From now until Selection Sunday, WBR will provide you with a quick glance at everything you need to know about Creighton Bluejays men’s basketball.
The Creighton Bluejays last Monday earned the school’s highest Associated Press rating in men’s basketball history. The team didn’t play until Saturday, when a loss to Xavier in Cincinnati set the Jays back behind Villanova in the race for the Big East regular season championship.
Today’s AP poll has Creighton #13. Greg McDermott and his team are in Washington, D.C., preparing for a road game at Georgetown on Fat Tuesday.
Creighton, by the Computers
- #8 NCAA Official RPI (-2 from 02/28)
- #8 Warren Nolan RPI (no change from 03/02)
- #7 KenPom (no change from 03/02)
- #11 ESPN BPI (no change from 03/02)
Bracketing the Bluejays
- #3 via Tim Krueger’s Bracket
- #2 (2.29 average; next update 3/4) via Bracket Matrix
The Race for the Prize
Creighton 13-3 Big East
Remaining games @ Georgetown (7-9), vs. Providence (9-7)
Villanova 14-2 Big East
Remaining games @ Xavier (10-6), vs. Georgetown (7-9)
Well, crap. Creighton lost on the road. Villanova won at pseudo-home Wells Fargo Center. That leaves the Bluejays trailing a team they swept with only two games left to make up the difference. The only way Creighton can win the league is to take care of business and hope that the Wildcats stumble. The latter could happen at the hands of the same Xavier team that handed CU a loss at Cintas Center Saturday. Nova has to play in Cincinnati but has until Thursday to prep. The Jays face a quick turnaround, on the road no less, and face Georgetown tomorrow.
CU Stat o’ the Day
38.6%
That’s the percentage of Creighton’s points that come by way of three-pointers. The Bluejays rank third nationally (behind San Jose State and Princeton) in three-point field goal distribution percentage. What’s that they say about living and dying by the three???
What to Watch Today
Xavier @ Seton Hall (6:00 CT, Fox Sports 1)
The Musketeers seem like the Big East’s best chance at a no-drama, surely-on-the-right-side-of-the-bubble type team come two weeks from now. But with computer numbers in the low 40s, Xavier can ill afford a slip-up against one of the Big East bottom dwellers. The Pirates have a date with a Wednesday night play-in game at Madison Square Garden next week. But Kevin Willard’s team can play spoiler against an XU team they already defeated 68-60 AT Cintas Center (a victory that ended Xavier’s 13-game home winning streak).
Today in Bluejays Basketball History
The following are special games in Creighton’s men’s basketball history for a host of different reasons.
March 3, 2001 — Creighton 63, Missouri State 41 // top-seed Bluejays limit SMS to just 14 second-half points in MVC tournament quarterfinals
March 3, 2002 — Creighton 90, Illinois State 43 // Jays blast Redbirds in largest margin of victory in a St. Louis-based MVC tournament game
March 3, 2003 — Creighton 86, Wichita State 60 // Creighton plays its last regular season home game at the Civic Auditorium, crushing the Shockers behind a career-high 28 points from Larry House
March 3, 2007 — Creighton 75, Missouri State 58 // Nate Funk scores season-high 33 points to pace the Jays in a MVC tournament semifinal
March 3, 2012 — Creighton 99, Evansville 71 // Immediately following an upset loss by Wichita State in one semifinal, the Bluejays take care of business against the Aces en route to a MVC tournament title and a return to the NCAA Tournament.
Creighton Hoops Photo of the Day
Speaking of March 3, 2012, here’s a shot of Gregory Echenique absolutely destroying Evansville’s Denver Holmes.
Gregory Echenique sizes up Denver Holmes before dunking on him in the 2012 MVC Semifinals (WBR/Mike Spomer)