Creighton Basketball: 3 keys to Bluejays beating San Diego State in Round of 64

Limit Matt Bradley

Enter, Matt Bradley. A Cal transfer averages 17.0 ppg. The next closest Aztec comes in at just over 8 points per contest. In fact, Bradley accounts for over one-fourth of San Diego State’s points on the year.

Guarding the 6’4, 220-pound Bradley will pose quite a challenge for Creighton. The main reason for this is the number of ways Bradley can score. He is a dynamic shot creator that gets to the rim with ease. He also shoots the 3-ball at a 41% clip. He will be a tough matchup for whoever the Jays decide to put on him. Bradley would likely post up Alex O’Connell with relatively high success, while he may be able to get around Arthur Kaluma.

Outside of Matt Bradley, the scoring options are fairly limited for the Aztecs. Trey Pulliam and Lamont Butler are both more known for their defensive attributes but can create for themselves fairly well. Nathan Mensah, the athletic SDSU big man should be kept under control by the Big East Defensive Player of the Year, Ryan Kalkbrenner.

A lot of San Diego State possessions end up in late shot clock situations with a Matt Bradley isolation. Sometimes they’ll run some on-ball action for him, other times they’ll simply clear out and let him take over.

If Creighton finds a way to keep Bradley in check, I don’t see how SDSU scores over 55 or 60 on the Jays. Now, that is obviously easier said than done with a guy like Bradley who has over 1,800 points over his illustrious career.