, this season’s game was just another chance to snatch a win that’s been hard to find in previous years — NU is just 4-9 against CU in the past 12 seasons. No pressure for Doc and his ever-evolving cast of newcomers; they’re not expected to win in Omaha, where the Big Red has prevailed just once in those past 12 seasons.
So, when they tipped the game at half court just after 4 p.m. Sunday, the tension felt from those donning White and Blue was obvious. Altman’s team could ill afford to fall to 2-5 on the season, with trips to George Mason and New Mexico still to come in the next two weeks. Sure, the team will get healthy against upcoming cupcakes Savannah State and Houston Baptist, but the first school on the MVC schedule is league champion Northern Iowa. It was time to right the ship. Anything less would be unacceptable; and the negative emotions would be magnified if Doc’s team was the one to drive a stake further into the Bluejays’ early season opportunities.
That didn’t happen. Instead, Creighton competed for a full 40 minutes, give or take a few first-half possessions that ended with quick turnovers. The Bluejays attacked Nebraska’s aggressive defense, drawing 25 Husker fouls and shooting 32 free throws (to just 14 free throw attempts for Nebraska). The Jays outrebounded NU 31-24, forced 20 Husker turnovers (to just 15 CU missteps), and passed up 3-point shots to pound the ball into the post.
And that’s where Kenny Lawson went to work. The junior from California had his best game as a Bluejay, posting a career-high 25 points and grabbing 10 rebounds — his first double-double at CU. He has been Creighton’s most consistent player through the first 6 games of the season, and he continued those efforts by routinely taking advantage of Nebraska’s inexperienced, weaker post players.
Often the target of frustration from Bluejays fans who want a dominant center patrolling the paint, Lawson has scored in double figures in 6 of CU’s 7 games (including the last 6 in a row). He has grabbed 6 or more rebounds in 5 of 7 games, including 9 boards two times and Sunday’s 10-carom effort. He’s shooting 55% from the field, 79% from the free throw line, and doing so in about 24 minutes per game … about 5 more minutes per contest than he played last season. (For more on Lawson’s tremendous efforts, read Max’s Polyfro Postgame post.)
In short, this was the Lawson so many Creighton fans have clamored for since he redshirted in 2006-2007. In a league where the post players have improved in the past few years, it is imperative that Lawson match or outperform his peers at Northern Iowa (Eglseder and Koch), Illinois State (Odiakosa), Wichita State (Durley, Stutz, and Ellis), and Southern Illinois (Evans, Booker, Fay), etc. Lawson looks like he’s ready.
Hopefully the Bluejays are ready, too. Two of their next three games come on the road against teams that will likely challenge Creighton more than the Huskers did. George Mason rarely loses at home, and they have a test Tuesday night against Dayton in Fairfax. After a brief reprieve against Savannah State, Creighton will head to The Pit to face a nasty New Mexico team. After taking a beating in Orlando, the Bluejays can bounce back with some road victories against tough teams. Sure, a win against Nebraska is nice, but right now it doesn’t look like anything more than our fifth or sixth most important non-conference game. And unlike Sadler’s statements, that’s a fact.