Saturday’s game at No. 7 Alabama is a big opportunity for Creighton men’s basketball to secure a road win over a top-10 team, but the trip holds special meaning for one Bluejay in particular. It’s a homecoming for freshman Ty Davis.
The young point guard was a four-year player at Mountain Brook High School, about an hour’s drive away from Tuscaloosa. He racked up over 1,500 points during his Mountain Brook career and helped the Spartans reach three state championship games and win one state title.
Now he’ll get to suit up again in his home state one month into his freshman season.
“I’m very excited,” Davis said. “They recruited me a little bit out of high school, so familiar with their coaching staff and some of their players. It’s going to be surreal whenever I kind of get out there, playing in front of my high school friends, who will be in the student section for them, and then a bunch of my family members are coming to the game, so it be really fun.”
Creighton will have a cheering section among the Crimson Tide faithful as Davis said he collected more than 20 tickets from teammates to give to family and friends. That includes his dad, Tyler, the head boys basketball coach at Mountain Brook. The Spartans have Saturday off after playing on Friday night but have Saturday off.
“That’ll be really special,” Davis said. “With him being a high school coach, and my brother and my sister being in their seasons right now, it’s hard for everyone to kind of make the trip out here [to Omaha]. So that game being so close to home, it’ll be a cool experience for everyone.”
Davis knew when he signed with Creighton that a trip to Tuscaloosa was on the schedule, but now that the game has arrived and Davis is not only on the team but in the rotation, the excitement level has risen.
“It’s very special, something I’ve always dreamed of,” Davis said. “I’m very excited to kind of get there. Obviously the nerves will be a little different for this game, but just kind of trusting all the work and the process that we’ve put in. It’ll be a surreal moment for sure … I’m super thankful and blessed to be able to do it with the guys that we have and playing for Coach Mac and the best coaching staff here, so I’m glad I’m rolling with the Jays and not the Tide this weekend, for sure.”
Davis has appeared in every game and is averaging 10.7 minutes per game. He made his first start in Las Vegas when Steven Ashworth missed the game against San Diego State. His numbers don’t jump off the page — nine points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists in 107 minutes — but Coach Greg McDermott praised the freshman’s improvement through the first month of his career.
“He’s gotten better, especially on the defensive end,” McDermott said. “In some areas that maybe don’t show in the stat sheet, he’s making significant improvement. It’ll be fun for him to go back to Alabama to play, but we’re going to have to rely on him. He’s going to need to play a pretty significant role of his team. He brings some things offensively that Shane [Thomas] doesn’t bring to the table, and Shane brings some things defensively that Ty doesn’t. So they’re both going to be part of the rotation, it’s just going to depend on the situation.”
Davis could see his role increased the rest of the season following Pop Isaacs’ season-ending hip surgery on Thursday. Redshirting guard Larry Johnson, who has been away from the team since the Players Era Festival, and redshirt freshman guard Sterling Knox have also left the team, making an already shallow backcourt even more so. Creighton will need more out of Davis both in the games and on the practice court.
“I’m approaching every game like I always have, and just kind of being prepared when my number’s called, whether that’s the one, two or the three, because obviously, losing Pop, one of our best players, it’s a hard hit for us,” Davis said. “I feel like everyone’s kind of came together and realized if we’re going to do this, we’ve got to do it together. So just kind of taking that similar approach every day, and knowing when my number is called, I’ve got to be able to produce at whatever spot I’m in.”
Davis didn’t grow up an Alabama basketball fan — though he likes the football team — but he has attended games at Coleman Coliseum and is expecting a raucous environment. Having live in it on both sides, Davis is aware of the disdain each fan base has for the other side despite the limited opportunities to face each other.
“From those games that I have been at, that place will be rocking,” Davis said. “They’ll have their hard hats on. They are getting out for winter break, so I’m not sure if that’ll affect the crowd much, but I know that they’re not big fans of Creighton, so it’ll be a big game for sure; it’ll be loud in there … For some reason, I think it is a little bit of a rivalry, but I think we’re 3-0 against them, right?
“Hopefully we keep that going.”
