Game Notes

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville men’s basketball team will begin its 19^th season of play in the Missouri Valley Conference on Saturday as it travels to No. 12 Creighton for a 7:05 p.m. matchup on Saturday evening at the CenturyLink Center.
 
Since entering the league in the 1994-95 campaign, the Aces have posted a 136-188 record in league play, a .420 winning percentage.  In its 18 league openers, UE has posted a 7-11 record; since coming to UE in 2007, head coach Marty Simmons is 2-3 in league openers, the Aces picked up a 78-60 win over Southern Illinois in the 2011 opener at the Ford Center.
 
Last weekend, the Aces wrapped up the pre-Christmas schedule at Butler; trailing by as many as 14 points late in the contest, Evansville rallied to get within four tallies in the final minute.  Colt Ryan led the way with 25 points against the Bulldogs while Ned Cox finished with 12 and Ryan Sawvell hit double figures for the third game in a row as he notched ten.
 
Ryan notched a season-high 25 points against Butler while notching 5 assists, 5 steals and 5 rebounds; it was the second time in his career he has notched at least five of each, the other time came as a sophomore in the home game versus Missouri State.  With five steals against Butler, Ryan became the all-time UE leader in that category; the Batesville, Ind. native stands at 151 in his career, one ahead of former record holder Reed Jackson.
 
Sophomore Ryan Sawvell is riding the top scoring streak of his career entering Saturday’s game at Creighton as he has scored a total of 37 points in the last three outings.  The Mundelein, Ill. product has used an efficient scoring touch over the last three games (16-of-21) to hit 76.2% of his attempts; he has also averaged 6 rebounds.  This is the second time in his career that he has scored 10+ points in three consecutive contests.
 
Rebounding has been a telling stat when looking at the win/loss results for UE; this season when the Aces outrebound the opposition, they are a perfect 5-0, when they are on the losing end of that stat, they are just 2-5.  Evansville has won just two opening tips this season, but they are a perfect 2-0 when gaining the first possession.  The status of the game with five minutes remaining also has had a direct impact on the final results; the Aces are 6-0 when holding a lead at the 35-minute mark, but have come back from a deficit at that point just once, going 1-5 when trailing with five minutes remaining.
 
No. 12 Creighton has posted one of the top offenses in the country on its way to an 11-1 non-conference mark; the Bluejays have played a tough schedule with their RPI ranking in the top 15 in the country; their wins include Wisconsin, Arizona State, Saint Joseph’s and road triumph over California.
 
Shooting is the strength of the Bluejays, they are 8th in the country in shooting (50.9%), ninth in 2-point shooting (56.7%), 30th in free throw shooting (75.2%) and tops in the land in efficiency shooting (59%).  The Bluejays are led by Preseason MVC Player of the Year (and the reigning postseason Player of the Year in the league) Doug McDermott; the Ames, Iowa native is averaging 23.1 points per game while shooting 54.9% from the floor; he can also hurt you beyond the arc as he is a 50.9% three-point shooter in 2012.  Down low, the Bluejays are led by former Rutgers transfer Greg Echenique, who has put up 10.8 points and a team-high 7.5 rebounds.
 
Creighton and Evansville met on three occasions last year as the Aces picked up a 65-57 win over the 15^th-ranked Bluejays at the Ford Center before Creighton took a 93-92 overtime win in Omaha before grabbing the win in the MVC Tournament.  In the date at the CenturyLink Center, Colt Ryan scored a career-high 43 points.