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After losing to a top ranked Oklahoma Sooners team, the Creighton Bluejays bounced back with a blowout win against North Texas to earn their eighth win of the season. They will look to earn their ninth against Coppin State. Expect this to be an easy game for the Bluejays, as they have showed that they can certainly blowout the smaller teams such as WIU, UTSA, and IUPUI, but have struggled against the likes of OU and Indiana. Stepping up against the bigger teams will be something to look for as the Bluejays as they head into BIG EAST play. They currently sit 7th in the standings and will have to have a good conference record to have a chance of making into the tournament. This will be their last go around before the importance of the games increases.
Their opponent is the Coppin State Eagles who haven't had the best season. The Eagles are 2-11, and sit 13th in the MEAC. They had some close losses as they have lost twice in overtime to San Francisco and Towson and almost beat Hampton but couldn't get the job done. They struggle even more against the bigger opponents, as they have played California, Kansas State, and Iowa this season and have lost by a lot in all three of those games. This will be a big test for the Eagles as, after this game, they head to Ames to take on Iowa State before MEAC play really gets underway for them as they have played two games in conference play already.
This will be Creighton's last nonconference game before Big East play kicks off on New Years Day for the Bluejays, against St. John's. which will be the first big conference test for the Bluejays. Anyone can beat the little guys, but if you slay the big guns then you have a chance of making some noise in your conference.
How to Watch, Listen, Stream
Game Time: 8 p.m. CT
Watch: Fox Sports 1
Listen: 1620 the Zone (Creighton)
Stream: Streaming is available for this telecast via Fox Sports Go (where available)
Gamblin' Info
Line: Creighton comes into this game as a 29-point favorite (via OddsShark)
Record ATS: Coppin State (0-2) || Creighton (7-4)
O/U: The O/U opened at 163
3 Things to Watch
1. Ball Movement for Creighton
Creighton is one of the best teams in the country at moving the basketball. Creighton comes into this game averaging 17.3 assists per game, which is good for 29th in the country, and will look to keep it up against Coppin State. Maurice Watson leads the Bluejays with 6.3 dimes per game. Compare that to Coppin State who only average 10 assists per game, which is one of the lowest in the country. For a team that finds it hard to score the ball like Coppin State does, it could be a long night for the Eagles.
2. How many can they put up against Coppin State?
Along with being one of the best teams in terms of assists, Creighton is top 10 in the country in scoring. The Bluejays score around 86.2 points per game and recently put up 108 in their last win and 87 in their last loss against Oklahoma. If the trend that the numbers and stats show stays the same then Creighton should put up at least 100 points.
3. Will we see a motivated Creighton team?
Against a 2-11 team, motivation to play may not be the first thing on Creighton's minds. They have a big game on New Years against the St. John's Red Storm and they are finishing up non conference play against Coppin. Greg McDermott has to make sure that he has his players motivated so they don't come out flat and have to battle it out and come into the BIG EAST opener more tired than usual.