Villanova Wildcats [12-2 (3-0)] vs Creighton Blue Jays [9-6 (3-1)]
Where: Finneran Pavilion (Villanova, PA)
When: Wednesday, Jan. 7 at 7:30 PM
Betting Line: TBD
How to Watch: Peacock
How to Listen: Villanova Sports Radio Network
Net Rankings: Villanova 18, Creighton 52 (Quad 2 opportunity)
KenPom: Villanova 22, Creighton 43
Torvik: Villanova 32, Creighton 42
About Creighton: Coming into the season, the Blue Jays were selected as clearly the third best team in the Conference. They were also ranked 23rd in the AP
Poll. Iowa transfer Owen Freeman was selected as All-Big East first team, and fellow Iowa transfer Josh Dix was selected to the second team. Things have not gone overly well since then.
The aforementioned Freeman has only played 6 minutes in each of the previous two games, and is only averaging 7.1 points on the season. Outside of a win against Oregon, Creighton lost every out-of-conference game of consequence. Though things have begun to pick up in conference play, with convincing wins at Xavier and vs Marquette, coupled with a home win over Butler. The Blue Jays lost in a stunner at Seton Hall on Sunday.
Dix is leading the team in scoring at 12 per game, but his efficiency is way down from his previous two years at Iowa. The 6’6” senior is still a major threat from distance. The Jays are fairly balanced, having seven players averaging between 7.1 and 12 points per game. The other two double-digit scorers are returning-junior Jasen Green and sophomore transfer Austin Swartz. The 6’8” Green averages 10.4 points and 5.4 rebounds, as well as having the occasional ability to step out and hit a three. Green shoots 60.2% from the floor. Schwartz, a transfer from Miami, averages 10 points per game and hits 39.8% of his three-pointers. He is averaging 18.5 points per game during conference play. Charlotte transfer Nik Graves leads the team in assists at 3.6 per contest. The 6’2” senior averages 9.5 points per game. Howard transfer Blake Harper contributes 8.5 points per outing, and returnee Isaac Traudt chips in an average of 8.1 points. At 6’8” and 6’10” respectively, the duo provides length to the Blue Jays’ front court. But unlike the previous 5 years with Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton does not defend the rim very well. Freeman leads the team with 1.0 blocks per game, but as mentioned he is hardly playing of late. The Jays do take care of the ball, so it will be imperative that Villanova continues to do the same.
Notes on Nova: Given the lack of rim protection for Creighton, the Wildcats should be on the attack throughout. Conversely, Villanova cannot allow Creighton to get clean looks from three. To this point in the season, the Blue Jays are only average from deep as a team, but there are capable shooters throughout the rotation. That rotation of late has been whittled down to essentially 7.5 players, which has been the same for the Wildcats. We are still on Tafara Gapare watch, who has missed three straight due to personal/undisclosed reasons. Gapare did not appear to travel with the team to Indianapolis.
