Big East Basketball Power Rankings: Butler, Seton Hall secure road wins

I’ve been higher on Creighton than most since the beginning of the season and it proved me right during its first conference game of the season. Behind its usual onslaught of 3-pointers and pesky perimeter defense, Creighton absolutely blew Marquette out of the water with a 17-point victory on the first day of the new decade.

For those that have monitored/watched the Bluejays since the beginning of the season, this was just another very strong performance. I’ve had Creighton sitting in my No. 3 spot for the last few weeks and its dominant display (albeit at home) against Marquette warranted another jump.

The Bluejays now quietly sit at 12-2 on the season with their only losses coming away-from-home to nationally-ranked opponents in Michigan and San Diego State. They also can now boast wins over Texas Tech, Arizona State, Oklahoma, Louisiana Tech, and Marquette.

Head coach Greg McDermott’s team definitely lacks size in the frontcourt defensively but makes up for that with opportunistic and intelligent play. This team comes up with several deflections in the halfcourt and creates plenty of turnovers. Of course, it also helps to have players like Marcus Zegarowski, Ty-Shon Alexander, and Mitch Ballock as flamethrower-type shooters that can get going in a hurry.

Perhaps most importantly, though, the arrival of Denzel Mahoney is taking the team to new heights. Although he stands at just 6-foot-5, Mahoney plays well above his size as a small-ball “4” or “5” in a lot of lineups. He has only played in Creighton’s last four games but it is clear that he adds a new wrinkle of versatility to the team’s rotation.