Scouting report on Creighton, Rutgers basketball’s 1st-round opponent at College Basketball Crown

For the first time in three years, Rutgers is back in the postseason. The Scarlet Knights (14-19, 4-16) will participate in the College Basketball Crown for the first time in program history next month. They will open the eight-team tournament against Big East foe Creighton on Thursday, April 2nd, at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Here is what you need to know about the Bluejays: Record: 15-17, 9-11 in the Big East, finished in fifth place in the conference standings. Rare matchup: This will mark just the second time in program history that the Scarlet Knights face the Bluejays. Their first matchup — which was also played at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas — saw Creighton defeat Rutgers 85-75 in one of the first games of the 2015-16 season. SUBSCRIBE TO THE RUTGERS RANT ON YOUTUBE: Watch our weekly podcast, live postgame reactions and more Rutgers finished the season with a 7-25 record (1-17 in the Big Ten) before firing head coach Eddie Jordan and replacing him with Steve Pikiell, who remains the leader of the program to this day. Creighton went 20-15, earned a four-seed in the NCAA Tournament and reached the Sweet 16, where it fell to BYU. Solid start, poor finish: Creighton opened the season with 12 wins in its first 20 games, with four of its losses coming to top-20 teams. But the Bluejays slipped from there, losing eight of their final 11 games to fall out of the NCAA Tournament picture. Middle of the pack: The Bluejays are solid — but not spectacular — on both sides of the ball. They ranks 74th nationally in adjusted offensive efficiency (116.2 points per 100 possessions) and 97th in adjusted defensive efficiency (105.2), per KenPom. For comparison, Rutgers ranks 148th nationally on offense (110.5) and 121st on defense (106.5). Perimeter could be decisive: Creighton ranks 24th nationally in three-point rate (48.2% of its shots) and allows opponents to take just 32% of its shots from deep (11th-lowest nationally), which plays into Rutgers’ offensive style. The Scarlet Knights take just 34.6% of their shots from three-point range (281st nationally). Common opponents: The Bluejays went 1-2 against Seton Hall, stealing a win in stunning fashion in Omaha in between losses in Newark and Madison Square Garden. They also fell to Nebraska, suffering a 21-point loss to their in-state rivals in Lincoln. Creighton did defeat Oregon at the Player’s Era Festival in Las Vegas. Five months later, it will meet another Big Ten team in Sin City. Familiar faces: Creighton has two players who featured for Iowa last season in guard Josh Dix and center Owen Freeman. While the latter has not played for the past four games, the former has been one of the Bluejays’ best players of late. Their coach has been there for a long time: Greg McDermott is in his 16th season with Creighton, where he has built one of the most consistent programs in the Big East. He has won 365 games, reached an Elite Eight and two Sweet 16s across 10 NCAA Tournament appearances and won the Big East regular season title during the 2019-20 season. One-way transfer: There has been at least one player who transferred from one program to the other: Greg Echenique went from the Scarlet Knights to the Bluejays after his freshman season, playing in Omaha for three years. Making history: Like Rutgers, this is Creighton’s first appearance in the College Basketball Crown.