NCAA Basketball: Ranking the top 25 team backcourts for 2022-23 season

Admittedly, this is about how big of a sophomore leap I believe guards Ryan Nembhard and Trey Alexander will have next season. Ryan, the younger brother of Gonzaga point guard Andrew Nembhard, averaged 11.3 ppg and 4.4 apg in nearly 35 mpg.

The Nembhard of Creighton started off his NCAA Basketball career with 15 points and 10 assists in a win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff and while he didn’t have another double-digit passing game, the freshman still showed star potential last season. His scoring production was inconsistent but is capable of going for 20 points on a given night.

Alexander mostly came off the bench last season in favor of Alex O’Connell, averaging 7.4 ppg in just under 27 mpg. When he did start in the final 13 games, the 6’4 guard had numerous double-digit scoring games, including 18 points in the NCAA Tournament win over San Diego State. As a likely full-time starter next season, Alexander could potentially lead the Bluejays in scoring.

The big offseason pickup for Creighton was Baylor Scheierman, a 6’6 transfer guard from South Dakota State who was last season’s Summit League Player of the Year. He averaged 16.2 ppg, 7.8 rpg, and 4.5 apg on a whopping 51% shooting from the field and 47% from three-point range. He had 10 games of at least 20 points, along with a bunch of near triple-doubles as well.

Scheierman is the perfect shooting wing to fill out the starting lineup, particularly with his shooting ability. It’s one of the best trios on the perimeter in NCAA Basketball and that doesn’t even include TCU transfer Francisco Farabello and returning guards, Shereef Mitchell and Rati Andronikashvili. If Creighton wins the Big East next season it’ll be on the strength of the perimeter.