20. Creighton (11-4)
Last season, these Bluejays had an awful run early in the season with a six-game losing streak, but still bounced back to become a player in the Big East and an Elite Eight squad. While they haven’t had that kind of struggle this season, these last few weeks have seen some rough performances, with recent losses to UNLV, Villanova, and Marquette. They got back on track this week.
After an 0-2 start to conference play, Creighton got in the winning column on Tuesday, getting a 77-60 road win over Georgetown. The offense played a solid game, getting 25 points from Trey Alexander and 18 points and 12 rebounds from Baylor Scheierman. Another fine performance followed on Saturday, with the Bluejays prevailing 69-60 at home over a ranked Providence team. Ryan Kalkbrenner (22 points, 12 rebounds) and Alexander (21 points) were both excellent in a second-straight victory.
Aside from struggles against the Mountain West and a tough start to conference play, Creighton has proven that they’re a top-level offensive team and seem to have bounced back nicely this past week. There’s still a lot to be learned from this squad, but it’s talented, experienced, and learning to play better together on both ends of the court. Next week features a very winnable game at DePaul and a date with St. John’s.