No. 15 Creighton men’s basketball improved to 2-0 on the season with a 96-70 win over Fairleigh Dickinson on Sunday.
Pop Isaacs made his official Creighton debut while Ryan Kalkbrenner continued his torrid pace with 24 points in 23 minutes, shooting 9-of-10 from the field (1-of-1 from 3) and 5-of-5 from the line. That gives him 73 points in 70 minutes on a 95.8 true shooting percentage through two games.
“Certainly a step in the right direction,” Coach Greg McDermott said. “After giving up baskets on the first four possessions, I thought we settled in a little bit better defensively and played a little bit more like we’re capable of. We dominated the glass and I thought our efficiency taking care of the basketball was good the first half, not as good the second. I thought we tried to hit some home runs in the second half with some of our passes, and we’ve got to clean some of that up …
“A little bit better than the other day, and that’s what it’s about this time of year. It’s just trying to get a little bit little bit better as we move day to day.”
Here are three takeaways from the game.
Flipping the Switch
For the second straight game, Creighton found itself in a tight game against an overmatched opponent late in the first half.
The Jays allowed the Knights to score on their first four possessions to take a 10-2 lead out of the gates, and FDU led 26-24 14 minutes into the game. While the deficit had as much to do with anemic shot-making as it did poor defense, the Jays still allowed 1.182 points per possession during that span, buoyed by a 4-for-5 mark from 3.
The lead was short-lived, however, as Creighton ripped off a 13-0 run to take immediate control of the game. The Jays closed the half on a 26-8 stretch, then used a 12-0 run early in the second half to extend the lead even more. It eventually peaked at 35 before the reserves closed out the game.
From the six-minute mark of the first half until the 8:41 mark of the second when the starting backcourt of Steven Ashworth and Isaacs sat down for good (Kalkbrenner subbed out five minutes into the half and never returned), Creighton allowed 0.641 points per possession, a marked improvement from the start of the game and the 1.178 Creighton surrendered to UTRGV in the opener.
“Ultimately, we got stops,” Steven Ashworth said. “I think that’s what it came down to is we were able to get stops, which frees up guys like Jamiya [Neal] to really get out and run. He’s such a threat in transition and it’s super fun as a point guard to be able to kick it ahead to somebody like that and kind of tally a bucket for us. So stops is the biggest thing. I think that if we can string together a few stops in a row, it really puts pressure on the other team’s defense to get back in transition.”
Run, Run, Run
Transition played a big part in Creighton opening the game up, and it should continue to be a weapon for the Jays all year if they continue to press the issue. Creighton finished the game with a 19-0 edge in fast break points, which doesn’t even capture the full extent of the impact running the floor had on the game.
“While we’re not as long as we’ve been in the past, we’re faster, and you see that speed in transition,” McDermott said. “We’re able to attack quick and you’ve got a willing passer in Steven, and Pop made some great passes in transition as well. So when we can do that, I think you can wear into a team relatively quick, but you’ve got to get stops first.”
The bulk of the transition scoring came from Neal, whose 13 points all came from running the floor. He showed off his athleticism with two dunks and four highlight reel layups, including an and-one. He also found Kalkbrenner for a dunk in transition. Neal added five rebounds and three assists to his line. While he’s still trying to find his place within the halfcourt offense, transition is an area in which he can make an immediate impact for the Jays.
“I think that’s where I thrive the most at,” Neal said. “I like to play in that type of situation. So as much as possible, if I can get those type of situations, I want to get that. I think I could be really good for us this year in those type of situations … I think doing that and also just getting downhill and finding my shooters, too. So just putting pressure on the defense for myself or for my teammates, I think that’s where I’ll be most effective.”
Kalkbrenner earned himself two dunks by running the floor, which he does as well as any 7-footer in the country. Additionally, his ability to trigger breaks with blocks and altered shots at the rim as well as set drag screens for secondary transition action makes Creighton that much more difficult to guard.
“He plays a big role, because you have to account for him,” McDermott said. “I talked to him midway through the first half about running to the rim a little bit more. He likes to set those drag screens, which are so effective and then he can dive to the rim after that. But if he can get to the rim while we’re still in the early parts of our primary break, you can’t account for him with just one guy. Somebody has to help, and now the dominoes start to fall, and you’re able to get them into rotations and create good opportunities.”
Fairleigh Dickinson was much more aggressive with double teams on Kalkbrenner than UTRGV was, and the Jays did a poor job making the Knights pay as they finished 10-for-33 from 3. However, McDermott chalked it up to an off day as he liked the majority of the attempts and the players that took them.
Rotation in Flux
After missing the opener with an issue that has limited him to practicing twice in the last 10 or 12 days, Isaacs scored 12 points on 4-of-12 shooting (2-of-7 from 3) in his official Creighton debut. McDermott said his rhythm wasn’t great coming off the missed time, but he thought the shots were mostly good ones.
Additionally, Isaacs’ impact extended beyond his own numbers.
“Pop’s a fantastic player, a really fun backcourt mate and he opens up the offense in a way for us in transition and then also in the half court,” Ashworth said. “That just relieves the burden of handling the ball so much, and then even starting the offense, he can do that for us as well. So I think he adds another element to our offense that really showcased tonight in our ability to get out run and then just execute at a high level offensively.”
Ashworth put up 15 points on 5-of-8 from 3 and dished out nine assists as he both played alongside and staggered minutes with Isaacs. Freshman Ty Davis was the first guard off the bench again and contributed four rebounds, three assists, one steal and one point in 13 minutes. However, McDermott said the backcourt rotation isn’t necessarily set with redshirt freshman walk-on Shane Thomas factoring in as well.
“We can use Pop there some,” McDermott said. “There are times where Ty’s skill set fits, and there are times where Shane’s skill set fits. And that’s kind of beauty of this team is that there are some options for us depending on what we need. They’re both getting reps in practice. They’re both playing half the time of the scout team, and half the time getting reps with the top team. So that’s going to be beneficial for them, whether they’re playing a bunch of minutes or not.”
Creighton is high on Thomas’ defensive ability, and he grabbed four rebounds with a put-back in just under nine minutes of action against the Knights.
McDermott opted to start Isaac Traudt at the four spot rather than Jasen Green after the former hit three 3s and scored 11 points in the opener. Traudt got some good looks on Sunday but only made one of them. However, he also grabbed five rebounds, scored five rebounds, dished out two assists and blocked two shots in 14 minutes.
Green pitched in two points and two rebounds in 14 minutes while freshman Jackson McAndrew made the most of his 15 minutes, totaling 13 points on 4-of-8 from the field (1-of-4 from 3) and 4-of-6 from the foul line.
“It’s challenging, especially that four spot, because all three guys deserve to play and there’s not enough minutes to go around right now,” McDermott said. “We’re going to have to figure that out. It might be a game-by-game thing. The good news is they’ve all been really supportive of each other, they’ve really pushed each other and they bring different things to the table. So it might be what you need on that particular night, whether it’s spacing or if it’s defense or rebounding, it might be a different guy.”
Creighton men’s basketball will continue its season-opening home stand on Wednesday as Houston Christin visits CHI Health Center Omaha.
