No. 12 UConn Huskies No. 21 Creighton Bluejays
10-3 (2-0) 10-2 (1-1)
Date: Wednesday, January 3rd, 2024
Time: 7:00 PM
Where: D.J. Sokol Arena
Omaha, Nebraska
TV: SNY
0
CREIGHTON | UCONN LEADS 7-0
H: 4-0 | A: 3-0 | N: 0-0
11/23/14 #1 UConn 96, Creighton 60 Storrs, Conn.
12/17/20 #3 UConn 80, Creighton 47 Storrs, Conn.
02/25/21 #1 UConn 81, Creighton 49 Omaha, Neb.
01/09/22 #9 UConn 63, Creighton 55 Storrs, Conn.
02/02/21 #10 UConn 76, Creighton 56 Omaha, Neb.
12/28/22 #8 UConn 72, #21 Creighton 47 Omaha, Neb.
02/15/23 #6 UConn 62, Creighton 60 Storrs, Conn
Creighton
Creighton has been a great representative of the Big East, consistently in the Top 25 and they are there against so far this season at No. 21. Teams get the early season bump in the rankings based on reputation and that is now what Creighton gets. They were No. 22 to start the season.
Their season started well with two easy wins against weak opponents winning 75-52 over North Dakota State and 81-55 over South Dakota. A bump in the road occured in their next game, a 65-53 loss to Green Bay. That bumped them out of the Top 25 into the "receiving votes' group.
They then beat three power-5 teams, Nebraska 79-74, Georgia Tech 57-46, and Michigan State 83-69. The next game was a blowout of Northern Iowa 115-62. This brought them back into the Top 25 at No. 22.
They then beat Wyoming 73-61 in the lead up to their big Big East game against Marquette moved them to No. 20 in the AP Poll. . In a tough loss, the Bluejay's did their best but lost 76-70. They only dropped one spot to No. 21.
In their three games before meeting the Huskies they beat Drake 89-78, South Dakota State 58-46 and then fellow Big East team St. John's 67-56.
It's been an uneven season so far for the Bluejays. Some good wins, some games that were closer than expected. But no signature win for them.
Comparative Team Statistics
(leader in bold)
UConn Creighton
82.8 PPG 75.8
62.5 Defensive PPG 61.7
20.3 Scoring Margin 14.1
50.9 Field Goal % 44.3
37.5 Defensive FG% 40.7
38.0 Three Point % 35.2
31.3 Defensive 3PT% 27.3
71.2 Free Throw % 83.6
37.9 Rebounds/game 35.6
4.5 Rebounding Margin 1.3
19.2 Assists per game 17.8
13.8 Turnover per game 10.1
1.4 Assists/TO ratio 1.8
9.9 Steals per game 6.9
3.8 Blocks per game 3.8
UCONN
The player and coaches names for both teams
are clickable to see their Bios
are clickable to see their Bios
UConn Starters
UConn Injuries
Unknown Return
OUT FOR THE SEASON
ACL
Achilles Injury
Creighton Starters
Creighton Bench
Game Analysis
Creighton has a senior filled lineup. Five senior starters, one senior off the bench and two sophomores will get all the minutes. But the starters will get the majority of them. Maybe more than most games. They will go eight deep, but the three off the bench will not add much to the box score. Unlike many Creighton teams of the past, who spread around the minutes and the points pretty evenly between their players, this year is really top heavy with Ronsiek, Maley and Jenson. Their players used to live by the mantra "Depth is our strength". That is really not true this year.
Leading scorer is 6'1" senior forward Emma Ronsiek who is averaging 18.6 PPG. She is a solid three point shooter at 42%. And she is 42-47 from the free thow line for 89.4%. Also second in rebounding at 5.7 per game. Second on the team in blocked shots.
5'10" senior guard Lauren Jensen is averaging 17.0 PPG. Last year she led the Bluejays in scoring at 16.1. She has had an off season in shooting at only 44% and 32% on threes. She does take care of the ball with 42 assists and only 22 turnovers. To continue the theme, she is shooting 26-30 on free throws for 86.7%.
6'1" Senior Morgan Maly is the third and last double digit scorer averaging 14.7 PPG. She is shooting 39.2% from the field and while she has taken the most three point shots she is only shooting then at 31%. She leads the team in rebounding at 6.1 RPG. And she is 19-19 on free throw. Yes, 100%.
After these three, the production really drops. They take 66.4% of the shots, 64.5% of the threes. 68.6% of the free throws, and 67.1% of the points.
5'7" guard senior Molly Morensen averages 7.7 PPG and is a very good three point shooter at 47%. However, she only takes 3 per game. She leads the team in assists with 44 and only has 23 turnovers. She doesn't get to the line much but is 5-6.
6' senior forward Mallory Brake is the only new player in the starting lineup. She leads the team in steals with 19. To put that in perspective, UConn has 6 players with 21 or more. She is only averaging 4.5 PPG.
5'10" Sophomore Kennedy Townson only plays 15 MPG, but is a good three point shooter in her limited time on the court. Sheis averaging 4.7 PPG and shooting a solid 11-21 for 52.% on threes.
5'10" senior guard Jayme Horan and 5'8" sophomore guard Kiani Lockett are mostly there to give the starters a blow. I'm not sure how much time they will see in this game but it won't be much.
So, how does this year's version of the Bluejays match up with this years UConn team? Geno mentioned how similar they are to Marquette in size and style. So the preparation for the Bluejays is also similar.
On offense Creighton likes to pass the ball around the perimeter looking for an open three. They drive to the hoop, looking for the kickout for an open three as well. Players are also constantly running through the lane, screening and looking for open spaces. The Bluejays will occasionally make the pass into the lane if the cutting player is open. Fourty-four percent of their shots are three pointers. They are not shooting them as well this season so far at 35.2% but still a very dangerous team from the arc.
Their other method of scoring is off the fast break and they do run well when they get the chance. Defensively I didn't see any pressing, even after a made basket. However, I expect Creighton to press some if they can make a decent percentage of their shots.
Creighton is strickly a man-man teams with plenty of switches. They will double in the post and they have to because of their lack of size. And their lack of size puts them at a real disadvantage in this game. They are even smaller than Marquette.
UConn is going to use the same pressure defense hoping to turn defense into offense. That is not easy as Creighton is a very good ball handling team. This could be the difference in a close game or a blowout.
Prediction
You'd think the home court for Creighton would be a difference make but looking at last years scores, it doesn't help the Bluejays. They were blown out last year 72-47 in Omaha. And back in Storrs in the second game betweem them UConn was only able to squeak out a 62-60 win.
I really like how this version of the Huskies are playing and I'm not convinced that Creighton is a top 25 team. As I said earlier, it could be a close game or a blowout. I'm going to split the difference. A really solid UConn win but under 20 points.
UConn by 17+
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