Creighton Basketball: 5 reasons why Bluejays are 2020-21 title contenders

A Star in the Making

Marcus Zegarowski is one of the best point guards in the college basketball landscape. He was the Preseason Big East Player of the Year and was selected onto the Bob Cousy Award watchlist for the nation’s best point guard. These are just the most recent of Zegarowski’s growing number of accolades.

Marcus’s 2019-20 campaign came to an early close due to a knee injury, but only after Zegarowski put up 16 points per game and adding five assists per contest as well. Anyone who has watched the Jays in the past few years understands how valuable Zegarowski is to Creighton’s success. He is insanely competitive and has a knack for hitting the big shots when it counts. He also has the genes of basketball stardom. His half-brother, Michael Carter-Williams, currently plays in the NBA.

Zegarowski is a true do-it-all point guard, being able to shoot, drive, rebound, and pass proficiently. He shot threes at 42% clip a season ago and was able to get to the rim extraordinarily well. His best games of his career have come in some of Creighton’s biggest. In the Jays’ win over Texas Tech last year, Zegarowski dropped 32 points and added five assists.

Dating back quite a long time, the NCAA tournament champion seems to always have a premiere guard. In fact, the last three champions have had Kyle Guy, Jalen Brunson, or Marcus Paige in the backcourt. To have a major ball handler that can not only score, but play solid defense is a key to success in late March.

If Zegarowski can stay healthy, there is never a game that Creighton is truly out of until the clock hits zero. The Ballock-Zegarowski combination has been a winning one for coach Mac, and don’t expect that to change this year.