The Creighton men’s basketball team has been sneaky good the past half decade under the leadership of five year Bluejay Ryan Kalkbrenner. Head Coach Greg McDermott and company is looking to take the Jays to their fifth straight March Madness tournament as a top ten seed after losing in the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight the previous two seasons.
And the squad is on pace to do so; the Bluejay’s are perched second in the Big East Conference with a record of 19-8 and have been flirting with a top 25 spot in the AP Poll for weeks now.
Since starting the 2024-2025 season 15th in the AP rankings and dropping out week 5, Creighton hadn’t touched a top 25 spot until recently; but lost it immediately after losing to UConn and St. John’s in back to back games.
But nonetheless, they’ve hung around that top shelf of college basketball teams all year. Right now they’re projected as an eight seed but with a relatively easy finish to the regular season, the Creighton Bluejays could capitalize on their conference tournament to move up a couple seeds.
Ryan Kalkbrenner’s Dominance
Creighton fans had to know their team’s potential after Ryan Kalkbrenner’s historic season opener game. The seven footer put up 49 points while missing only TWO shots the entire night. His 49 leads NCAA ball right now for the most points scored in a single game this season.
With that performance, Kalkbrenner set the record for most points scored in Creighton’s UIC Health Center Omaha Arena, making the most shots (20) in a single game and is second for the most points scored in one game for the school.
“They didn’t double me at any point, they were willing to play me straight up,” said Kalkbrenner after his record breaking game. “And I was like okay, if we’re gonna do that I’m just going to keep throwing it in.”
Ryan has continued to dominate on both ends all season, he averages 18.7 points and 8.5 rebounds per game which are both 49th in the league. He also records 2.8 blocks per game which is T-fourth in the NCAA.
Lastly, Kalkbrenner makes 66% of his shots which is top three in the nation.
His big man style of play has carried this team to a successful season but because of how one dimensional Ryan Kalkbrenner’s game can be, it might limit his personal success after the season. His talents are eerily similar to NBA rookie Zach Edey’s game which was heavily questioned before Edey was drafted.
But, Edey is playing better than many NBA scouts thought he would so maybe Kalkbrenner can do the same.
Creighton Has Many Eggs In The Nest
Kalkbrenner isn’t the only player that has stepped up for the Bluejays this season. Senior guard Steven Ashworth has been huge for Creighton this year, he scores 17 points per game and dishes out seven assists per game as well(seventh in the nation).
Ashworth has been Creighton’s primary ball handler this year and has been aging like a fine wine. He has 20+ points in four of the Jay’s last five games and ten total on the season; plus several games with double digit assists.
The Big East team has an impressive three players scoring 15+ points a game. Their third? Pop Isaacs, a junior guard who transferred from Texas Tech this past offseason.
Isaacs averages 16.3 PPG but suffered a hip injury that requires surgery back in December. He will miss the rest of the season but is a promising leader for a leaderless Creighton team in 2025-2026.
Reliance On Their Superstars
When is comes to the question of Creighton’s March Madness potential, an argument concerning lack of depth could be made.
Besides the healthy stars previously mentioned, the Bluejays have still been looking for others to step up. Kalkbrenner and Ashworth both average 33+ minutes a game but no one else averages >20. McDermott has a heavy influx of rotations, seeking that third and fourth option to emerge from the weeds.
Potential candidates include senior guard Jamiya Neal and freshman forward Jackson McAndrew.
Jamiya has been Creighton’s third option and has shown spurts of scoring and rebounding ability but him and the other Bluejay’s will have to increase their output if they want any shot of making it further into the March Madness tournament than the previous four years.
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