Premium ContentMouse over Home then click on Premium Content for information.

Creighton is counting on Gregory Echenique to slow down a player on a rampage when the Bluejays face Wichita State on Saturday.

Shockers center Garrett Stutz has averaged 22 points and 10 rebounds in the past five games. Overall, the 7-foot Stutz leads Wichita State with averages of 14.3 points and 8.2 rebounds per game.

"Stutz is playing as well as anyone in the league," Creighton guard Grant Gibbs said, "and maybe as well as anyone in the country."

In league play, Stutz is averaging 17.4 points (fourth) and 9.6 rebounds (tied for first). He has scored 10 points or more in all but two Missouri Valley games in which he's played this season. One was in a mid-January win over Indiana State, when Stutz scored eight points in a 10-point victory.

The other? When he matched up against Echenique on New Year's Eve in Wichita, Stutz, who battled foul trouble in the game, scored just five points and grabbed four rebounds. He scored three points and had no rebounds in two games against Echenique last season.

At 6-9 and 270 pounds, Echenique is one of the few players in the league who can match up physically with the 255-pound Stutz. Most Valley teams have to double-team Stutz, and he's a good enough passer out of the post to find open teammates on the perimeter.

Creighton enjoys the luxury of being able to have Echenique match up one-on-one against Stutz.

"Gregory has just done a great job all season of allowing us to extend out on shooters," said Creighton assistant coach Steve Merfeld, who is in charge of the Bluejays' big men. "Watching Wichita State and observing what they've been able to do, they do a great job of rotating the ball and making you pay when you have a defensive breakdown.

"Being able to stay home one-on-one against Stutz is a good advantage for us."

Wichita State made Northern Iowa pay Wednesday night when the Panthers tried to double-team Stutz. Although Stutz picked up just one assist, his passes out of the post often led to another that set up an open perimeter shooter.

The Shockers made 12 of 19 attempts from beyond the arc in the 82-57 mauling.

"They're playing really well," Gibbs said. "They're firing on all cylinders, and we're going to have to be ready to go."

The win over Northern Iowa, coupled with Creighton's loss at Evansville on Tuesday, lifted the Shockers into first place in the Valley with a 12-2 record. The Bluejays are a game back with four to play.

Both teams stand 21-4 overall, but the Shockers' only loss in the calendar year was a triple-overtime setback at Drake on Jan. 28. Wichita State bounced back with wins over Missouri State, Indiana State and Northern Iowa.

Meanwhile, Creighton has dropped its last two games, losing 65-62 at Northern Iowa on a buzzer-beating shot last Saturday and then dropping a 65-57 decision at Evansville when it scored just nine points in the final 12 minutes.

"We can't let those last two games affect us," Creighton forward Doug McDermott said. "They are over now, so we can't think about them anymore.

"We just have to get better these next two days and be locked in on Saturday."

McDermott said having a locked-in Echenique show up for the Shockers would benefit the Bluejays.

"I think Gregory against Garrett Stutz is going to be a great matchup, and it could be the key to the game," McDermott said. "No one in the conference has been able to guard Stutz this year other than Greg and (Illinois State's Jackie) Carmichael.

"They have a lot of good shooters, and if we had to double-team Stutz, it would be hard to rotate on them. But since Greg can guard him, that's going to be a really big help."

» NOTES: Creighton has sold all reserved-seat tickets for the game and will begin selling a limited number of standing-room only tickets at 10 a.m. Saturday at the CenturyLink box office. Saturday's game will be the sixth home sellout for the Bluejays. ... Creighton returned to practice Thursday after taking Wednesday off. ... In the past 15 seasons, Creighton has played 30 home games in which it brought a two-game losing skid into the contest. The Bluejays have won each home game, with 21 of the 30 ending in victories of 10 points or more for Creighton. ... McDermott, West Virginia's Kevin Jones and Weber State's Damian Lillard are the only players in the country to score 12 points or more in each of their team's games this season. ... Antoine Young's next assist will move him into third place on Creighton's career chart. The senior is tied with Randy Eccker with 458 assists. Ryan Sears holds the school record with 570 assists, with Ralph Bobik second with 549.

Contact the writer:

402-679-2298, steve.pivovar@owh.com

twitter.com/PivOWH

« Sports - Bluejays Today

Share