View of the Hilltop

Updates Suspended

2007-02-20T22:49:00.000-05:00

As I mentioned in my post on the Bluejay Cafe, I'm going to put this on ice for right now. First, I don't have the time to update this as I'd like and it deserves. Second, I have more than enough headaches in my life right now that this probably isn't a good idea at the moment.

I am as guilty as a lot of us in allowing too much emotional investment to be placed in the hands of a basketball team or baseball team. Success and failure in the field of athletics is something that you or I as a fan have no real, tangible hand in either way. It's not healthy to ride that emotional roller coaster.

Good night, God bless and may all have a solemn and profitable Lenten season.

Blog Updates

2007-02-20T10:53:00.000-05:00

Friends, I've been extremely busy this weekend. Obviously, there's a lot to talk about with tonight's game at Illinois State and the disappointing loss at home to Drexel. I will have full updates put on the site later tonight, after the game. Take care.

Southern Illinois Recap

2007-02-12T15:08:00.000-05:00

Final Score: #21 Southern Illinois 72, Creighton 68

Box Score

Recaps: CU | SIU
Media: OWH | Southern Illinoisan | St. Louis Post-Dispatch

If we sat down and made a checklist-- "What are the key elements that Creighton would need to overcome their mental block against Southern Illinois and steal a win at one of the most difficult places to place in the country" --what would be on that list? Well, first and foremost, we would need the officials to call the game tight enough to keep SIU and their overcommitting handcheck defense from dictating to them what would be a foul and what wouldn't be. On Saturday afternoon, suprisingly, they Jays got that. The refs called the game tight, were more than willing to dish out the fouls on the Salukis, and the result was serious foul trouble on SIU and the Ugly Dawgs being forced to play more traditional defense.

Second, no matter how the game ends up getting called, the Jays were going to have to be productive on offense and make the most when we have the ball, because possessions are always worth their weight in gold. On Saturday, the Jays shot an eye popping 53.8% from the field, including 11-18 (61.1%) in the second half. The Jays were aggressive in the second half, were able to play disciplined basketball and not allow themselves to get flustered by SIU's pesky nature.

Finally, the Jays were going to have to take their lumps and show the ability to absorb the runs that the Salukis were invariably going to throw at them. Although many around the country didn't see it (more on that later), the Salukis starting the game like they were popped out of a cannon. Just like that, the Jays are down 7-0, the only sellout crowd of a year is rocking and it looks like "new verse, same as the first." However, the Jays never cracked under the pressure, clawed back and pulled within 2 at halftime. In the first half, they immediately came out on a run to take the lead and started to put the Salukis back on their heels. Now, you don't expect SIU to fold at home and they didn't. The run came and was capped off with a Randall Falker jump shot (after Dane Watts missed a front end of a one and one) to push the lead to 65-58 Salukis. Even still, however, the Jays had both a chance to tie the game at the free throw line and, even after failing at that, had the ball with the shot clock off with the opportunity to either tie the game (to force overtime against an SIU team that would have been sans Falker and Mullins) or win in regulation. On the road, against a ranked opponent, you cannot ask for better than that.

Down the checklist we go and the Jays were able to get exactly what they were looking for. This game could not have been scripted better. Yet, however, SIU found a way at the end and, when it was in their grasp, it looked like the team didn't know what to do with it. There was a discussion on the Bluejay Cafe message board asking what exactly it is that holds this team back against Southern Illinois. Some might try to say talent, but that's patently false. This season, the Jays have the more talented roster and may well find themselves to be prepared for more of a run in the NCAA Tournament. However, as I've said before in other venues: talent is not the only, or even primary, variable for success in college basketball. If the most talented team always won, we could just put out a power ranking of which team has the most McDonald's All-Americans on the roster and award them the crystal basketball every year. We don't do that.

There's a lot of things that SIU uses to it's advantage to help build the sort of program and tradition of success that they have. They're in a state that produced a large number of basketball prospects year in and year out. They play their gimmick defense to even the playing field against teams that are more offensively diverse than they are (which is most teams, considering how generally pedestrian that the Salukis are on the offensive end), and on and on. However, the most importance piece to the Saluki Puzzle is the confidence, the assurance, the swagger that they bring to the table. That team could have taken the floor against North Carolina on Saturday and everyone on that bench--from the coach, to the starters, to the last man on the bench--would not have had a doubt in their minds that they would win. That sort of blind faith is off putting and damn successful. You can put pressure on this team and it never phases them. Especially at home, they feel there's nothing you can do to get over on them. That's the way they get in your head and make you believe you have to be absolutely perfect to win.

There's been so much discussion of "the next level" for Creighton basketball. The Jays bring so much to the table and that's why, even with 2 NIT bids in the last 3 years, we do generate so much heat amongst the Valley squads. No matter the tradition or the recent success, there isn't another program in this league that can touch the facilities or fan base that Bluejay basketball has. We are in a large metro area, a market that easily outclasses towns like Wichita or Springfield or Carbondale-Murphysboro, and we are untouched in this market. We don't have a Kansas, or Missouri, or Illinois, or Indiana or Kentucky in our backyard dominating the discussion at this time of the year. Creighton basketball dominates Omaha during the winter and that's why we average 16,000+ a night, play virtually all our games on TV and pace the sports talk in this town.

However, even with all that working for us, we haven't progressed to what's considered the next step: consistent runs in the postseason and multiple Sweet 16s over a span of years. If you look at the Wichita State or Bradley teams from last year, or the SIU team from 2002 that all went to the second weekend in the Dance, Creighton hasn't had an talent dropoff from those squads, especially over the past couple of seasons. I think that attitude is the difference, however. There's a confidence and mental toughness that all those teams had that we haven't quite been able to produce. If we're going to progress in the manner that I think we are more than capable of doing, we're going to have to capture some of that.

Now, while the MVC title race is not mathematically over, the Jays are going to need a lot of help. Southern closes the season at Missouri State, at Indiana State and on senior night against Evansville. Also, throw in there a trip to Butler for the BracketBuster event. Now, I wouldn't be surprised at all if the Salukis came up short in Springfield tomorrow, but it's still going to be asking a lot to have them finish at 1-2. That said, if either of the two teams was going to blow the open path to the MVC trophy that was gained on Saturday, I would say that with the schedule, SIU has the better (albeit slight) chance to do it. Granted, the tiebreaker will mean that SIU should have the top seed in St. Louis locked up, I think it would still be important for this program if we can still push on and gain a share of the title at the end of the season. We need to end the title drought in Omaha.

Also, it's been discussed that the way the games in the regular season went, some believe that sets up the Jays for a strong shot to get over on these guys in the tournament in St. Louis. I think there's something to that. It hasn't been called the "Creighton Invitational" over the past few years for nothing. Now, SIU fan would counter that the Salukis finally broke through last season and won the tourney title. That's a good point, although I think the Salukis were helped quite a bit to avoid having to play either of the three teams that bring the majority of fans to the event (WSU, Creighton and Missouri State). There's no question the 2003 MVC Tournament final is still etched in the minds of the Salukis, and I think it would be a great showcase for the league if that matchup ended up being the CBS broadcast in a few weeks.

I will close this with one thought. It was great to see this matchup once again a part of ESPN's Rivalry Week package of games, however, they do a massive disservice to their fans not to employ basic regionalization so as to not butcher the broadcasts of specific games due to time overruns in previous contests. ESPN regionalizes broadcasts regularly, so it isn't a question of the inability to technically fulfill the demand. Also, the official line from Bristol is "the end of another game is more compelling than the start of another." That's true in some cases, but not all games are made equal and not all games are seen as equal by all fans. If I lived in Oklahoma, and had to endure the delay of the start of the Creighton game due to double overtime in the Oklahoma State-Texas Tech game, that's one thing. However, I live in the home market of one of the teams playing. There's no defensible rationale for not cutting away to the start of the next game for MVC markets. The fact that they MVC can't extract that out of the Boys from Bristol is insulting and, on the part of ESPN Television, it's a slap in the face of large portions of their fan base and there's no two ways about it.

Updates Coming Sunday

2007-02-11T00:19:00.000-05:00

I've discussed on this blog before that sometimes updates do not come as quickly as I'd like because this is just one person's effort and factors of time and competing obligations come into play. However, today is a good example of another reason I can be deliberate on commenting on certain subjects and how quickly that I respond: it is better at times to allow the lapse of time to both calm down and be able to evaluate the surrounding issues with a more critical and rational eye.

With the combination of heartbreaking losses in road games vs ranked teams in both men's hoops and basketball (and both contests being ones that the players legitimately left the arena of play feeling like they let one go by the boards), a more immediate comment would have been an undecipherable screed about awful officiating, lack of killer instinct and the lack of civilized sophistication in the Carbondale area. As cathartic as that may have been, that would have done everyone a disservice and would have largely been an emotional release rather than a rational discussion.

Thus, as time permits this weekend, I will have full reports on both the basketball and baseball games up and will proceed in the manner that I believe you all have come to expect.

Game #1 - Gardner-Webb

2007-02-10T11:10:00.000-05:00

										H	R	E
Gardner-Webb (0-1)	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	3	9	1
Creighton (1-0)	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	11	1

WP - Marc Lewis (1-0), LP - Jonathon Ban (0-1), SV - Andy Masten (1)

2B - GW: Miller, Bubbley, Harris. HR - CU: Gradoville (1)

Box Score

Recaps: CU | GWU
Media: OWH

Over the past few years, it has seemed like the first game of the season has been a good barometer of later success in the season for the Jays. The teams that have won early were able to persevere and make the NCAA Regionals. Teams that struggled early had a hard time catching up. Now, I think the story behind that is simple: with the long road swings and the lack of early outdoor practice time, the teams that have had the talent to overcome that early have been the sorts of teams that have been built for the long haul and to contend for postseason play. So, while it's one game out of 50-60 and it's not against what would be considered a powerhouse by any means, it's a very good sign that Coach Servais' squad was able to come out early yesterday, set the tone and hold on for a solid 4-3 win over Gardner-Webb in the first game of the Winthrop Challenge.

Last season, a lot of offensive lulls and slumps the team saw were attributed to a lack of production and tablesetting at the top of the order. Yesterday was a classic example of what getting runners on base can do for you. The freshman Kansas State transfer Robbie Knight was able to reach base safely to lead off the game against Bulldog starter Jonathon Bam and that limited his options when the big thunder in Chris Gradoville came to the plate and the senior co-captain came through, taking the pitch out to left center to give the Jays a 2-0 lead and off they went.

In his first start of the year, Bluejay ace Marc Lewis showed that he was picking up just where he left off in terms of his dominant performance last season. Going 5.1 innings giving up just an infield hit, Marc cut through the Bulldog lineup with relative ease. Gardner-Webb's chance came in the 7th after Pat Venditte came in to relieve Marc with one out in the sixth. In that seventh inning, Venditte gave up two runs on four hits before being relieved by the senior Scott Reese. Reese did give up the third run of the inning after coming in, but was able to regain control and sat down his last four batters.

One of the keys we mentioned in the season preview was who was going to develop as that tandem with Reese at the end of the bullpen. Today, that job went to the Auburn transfer Andy Masten. Masten came in from right field after going 2-4 at the plate to take the mound in the ninth, suffocating any hopes for a comeback with two strikeouts and his first career save.

We saw a lot of good things in this game. The Jays got out early, received solid contributions from a lot of newcomers, especially Knight, Masten and third baseman Steve Winkelmann, who helped fuel the two run second to put the Jays ahead for good. Now, the big test comes with a game this afternoon against the home standing and 25th ranked Winthrop Eagles. This will be an early opportunity for the Jays to make a statement about what this team is truly capable of doing this season.

Evansville Recap

2007-02-08T09:46:00.000-05:00

Final Score: Creighton 79, Evansville 74

Box Score

Recaps: CU | UE
Media: OWH | Evansville Courier-Press

There has been a massive amount of buildup for Saturday's game vs #21st ranked SIU. It's the matchup between the top two teams in the Valley, on national television during Rivalry Week, in a game that will almost certainly decide will will hoist the MVC Champions trophy and who will settle for a 2 seed in St. Louis. Big problem with that, though: it's not Saturday yet and Evansville chose not to lie down in front of Creighton's Mack Truck. It was a truly classic trap game and one in which the Jays came within a hairsbreadth of losing. The Jays overcome the largest halftime deficit (48-34) in the four year history of the Qwest Center to sneak by the Aces 79-74. The win moves the Jays to 17-7 overall, 11-3 in the Valley and keeps pace with SIU to set up the showdown on Saturday night.

To start off this game, however, to say the Jays looked lethargic is putting it mildly. In many ways the start of this game looked similar to the game versus the Salukis earlier in the year and, with all due respect to a very proud Evansville squad, it's a testament to our failures that we were making them look like the Ugly Dawgs. First and foremost, the Jays were atrocious defensively in that first half. There were far too many open looks and unimpeded lanes to the basket. This added up to the largest lead and total points for an opponent in one half of basketball at the Qwest Center. I could sit here and write pages and pages about the awful things that we did as a team during the first twenty minutes of the game, but it basically all comes down to this: it seemed like this team took the court and believed "We're Creighton and they should be intimidated to even be on the court with us." It doesn't work that way, and it sure doesn't in the Valley. In the post game call-in show, KXSP's Matt Perrault likened it to how the Jays looked and played during the game at Nebraska, in which they took the Huskers far too lightly, allowed them to shot an unconscious percentage from the outside and flat out let it get away from them.

Thankfully, unlike the Nebraska game, this was at home and anything is possible at home. I would be interested to know what Coach Altman said to the team at halftime, because whatever he said must have worked, as the Jays came into the second half like they were shot out of a cannon. In the second period, the Jays stepped up the pressure defense and started to consistently get in the middle of Evansville's 2-3 zone. Things then started to roll downhill quickly. In the end, it was a 25-4 run over the first 8:01 minutes of the second half and just like that, not only was the massive lead for the Aces gone, but now they were in a hole themselves and whatever cobwebs Creighton had in their heads were gone.

Give Evansville credit, however. A lot of teams would have folded like cheap patio furniture in the face of the blitz that the Jays came out with in the second half. They recovered well, even took another lead late and did have a shot at the end, having the ball with the shot clock off and down three. However, at that point, this team wasn't going to be denied at home and held on.

So, now we finally get there. The hype can begin in earnest. As the AP recap of SIU's win last night against Bradley stated: at the end of the game, a chant of "WE WANT CREIGHTON" echoed through the SIU Arena as time wound down. Some may, and will, have legitimate concerns going into this game because of what the Jays showed tonight. However, as bad as it is that the Jays did overlook Evansville last night, there is absolutely no chance that will occur on Saturday night. I do think this team is equipped to give the Salukis a run for their money, with the talent and experience on this squad as well as the fact that this is literally a Championship Game. That said, it's all about the mental block. Like it or not, this SIU team has been in our head for sometime. It's not been the lack of firepower or talent to win these games, but SIU has built their reputation through intimidation. At some point, Creighton is going to have to prove that they're not going to allow the Salukis to get in their heads. That will be the key to this game, bar none.

Baseball Season Preview

2007-02-05T20:06:00.000-05:00

As much as the incredibly frigid weather that we've experienced in eastern Nebraska doesn't suggest it, the start of the 2007 college baseball season is upon us. Ed Servais' Bluejays will come into the new season after experiencing some growing pains in 2006 while attempting to defend their 2005 MVC championship, but will look to contend for both the league championship and the NCAA regionals again in the new year.

Last year, the Jays had to develop an almost entirely new infield, losing key senior leadership in players such as Tony Roth and Brad Dutton as well as the loss of Eric Wordekemper to the New York Yankees in the MLB amateur draft. Coming into this season, some of the keys will be replacing the hole in the lineup created by the departure of Zach Daegas, who was one of the most productive offensive players ever to play at Creighton. Also, the Jays are going to look to create more offensive consistency than they were able to muster last season. It was a struggle all year long developing a true leadoff man and providing consistent protection for Daegas and Chris Gradoville in the middle of the lineup. Replacing some of that thunder in the middle of the lineup will be key as well. Throughout his freshman season, Darin Ruf showed many flashes of the sort of masher that he is capable of becoming. He will need to continue to develop, as well as the team's ability to drive in runs in general.

Going into last season, there was much concern about the front of the starting rotation. Would the Jays be able to fill the void made by the loss of Wordekemper and would Marc Lewis and Jeff Daneff be able to return and be effective? For Lewis, it was very much a sketchy consideration after Lewis' had his season ended early in 2005 after blowing out his elbow while warming up for a start, requiring Tommy John surgery. Famed surgeon Dr. James Andrews of Alabama (who also performed the labrum surgery on Nate Funk around the same time) worked his magic, but even he was amazed at the break-neck progress that Lewis showed in his recovery. Marc was back on the mound in less than a calendar year and just proceeded to post a 6-0 record and sub 2.0 ERA in MVC play, on his way to being first team All-MVC. Lewis was selected by Milwaukee in the 26th round of the MLB draft however, as Steven Pivovar details in his work in the Omaha World-Herald, Lewis was clear that he believed his commitment to come to Creighton was a four year deal and he felt obliged to complete his time in Omaha. Behind Lewis in the rotation will be up in the air early. Young Zak Moore from Elkhorn shifted both between a closer's role as well as the starting rotation last season and he will be leaned on early. A lot of the younger arms in the stable will get auditions early to help shift out roles. Also, another key will be if the Jays can find another reliable option to come out of the pen late and compliment the senior Scott Reese. Reese was most effective when he was paired with the hard throwing Brandon Bird in 2005. Finding that offspeed/hard throwing tandem will be an important question to be resolved.

Another major storyline coming into the season will be the overhaul of the coaching staff assisting Coach Servais this season. The first departure was pitching coach Travis Wyckoff leaving to take the head coaching job at Des Moines (IA) Area Community College. Next, assistant coach Spencer Allen left Creighton to take a position with the Detroit Tigers organization. To replace Wyckoff at the helm of the staff, Servais tapped Purdue pitching coach Rob Smith. Smith had spent five years with the Boilermakers, cutting the ERA of the staff by almost two runs during that period and developed the most productive and successful pitching staff in the Big Ten by the end of his tenure. Replacing Allen is former Iowa Western Community College assistant Jason Shockey, older brother of former Bluejay outfielder Colin Shockey. While Shockey was at IWCC, the Reivers were a top 10 squad in NJCAA Division one each of his three years, as well as developing 18 sophomores into NCAA Division I players. Also, coming home to fill in as a volunteer assistant is former Bluejay ace Tom Oldham. Oldham had been a rising star in the Seattle Mariners organization before suffering a career ending injury last summer. Oldham is in the top 10 in innings pitched and strikeouts as a Jay and was a first team All-MVC pick in 2002.

The Jays will begin the 2007 regular season at the Winthrop Challenge in Rock Hill, SC. First up in the four team event will be the Bulldogs of Gardner-Webb University. First pitch is 11:30 AM on Friday, February 9th.

2007 Roster Breakdown
Position	Players
Pitchers	RHP #10 Zak Moore, So. (6-2, R/R) RHP #12 Ty Johnston, So. (6-2, R/R) RHP #17 Josh Gow, Jr. (6-2, R/R) RHP #24 Andy Masten, Sr. (6-1, R/R) RHP #28 David Merchant, Jr. (6-5, R/R) RHP #30 Matt Bowers, So. (6-2, R/R) RHP #32 Bob Lakovic, Fr. (6-0, R/R) RHP #34 Teddy Ogilvie, Sr. (6-2, R/R) RHP #35 Dan Stanley, Jr. (6-1, R/R) RHP #38 Casey Schmidt, Fr. (6-3, R/R) SHP #27 Pat Venditte, Jr. (6-1, S/S) LHP #13 Greg Hellhake, Fr. (6-1, L/L) LHP #14 Ben Mancuso, Jr. (6-0, L/L) LHP #18 T.J. Roemmich, Fr. (6-1, L/L) LHP #19 Marc Lewis, Sr. (6-0, L/L) LHP #22 Chris Marchildon, Sr. (6-1, L/L) LHP #23 Ian Dike, Fr. (6-3, L/L) LHP #36 Jack Van Leur, Fr. (6-3, L/R) LHP #40 Scott Reese, Sr. (6-6, L/L/)
Catchers	#16 Brett Mieras, Jr. (6-0, R/R) #20 Chris Gradoville, Sr. (6-3, R/R) #32 Bob Lackovic, Fr. (6-0, R/R) #33 Dan Blair, So. (6-1, R/R) #37 Brett Clark, Fr. (6-0, L/R)
Infielders	#1 Michael Lam, Jr. (5-9, R/R) #3 Jimmy Swift, Fr. (6-2, R/R) #4 Ryan Urzendowski, Sr. (6-1, R/R) #7 Chad Ogden, Sr. (5-10, R/R) #8 Steve Winkelmann, Jr. (6-0, R/R) #15 Darin Ruf, So. (6-3, R/R) #16 Brett Mieras, Jr. (6-0, R/R) #26 Joe Bonfe, Fr. (6-4, R/R) #30 Matt Bowers, So. (6-2, R/R) #39 Jimmy Bakers, Sr. (6-2, R/R)
Outfielders	#2 Robbie Knight, RFr. (5-11, R/L) #5 Andrew Small, Sr. (6-2, R/R) #6 Brandon Knox, So. (5-11, R/R) #11 Tyson Parks, So. (6-1, L/L) #16 Brett Mieras, Jr. (6-0, R/R) #18 T.J. Roemmich, Fr. (6-1, L/L) #24 Andy Masten, Sr. (6-1, R/R) #31 Ross Sinclair, Sr. (6-4, R/R)

Drake Recap

2007-02-05T10:17:00.000-05:00

Final Score: Creighton 67, Drake 62

Box Score

Recaps: CU | DU
Media: OWH | Des Moines Register
Photo Galleries: OWH | Des Moines Register

Over the past few years, fans on both sides on this interstate battle have become accustomed to close, hard fought games vs the Jays and Bulldogs in Des Moines. Over the past several years, no matter the disparity in the talent or success of the two teams, and no matter how lopsided some of the contests in Omaha have been, it's been a safe bet to expect Creighton-Drake games in the Knapp Center to go down to the final buzzer.

After Saturday night's game, the story could have been a scrappy last place Drake team taking the first place Jays down to the end. It could have been yet another clutch performance by Pierce Hibma in a game against Drake. It could have been Nate Funk demonstrating again why he is the favorite for MVC Player of the Year by shaking off the relentless harassment of the Drake student section to drop 20 on the road and nail the game winning shot from the right wing in a tie game. It even could have been the thousands of Creighton fans that made the trip up from Omaha to help fill the house and spark quite the two hour shouting match between the two fan bases. However, in part because of how the final minutes of the game played out, but more directly because of how Tom Davis handled himself after the game, the story of the game is the officiating and how Drake and their fans reacted to it.

A lot can be said about the officiating during the game, although that's really not unique when considering that close games invariably can be broken down into a few key possessions and that lends itself to quite a bit of second guessing and 20/20 hindsight when it comes to the calls by the referees. In this game, the most controversial call of the night was made with 19.2 seconds left with Creighton up by two when Drake freshman Josh Young drove to the basket, coming into contact with Anthony Tolliver and making a basket that appeared to tie the game. The whistle blew and Young later admitted he thought he was going to be going to the line with the chance to give Drake the lead, believing he had drawn a blocking foul on Tolliver. Tolliver, however, was set in his defensive position and referee Dan Nowakowski called the charge.

Granted it was a close call and fans certainly expect to get the benefit of doubt at home. However, the benefit of the tape from the television broadcast doesn't leave much doubt in terms of the fact that Tolliver had set defensive position. However, when driving the ball to the basket against a opposing team's center, one has to expect an attempt to draw the offensive foul. That's something that the coaching staff has to expect and prepare against, leaving other outlets such as the kick out or the dish to another cutting player.

After the play, the Bulldogs would be forced to foul immediately, sending Nick Porter to the line who split a pair of free throws giving the Jays a three point lead at 65-62. Drake would come back down the court and, with less than ten seconds remaining, ending up pinning their hopes on an Al Stewart drive to the basket hoping to extend the contest. Stewart's shot was blocked by Tolliver and the Bulldogs were incensed they did not get a goaltending call on the play. Again, with the benefit of television replay, it looks fairly clear that Tolliver was able to block the ball at the apex of the shot and avoid the goaltend. However, in this case, no matter whether a call was made or not, that doesn't excuse the mental lapse of turning down an attempt to go for the tie when you're under ten seconds left. With so little time and the number of quality foul shooters the Jays have, you have to try and set up the game tying shot in that situation.

If it was just a set of close calls towards the end of the game, that would be a story but that's not unexpected in a tight game. The biggest shock of the night was, quite frankly, the extremely unprofessional way that Drake coach Tom Davis handled his reaction to the officiating in front of the media, both to the Drake radio broadcasters as well as to reporters from both markets in the post game press conference.

Driving home from Des Moines on Saturday night, I listened to Davis' comments on KRNT-AM after the game. The first statement Davis made was that Drake is not a program expected to win these sorts of games at this point. Be it fans, or opposing players or... "administrators or officials, Drake is not expected to be able to win games like this." That's bad enough in terms of questioning the intentions and decision making of league officials, however, in his press conference remarks, Davis wasn't nearly as subtle. In the Omaha World-Herald article, Davis is quoted as saying:

"I didn't think it was a very good call. Obviously, I'm biased, but I had a good look, right in front of our bench. I try to be as impartial as I can when I look at those things.... There were six or seven calls, all down the stretch, that went Creighton's way. That seemed a little unusual but that's what good teams do. They find a way to put themselves in that position. You have to give them credit, and go from there.''

Also, Big Sports 590's Matt Perrault has more comments from Davis transcribed in his blog entry from Sunday. Perrault asked Davis about the fact that Tolliver played the last three minutes of the game with four fouls called and his response was:

"I thought we did get [Tolliver] out of the game 3 or 4 times to be honest but there were no calls. So nothing you can say, it’s a matter of judgement. I thought was key to the game for the last several minutes – how it was called and how it was officiated – sometimes you get a break – sometimes you don’t. Tonight we got nothing down the stretch.”

Finally, Rick Brown of the Des Moines Register asked Davis about the block by Tolliver, noting that the television crew of Mitch Holthus and Mac MacCausland commented that it looked like Tolliver did not commit goaltending on the play:

"Ya, well, I’d like to see again for myself. Sometimes, you know, guys get paid by certain people…..right? That’s been known to happen – so I’d look at it myself, not that I would doubt their opinion. But I think that’s why Creighton is good and they do a lot of good things and they put themselves in position to beat you…good team, well coached, good ball club."

So, in summary, it was the opinion of Coach Davis that not only were the two calls incorrect, but:

Anywhere from six or seven calls in a row (specifics withheld) went against the Bulldogs and broke in the Jays' favor;
These calls came from the fact that Creighton is perceived as the better program and that Drake either isn't expected to compete with them or that the league would rather they didn't upset the co-leaders of the league on Drake's home floor; and finally
The opinions of Holthus and MacCausland on the calls in question are fueled by the fact they are contractors of the MVC, and thus expected to support the supposed biases that Davis believes the league has against Drake.

Tom Davis is a coach that has been in the business for a very long time. With coaching stops at places like Boston College, Stanford and Iowa, this isn't Dr. Tom's first dance. He should know better than to come out and, quite frankly, whine about the officiating like this. It doesn't do you any good, it paints a bad picture of the league as a whole and your program in particular and it's not going to buy you any breaks for the future. Another good example of this was earlier in the game when Davis threw a fit on the sideline, claiming Ajay Calvin was undercut on a dunk. However, again, no one was even close to touching him and the video was damning.

What I think it basically comes down to is that there's been a lot of frustration in Des Moines over the total lack of direction and progression in this Drake program and the justified perception that the gap between the Bulldogs and the rest of the league is widening every year. At one time, Creighton and Drake were in similar situations. Both institutions are similar in terms of size and location. That said, Creighton has established itself as the dominant program in it's hometown, has built a financial base that is the envy of other schools of it's size and enrollment and has basketball success on a national level.

For Drake, they are at best third or fourth in the pecking order in Des Moines, don't have access to anywhere near the financial assets that Creighton and other Valley programs have and are hamstrung by a small fan base and facilities that rank them at or near the bottom of the league. Tom Davis came in a few years ago after the Kurt Kanaskie fiasco with visions of an Altmanesque turnaround, but here we sit with a senior laden Drake squad that cannot finish games, doesn't show much in the way of basketball sense and is dead last in the league yet again and doesn't look to be pulling out of the cellar any time soon.

With all the close losses to Creighton at home over the past few years, finally all that angst and frustration finally overflowed into the hissy fit that we saw Davis and his players throw on Saturday night. There has to be consequences, however, and I wouldn't be surprised if Davis ends up with a fine from the MVC front office for his comments to the press.

Going into last week, there was a lot of talk about if the Jays could split the road trip, that would do well to cement them either into first or second in the league and would set up the stretch run. With the Jays sweeping the swing through Peoria and Des Moines, that does a lot to separate the top two teams in this league from the other eight and helps set up a likely showdown this Saturday night in Carbondale for the MVC regular season championship. Also, with the Jays sporting the best road record in the Valley, an 8-2 record in their last ten games and top 25 RPI, it would take a serious collapse for Creighton to not secure an NCAA at-large bid if it is required.

Osborne and Creighton

2007-01-29T21:18:00.000-05:00

In Sunday's edition of the Omaha World-Herald, sports columnist Tom Shatel ran an interview with the former Nebraska head football coach and former U.S. Congressman Tom Osborne. One might ask, well what does that have to do with Creighton? Everything, actually. Since leaving office, Osborne has been serving as a consultant and advisor to the Creighton athletic department. Invited by Bruce Rasmussen and David Sokol, Osborne comes down weekly to speak with and advise both coaches and student athletes, especially Coach Altman and his team.

Osborne explained to Shatel that when he agreed to work with CU, he made it clear he didn't want this to be publicised as some sort of slap in the face at UNL, which is understanding considering his history with that institution. That said, the one line that popped out in the article was when Shatel asked, quite frankly, why working with Creighton instead of Nebraska: they didn't ask.

Now, for those of us that live here in Nebraska, the whole soap opera of Pederson-Solich-Callahan is a well known story, so I won't go into that here. Needless to say, it's no secret that Osborne was not pleased with both the changes that occurred in Lincoln as well as how they were handled and how those deeply involved with the history of their football program was treated. Dr. Osborne is not just a well regarded former coach, but he is a very adept politician. He's well aware of his "wise sage/elder statesman" position in this state and with the vast majority of Husker fans and he doesn't want to damage that. However, he knows how to get his point across subtly. He doesn't have to come out and slam Pederson and his cadre in public, but can select when he talks and to whom he talks to make his thoughts clear.

Rasmussen and Altman are both intelligent fellows and they've known what Osborne's agenda is from the beginning. That said, they're more than willing to gain the PR boost and especially at NU's expense. Osborne is so respected in this state that having him associated with the program will only serve to open some scarlet-colored eyes. It's not like he doesn't have anything to offer. Dr. Osborne has a long history of developing young athletes and getting the most out of his players. In the article, Nick Porter mentioned the talk that he gave to the seniors on the squad before the Missouri State game and said he believed that was a key in helping prepare the team for success.

One has to notice, though, the way this story was handled and how it's just another thrust in the side of Nebraska basketball. They have their biggest home game of the year tonight against Kansas on ESPN's Big Monday package, and the dominant story in the sports media is "Why has Nebraska alienated Tom Osborne from the program?" I think that the people around the UNL program are starting to realize that Creighton has had the opportunity to set down far more roots in the Omaha area than they believed and that's going to be a far more difficult task to overcome.

MVC Home Stretch

2007-01-29T16:21:00.000-05:00

As we enter the final days of January and February looms near, the final leg of the race for the Valley championship is now here. A major part of the discussion will be both who is left on the slate for each team as well as where those games will be played. With Creighton and SIU tied for the MVC lead at this point, the fact that the Salukis both have the majority of their games left at home as well as the return date with the Jays in Carbondale, this is a key part of why the Ugly Dawgs are the odds on favorite to win the title.

Now, the Jays have four road games left in the league schedule. Two of these games (at Drake and at Illinois State) are the sort that one would think that CU has a good shot walking away with the victory. Obviously, there's going to be a large contingent of Creighton fans at the Knapp Center this weekend and the Redbirds are currently in the cellar of the league and one would hope the team is focused enough at the end of the season to get the job done in Normal. Obviously the Jays are going to have the hold serve at home and they're going to need to create some opportunities on the road. Unfortunately, the bid for the title outright will require some outside assistance, but I think if the Jays can close out with a 12-6 sort of record, we should be either tied for the title or, at worse, a game back and in second place. If the Jays can avoid a major letdown in St. Louis as they experienced last year, that should be a position that will set up for an at-large bid if needed.

*Remaining MVC Schedules*
Team	Home	Away	Games
Bradley (6-5)	4	3	vs Creighton at Illinois St. at Southern Ill. vs Drake at Evansville vs Northern Iowa vs Indiana St.
Creighton (8-3)	3	4	at Bradley at Drake vs Evansville at Southern Ill. vs Northern Iowa at Illinois St. vs Wichita St.
Drake (3-8)	4	3	vs Missouri St. vs Creighton at Northern Iowa at Bradley vs Wichita St. vs Evansville at Missouri St.
Evansville (5-6)	3	4	at Illinois St. vs Northern Iowa at Creighton vs Indiana St. vs Bradley at Drake at Southern Ill.
Illinois St. (3-8)	3	4	vs Evansville vs Bradley at Missouri St. at Wichita St. vs Indiana St. vs Creighton at Northern Iowa
Indiana St. (4-6)	4	4	at Southern Ill. vs Missouri St. vs Northern Iowa at Wichita St. at Evansville vs Illinois St. vs Southern Ill. at Bradley
Missouri St. (6-5)	3	4	at Drake at Indiana St. vs Illinois St. at Northern Iowa vs Southern Ill. at Wichita S. vs Drake
Northern Iowa (6-4)	4	4	vs Wichita St. at Evansville at Indiana St. vs Drake vs Missouri St. at Creighton at Bradley vs Illinois St.
Southern Ill. (8-3)	4	3	vs Indiana St. at Wichita St. vs Bradley vs Creighton at Missouri St. at Indiana St. vs Evansville
Wichita St. (5-6)	4	3	at Northern Iowa vs Southern Ill. vs Indiana St. vs Illinois St. at Drake vs Missouri St. at Creighton

On the rebound...

2007-01-27T20:40:00.000-05:00

After the heartbreaking loss to the Salukis at home last Saturday, the Jays faced a slate including a difficult road test against a Missouri State team needing to right the ship and a home date with an Indiana State team against which CU let slip away one of the most promising opportunities for a Valley road victory. Probably the biggest question going into this stretch was the mindset of the team: would the strain of the close losses to Wichita State and Southern Illinois shake the confidence of the Jays or would we see a Creighton team with a renewed commitment to success?

Against the Bears on Wednesday night, we saw the Jays answer each time that Missouri State looked to create some separation. MSU led most of the first half, but CU kept them within an arm's length and, bam, Nick Bahe gets the breakaway basket with the foul and the Jays end the first half with a two point lead. In the second half, the Jays were able to stake the early lead with a personal run by Nate Funk starting with a jumper to give CU the lead in the second half with under 12 minutes left. The Bears split a pair of free throws after a Manny Gakou foul, but then Funk came right down with a three. Blake Ahearn made two free throws after a Josh Dotzler foul, but then another three by Funk. MSU was able to get two more free throws after being fouled after getting a steal, but back down the court Funk made the layup... but, got the free throw to complete the old fashion three point play. This is a perfect example of the sort of play we have been fortunate enough to get out of the senior MVP candidate. Not only will Nate put up the numbers you want, but he can literally put the team on his back and will them to success as he did here on Wednesday.

The Bears weren't going to go down that easily. They chipped away over several minutes and topped it off with an absolute bomb of a three from Ahearn to retake the lead. However, next trip down the floor, Nick Porter nails the three from the wing and the Jays retake control. Nick's line on the night has one glaring flaw that traditionalists will crinkle their nose at---six turnovers--but there is no question that we do not win in Springfield without the contributions of the man from Compton. Nick not only put up the points, but like Nate, carried this team offensively for stretches of the game. Nick has a tendency to get a lot of grief because he can follow up an awesome cut to the basket with a silly turnover the next trip down, but make no question he has been just as critical during this stretch as Nate and Anthony.

Now, we arrive at Anthony Tolliver. Much was made before the game about this being Anthony's last trip home to Springfield and the fact that he had yet to get a win in the Hammons Center during his career at Creighton. The A-Train was able to put together another great game: 13 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 blocks. Also, you could tell the passion and the drive that Anthony had to finally finish this off and get that specter of the hometown team put away. Kudos to both Anthony and the coaching staff in keeping that energy channeled positively.

The Jays were able to seal the deal and weather the late MSU fury to close with a 66-62 win. This put the Jays back on track and kept us in a first place tie with the Salukis. Coming into Saturday afternoon's tilt with Indiana State, they theme of the day was to stay consistent and avoid any letdowns. With the 55-52 loss to the Sycamores in Terre Haute, as well as the first home game after an equally disappointing one point loss to SIU, ISU was guaranteed to have the Jays full attention.

The afternoon on Sunday belonged to the young man from Sioux City again. With 20 points, Nate Funk was able to join the top 10 in all-time Creighton scoring, passing John C. Johnson with his career 1,527 points. Not unlike the game against Missouri State, Nate was able to carry the load personally and with his 5-6 shooting in the first half, kept the Jays on pace offensively as the ground down the Sycamores over the long haul.

Two things really stood out from the game, however. First was the strong effort by Dane Watts. Watts has been able to adjust well to his position as a key role player on this year's squad. He has been most impressive with his effort on the glass. Dane ripped down 12 boards on the day which put him with double digit rebounds for the fourth time in five games. Dane has been the Jays' most consistent rebounder all season long and has taken to the role with quite a bit of enthusiasm.

Also, we cannot go without mentioning the effort that Manny Gakou put together. A big question all year has been what the Jays would do if both Tolliver and Watts were limited either by foul trouble or, heaven forbid, injury. The end of the SIU game showed us that, with the redshirting of Kenny Lawson and the departure of Ty Morrison, that Coach Altman didn't have any options he felt like he could trust. The fact that the Jays put out a lineup of five guards with Gakou staying on the bench had to be a bit of a challenge to the young Frenchman: you need to show us that you are capable of producing solid reserve minutes. On Saturday, the big man was able to do just that. Manny played a career high of 13 minutes with 3 points and 3 rebounds. The numbers don't tell the story, however. Manny was able to show a solid defensive effort, being able to stay with his man and keep from committing silly fouls. He was able to stay with his man even out to the three point line, showed some nice agility by grabbing a rebound and taking the ball up the court by himself, and even showed a bit of a fire streak with a hard foul to break up a fast break opportunity late.

It wasn't a pretty game, but the Jays came out and did exactly what they needed to do: played hard on the defensive end, crashed the boards and let their playmakers do their thing offensively. This team finally seems to feel comfortable in it's own skin and knows what it needs to do to make a run.

It will not get any easier from here on out. With a trip to Peoria and Des Moines on tap this week, the Jays aren't going to have a lot of margin for error. However, with both the Salukis and Jays tied at 8-3 in Valley play, we are starting to see some separation at the top of the league's standings. We are in good position and have our fate in our own hands, which is all you can ask for.

Southern Illinois Postmortem

2007-01-23T21:07:00.000-05:00

Final Score: Southern Illinois 59, Creighton 58

Box Score

Recaps: CU | SIU
Media: OWH | Southern Illinoisan
Photo Gallery: OWH

Over the past several years, Creighton and Southern Illinois have had little competition as the top two programs in the Valley. It has been the consistency and success that the Jays and Salukis have had that sparked the rebirth of Valley basketball. The league would be nowhere near where it is today if the other 8 schools had not been challenged to raise their level of play and commitment to men's basketball by what was going on in Omaha and Carbondale. However, ever since that faithful night in St. Louis in 2003, this rivalry has been nothing but even.

It's hard to express how frustrating it is that the Salukis have had our number over the past four years. It's not like the Jays have been in a slump overall during that period. We've been in the postseason every one of those years and since the move to the Qwest Center, there have only been six losses to teams not named SIU. Also, it's not like these games have been blowouts. We've played the Salukis close, both at home and even at the SIU Arena, where the Salukis have one of the most dominant home court records in all of Division I during that period. All four games at the Qwest against the Ugly Dawgs have been tight affairs, with two going down to the very last possession and the final buzzer.

Initially it didn't look like this game would be all that close. SIU, not know as an offensive juggernaut to say the least, came out on fire and started the game making 6-7 three point attempts. Conversely, we opened the game with just 6 points over the first 13 or so minutes of the contest, with the lead swelling up to 21-9 with about six minutes in the half.

However, for as poorly as the Jays started and as close as the Ugly Dawgs came to running away and hiding early, they never quite landed the knockout punch and Creighton just keep chipping away. The Jays started to hit some of their free throws, which we hadn't been in the first period, and kept SIU within striking distance. Although it was one of the worst halves of basketball the Jays played all year, we were only down 28-23 at the break.

After halftime, the Jays immediately started to cut into the deficit with a three by Dane Watts and Nate Funk drawing contact and making his shots. This brought the lead for SIU to two and it would vacillate around that point for the next several minutes.

Just under 8 minutes to play however, Funk capped off an 8-0 run with a driving shot in the lane to give the Jays the first lead of the game at 41-40. This would eventually swell to 50-43 with just under 5 minutes to play and it looked like the Jays were just about to really get control of the contest.

Two things happened next, however. First, with the seven point lead, it did seem like the Jays lost a bit of that tenacity and aggressiveness. It seemed like the team was trying to just hold on, work clock and just weather the storm. Also, it was at this point the foul situation really started to damn the short handed Jays.

Whenever we play the Salukis, invariably the issue of officiating receives a lot of press. Like it or not, the Salukis have found a system that works. Over the past few years, they have perfected a system that is based on the concept that the referees cannot call a foul on ever single play, no matter how much contact you commit consistently. That way, they constantly keep both the opposing team as well as the officials on their back heels and keep the game played on their terms.

Personally, I don't like it at all and I feel it's an offense to the way in which the game of basketball was meant to be played. However, you can't fault them for doing what works. Like it or not, SIU has been able to execute that game plan and have rode that to this stretch of both league championships as well as NCAA tournaments. At some point, you just have to man up and stop them.

The fouls that ended up disqualifying both Watts and Anthony Tolliver have received a lot of press and I don't have much to add to that. All I have to say is that in the case of Tolliver, for that relatively small amount of contact (especially considering the amount of contact that occurred on every single possession of the game), to foul out the last forward available for a team is inexcusable. Creighton had their opportunities and could have overcome that mistake by the officials, but it does everyone a disservice to ignore the mistake. Basketball referees are not infallible and, by their actions, most definitely have not deserved to be held up as unquestionable.

Regardless, however, what fundamentally killed the Jays was that the team seemed to retreat into a shell once they built up a decent sized league. They seemed to expect to be worn down by the physicality that the Salukis bring for 40 minutes, as has been the case in many of the previous contests with this team. However, that only plays into their hands. When you try to play that tight against this team, they use that psychological edge to get you to make mistakes, try to play outside yourself and become vulnerable.

It's not an issue of talent. Even with the depth issues this CU team now has, I think the Jays are the better team and the team that is better built for success down the stretch. However, that's been the case the last few years and, quite frankly, that's not enough. This team needs to match the toughness and confidence that the Salukis bring to the table. Until it does that, it's not going to get over on this team.

There's still a lot of basketball left and no one has taken control of this championship race. However, this team just handed one back. As much as the team stole one by closing the deal with a solid win at the McLeod Center in Cedar Falls, by dropping this home game, we're back to even. A good opportunity to resolve that is tomorrow in Springfield. Missouri State will come in losers of two straight and licking their chops for revenge after the way the game in Omaha ended. This would be a great opportunity to emulate some of that toughness and swagger that SIU uses so well to their advantage.

Bradley Recap

2007-01-19T10:08:00.000-05:00

Final Score: Creighton 65, Bradley 54

Box Score

Recaps: CU | BU
Media: OWH | Peoria Journal-Star | AP

In many ways, Thursday night's game set up against the Jays. Creighton was coming off of a disappointing loss in Wichita on Monday and the buildup for the showdown with hated SIU was already starting. Bradley came into Omaha as one of the most prolific three point shooting squads in the nation. Considering how poor the Jays have been defending on the perimeter, this seemed to just come together as the classic "trap" for a team looking past a lightly regarded, yet dangerous opponent. In fact, one only needs to look at what happened to the Salukis themselves: they prepared for a potential battle for first place by getting taken down by a resilient Evansville team that has a lot of talent returning and a desire to prove themselves.

Bradley, however, is a team that had to look to more inexperienced options going into this season. After losing major players from last season's Sweet 16 squad to both graduation as well as the NBA draft, the Braves had to remake their identity. No longer able to rely on the big anchor of Patrick O'Bryant in the middle or the playmaking abilities of Marcellus Sommervile, Coach Jim Les had no choice but to revise his plan of attack and put a new face on his squad.

In the first half of Thursday's game, it looked like that may well have worked against the Jays, as the Braves were able to produce quality looks on a consistent basis against the Bluejay matchup zone. However, this perimeter sort of style that the Braves now play is vulnerable to a cold start, especially on the road, and that can very well get the snowball rolling, and that is exactly what happened for them. Unable to find their early shooting touch, Bradley was unable to get into a rhythm and was really never able to recover. With a set of quality and athletic guard, like Ruffin and Tauai and Franklin, BU makes their living beating their man off the dribble and creating opportunities either at the basket or for the easy kick out. Even though the Jays weren't able to match their speed, they played strong zone defense especially in the second half and held Bradley well under their averages in three point shots made and percentage.

The biggest concerns, however, is the 21 turnovers the Jays committed. Granted, with the pressure that Bradley can bring, that's going to turn up the numbers a bit, but overall, the central problem of the night was failing to be secure with the basketball. There were a number of just plain sloppy plays, with young Nick Porter being a generator of much of the frustration. There's two schools of thought here. One might say it's a good thing the Jays saw as much pressure as they did to help prepare for the game against the Salukis. That said, if we don't see a major difference in the ball handling, that will just play into SIU's hands. Also, here comes the question of how to utilize a Josh Dotzler who is recovering from the hand injury, is limited in what he can do with the basketball because of it, and has never quite been the same on his feet since knee surgery last year. It will be interesting to see how much time he's able to play on Saturday, considering how limited he's been and what a liability that creates in his handling of the basketball.

There's a lot to be negative about in Thursday's game if one wants to be, but overall, it was an 11 point win at home against a solid Valley foe. It was an ugly game, but when Creighton does what it wants to do, it plays ugly basketball. This is not a finesse team that wants to get out and run up and down the floor and play to more superficial interests. When Creighton is effective, it's a team that runs it's sets well, plays inside-out ball, lets it's playmakers carry the show and is active on the defensive end of the floor. The Jays were right about in their comfort zone with 65 points.

Overall, I think one shouldn't get caught up in too much of the details of this game. It was a difficult game against an opponent not getting the credit they deserve and it was very easy to get caught up in the rivalry to come. The most important thing about a game like this is that you do the job and get past it. The way Bradley was shooting on Thursday, even with the Braves keeping it close on the scoreboard, there was never a feeling that they were about to put together a run and take the game back. We can now safely put this game aside and concentrate on the showdown to come on Saturday.

Wichita State Recap

2007-01-16T16:26:00.000-05:00

Final Score: Wichita State 62, Creighton 59

Box Score

Recaps: CU | WSU
Media: OWH | Wichita Eagle
Photo Gallery: Wichita Eagle

Going into this two game road swing, I think if you had told most Creighton fans we would come out of the weekend with a split between UNI and Wichita State and would sit with a share of first place come Tuesday morning, the vast majority of Bluejay fans would have taken that and been more than happy with it. That said, the way that the game played out last night in Wichita, one cannot help but be disappointed with the major opportunity that passed by unfulfilled, as WSU survives with a 62-59 victory.

In the first half of the ballgame, it was the Kyle Wilson show. The Shockers were able to exploit the Creighton zone by shifting Wilson out towards the perimeter and catching the Jays with a smaller guard on him. Wilson was 8-11 from the floor and 2-2 from beyond the arc in the first half for 18 points in 15 minutes of play. Here we saw a similar storyline that's become far too familiar this season: the inability to recognize shooters and to react on the perimeter. In several games this season, this has just killed the Jays and Monday night was not much different.

However, for all the efforts of Wilson, no other Shocker had more than five points at halftime and the Jays were only down 32-30 after Nate Funk was able to drive the lane and lay the ball in at the buzzer.

In the second half, the Jays did a better job on Wilson, but it was the wild-haired guard Sean Ogirri that took over on the offensive end. Ogirri was 5-6 from the floor and 2-3 from three for 12 points in the period.

In my mind, however, the biggest story of the game isn't necessarily what the Shockers did, but what the Jays didn't do. For the game, the Jays had 14 turnovers, but it wasn't the number of turnovers, but the critical moments when they occurred. Time and time again, the Jays had possession of the ball with a chance to take the lead with a shot and either missed a shot or turned the ball over. Everyone talks about the "big shot" or "clutch possession" in basketball and CU had absolutely none of them against the Shox.

In terms of individual performances, one of the key problems for the Jays was the limited performance of Anthony Tolliver. Anthony had 9 points and 6 boards and it was one of the more quiet nights he's had in quite some time. The way this team is constructed this season, we need Anthony to be the center of this offense. The Jays are successful when this team runs inside-out: getting the ball down to AT in the blocks for him to either take it to the hole, pull out the jump hook or mid-range jumper, dish it off or kick it out to the perimeter. We cannot afford the A-Train to have an off night and to find much success, especially on the road.

Funk led the team with 16 points, but he was not himself either. Nate was only 6-16 from the floor, 3-8 from beyond the arc, and had the crushing two missed free throws on the three shot foul with 20 seconds left and the Jays down by three. At the very end of the game, in a sight so eerily similar to what we saw in Terre Haute, the Jays went for the most obvious option for a final shot--Nate from the perimeter while down three--and both times the opposition was able to react and came up for the block to take away even the possibility of a miracle. Everyone in this league is extremely familiar with what Nate can do, and with that in mind, the better play is to use Nate as a decoy and set up for a final shot by someone like Dane Watts or even Isaac Miles.

As we sit now, though, we retain our share of first place in the Missouri Valley with a 5-2 record. Also at 5-2 as of 01/16/06 is Missouri State and Southern Illinois. This sets up a massive week of basketball for the Jays. On Thursday night, a scrappy Bradley Braves squad comes into Omaha. BU may have lost quite a bit to both graduation and pro basketball, but one only has to look at the way they took the Sycamores apart on the road (and think back to the struggles the Jays had in the house that Bird built) to realize that this is not the sort of team to be taken lightly. This game does have trap written all over it, and that's because Saturday night will be a showdown with Creighton's biggest rival: the Salukis of Southern Illinois. There's a chance that both teams will come in tied for first in the Valley, there will be a regional TV audience with the Valley FSN folks in town and it looks like the Jays will bid for the first sellout in the expanded Qwest Center, with less than 1000 tickets unsold as of Tuesday.

We don't have any time to sit around and feel sorry about ourselves and dwell over opportunities lost. This team needs to collect themselves, keep focused on what's still very much ahead of us, and defend the home court.

Halftime Report: Wichita State 32, Creighton 30

2007-01-15T19:51:00.000-05:00

A lot was mentioned coming into this game how much of a "must win" this is for Wichita State: the need to protect home court, the 2-4 MVC start, a chance to pick up a game on the Valley leaders, etc. So far, the Shockers have been playing like it. Led by the unconscious offensive play of Kyle Wilson with 18 points, the Shockers lead at half, but only by two.

Give a lot of credit to the Jays: they knew how much of a battle this was going to be and so far, they've taken the punches from the Shox and are right here in the game at halftime. It's rather amazing that, with the foul trouble that Tolliver got into with 2 fouls, the increased turnovers that we saw in the first period and the limited offensive output of Nate Funk, that we're right here and toe to toe with WSU.

For the second half, we're going to need to do a far better job of containing Wilson. Both PJ Cousinard and Sean Ogirri were off and in foul trouble in that first half but Wilson has been just killing the Jays so far. By sliding out on the perimeter and doing a good job of exploiting a mismatch by getting a guard isolated on him, he's been able to shoot the lights out and keep Wichita State going. Also, we're going to need to do a far better job of getting it inside to Tolliver and Watts and exploit the advantage we have down low. Tolliver was limited by foul trouble, but late in the game, Watts was shifted over to the five and was effective. We're going to need both to do what we need to win this game.

You can't ask for much more than to have a shot late on the road, and so far the Jays have done a good job of keeping WSU within reach. If we can just pick it up a bit more, we will have our chance.

Northern Iowa Recap

2007-01-13T16:02:00.000-05:00

Final Score: Creighton 62, Northern Iowa 54

Box Score

Recaps: CU | UNI
Media: OWH | Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier | Des Moines Register
Photo Galleries: UNI | Des Moines Register

When the Jays went into Evansville last week and finally got on the right side of the road ledger, the hope was that would be the spark that would get Creighton some much needed confidence when playing away from the Qwest Center and we could start to see some real progress. That said, I don't think anyone expected what we saw last night. Creighton blows out to a 20-4 lead, holds UNI to a season low 15 total points in the first half and, while they were definitely threatened in the second half, made sure the game was played on their terms and was in control from buzzer to buzzer.

Going into this game, there were a number of factors working against our Jays. Obviously, the road struggles that we've had have been well documented. Not only that, this wasn't the same sort of atmosphere as the sterile, cavernous UNI-Dome: the new McLeod Center is a intimate building that gives the Panthers the sort of home court advantage they've been sorely lacking. First and foremost, however, this is a very good Panther team this year. Powered by the tandem of Grant Stout and Eric Coleman, Northern Iowa has not missed a beat in the first year under Ben Jacobson. They swept Iowa and Iowa State, won at Wichita State, beat SIU at home and are still very much in the Valley title race.

Through all that, however, our Bluejays didn't just persevere, they thrived. It was all powered by the seniors. Nate Funk showed again why he was selected preseason Player of the Year. The line itself was impressive: 24 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists. It wasn't just about the pure numbers, though. Funk had 17 of his points in the second half and, every time the Panthers would start to get rolling, he would hit the dagger shot to keep UNI at bay. No one put it better than UNI's own Eric Coleman in the WCF Courier:

"That's why he's one of the best in the league. We'd get it down to three or four points and he'd hit a big shot. Good players do that."

Before the season, one major point of discussion was how would the tandem of Funk and Anthony Tolliver work together, with the new-look A-Train. Early in the year, you could tell they weren't on the same page, but over the past few games, we are starting to see a real groove developing. Last night, Tolliver was on again with his 17 points and 6 boards. One really has to give credit to the job that both Tolliver and Dane Watts did last night. Coleman and Stout are considered by some the best frontcout tandem in the league. They present a very difficult matchup for most teams, but Anthony and Dane did a great job of keeping them in check and forcing the Panthers to look for other answers. CU was +4 in rebounds on the night, held UNI to only 22 points in the paint kept, Coleman in foul trouble most of the night and held Stout scoreless throughout the entire first half.

Also, another point of debate has been who will step up as the third scoring option on this team. While Nick Porter has been able to do that at point this season, tonight again Dane stepped up. His 10 points were key in helping to keep the Panthers honest as the Big Two tore them up.

Overall, I would lean towards calling this the best performance we've seen the Jays put together over forty minutes, home or away. Defensively, the team was solid all night and played a tough matchup zone that UNI was never truly able to get comfortable against. While we got solid performances up and down the roster, our senior stars showed why they're leaders.

With the win the Jays stay on top of the Valley with a 5-1 record and serve notice, with wins in hand over Missouri State and Northern Iowa, the reports of our demise have been greatly exaggerated. The next test will be key, though. On Monday night, we are going to have to make the trip down to the always-difficult Koch Arena and face a Wichita State squad that is backed into the corner. The Shockers have been awful since conference play rolls around and all the accolades that came with beating LSU and Syracuse and shooting into the Top 10 are all gone. The Shockers went from the story of the early season to a team that is on the wrong side of the bubble. Even with the ultra-competitive Valley, they may well be out of the league title discussion, but it's a true must win for WSU to simply keep everything from slipping away. We all know how much of a chip that the Shockers players, coaches and fans have about us. They will give us every fiber of their beings come Monday.

Halftime Report: Evansville 38, Creighton 35

2007-01-06T20:07:00.000-05:00

For about 14 minutes, the Jays had far and away their best half of basketball on the road this year brewing. While the struggles from the floor of this Bluejay squad have been well documented so far in the first half of the season, CU was bombing away from three, including a trio of treys from Nick Bahe, who wasn't even expected to play tonight after hurting his ankle against Indiana State.

The turning point ironically came when Matt Webster, who is leading the league in scoring early on, collected his second foul with a slinging elbow call with about six minutes left in the half. Webster spent the rest of the period sitting on the bench and his teammates seemed to have a fire lit under their tails. The Aces were able to get a couple turnovers, start to hit some outside shots and got the ball rolling downhill as UE closed the half on a 19-2 run to take a three point lead into halftime.

Granted, it's hard to do a much about 25 foot threes that are going in, but again, the Jays fail to recongize the importance of not letting the most potent offensive weapon on the floor beat you. With Webster on the bench, that's the outside shooting of Jason Holsinger, who was firing away and drove most of that final run. That is unacceptable and that gets you beat on the road by a team that has no business staying with you.

The bombs were falling for Creighton throughout the first half, but the Jays cannot get into a quick trigger mode. The bread and butter for this team is to get the ball to Tolliver on the blocks and get to the basket and create. We cannot fail to do that. Threes in this system need to be taken after the extra pass or on the kickout, and we forgot that down the stretch.

Hawaii Recap

2006-12-27T20:46:00.000-05:00

Final Score: Hawaii 76, Creighton 60

Box Score

Recaps: CU | UH
Media: OWH | Honolulu Star-Bulletin

"Two steps forward, one step back."

That phrase is iconic of the experience of the Bluejays in the 2006 Rainbow Classic. After two stellar efforts in back to back nights, the Jays started off the championship game at Hawaii well - showing at points an effort and intensity not seen in any of the other three road contests that CU had played to date - but were unable to close the deal and eventually succumbed to the career nights of Warriors guard Matt Lojeski and forward Ahmet Gueye as Hawaii defeated Creighton 76-60.

With the pieces that the Jays have this year, for us to be successful, we have to play with maximum defensive intensity and to stay in the structure of the offense. When we do this, not only can we be successful but we can be very dangerous, but like all Altman teams have been, this team cannot be successful when the team plays as individual parts, instead of the unified whole.

We saw a lot of very good things at points in this tournament. Especially in the semifinal against Houston: the Cougars are exactly the sort of team that has given the Jays fits, especially this year. The team showed great discipline in covering the perimeter and forcing UH into the half court set. On the other end of the court, we saw the best exhibition of inside-out basketball that we've witnessed all year.

Against the Warriors, we saw some great tenacity early on in the contest. However, we saw the Jays slide back into old habits as the game went on. What's been the most distributing trend with this team is the tendency to become "black holes" and for players try to do too much themselves. "Make the extra pass" is an old coaching cliche, but it rings true. You get more open shots out of the flow of the offensive set than you do in isolation. It's far more easier to catch the defense off guard when you move the basketball around the floor and throw multiple looks at the opposition. These are basic fundamentals of basketball, however, at times they can get lost in all the discussion about talent and expectations and so on. When the team struggles the most, it's generally the best thing to strip away the superfluous and get back to basics. We've seen this team do it this year and, when they have, they've been at their best.

Nothing gets easier at this point. On Saturday, conference play begins with a strong Missouri State team coming into Omaha. Also, like last year, we're going to have to learn to find success for a time without Josh Dotzler. Josh dislocated two fingers against Valparaiso and had to have surgery on the fractured left index finger today. It's likely he will now be out a month. The point duties are going to fall primarily on Funk and Miles. This is going to make it even more imperative that everyone else on this team gives their game a hard and critical look and takes it upon themselves to raise the level of their play and keep this team in the race. Other Jay teams in recent years did not respond well when injuries hit. Now we will learn the mettle of this group.

Halftime Report: Hawaii 31, Creighton 30

2006-12-24T00:28:00.000-05:00

For those that feared that the Jays would start this game with the sort of first half performances CU has put together on the road most of the year, they were pleasantly suprised. The Jays came out so far and has put together overall a strong effort. Defensively, the Jays have been very sound and have been disrupting a lot of the sets the Warriors are looking to put together. Also, we're seeing a lot of active hands in the passing lanes, which helps explain the tilt in the turnover numbers in favor of Creighton.

The biggest problem right now is on the glass. Hawaii is +10 in rebounds right now. That plus a fairly exceptional shooting effort (especially from Matt Lojeski) has powered the Warriors so far. All that said, they're only up one at halftime at home. It's been a very back and forth contest. In the latter half of the period, the Jays came the closest to putting together a serious run, but each team has had an answer for each other. The other key point here is that Hawaii definitely seems like the more fatigued team. The advantage of the comfort of home seems like it is being negated by the lack of depth that UH has, and if the Jays can continue their harassing traps, this could be a serious advantage down the stretch.

Finally, while there's much talk about the officating on the Islands, so far the game is being called fairly even, with fouls for both teams being kept at a minimum. If they Jays can continue to exploit their depth, put the pressure on and can get a better presence on the glass, they should be able to find some success.

Houston Recap

2006-12-23T14:28:00.000-05:00

Final Score: Creighton 80, Houston 72

Box Score

Recaps: CU | UH
Media: OWH | Houston Chronicle | Honolulu Advertiser

I think I was like many Jays fans who had a lot of concern over this matchup. Houston is basically a more talented version of Fresno State, and we all know how much CU struggled against the Bulldogs last week. Tom Penders has his teams sprinting down the court with a hard press and letting the threes fly. It was imperative for the Jays to stay disciplined in a game like this, run their sets, make the Cougars guard them and play strong perimeter defense. Unlike the night in Fresno, the Jays were able to do exactly that.

First off, if you're going to recap this game, you start with what Dane Watts and Isaac Miles brought to the table. On a night where Anthony Tolliver was in foul trouble and Nate Funk was off the pace he set the day before against Valpo, the question was who would stand up and take on the challenge of carrying the load. Watts was very much ready to take the call. Before the trip to Hawaii, Dane had never put together a double double in his collegiate career, but he's put up the numbers now in back to back nights. Dane was a beast on the boards when the team couldn't get their usual production on the glass from the A-Train. While Nate wasn't as sharp from outside as he was the game before, Dane came up big from downtown with 4-6 shooting from three. Add on to that 4 assists to only a single turnover. From the late struggles last season with mono to the early shooting struggles this year, Dane has had his share of difficulties to fight through and he's now starting to come into his own and be the player that everyone hoped he would become.

We also need to put in a good word for young Isaac. Dana has been tinkering with that third guard spot most of the season, trying to find the right combination for Miles and Nick Porter to see who is best suited to start and who can be that spark of the bench. With Dotzler back in the lineup, it's now possible for Isaac to start to allow his offensive game to blossom and last night was a great example of that. Isaac did a great job of creating through dribble penetration, making his shots and drawing contact.

However, one of the biggest positives from this game was the strong perimeter defense that the Jays played. Houston is not the sort of team that is going to exploit you in the post, so the Jays were able to take their matchup zone and extend it out towards the line with more freedom. With the number of threes the Cougars take, they will make their fair share regardless, but the Jays were able to keep UH from really getting on one of those lighting quick runs they are capable of and get the snowball rolling downhill. If you live by the three, you die by the three and, with the Cougars only shooting 30% from beyond the arc, that's exactly what they did.

Finally, one has to be encouraged that the Jays have taken the cap off the rim during this entire tournament so far. Granted, a lot of the offensive numbers in this game are inflated because of the tempo that a team like Houston dictates, but overall the Jays are starting to run this offense from the inside out, are continuing to get quality looks and are finally starting to drain them.

There is no question we will have our hands full with the home standing Rainbow Warriors tonight. It's going to take a really strong effort for the Jays to overcome the exceptional home court advantage that Hawaii possesses, but with the way the Jays have looked ever since getting to the Islands, it gives reason for hope and optimism.

Note on Recaps and Previews

2006-12-23T00:47:00.000-05:00

Due to the difficult nature of the times of some of these games, I wasn't able to get up a proper pregame for Houston before tonight's game. I thought it was more important to recap the effort against Valpo in the time we had. That said, later tonight I will have up a full recap of tonight's Houston game and later tomorrow morning, I will write up the matchup with either Hawaii or Nebraska in the Championship Game.

Halftime Report - Houston 41, Creighton 39

2006-12-22T21:43:00.000-05:00

Coming into this game, we knew we were going to have a clash of opposing styles and the key is going to be which team's philosophy wins out. So far in the first half, we have what the score represents: a little of both. Obviously, 41-38 is scoring at a higher clip than the Jays generally play. However, Creighton did some very nice things during that first period. CU has been able to play a very active zone which has made Houston work the ball far more deliberately than they are comfortable doing. Offensively, for the most part we have avoided the temptation to run and gun with Houston and have done a fairly good job of dictating tempo. Also, being over 50% from the field is quite a pleasant surprise considering the way we have shot the ball this year.

That said, we need to be more active preventing the Cougars from getting on the offensive glass. The big men for Houston are tall and long and are strong at keeping the ball alive and creating second and third chances for their high octane offense. Also, while it's great to be 6/10 from the arc, we still need to avoid getting too three happy against this team.

It was a well played half by both teams. If the Jays can stay disciplined, run their sets, stay active on defense and continue to make the Cougars work on each possession, they are in a good position.

Valparaiso Recap

2006-12-22T09:25:00.000-05:00

Final Score: Creighton 68, Valparaiso 43

Box Score

Recaps: CU | VU
Media: OWH | Gary Post-Tribune | Honolulu Star-Bulletin

"Who kidnapped Nate Funk and who is that wearing #10?"

That's been the question early in the season. While he's obviously been giving the effort and was finding other ways to be productive and valuable on a nightly basis, it's obvious through the early we haven't seen what we all know the young man from Sioux City is capable of. In the second half in Hawaii last night, we started to see it. With 20 second half points, Funk powered his Jays past Valparaiso in the opening round of the Rainbow Classic, blowing them away by draining eight of his last nine shots on the night.

Shooting the basketball is one of the more fickle and unpredictable skills in sports. You can have perfect form and a sweet stroke and still go through a stretch where you simply can't find the net. Confidence and mental toughness is an essential part of shooting success and it can be easy to lose. Granted, Valpo is not exactly the most challenging opponent the Jays will see all year, but the importance of having a performance like that is it is exactly the sort of thing that builds confidence and puts that spring back in your step.

Now, it wasn't just a one man show last evening. Anthony Tolliver got his, but more importantly than the 11 points he chipped in, was the fact that he was far more active than he's been down in the post, taking the ball to the rim, dishing off and working the kick out. When this offense runs inside-out, it's far more effective and we saw that last night.

Also, we cannot go without giving requisite props to the man from Lincoln, Nick Bahe. Bahe has taken a lot of criticism at points for his struggles, but considering his lack of honest game experience over the past few years, it was a bit unfair to expect him to be able to hit the ground running immediately. However, Nick's two three last night did seem to set off the spark that put this team back into gear. Also, his baseline drive and reverse layup to draw the hoop and harm was damn pretty.

Overall, we got out of this game exactly what we needed: a chance to get a comfortable win and to start to feel better about themselves. It's not going to be an easy road here on out, though. Later tonight, the Jays will face off with Tom Penders' high flying Houston Cougars, and either Hawaii or the Cornhuskers lurk for tomorrow. Finally, we will also need to keep an eye on the dislocated fingers that Josh Dotzler suffered as well. It will be challenging, but it is doable and, most importantly, this team knows it.

Halftime Report - Creighton 27, Valparaiso 20

2006-12-22T00:31:00.000-05:00

At the break in Hawaii, the Jays have looked quite a bit better than they did at any point in Fresno. We are taking it strong to the basket and drawing contact. For this offense to work as it's constituted this season, we need to take it to the hoop and be aggressive. The large disparity in free throw attempts right now are a good example of that. The other thing that just screamed out at me through the first half was: three charges taken. Setting your feet and taking the charge is iconic of Dana Altman's Creighton Basketball and it's something that has been almost completely absent through the first seven games of the season.

Now, it's not all sunshine and puppy dogs. Other than two free throws late, Nate has been fairly absent on the offensive end, although it's a good sign that the Jays have been as much in control as they've been to this point with so little out of their best player. Also, the utter aggravation over the fact that Nick Porter is incapable of finishing on the break continues. With his size and his game, he has to find a way to convert in those situations. Finally, the Jays are only 1-8 from outside (the only make early in the game by Nick Bahe). It's still extremely difficult to wrap my mind around a Creighton team being this poor from three.

Valpo has been a scrappy team, so far. They've shown some good tenacity and have been able to persevere as Creighton was on the brink of really getting into high gear at points in the first period. For the Jays to keep this going, however, the important thing is continuing to get the ball down low and take it to the hoop. If we continue to keep everything going inside-out, we should be in good shape.

Valparaiso Preview

2006-12-20T23:34:00.000-05:00

Creighton (4-3) at Valparaiso (3-6)
December 21, 2006
Stan Sheriff Center (Honolulu, HI)
TV: Cox 2 | Radio: 590 AM
Video Webcast

Creighton Starters

C Anthony Tolliver, Sr. (6-9, 245 lbs)
PF Dane Watts, Jr. (6-8, 220 lbs)
SG Nick Porter, Sr. (6-3, 210 lbs)
SG Nate Funk, Sr. (6-3, 195 lbs)
PG Josh Dotzler, So. (6-1, 175 lbs)

Valparaiso Starters

C Urule Igbavboa, So. (6-8, 220 lbs)
PF Shawn Huff, Jr. (6-6, 205 lbs)
SG Brandon McPherson, So. (6-1, 200 lbs)
SG Jarryd Loyd, Jr. (6-0, 170 lbs)
PG Jake Diebler, So. (6-2, 190 lbs)

Overview

SID Notes: CU | VU

The Jays limp into Hawaii on Thursday, licking their wounds after a 15 point thrashing at Fresno State on Saturday night, and will look to get this ship turned back into the right direction and quickly. First up in the 43rd annual Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic will be the Valparaiso Crusaders, who themselves are reeling from a six game losing streak and are looking to collect themselves and make a good showing in this event.

The Crusaders have played a brutal schedule at points this season. Valpo started the run with a loss at NC State and then played three straight games vs top 25 teams (home games vs Marquette and Butler and a game at Ohio State), losing all three. Legendary head coach Homer Drew hoped to build experience and mettle with the tough non-conference schedule, although a 61-40 beatdown at Ball State makes one wonder if all the early tests have done is merely break the confidence of his green squad.

VU is led by their 6-8 sophomore forward Urule Igbavboa. His 11 points and 8.9 rebounds a game lead the team in both categories. Igbavboa is especially active on the defensive glass, rebounding 27.9% of the shots missed by opponents this season, which ranks 12th best in the NCAA so far. Another key piece for the Crusaders is 6-6 junior forward Shawn Huff. Huff is averaging 10.8 points and 4.2 boards a game and is also 45.5% from beyond the arc. Valpo will run a 8 man rotation primarily, however, with 5 freshmen and 3 sophomores on Valpo's roster, this team is very much susceptible to the ups and downs that are classic of such inexperienced teams.

For the Jays, there's going to be a lot to work on going into this game and there is going to be a lot of pressure to really show something both tonight against Valpo and in this tournament overall. Offensively, we have been pathetic for good stretches of this season. We cannot continue to miss as many open shots as we are and have any realistic expectation to win. This team needs a serious shot of chemistry and the ability to work together as a unit. One almost feels watching this team that they don't feel comfortable in their own skin.

For this Creighton team to succeed, everyone needs to know their roles. Players like Anthony Tolliver and Nate Funk are your stars and those that the offense needs to run through. Some discussion was made earlier in the week about distribution of shots and whether friction over that was leading to some of the tentativeness that we have seen by some so far. For me, the concern isn't as much about what number of shots a certain player is taking, but that each offensive set works our stars into the mix. A player like Anthony Tolliver should touch the ball on every possession at some point. Also, we need to recommit to the inside-out game. When the entry pass is made, we need the defense to have to think twice about whether or not you're going to see Tolliver take it strong to the basket, dish it off to a slashing Porter or Watts, or whether there's going to be a kick out to an open Funk or Miles for the long range bomb.

These sound like simple concepts, but we just haven't seen any sort of consistent flow in this team so far this year. Coach Altman has hammered on that quite a bit in his radio interviews and newspaper comments. Jays fans do have a bit of a tendency to attribute Holtzism to Coach's pessimistic appraisals of the situation, but I think this year we are seeing that Dana knew a lot more than we did early on in the season (no surprise that).

This tournament is going to be an opportunity for the Jays to either get back on the good path and make a statement or really take a shot below the belt. It's going to be up to them to dictate which direction they take.

Game Notes

This will be Creighton's first meeting with Valparaiso since a win in Indiana by CU in the 1920-21 season. Coach Altman is 18-2 against Mid-Continent Conference squads and 11-2 during his time at Creighton.
Thursday night's game is being broadcast on Honolulu's KFVE-TV as part of a package including all night games of the Rainbow Classic. All TV games involving Creighton will be picked up by Cox Cable in Omaha on Channel 2. As the bracket is constructed, Creighton must be victorious against Valpo for their remaining games to be available for broadcast. The games will be called by KFVE's Jim Leahey and Artie Wilson.

Media Links

Bluejays focused on execution - Omaha World-Herald 12/21
It's a working holiday for the Crusaders - Northwest Indiana Times 12/21
Crusader men tested again - Gary (IN) Post-Tribune 12/21

D'Angalo Jackson to Transfer

2006-12-18T17:45:00.000-05:00

At the end of today's article by Steven Pivovar in the Omaha World-Herald, it is confirmed what was initially reported on the Bluejay Cafe message board: freshman D'Angalo Jackson has left the team and will transfer.

Jackson has been hobbled by an ankle injury that he sustained during his senior season at Pius High School in Milwaukee, WI. Surgery was required on their ankle in the offseason and that took D'Angalo out of much of the offseason practice and conditioning. Also, with Dotzler and Miles on the roster this season and guards in P'Allen Stinnett and Antoine Young coming in the future, Jackson was behind the eight ball already without the injury. D'Angalo is reportedly looking for opportunities closer to home. By all accounts, there hasn't been anything negative that arose out of Jackson's effort and commitment during his time here at Creighton and we do wish the young man all the success in the world throughout the rest of his playing career and beyond.

With Jackson's departure, that opens up another scholarship for next year. One immediately thinks of 2007 guard prospect JayDee Luster, who has been persued by staff for some time. Also, as is always the case with this staff in recruiting, don't be suprised to see a name arise that we've not been aware of.

With this change, it gives us an opportunity to update the scholarship picture going into the future:

Scholarship Matrix

06-07	07-08	08-09
Tolliver	Watts	Dotzler
Funk	Morrison	Millard
Porter	Nengsu	Miles
Gakou	Hibma	Lawson
Watts	Bahe	Harriman
Nengsu	Dotzler	Brandt
Morrison	Millard	Walker
Hibma	Miles	Stinnett
Bahe	Lawson	Korver
Dotzler	Harriman	TBD
Milard	Brandt	Young
Miles	Walker	TBD
Jackson	Stinnett	TBD
Lawson	Korver	TBD
*Harriman	TBD
**Brandt

Notes

Green - Senior, Pink - Junior, Gray - Sophomore, White - Freshman
* - Harriman is a grayshirt in 06-07, with the promise of a scholarship going into next year.
** - Brandt is a redshirting walk-on. As of now, we have heard of no guarantee of a scholarship going into the future, although that is a possibility.

Fresno State Recap

2006-12-17T20:30:00.000-05:00

Final Score: Fresno State 69, Creighton 54

Box Score

Recaps: CU | FSU
Media: OWH | Fresno Bee | AP

The Jays were hoping that the energetic effort that they showed at home against the then-ranked Xavier Musketeers would carry over and that they would finally put together a solid effort on the road. Unfortunately, that did not materialize. On Saturday night, the Jays were terrible from the floor, gave up way too many open looks to a hot shooting Fresno State Bulldog squad and FSU made them pay. Creighton was unable to keep the Bulldogs from getting out in transition, to set up their high flying perimeter oriented attack. Early in the game, Fresno State flat out couldn't miss, with Hector Hernandez and Eddie Miller leading the way with 14 and 13 points respectively.

Like most perimeter oriented teams, FSU ebbed and flowed throughout the game, riding the hot and cold streaks as they continued to bomb away from downtown. What killed Creighton in the end was the complete inability to execute and to flat out hit open shots. While there was a good share of defensive breakdowns in this game, the story of the night isn't that the Jays couldn't guard, or even that the Bulldogs were on fire: it's that this Creighton team is right now one of the worst shooting squads we've had in quite some time. For good stretches of the game, the Jays were able to get the sort of looks that they expect to get and that Altman's high post offense is designed to created, yet they are not converting. Creighton was 4/23 from the three point line on the night and a horrid 0/13 in the second half. College basketball is a guard-driven, perimeter shooting game. Traditionally, Creighton squads have been able to knock down the open looks and put that pressure on the opposition that they need to win. Much has been discussed about the upgrade in talent and athleticism on this Bluejay squad. That may be the case, however, but the Jays do not have the sort of raw ability to overcome such anemic shooting nights as the Jays have been suffering so far this season.

Right now, one has to admit that there's something seriously wrong with this team. The struggles that the Jays are more serious that simply "not gelling together." To this point in the season, this is one of the worst shooting teams of the Altman era. Through the first seven games, Creighton has had strong play from Anthony Tolliver in the post and on the boards. While Dane Watts has had some up and downs in his shooting touch as well, he's been consistent in his hard nose play and has been a force on the boards. Last night, both AT and Watts combined for 28 points and 22 rebounds. If you had told me before the game we could get that sort of production down low and would end up being trounced by 15, I wouldn't have believed you.

When looking at the guard play, with Nate Funk, it's not a lack of effort in my mind. Nate has been off on his shot, there is no question about that. At this point, it has to become a thought if there might be some lingering effects of the labrum surgery from last season that are still affecting his shot. However, Nate has been trying to take the ball to the basket and trying to create higher percentage looks to help compensate from the lack of production outside. In terms of Josh Dotzler, he is still not fully recovered from his knee surgery. He doesn't have nearly the sort of movement and ability to cut as he did last year and it is limiting his game.

Bigger problems come from the production that the team is getting from Nick Porter. Porter has a wealth of physical talent, with his size and ability to power his way past his defender and draw contact. However, he's never been able to put together the sort of consistent effort that we need from him to be a key piece for this team. We need Nick to take the ball to the basket and create. When outside shots aren't falling, the key is to take the ball inside and take higher percentage shots. A key part of that is going to have to be Nick's game.

Also, much discussion has been made about Pierce Hibma and his role on the team. Pierce is a hard working kid and is a model representative of the program and the University. Hibma does contribute in a lot of ways, not all that show up on a box score. However, Pierce is an offensive liability on the court and, when the team is struggling to score as it is now, his difficulties become magnified. I am not as hard on Pierce as some, as I do think the problems aren't just him or aren't even primarily him, but at this point, every bit counts.

I'm not a coach and, quite frankly, I'm not sure of all the answers. What this team needs, however, is a recommitment to the offensive side of the ball and to understand the weight of the situation that we're now in. It is still early in the season but, unless we see Hawaii in the Rainbow Classic, we have no significant non-conference road wins to our credit. Right now, this team is not playing at an NCAA Tournament caliber level and don't expect the path to get any easier from this point. It's time to get to business and do it quickly.

Halftime Report - Fresno State 35, Creighton 26

2006-12-16T22:46:00.000-05:00

The Jays put together a first half extremely remiscient of the horrid 20 minutes that the team put together in Dayton. Early on, the Jays have been ice cold from outside and Hernandez and Hosley are nailing down the paint with several early blocks. Tolliver and Watts haven't been able to get many clean shots off down low and it's taking the Jays completely out of their offensive flow.

On the other end of the court, it's bombs away and the Bulldogs are letting the trey go flying and they're cashing in. Off the bench, JUCO transfer guard Eddie Miller has been absolutely deadly from downtown. FSU has been extremely effective getting the transition game going and catching the Jays off guard, hitting a wide open shooter with no one within 15 feet of him.

A late mini-run by CU brought the Jays back to within nine, after trailing by as much as 15, which gives the team something to work with going into the second half. If the Jays are going to win this game, the formula is fairly simple: force the Bulldogs into the half court set, get the ball into the post and take it to the rack strong and, make the open shot! Funk, Miles and Porter are your three main scoring threats at the guard spot and all have been cold yet again. Funk, especially, continues to look off on his outside shot. Creighton is going to half to find some production from mid-range and out if they're going to find success in the rest of this game.

Fresno State Preview

2006-12-15T21:10:00.000-05:00

Creighton (4-2) at Fresno State (8-1)
December 16, 2006
SaveMart Center (Fresno, CA)
TV: KMTV | Radio: 590 AM
Live Stats | Video Webcast

Creighton Starters

C Anthony Tolliver, Sr. (6-9, 245 lbs)
PF Dane Watts, Jr. (6-8, 220 lbs)
SG Nick Porter, Sr. (6-3, 210 lbs)
SG Nate Funk, Sr. (6-3, 195 lbs)
PG Josh Dotzler, So. (6-1, 175 lbs)

Fresno State Starters

C Hector Hernandez, Jr. (6-9, 225 lbs)
PF Dominic McGuire, Jr. (6-8, 210 lbs)
SF Quinton Hosley, Sr. (6-6, 210 lbs)
SG Ja'Vance Coleman, Sr. (6-3, 215 lbs)
PG Kevin Bell, Jr. (5-10, 165 lbs)

Overview

SID Notes: CU | FSU

The Jays make a stop on the way to Hawaii in Fresno for a return date with their 2006 BracketBuster foe, the Fresno State Bulldogs. For those that remember that late night matchup in February (which may or may not be many), what struck me about that Bulldog team was a very athletic squad that was extremely trigger happy from three. Coming into this season, the Dogs return all five starters and optimism was very high. Early on, FSU seemed to be meeting these lofty goals with a 7-0 record, including a win at Oregon State. However, the Bulldogs were served a rather severe setback with a 70-42 drubbing on the road at UC Santa Barbara. The Bulldogs did rebound with a win at Montana State, but it was an overtime contest against a team that they had killed by 39 earlier at home this season.

As in the matchup last season, the primary option for FSU will be 6-6 senior forward Quinton Hosley. In February, Hosley led the Dogs with 19 points, 10 rebounds and all 40 minutes of the game. Hosley is an extremely athletic wing player who will fill up the basket and will crash the boards. With the Jays and their traditional three guard lineup, it will be important to stay with Quinton offensively and keep him from taking over the game.

Another key battle will be in the low post. The Bulldogs are anchored inside by 6-9 junior Hector Hernandez. Fresno is not a particularly deep team inside. The primary option off the bench inside will be 6-11 junior college transfer Shawn Taylor. Taylor is averaging 13 minutes a game with roughly 5 points and 3 board a night. The Jays will need to continue to get strong play from the A-Train inside and exploit this opportunity.

Keep in mind that Fresno State is, again like last year, this team is very much willing to put the ball up and take shots. Through nine games, the Bulldogs have made 229 three point attempts, making their shots at a 34.9% clip. The Jays have had some problems giving up some open looks early and will need to be more active on defense and will need to avoid losing the shooters.

Overall, however, the key will be what the Jays bring to the table. The energy and intensity that Creighton showed in the second half against Dayton and throughout the Xavier game will be absolutely required to make this happen on Saturday. There has been much to be desired about the intensity and effort that the team has shown at points on the road early on in this season. It is because of those events that this game against the Bulldogs becomes that much more important. A lot was said in the runup to the Xavier game about the importance of gaining that signature non-conference win for your resume in March. The Jays recognized the weight of that game and played like it was a "must-win" contest. However, getting a key win on the road is no less critical. It's all and well to take care of business in the friendly confines of the Phone Booth, but if the Jays are going to reach the goals they set for this season, they will need to go into an environment like they will see on Saturday night and take care of business.

Game Notes

Saturday night's game is going be broadcast on KMTV Channel 3 in Omaha. The game will be called by Travis Justice and Scott Schumacher. Traditional satellite coordinates are as follows:
Coordinates - IA6 1-J
Uplink Freq. - 14052.875 H
Downlink Freq. - 11753 V
Data Rate - 5.5 Mbps
Symbol Rate - 3.979 Msps
Modulation - QPSK
FEC - 3/4
Creighton leads the all-time series against Fresno State, 5-0. CU's lone game in Fresno came with a 70-62 overtime victory in 2003, with Nate Funk hitting a three at the buzzer to tie the game and carry the Jays to a dominant performance in the extra period. Coach Altman is 2-1 against FSU head coach Steve Cleveland. CU split a home and home with Cleveland's BYU Cougars in 2001 and 2002.

Media Links

Jays look to ride solid play to Hawaii - Omaha World Herald 12/16
'Dogs at defining moment - Fresno Bee 12/16
CU-FSU Scouting Report - Fresno Bee 12/16

Xavier Recap

2006-12-10T19:12:00.000-05:00

Final Score: Creighton 73, #24 Xavier 67

Box Score

Recaps: CU | XU
Media: OWH | Cincinnati Enquirer | AP
Photo Galleries: OWH | Cincinnati Enquirer

Coming into this game, a big point of debate was "should we call this a must-win game?" While I'm not generally keen on the idea that there are must-win contests in December, the contest with Xavier was about as close to it as you can get. With the Jays being so slow out of the box to start the year and the opportunity for signature non-conference wins dwindling, this was the perfect opportunity. Xavier is arguably the best team we'll see all year (with maybe Wichita State challenging for that distinction). They have an abundance of size, athleticism, speed and depth. The Musketeers faced similar preseason expectations as the Jays: picked to win their league to start the year and, with so much returning talent, regarded as a threat to go deep in March. However, unlike Creighton, Xavier had handled that burden well coming into tonight. Beating Villanova and falling in a hard fought contest versus a top 5 team in Alabama earned the Musketeers their first top 25 ranking since the final poll of 2004. After having their early troubles on the road, the Jays came into this game needed to protect home court and look for that spark that could get this ship going back in the right direction.

The thing that struck me the most about this game was precisely the energy the Jays showed. The primary problem that has faced this team so far this year was that lack of intensity and focus. CU came out and brought it on the defensive end of the court. For most of the night, the Jays were in a strong 2-3 zone to clamp down on the talented forwards that the Muskies bring to the table. The key to their success was the dominant play inside of Anthony Tolliver. The A-Train was a beast, blocking and altering shots and making Xavier hesitant to even try to get the ball inside. Xavier quickly became one dimensional and fell in love with the outside jumper. However, here was where both Funk and Miles truly shined on the night. Both continued their stellar defensive efforts that they showed in the second half on Wednesday night against Dayton. Funk especially drew the assignment of guarding Stanley Burrell through most of the first half, holding him to zero field goals and two points total at the break. I also have to take note at the hustle in the passing lanes the Jays showed. In recent years, everyone knows what players like Johnny Mathies or DeAnthony Bowden could bring to the table, with the threat of picking your pocket and taking it down the court for the basket at any moment. We haven't had that so far this year, but tonight CU picked up nine steals, with Nate leading the way with three for himself.

Offensively, Nate and Anthony were the stars. Much has been discussed recently of whether Anthony should primarily a low post weapon or whether he should be allowed to try and expand his game with the mid-range and outside shot. Tonight, however, Tolliver committed to making it happen down low and was extremely effective, leading the Jays with 17 points on the night. Funk is still recovering from his recent illness and the effect on his three point shooting still shows. That said, Nate is continuing to take the ball at the basket and create higher percentage opportunities. Also, with Josh Dotzler getting in early foul trouble, Nate had to shoulder the load at the point for most of the game. Finishing the game with six assists compared to only two turnovers, Nate was doing a superb job distributing the ball and creating opportunities for his teammates.

Creighton started both periods quickly with good sized runs to put the Musketeers back on their heels and behind the eight ball. Give credit to the tenacity of Sean Miller's squad, however, they persevered and gave the Jays all they wanted for 40 minutes. In the end, however, this game was won in the manner that Dana Altman basketball demands: go out and outwork your opponents and flat out want it more than they do. That is exactly what this team has been missing this year and what gives us the most compelling reason for hope.

Welcome

2006-12-10T19:00:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the second edition of View of the Hilltop.

So, what are we doing here? Simple. While I'm still very much involved with the Bluejay Cafe, we're reorienting the site a bit. FreddyMac has some really exciting things in the works for the site in terms of content and offerings and we are still committed to providing the best forum for discussion of Creighton basketball and athletics on the web.

That said, things don't always work out the way we expect, and it doesn't look like we will be able to provide the sort of structured pre and post game coverage that we have in the past. I'm very much disappointed that I can't do everything that I have in the past, and what I would like to do, but we have to deal with the realities of what life deals us.

All that said, I still have a lot to say about the Jays and I'd like to still use this forum to do that. So, considering the more free form nature of the contributions I will be providing, both Freddy and I felt the best way to do that would be to relaunch my blog and link to that content through the Cafe. I will still write about the games and the rest of the news and note surrounding Bluejay basketball (and baseball, when the time comes around), although this is going to be a more laid back format than I've used in the past.

I appreciate all the kinds words I've received from the fans and our Cafe brethren, and I hope you will still find my work useful and enjoyable.