http://www.kspr.com/sports/preview-creighton-at-seton-hall/21051914_37337470 By The Sports Xchange Jan 08, 2016  Seton Hall had a seven-game winning streak come to an end against No. 16 Villanova on Wednesday , but the future continues to look bright. The Pirates will try to improve to 3-1 in Big East play when they host Creighton on Saturday. Seton Hall needs to be careful not to overlook the Bluejays with a brutal stretch coming up that includes trips to Providence and Xavier with a home date against Villanova in between . The Pirates limited the Wildcats to 36.2% shooting on Wednesday but hurt themselves by going 15-of-25 at the free-throw line in the 72-63 setback. Creighton's lone loss in the first 3 Big East games was against Villanova as well , and the Bluejays bounced back from that setback by cruising past Georgetown 79-66 on Tuesday . The triumph marked the sixth in the last 8 games for Creighton , which is averaging 85.5 points in that span. TV: 2 p.m. ...

http://www.bigeast.com/news/2016/1/8/MBB_0108163924.aspx 1/8/2016 3:35:55 PM By Sean Brennan, Special To BIGEAST.com    Ask Isaiah Zierden about his season-ending knee injury last year and almost before the question is finished being asked he's already coming at you with an answer. "January 21," he said, referring to the anniversary of the night his sophomore season came to an abrupt end. "Unfortunately, I always remember the date." Zierden and his Creighton Bluejays were at Butler . It was late in the first half and the 6-3 guard was falling back to play defense when he was bumped by a Bulldogs player. His right knee caved and Zierden fell to the floor. A torn medial collateral ligament (MCL) in his right knee would be the eventual diagnosis and Zierden and his team-leading 44 three-pointers were done for the season. Zierden suffered the same injury to the same knee in his freshman season when he partially tore the MCL and injured his patella in a g...

Scouting Seton Hall Seton Hall is 12-3 on the season and tied for second place in the BIG EAST with a 2-1 league mark. Seton Hall starts 5 sophomores , a group headed by former McDonald’s All-American Isaiah Whitehead (15.5 ppg., 4.5 apg.). Khadeen Carrington (13.9 ppg.) and Desi Rodriguez (12.0 ppg) also score in double-figures, while Angel Delgado (9.3 ppg., 9.9 rpg.) is second in the BIG EAST in rebounds per game .  The Pirates score 73.9 PPG and shoot 44.6% from the field, 34% from three-point range and 65% at the line. SHU yields 64.4 PPG, allowing opponents to shoot 40.4%. Scouting Creighton Creighton is 11-5 on the season , including an 8-2 mark at home and a 2-0 mark on neutral floors. The Bluejays are 2-1 in league play after an 80-70 win at St. John’s on New Year’s Eve , an 85-71 setback to No. 16 Villanova last Saturday, and a 79-66 win over Georgetown on Tuesday. The Bluejays are scoring an impressive 85.4 PPG (10th nationally) and have 4 men avera...

http://www.bigeastcoastbias.com/2016/1/8/10717930/the-big-easts-forgotten-sons-maurice-watson-billy-garrett-jr By Phil Neuffer   @philneuffer Jan 8, 2016 What a time to be alive for the Big East. The AP Top 25 is littered with teams from the conference, bracketology experts have five teams in the fold and Xavier and Villanova are leading the way in the national RPI rankings. However, with all the national publicity, there are still some that are flying under the radar. This is bound to happen. There are more than 340 Division I teams after all. However, we at Big East Coast Bias are not bogged down by those other 330 or so. With that in mind, its time for the players that are being unfairly ignored to get their due. Here is just a sampling. Maurice Watson    Creighton appears to be on the bounce-back trail which is good news for all across the Nebraska region considering the Cornhuskers days of glory were short-lived. The Bluejays ...

Come a San Silvestro, anche nel super sabato dopo le feste: due partite di college basketball, due partite con in campo le "altre forze" della Big East appena cominciata. Si parte con Georgetown-DePaul.  Sopravvalutati in prestagione, gli Hoyas - specie in casa, al Verizon Center di Washington, DC - sono più forti di quel che sembrano, ma restano ancora tanto, tanto discontinui. I ragazzi di coach John Thompson III, sempre sotto gli occhi attenti di papà John Thompson Jr. in tribuna, saranno quelli che hanno strapazzato Syracuse o quelli capaci di farsi battere da Radford? Contro i Blue Demons di coach Dave Leitao, però, attenti a quei due - Billy Garrett (#5) e Myke Henry (#4) - e alla stazza di Tommy Hamilton IV. Di ancora più complicata lettura la partita delle 20: al Prudential Center di Newark, New Jersey, Seton Hall ospita Creighton, che l'ultimo dell'anno ha sbancato la Carnesecca Arena nel Queens, battendo di dieci St. John's. I Bluejays...

BLUE RIBBON ANALYSIS: BACKCOURT B  FRONTCOURT A-  BENCH/DEPTH B  INTANGIBLES B  LOCATION   Omaha, NE  CONFERENCE   Big East (3. year) LAST SEASON   14-19 (42.4%) CONFERENCE RECORD    4-14 (t-9th)  STARTERS RETURNING/LOST   1/4 (#41 Geoffrey Groselle, C/Sr.) NICKNAME   Bluejays COLORS   Blue & White  HOMECOURT   CenturyLink Center, Omaha (17,390)  COACH   Greg McDermott (UNI - Northern Iowa ’88)  - 6. year RECORD AT SCHOOL   121-57 (5 years)  CAREER RECORD   270-188 (14 years)  ASSISTANTS  Darian DeVries (UNI ’98) - Steve Lutz (Texas Lutheran ’95) - Preston Murphy (Rhode Island ’99)  WINS (LAST 5 YRS)   23-29-28-27-14  RPI (LAST 5 YEARS)   113-23-22-17-157  2014-15 FINISH   Lost in Big East quarter finals (vs Georgetown).  The 2014-15 season was one of what-might-have-been and ...

The Big Picture The Bluejays were in an expected retooling mode last year after the magnificent Doug McDermott era ended . They continued their emphasis on strong perimeter play last season (5 players made at least 43 3-pointers ) and were much more competitive than their 14-19 record indicates. The Bluejays suffered four one-point losses and lost five more games between two and four points . Coach Greg McDermott has only one true returning starter , but he’s got many other experienced choices for his starting lineup. He can plug in a pair of quality transfers who figure to contribute immediately along with a group that includes 5 freshmen and a junior college hopeful . Who’s Back: Forward Toby Hegner , a 6-10 sophomore, averaged 6.7 points and 3.4 rebounds while starting 28 games as a rookie .  Junior guard Isaiah Zierden , a sharp perimeter shooter , averaged 9.5 points until going down with a knee injury in February.  Guard James Milliken finished strong last...

Scouting St. John’s  St. John’s is 7-6 on the season, including a 6-2 mark at home (5-2 at Carnesecca Arena), but have lost 3 in a row ( Incarnate Word , NJ Institute of Technology and South Carolina ) heading into league play since a win over Syracuse .  Freshman Federico Mussini leads the Red Storm in scoring (14.0 PPG), assists (2.7 APG) and steals (1.3 SPG) per game , while also draining a team-high 30 three-point baskets and topping the club in free-throw percentage (82.9%).  Durand Johnson, a graduate transfer from Pitt , is second on the team with 11.6 points per contest, 16 steals and 19 three-point baskets .  Three others average in the neighborhood of 8 points a game, Ron Mvouika (8.8 ppg.), Christian Jones (8.5 PPG) and Yankuba Sima (8.4 PPG). Sima is tied for the national lead with 46 blocked shots .  SJU had all 5 starters depart from last year’s NCAA Tournament team that finished 21-12 . Scouting Creighton Crei...

http://www.coxhub.com/articles/ranking-the-big-east-teams-in-two-sentences-or-less By Daniel James — 12/29/15 2:07 PM The names on the front don't change, but the names on the back certainly do, and with the way things have shaken out in the OOC, there's even more to consider than what was thought in the original preseason predictions. But while anyone could spend eons talking about the in's and out's of each team, how many can do this ranking with a minimalist style? Here's how I'm ranking the Big East teams, in two sentences or less. 1. Xavier:  Way underrated in the preseason , which is scary because they were not that underrated to begin with. Five guys averaging double digits, a deep (DEEP) bench, and a top-level coach has me very scared of the Musketeers. 2. Villanova:  A solid team that, despite a few early losses, is terrifying-good when their game is clicking , and still better than most when it's not. I don't need to go ...

12/8/2013 11:05:00 PM Billy Bluejay is the official mascot of the Creighton University Athletics Department. Creighton is a private, Jesuit NCAA Division I school in Omaha, Nebraska founded in 1878.   Prior to 1924, with no official athletics nickname, University publications and news media often referred to Creighton athletic teams by the school's colors – the " White and Blue ," or vice versa. Because of Creighton's location atop a bluff, the team was occasionally designated unofficially as the " Hilltoppers ," but the name lost favor because at least six other teams in the country went by the same nickname . At the behest of Creighton's Athletics Board and Alumni Association, the Omaha Bee newspaper coordinated a public contest in late 1923 to select a nickname and mascot for Creighton University athletic teams. After reviewing 200 entries, the Athletics Board decided upon "Bluejays" because the color of the bird was in keeping with ...

College Basketball: Thursday, December 31, 2015 at 2:00 pm (Carnesecca Arena) The Creighton Blue Jays will travel to Carnesecca Arena to take on the St. John’s Red Storm this Thursday afternoon in College Basketball action. The Creighton Blue Jays won their 2nd straight game and improved to 9-4 on the season after defeating the Coppin State Eagles, 102-77, this past Monday, December 21st .  The Blue Jays had their offensive flowing in this one and had little trouble getting the victory after taking a 56-36 lead at halftime.  Creighton shot an impressive 60.7% from the field and 52.2% (12-23) from beyond the arc in the victory.  The Blue Jays held the Eagles to 42.4% shooting from the field and was outrebounded by Coppin State by a 42-20 margin.  Leading the way for Creighton was Geoffrey Groselle who had 16 points on 8-8 shooting while pulling down 9 rebounds and blocking 2 shots.  On the season, the Blue Jays have been led by Maurice Watson...

Red Storm Hosts Creighton for Conference Opener at Carnesecca Arena  http://www.redstormsports.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/123015aaa.html QUEENS, N.Y. (Dec. 30, 2015) – The St. John’s men’s basketball team will kick off BIG EAST action Thursday at Carnesecca Arena against Creighton (9-4) as part of the conference’s New Year’s Eve twinbill on FS1. Tip-off for the Red Storm’s first league opener in Queens since 2011 is set for 2:15 p.m. Justin Kutcher and Donny Marshall are on the call for the national telecast which is also available via FOX Sports Go . St. John’s IMG Radio Network broadcast can be heard on 970 AM WNYM, SiriusXM channel 81 or through the TuneIn app . St. John’s (7-6) looks to get back on the winning track and maintain its unblemished record versus the Bluejays in New York City on Thursday. After winning seven of the first 10 contests, including a marquee victory over Syracuse at MSG, the Red Storm was sidetracked in its last three games all within a five-d...

FRESH START 1 - The Red Storm got off to a solid start to the non-conference portion of the schedule, despite having to rapidly recruit nine scholarship players after the new coaching staff arrived in April . St. John’s won seven of its first 10 games , which included a marquee victory over Syracuse before 13,473 fans at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 13.   Due to the roster overhaul, the Red Storm freshmen have had the opportunity to play big minutes and make significant contributions already in their young careers. They have accounted for nearly 50 percent of the team’s scoring offense and more than one third of the squad’s total rebounds .  Federico Mussini continues to impress as the 6-foot-1 guard from Italy leads the team and ranks 12th in the BIG EAST with a 14.0 scoring average.   Classmate Yankuba Sima is quickly developing into one of the premier centers in the league . His defensive talents have put him on the national radar as he leads Division I with ...

St. John’s hosts its BIG EAST opener for the first time since the 2011-12 campaign, which was also the last time the Red Storm won a conference debut defeating Providence 91-67 on Dec. 27, 2011 in Queens. The Red Storm is 6-2 at home this season and has held teams below 60 points in 5 of the 8 contests. Freshmen Federico Mussini (13.8 ppg) and Yankuba Sima (9.8 ppg) are two of the team’s top three scorers at home .  Mussini has hit 20 of his 30 3-pointers in home contests while Sima is averaging 8.6 rebounds per game. Only 4 players on St. John’s roster have experienced BIG EAST competition .  Among the team’s newcomers, Durand Johnson is the only player to have previously faced a BIG EAST opponent. As a freshman in 2012-13, Johnson played in all 18 regular-season BIG EAST games at Pitt , which included a season-high 13 point effort at Villanova. St. John’s is tied for fifth in Division I averaging 6.5 blocks per game.  Freshman center Yankuba Sima leads the cou...

http://www.omaha.com/creighton/creighton-s-watson-limiting-miscues-after-tough-run/article_fe04abb1-66a6-5465-888a-7486d571028c.html By Steven Pivovar / World-Herald staff writer | Posted: Tuesday, December 29, 2015 1:00 am Watson limiting miscues after tough run After struggling to adjust early this season, Creighton transfer guard Maurice Watson has 31 assists and 5 turnovers the past four games. Creighton figured it was getting a player in guard Maurice Watson who knew how to distribute the basketball. In 2 seasons at Boston University, Watson recorded 410 assists. As a sophomore during the 2013-14 season, he ranked third nationally in APG (7.1) and AST (248). Five games into his first season with the Bluejays, Watson was still dishing out assists at a high rate. He also was committing turnovers at an alarming rate, raising concerns in some corners about his ability to transition to a higher level of competition. One group that never lost faith in him was his teammates. “We ...