Riding a three-game losing streak into Thanksgiving likely wasn’t where Creighton men’s basketball wanted to be, but little went according to plan during the Bluejays stay in Las Vegas.
Injury and ice-cold shooting contributed to the losses to San Diego State and Texas A&M, and more injury and illness struck heading into the seventh-place game. Despite Ryan Kalkbrenner missing the game and Pop Isaacs playing with the flu, Creighton found a way to get a win over Notre Dame before heading back to Omaha.
“I think from a psyche standpoint, it was certainly really good for us, especially considering the circumstances,” Coach Greg McDermott said. “We didn’t have Pop, Kalk or Steven [Ashworth] in practice for two days prior, and then to find out Kalk wasn’t going to be able to play the morning of the game, we had some other guys that had to step up, and they really did that.”
One of the players who stepped up was freshman Jackson McAndrew, who started all three games in Vegas after coming off the bench in his first five games. The 6-foot-9 forward recorded his first career double-double in his first start with 12 points and 14 rebounds against the Aztecs then followed it up with 16 points against the Aggies.
McAndrew called it a blessing to move into the starting lineup, but said all he really cares about is helping the team win.
“There’s been constant improvement, and that’s what I like to see,” McDermott said. “I wouldn’t have guessed in June that he was going to be ready and be at the stage that he is today, and I’m not sure when practice started the first couple weeks if I thought he was ready for anything more than a minor rotational role. But he just continues to improve, continues to get better.
“He’s still a freshman, so he’s going to make some mistakes, but the 13 or 14 rebounds against a physical San Diego State team was a step in the right direction for him, and then the Texas A&M game, starting the game 0-for-6 and then hitting three 3s in the last five minutes when we really needed him, I think speaks to that he plays without any fear, and it’s been fun to be around.”
Whereas McAndrew stepped up in the first two games, it was Isaac Traudt who played a big role at the four spot in the win over the Fighting Irish, putting up eight points and six rebounds while knocking down both of his 3-point attempts.
“I would say that we’re resilient,” Traudt said of what he learned about the team in Las Vegas. “We were without Kalk against Notre Dame, and that was tough. A lot of guys had to step up. But we kind of just trusted our training. We’ve practiced together every day since June. We have other guys that can play too, and I think a lot of guys stepped up and kind of showed that.”
Creighton will need contributions from everyone on Wednesday when No. 1 Kansas comes to town Wednesday. Unfortunately, McDermott didn’t have much in the way of a health update prior to Monday’s practice. Isaacs participated in practice after dealing with the flu on Saturday. Ashworth primarily worked with head coach of athletic performance Jeremy Anderson as he continues to strengthen his ankle after rolling it severely against Nebraska. Kalkbrenner did not practice.
Creighton drew Kansas in the Big 12 – Big East Battle. The Jayhawks are 7-0 this season and ranked first in the AP Top 25.
“They’re really good,” McDermott said. “Obviously their transition game is elite. Defensively, they’re very disruptive. Hunter Dickinson and K.J. [Adams] inside, it’s a handful, the physicality and the size. Coach [Bill] Self is one of the best in the business, so it’s going to take our A game and then some.”
Kalkbrenner’s health will be a key factor with the All-American Dickinson in the middle for the Jayhawks. He’s averaging a team-high 15.7 points, 9.1 rebounds and 3.0 stocks per game this season and has totaled more than 2,300 points and 1,200 rebounds in his career. McDermott said Dickinson’s versatility will be the biggest challenge for Creighton.
“He’s an elite passer, number one, so if you try to go with too much help, he really picks you apart,” McDermott said. “But he can pick and roll, they can post him up on an isolation there, they use him in the short roll a lot in the middle of the floor and he’s able to really pick people apart with the pass, and he’s a capable enough a 3-point shooter that you have to respect it. On top of that, he’s 7-foot-1, 260-some pounds, so he’s big and he’s physical. Hopefully Kalk is healthy and ready to go, and it’ll be a fun matchup for people to watch.”
In the event Kalkbrenner isn’t able to play, Fredrick King will likely start in his place. The junior put up 14 points, five rebounds and four blocks in 26 minutes against Notre Dame. Jasen Green and Traudt also handled the frontcourt minutes when King was on the bench and played a big part in the win.
“Obviously our rim protection takes a hit [without Kalkbrenner],” McDermott said. “We become really small defensively, but offensively, we went to Jasen a couple times to get a big basket on an out-of-bounds play that we designed at a critical time when Notre Dame was really making a run. We’re comfortable with Jasen and Isaac in those situations if we need to do it. But I was also very encouraged by Fred’s play on both ends of the floor. He did some really good things. As I’ve said before, he’s got to limit some of those fouls.”
South Dakota State transfer guard Zeke Mayo (11.7 points per game), 6-foot-7 forward K.J. Adams Jr. (10.4 points per game) and veteran point guard Dajuan Harris Jr. (9.7 points and 6.1 assists per game) are key players for the JayHawks, who rank in the top 10 in both offense and defense on KenPom (seventh overall). They’re elite in transition and in 2-point scoring and already have wins over North Carolina, Michigan State and Duke this season.
“I’m sure the crowd is going to be incredible,” McDermott said. “I’m sure some Kansas fans will find their way in there. Somehow, they seem to always do that, regardless of where you go. But it’ll be a great night for college basketball. Obviously, Kansas has played at a really high level, and we’re a little banged up and trying to get everybody back healthy and ready to go, and hopefully we have a full roster for Wednesday.”
The last time the No. 1 team in the country visited CHI Health Center Omaha was UConn in February. The Bluejays won 85-66 — the last loss for the Huskies who went on to win the national championship.
“It went well for us, so hopefully we can do that again,” Traudt said. “I know the environment will be awesome. I assume it’s sold out already, so really looking forward to that environment and playing in front of the best fans in the country.”
Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. CT on FS1 with Kevin Kugler, Jim Jackson and Nick Bahe on the call. Creighton is promoting a stripe-out for fans attending the game.
