Creighton 116, Nebraska-Kearney 82
Just pretend.
First, pretend that Creighton played good defense against Nebraska-Kearney; they didn’t, but that’s not what the focus of this Bluejay Basketball entry is about. Pretend the Jays locked the Lopers down, just for fun’s sake.
Now, imagine what 116 points looks like on a basketball court. Not in the NBA, where uber-athletes, 24-second shot clocks, and 48-minute games combine to wreak havoc on scoreboard light bulbs and statisticians’ wrists. Nope, close your eyes and picture what 116 points looks like in a college basketball game.
More than 11,000 Creighton fans didn’t need to transcend deep into meditation Sunday night, but Dana Altman’s Jays did such an effective job “shooting the lights out” that the Qwest Center could’ve gone dark and those in attendance could have dreamt of the offensive explosion Creighton displayed in defeating Nebraska-Kearney.
For those of you familiar with the long-standing tradition of Creighton ticket holders earning free Godfathers Pizza if the Jays score 70 points in a game, all you need to know is that the Jays scored 63 in the first half. All you have to envision is perfect release after perfect release from the right hand of Nate Funk, who missed just one shot from the field in scoring 18 points and dishing 9 assists (in only 20 minutes, I might add).
Make believe that Anthony Tolliver, who at times the past two years looked a little too anxious in the offensive paint, busted out an entire repertoire of aggressive and deft moves – solid pivots, sealing post moves, two one-handed slams, and a number of baby hooks from various spots on the floor – all leading to 17 points on 7-8 shooting from the field (in only 18 minutes, I might add).
Visualize, for a moment, crisp passes, finding the open man, passing up good looks for great shots, and baseline alley-oops to Brice Nengsu, a South African that absolutely SKIES above the rim. Suppose there is a near-20-year-old freshman point guard who weighs nearly 200 pounds and has at least three sets of eyes, always looking (and seemingly finding) the open man in set offense and transition. Oh, wait, you don’t have to; Josh Dotzler is knocking at the door of becoming Creighton’s next four-year starter at point guard.
Remember our good friend Jeffony Tolliday? He showed up last night, too, with the help of Tolliver’s 17 points and 2 rebounds and Jeff Day’s 15 points and 6 rebounds. That’s right, in a combined 41 minutes Jeffony Tolliday posted 32 points and 8 rebounds. And even though one half of the hybrid center is on his way up, and one half looks to be stuck in neutral, those are solid numbers for any two-center combo in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Sound like all the makings of a 116-point effort, right? Wait … it gets better.
The Jays didn’t play a complete game last night. Do you think Altman will let his fellas pretend that they played defense last night? Sure, there were some good spurts, especially when the full court press was at its best, but overall there are some gaping holes in the Jays’ point prevention. But that is where the glass-half-full mentality (that I’m going to try and sustain for the entire season, I promise) comes into play; these guys didn’t have the best effort and they ignited on offense.
They won’t shoot 61% every night this season, that’s a fact (at 54%, the 1984-85 Jays had the highest field goal shooting percentage for a season). But the fact that with so many new faces (5 of the 12 Jays that hit the court didn’t play one minute of Division 1 basketball last year, and two big men sat on the bench with injuries), they were able to be successful in almost every facet of the offensive game is remarkable.
Obviously, it is just an exhibition; I’m not trying to completely ignore what I wrote after the EA Sports game. I just got dizzy after seeing wave after wave of fresh-legged Bluejays flying off the bench and into the game to contribute.
Maybe that dizziness is what’s causing my imagination and subsequent excitement about what this team might do this year, but I don’t care. This is a very talented, athletic, and coach-able group of players, and you don’t have to delve deep in thought to consider this team has a chance or two to be very good, too.
And don’t pretend that they won’t focus on defense all week on the Hilltop, either. Altman will make sure his fellas sleep soundly each night this week, dreaming about moving their feet and communicating on defense.
First, pretend that Creighton played good defense against Nebraska-Kearney; they didn’t, but that’s not what the focus of this Bluejay Basketball entry is about. Pretend the Jays locked the Lopers down, just for fun’s sake.
Now, imagine what 116 points looks like on a basketball court. Not in the NBA, where uber-athletes, 24-second shot clocks, and 48-minute games combine to wreak havoc on scoreboard light bulbs and statisticians’ wrists. Nope, close your eyes and picture what 116 points looks like in a college basketball game.
More than 11,000 Creighton fans didn’t need to transcend deep into meditation Sunday night, but Dana Altman’s Jays did such an effective job “shooting the lights out” that the Qwest Center could’ve gone dark and those in attendance could have dreamt of the offensive explosion Creighton displayed in defeating Nebraska-Kearney.
For those of you familiar with the long-standing tradition of Creighton ticket holders earning free Godfathers Pizza if the Jays score 70 points in a game, all you need to know is that the Jays scored 63 in the first half. All you have to envision is perfect release after perfect release from the right hand of Nate Funk, who missed just one shot from the field in scoring 18 points and dishing 9 assists (in only 20 minutes, I might add).
Make believe that Anthony Tolliver, who at times the past two years looked a little too anxious in the offensive paint, busted out an entire repertoire of aggressive and deft moves – solid pivots, sealing post moves, two one-handed slams, and a number of baby hooks from various spots on the floor – all leading to 17 points on 7-8 shooting from the field (in only 18 minutes, I might add).
Visualize, for a moment, crisp passes, finding the open man, passing up good looks for great shots, and baseline alley-oops to Brice Nengsu, a South African that absolutely SKIES above the rim. Suppose there is a near-20-year-old freshman point guard who weighs nearly 200 pounds and has at least three sets of eyes, always looking (and seemingly finding) the open man in set offense and transition. Oh, wait, you don’t have to; Josh Dotzler is knocking at the door of becoming Creighton’s next four-year starter at point guard.
Remember our good friend Jeffony Tolliday? He showed up last night, too, with the help of Tolliver’s 17 points and 2 rebounds and Jeff Day’s 15 points and 6 rebounds. That’s right, in a combined 41 minutes Jeffony Tolliday posted 32 points and 8 rebounds. And even though one half of the hybrid center is on his way up, and one half looks to be stuck in neutral, those are solid numbers for any two-center combo in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Sound like all the makings of a 116-point effort, right? Wait … it gets better.
The Jays didn’t play a complete game last night. Do you think Altman will let his fellas pretend that they played defense last night? Sure, there were some good spurts, especially when the full court press was at its best, but overall there are some gaping holes in the Jays’ point prevention. But that is where the glass-half-full mentality (that I’m going to try and sustain for the entire season, I promise) comes into play; these guys didn’t have the best effort and they ignited on offense.
They won’t shoot 61% every night this season, that’s a fact (at 54%, the 1984-85 Jays had the highest field goal shooting percentage for a season). But the fact that with so many new faces (5 of the 12 Jays that hit the court didn’t play one minute of Division 1 basketball last year, and two big men sat on the bench with injuries), they were able to be successful in almost every facet of the offensive game is remarkable.
Obviously, it is just an exhibition; I’m not trying to completely ignore what I wrote after the EA Sports game. I just got dizzy after seeing wave after wave of fresh-legged Bluejays flying off the bench and into the game to contribute.
Maybe that dizziness is what’s causing my imagination and subsequent excitement about what this team might do this year, but I don’t care. This is a very talented, athletic, and coach-able group of players, and you don’t have to delve deep in thought to consider this team has a chance or two to be very good, too.
And don’t pretend that they won’t focus on defense all week on the Hilltop, either. Altman will make sure his fellas sleep soundly each night this week, dreaming about moving their feet and communicating on defense.
posted by Creighton Otter at 6:59 PM
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