No. 8 Creighton enters season with highest preseason ranking. Bluejays vow to build off heartbreak
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — It took a long time for Trey Alexander and Ryan Kalkbrenner to recover from the heart-wrenching ending to Creighton's NCAA Tournament run. Coach Greg McDermott said he didn't even watch the video until late July.
They've moved on, but they won't forget, and they plan to use those last couple seconds of their Elite Eight loss to San Diego State as motivation for 2023-24.
“We're just trying to get back to the same point we were,” Alexander said, “and we know we have to work harder than we did last year to have a different outcome.”
Creighton, at No. 8, has its highest AP Top 25 preseason ranking in program history after going 24-13 overall and 14-6 in the Big East for third place.
The Bluejays were on the cusp of their first Final Four last season. They led San Diego State for 30 of the 40 minutes in the Louisville Regional final and it was tied when Ryan Nembhard brushed the hip of a driving Darrion Trammell enough to get called for a foul with 1.2 seconds left. Trammell made the second of two free throws for a 57-56 lead and the Bluejays' desperation inbound pass went out of bounds. Game, and season, over.
“It definitely adds a little bit extra knowing how close you were — and just knowing that if you got the bounce to go your way instead of their way, it's you in the Final Four,” Kalkbrenner said.
WHO’S BACK
All-Big East preseason first-team picks Kalkbrenner and Alexander withdrew their names from NBA draft consideration and returned along with second-team pick Baylor Scheierman.
The 7-foot-1 Kalkbrenner is one of the top centers in the country. He shot 69.5% from the field and led the Bluejays with 15.9 points per game. He also is an elite rim protector as the Big East's two-time defensive player of the year. His endurance has improved each season, and he's worked on his perimeter shooter.
Alexander came back to school to develop his skills as a point guard. He had played the off-guard spot with Ryan Nembhard running the show the last two years. He expects to play half his minutes at the point. He averaged 13.6 points and 2.6 assists per game last year. He's capable of scoring from anywhere on the floor and is a strong defensive player.
Scheierman enters the season on a streak of making at least one 3-pointer in a school-record 37 straight games. He also is an eager rebounder. He had 306 boards last season, most by a CU player since 1984-85.
Mason Miller, a 3-point threat who came off the bench last year, is competing for the starting power forward job. Fredrick King returns as a solid backup to Kalkbrenner. Francisco Farabello, the first player off the bench last season, struggled with his shot and probably will have a similar role.
WHO’S GONE
Nembhard, who started 64 games at point guard, transferred to Gonzaga. Forward Arthur Kaluma, who started 67 of 68 games, transferred to Kansas State. Guard Shereef Mitchell, an Omaha native whose role diminished last season, is playing his final year at Ohio.
WHO’S NEW
The Bluejays added transfers in guards Steven Ashworth (Utah State) and Jonathan Lawson (Memphis) and forward Isaac Traudt (Virginia).
Ashworth was a first-team All-Mountain West pick last season and is rated as one of the top transfers in the country. He averaged 16.2 points and 4.5 assists per game and shot 43.4% on 3-pointers to rank sixth nationally.
Traudt was a 2022 four-star, top-60 national recruit coming out of Grand Island, about two hours west of Omaha. He sat out last season as a redshirt at Virginia. He's in the mix for playing time at power forward this season.
Lawson played about 20 minutes per game off the bench for Memphis as a redshirt freshman and shot 41.3% on 3s.
The top freshman recruits are center Brock Vice of Memphis, Tennessee, and guard Josiah Dotzler of Omaha.
Vice, the No. 3 player in Tennesee last season, was coached at Houston High by former NBA player Mike Miller, who's the father of Mason Miller and brother of CU assistant Ryan Miller.
Dotzler was the top prospect in Nebraska last season and is the brother of former CU point gaurd Josh Dotzler.
The Bluejays also signed guards Sterling Knox and Shane Thomas out of Red Rock Academy in Las Vegas.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Bluejays open at home against Florida A&M on Nov. 7. They host Iowa on Nov. 14 in the Gavitt Tipoff Games, visit in-state rival Nebraska on Dec. 3 and host Nov. 24 Alabama on Dec. 16. They open Big East play at home against No. 22 Villanova on Dec. 20.
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