By: Spencer McCraw

Creighton

Since struggling in their opening game against St. Thomas (MN), the Bluejays have outscored opponents 190-126. In their most recent outing, they dominated Holy Cross 94-65. The points came in bunches for center Ryan Kalkbrenner, who dropped a cool 22 points in 20 minutes. Guard Ryan Nembhard was poetic in the backcourt, dishing out 12 assists with zero turnovers, while Baylor Scheierman once again led the team in rebounding with 9 boards. The size of the Bluejays shined once again, as they outrebounded Holy Cross 42-27. 

The starting lineup for the Bluejays was sensational Thursday night, carrying a heavy load in Creighton’s 80-51 victory over UC Riverside. The starters contributed 58 of Creighton’s 80 points with transfer guard Baylor Scheierman leading the way, scoring 17 points off of a 70% field goal percentage. Length and threes were to story for the Bluejays, who secured 42 rebounds compared to 31 for Riverside, and hit eight threes compared to the Highlanders’ three. Creighton slept walked through this week, but recent wins over no. 21 Texas Tech and no. 9 Arkansas will catapult them into (maybe) the top five depending on their championship result.  The Bluejays are soaring – largely on the shoulders of an incredible starting five – and are currently the team to beat in the Big East.

Villanova 

Is it time to press the panic button? I don’t think so, but the ‘Cats haven’t shown us any signs that they’re poised to be competitive this year. Monday night saw the Wildcats playing the 3rd worst team in Division 1 – according to KenPom – who narrowly scraped out a 60-50 victory over Delaware State. The silver lining here is that both Brendan Hausen and Mark Armstrong helped put the ‘Cats over the top, each providing seven points off the bench in the second half. In years past, Villanova has relied upon their stellar three- point shooting, but for a second consecutive game that has been the worst aspect of the game, with a five of 27 clip from beyond the arc. 

The Wildcats dropped another tough game, losing to a red-hot Michigan State team by a score of 73-71 Friday night. Eric Dixon continues to be the best player for Villanova, as he dropped 24 points and nine rebounds. Guard Caleb Daniels was able to bring home 13 points but on an inefficient four of 14 from the field, including one of eight from beyond the arc. The ‘Cats continue to struggle to hit their threes, and, until they start to turn it around, this rough start could be prolonged. Next week they travel to Oregon to compete in the Phil Knight invitational with their first game coming against the Iowa State Cyclones.

St John’s

The Johnnies are rolling to their first 3-0 start since the COVID year after defeating Central Connecticut State 91-74 Tuesday night. David Jones once again led the charge, scoring 15 points and grabbing nine rebounds – five of which were on the offensive end. Posh Alexander looked liked more like himself, as he scored 12 points, dished out six assists and snatched two steals. While he is starting to command the offense more, I would like to see Alexander get a little more involved. Freshman guard AJ Storr provided a spark off the bench, hitting four of five from beyond the arc and going for 16 points. 

St. John’s continued the Gavitt Games with their matchup against Nebraska on Thursday. The Red Storm exploded in the second half, leading to a 70-50 victory over the Cornhuskers. Much of this can be attributed to the phenomenal play from senior center Joel Soriano, who had 17 points, 18 rebounds and three blocks. I still don’t think we are seeing the Posh Alexander we were promised, as he had 13 points and five turnovers in the contest. If Alexander can limit the turnovers and begin to control the offense more, then St. John’s could be a tough team to beat. The Johnnies are back Monday night for a battle against Temple.  

DePaul

The Gavitt Games are here, and DePaul opened them up with a 69-53 win at Minnesota. Continuing his dominance, Javan Johnson scored 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Umoja Gibson once again proved why he was a great addition from Oklahoma this summer, as he led the offense with 14 points and eight assists. Eral Penn secured his first double-double of the season with 10 points and 14 rebounds. 

The Blue Demons traveled to the Bahamas for the Bahamas Championship this past week. In their first game, they battled against Santa Clara and dropped a close one, 69-61. DePaul was unable to capitalize on the 19 turnovers and 19 fouls from Santa Clara, yet Umoja Gibson continued to look great with 18 points, four assists and five rebounds. 

In their second game of the Bahamas Championship, DePaul squared off against Oklahoma State. Coming within one with 24 seconds to go, DePaul was unable to finish it off, losing 82-78. Eral Penn kept the Blue Demons in the game with his 25 points and 11 rebounds, while Umoja Gibson facilitated the offense with 17 points and six assists. DePaul is back in action Friday night when no. 24 Texas A&M comes to town. 

Butler 

Butler opened up their play against the Big 10 by traveling to Happy Valley to battle the Nittany Lions. N.C. State transfer Manny Bates continued his sensational play, scoring 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. The Bulldogs were down by 16 with five minutes to go in the game and started charging – looking to knock off Penn State – but Jalen Pickett’s triple double (15, 11, and 10) proved to be too much, as Butler lost 68-62. Even with all the time off, the abysmal shooting from the Bulldogs has continued (five of 23 from beyond the arc). 

After the tough loss to Penn State, the Bulldogs bounced back Thursday night with a 95-67 victory over St. Francis (PA). Hampered by foul trouble, Manny Bates wasn’t able to be as aggressive as he’s used to, yet the other four starters each scored at least 15 points. Junior guard Chuck Harris was unstoppable with 22 points, seven assists and five rebounds on 70% shooting from the field. 

Saturday was another easy game for the Bulldogs, as they obliterated The Citadel 89-42. Much like last game, Manny Bates did not do much, but the rest of the starters for Butler filled in for him, all scoring at least 13 points. Butler has not had much competition other than Penn State this week, but next week should feature some real tests. The no. 23 Tennessee Volunteers will be in town Wednesday night to see what the Bulldogs are truly made of. 

Marquette

The Golden Eagles traveled down to West Lafayette on Tuesday and battled for 40 minutes, ultimately falling short to the Purdue Boilermakers, 75-70. Off the bench, David Joplin was phenomenal, scoring 21 points and grabbing 9 rebounds while shooting a stellar five of seven from three. Zach Edey proved to be too much for Marquette to handle, dominating with 20 points and 13 rebounds.

From the second that the game tipped off, Long Island was out of it. Marquette ran away with the game early on and never looked back, winning 95-58. Junior forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper only missed one shot all night, going for 31 points. Oso Ighodaro did it all with 11 points, six rebounds, three blocks and two steals. Marquette comes back on Monday when they face Mississippi State. 

Xavier 

Sean Miller has his Musketeers rolling, having won their most recent contest against Fairfield 78-65. The unselfish play has also continued, as Xavier dished out 23 assists throughout the game. At the heart of this offense is senior forward Zach Freemantle, who was sensational Tuesday night after recording his first triple-double of the season: 15 points, 10 assists, and 13 rebounds. Adam Kunkel and Jack Nunge both contributed to the scoring in a big way, each scoring at least 21 in the game. 

Xavier battled hard in their match against Big 10 front runner – no. 12 ranked Indiana – but ultimately fell 81-79. The starting five for the Musketeers looked great with four out of the five scoring at least 13 points. Xavier squared up really well with the Hoosiers, and, if one or two more little things went their way, they could have easily won the contest. That should be very promising for Sean Miller as the Musketeers head into a week with a lot of rest, with only one game (Florida) on the schedule. 

Georgetown 

OK, let’s take a deep breath. I was getting ahead of myself. Georgetown basketball is most definitely NOT back. Tuesday night saw the Hoyas lose to Northwestern 75-63, and it featured one of the worst stretches of basketball (if we can even call it that) I’ve seen in recent memory. A silver lining, however, is that Primo Spears continued to impress with 22 points, six assists and three steals. But as Jerry Garcia liked to say, “every silver lining’s got a touch of grey,” and that grey comes in the fact that outside of Spears, Coach Ewing can’t find anyone that can put the ball in the basket at a consistent rate.

The Hoyas traveled to Jamaica for the Jamaica Classic, and, in their first game, they battled against Loyola Marymount, ultimately losing 84-66 on Friday. Sophomore guard Brandon Murray looked solid with 19 points. What killed Georgetown in this game was their abysmal 18% three-point shooting. The bench for the Hoyas also only contributed eight points, something Coach Ewing should be looking to address. 

In their final game of the Jamaica Classic, Georgetown faced off against La Salle and triumphed by a score of 69-62. Senior center Qudus Wahab led the Hoyas to victory with 23 points and seven rebounds. Three-point shooting was once again a weak point for the Hoyas, who only hit 25% of their shots from downtown. Georgetown will have some time off before facing cross-town rival American on Wednesday.  

Providence 

The Friars came flying into the Dunkin’ Donuts Center for their matchup against Stonehill on Tuesday and left victorious, winning 100-76. The story of the game – and the season for that matter – was rebounding. The Friars had 40 rebounds (16 on the offensive end) while holding Stonehill to only 19 total. Six Friars scored in double digits, with Bryce Hopkins leading the way with 16 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. 

Providence looked flat Saturday in their game against Miami, losing 74-64. Going down by 10 at half, the Friars were never able to gain enough momentum to fight off the Hurricanes. Bryce Hopkins once again dominated with 16 points and eight rebounds, but his aggression got the best of him, as he also let up six turnovers. Only two players on their bench scored, something Ed Cooley will definitely look to improve on in their next games. 

Oh boy. Sunday night saw the Friars lose their last game of the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip Off Classic to the Saint Louis Billikens, 76-73. A timely layup by Saint Louis’ Yuri Collins with 24 seconds to go allowed the Bellikens to prevail against Providence. Bryce Hopkins brought home another dominant performance with 20 points and nine rebounds, but it wasn’t enough for the Friars, as they fell to 3-2. Providence will look to pack their home court Wednesday night when they face off against Merrimack. 

UConn

The newest member of the AP Top 25 looked great once again, as the Huskies defeated Buffalo 84-64 on Tuesday. ECU transfer Tristen Newton was dominant, notching his first triple double of the season with 22 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds and four steals. UConn dominated the glass, winning the rebound battle 42-29. Much of this can be attributed to Donovan Clingan’s dominance down low, as he poured in 11 points, eight rebounds, and two blocks. 

In his first full game back, Jordan Hawkins looked like the player that everyone thought he could become. In 24 minutes of action, Hawkins scored 20 points on seven of thirteen from the field, helping to bring the Huskies to a 86-50 victory over UNC Wilmington on Friday. Sanogo looked unstoppable once again, scoring 24 points and grabbing five rebounds.  

Delaware State came to town Sunday night and the Huskies proved why they are one of the best teams in the nation, winning 95-60. Once again, Sanogo dominated with 26 points and eight rebounds. Clingan was great off the bench, scoring 16 points and sending back three shots. UConn will be back Thursday night when they look to defend their home court against the visiting Oregon Ducks. 

Seton Hall 

Wednesday saw the Pirates taking a tough loss to Iowa, losing 83-67 on their home floor. Coach Holloway has a lot to work on before their next game, as Seton Hall played sloppily, fouling Iowa 25 times throughout the game. These fouls led to Iowa going 28 of 33 from the charity stripe. The Pirates also turned the ball over 16 times compared to only eight for Iowa.  

After losing to Iowa, Coach Holloway and the Pirates had a much easier contest against Wagner Sunday night. Seton Hall dominated all game, ultimately winning 82-44. Senior guard Al-Amir Dawes not only led the offense with 19 points, but also anchored the defense with three steals. Three-point shooting was a key for the Pirates, as they were able to knock down 11 of them throughout the course of the game. Thursday will be a good match for Seton Hall when they face off against Penny Hardaway’s Memphis Tigers. 

Team of the Week

G: Ryan Nembhard – Creighton

G: Umoja Gibson – DePaul

F: Baylor Scheierman – Creighton 

F: Eric Dixon – Villanova 

C: Adama Sanogo – UConn

Coach: Dan Hurley – UConn