Nebraska @ Creighton preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 8, 2018 ) Creighton 75, Nebraska 94

Nebraska was able to end a seven-game losing streak to Creighton with a 19-point win last season, but a similar result on the road seems unlikely given how much has changed for the Cornhuskers in the last 364 days. The Bluejays eye a 12th straight home victory in the series against their in-state rival Saturday when they host Nebraska and attempt to avenge their most lopsided defeat to the Cornhuskers since 1997.

Creighton has already faced a handful of schools likely to be playing in March, going 1-2 against No. 5 Michigan, undefeated San Diego State and last year's NCAA Tournament runner-up Texas Tech. The Bluejays recovered from an embarrassing 31-point loss to the Aztecs in the Las Vegas Invitational on Thanksgiving night by pulling off a seven-point upset victory over the Red Raiders the next day. The Cornhuskers' lone win over a major-conference program was an 11-point triumph over Washington State on Nov. 25 in the opening round of the Cayman Islands Classic as first-year coach Fred Hoiberg is in the process of molding 14 newcomers to his 16-man roster. Nebraska's first true road test did not go particularly well, shooting 32.3 percent in a 73-56 loss at Georgia Tech in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge on Wednesday.

TV: 2:30 p.m. ET, Fox Sports 1

ABOUT NEBRASKA (4-4): Graduate transfer Haanif Cheatham (12.4 points, 5.3 rebounds) has emerged as a bright spot since totaling 27 points over his first four games with the Cornhuskers, averaging 18 points in the last four contests while shooting 65.9 percent from the field. Dachon Burke Jr. (12.4 points) had a rough night offensively against the Yellow Jackets but was beginning to flash the form that allowed him to be Robert Morris' leading scorer in 2017-18, scoring at least 14 points during Nebraska's 2-1 stretch to conclude November. Sophomore guard Cam Mack (12.4 points) has been the team's most consistent playmaker and is the only player who ranks among the top 10 in the Big Ten in assists (team-high six per game) and steals (team-high 1.5).

ABOUT CREIGHTON (6-2): Sophomore forward Christian Bishop (8.9 points, 5.5 rebounds) enjoyed his finest performance with the Bluejays in Tuesday's 72-60 win over Oral Roberts, finishing with a career-high 17 points while tying his season high with eight rebounds. Junior guard Ty-Shon Alexander (15.9, 5.9) isn't quite on the torrid pace he was last season when he buried 30 3-pointers through nine contests, but he is tied for the team lead with 23 and already has four games this season in which he made four from long-range. Outside of Creighton's loss to the Aztecs in which he misfired on 13 of his 16 field-goal attempts, sophomore point guard Marcus Zegarowski, who leads the team in scoring (17.9 points) and assists (4.3), is shooting 53.7 percent from the field.

TIP-INS

1. Creighton is 13-4 in its last 17 games against Big Ten foes. Nebraska has been its opponent in eight of those contests (7-1).

2. Mack's six assists per game is on pace to be the highest average by a Cornhusker since Brian Carr (6.7) in 1986-87.

3. Alexander (23), Zegarowski (22) and junior guard Mitch Ballock (23) are responsible for 91 percent of the Bluejays' 75 3-pointers.

PREDICTION: Creighton 86, Nebraska 75