Time off during the college basketball season is typically a great opportunity for self-scouting and tinkering. However, health and finals were the priorities during the six days between games for Creighton men’s basketball this week.
“It’s been a little different than most other weeks that we have in between games,” Ryan Kalkbrenner said. “Usually we get a few practices to work ourselves. This week we’ve been a little banged up, so Mac gave us a little more time to rest and recover and get the injuries taken care of, so little bit of a lighter week in that sense.”
Everyone outside of Pop Isaacs was back on the court Thursday as Creighton turned its focus from recovery to preparation. The Bluejays will face their first true road test of the season, and it’s a big one at No. 7 Alabama. Coach Greg McDermott said he’ll learn a lot about his team on Saturday.
“We haven’t played in that environment; obviously it’s going to be a great environment on Saturday night,” McDermott said. “I think Alabama, from a talent perspective, is one of the top two or three teams in the country. They just keep bringing guys at you off the bench, and they’ve done an unbelievable job of assembling that roster and team.”
Alabama’s AP Poll ranking matches its KenPom figure as the Crimson Tide is 7-2 with losses to Purdue and Oregon, the latter coming in the championship match of the Players Era Festival. The Bluejays beat Alabama last year in Omaha, 85-83, but Coach Nate Oats went to work in the transfer portal to supplement a strong returning core of players and set the Tide up for a deep run this season.
“I think Cliff [Omoruyi] inside gives them some rim protection that maybe they didn’t have last year,” McDermott said. “But [Mark] Sears is still playing at a high level, and we fully anticipate seeing Chris Youngblood, who could end up being one of their better players that hasn’t played yet. We played against him when he was at Kennesaw as a freshman and sophomore before he transferred to South Florida, and he was a player of the year in that league last year. So we’re anticipating that he’ll be healthy and ready to play, and that provides another challenge.”
Omoruyi, the 6-foot-11 transfer from Rutgers, is averaging 8.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 18.3 minutes per game. Second-Team All-American point guard Mark Sears is off to a slow start by the lofty standards he set last season but is still leading the team at 16.3 points and 4.0 assists per game. Forward Grant Nelson is averaging 13.1 points and 7.8 rebounds in his second season with the Tide after transferring from North Dakota State. Freshman guard Labaron Philon is the team’s third double-digit scorer, averaging 11.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists.
Omaha Central alumnus Latrell Wrightsell Jr., the son of former Creighton guard Latrell Wrightsell Sr., got off to a great start this season (11.5 points per game, 42.2% from 3) before suffering a season-ending Achilles injury eight games in. Alabama is counting on the addition of Youngblood to make up for that loss as he’s scored more than 1700 points in his career between his three years at Kennesaw State and one at South Florida. He averaged 15.3 points and shot 41.6% from 3 as a Bull last season. Oats has confirmed that Youngblood will play on Saturday.
“They’re really good,” freshman point guard and Alabama native Ty Davis said. “They’ve got a lot of guys who can play. I’m friends with one of the freshmen, Philon. He’s from Alabama as well, so I grew up with him. He’s changed his game a lot. He’s really good player. And then obviously, Mark Sears is one of the best guards in the country. But I’ve got faith in our game plan and trust in our game plan, and I know that we’ll be ready to go at 7:30 on Saturday night.”
Alabama is fifth nationally in adjusted offensive efficiency according to KenPom. The Crimson Tide shoots 60.3% inside the arc, and a lot of that comes in transition as Alabama ranks sixth nationally in adjusted tempo. Alabama also is shooting 37.5% from 3 in transition despite connecting at a 33% clip from distance overall. Getting back in transition is one of Creighton’s top priorities.
“You’ve just got to have your antennas up at all times,” Kalkbrenner said. “On a turnover, on a made basket, they’re pushing it, so you can’t make a 3 or make a good play and then celebrate. You’ve got to make a good play and then run back on defense. So I think that’s a big thing. Obviously they’re really good at it, so they’re going to get you a few times, but not panicking, and staying with the system is going to be big for that.”
Creighton is 3-0 all-time against Alabama with a win in the 2012 NCAA Tournament and the 2016 NIT prior to last year’s victory.
Tipoff on Saturday is set for 7:30 p.m. on the SEC Network with Tom Hart and Dane Bradshaw on the call.
