Xavier @ Creighton preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 11, 2020 ) Creighton 77, Xavier 65

Travis Steele emphasized earlier this week the need for his team to play "the Xavier Way" if it hoped to end a three-game losing streak, and he did his part to author the change by shaking things up prior to Wednesday's win over Georgetown. The second-year coach hopes his team can take its show on the road Sunday as it visits Creighton in hopes of avoiding a season sweep.

Frustrated with the way his team was letting its offense dictate how it was playing defense, Steele inserted freshman forward Zach Freemantle into the lineup when starting point guard Quentin Goodin suffered a right knee injury during warmups Wednesday. The result was almost exactly what Steele wanted, as Xavier collected 16 offensive rebounds and held Georgetown to 37 percent shooting en route to a 66-57 victory. The Bluejays took advantage of a torrid offensive spell in the second half Wednesday to get their second straight Big East win, draining five of their 11 3-point attempts and shooting 56.6 percent overall after the break to cruise to a 15-point triumph at DePaul. Creighton has won three of its last four conference games - a stretch that started with its 77-65 win at Xavier on Jan. 11.

TIME: 4 p.m. ET. TV: Fox Sports 1

ABOUT XAVIER (13-6, 2-4 Big East): Goodin's absence allowed Freemantle to draw his first career start, but it was another freshman, guard KyKy Tandy, who stole the show for the Musketeers on 7-of-13 shooting, including career highs in points (18), 3-pointers (four) and rebounds (six). Tyrique Jones (13.4 points, 9.7 rebounds) is tied for second in the Big East with 10 double-doubles after finishing with 10 points and 13 rebounds Wednesday and is three rebounds shy of entering Xavier's top 20 all-time rebounding list (705). Naji Marshall (team-high 16.8 points, 5.7 rebounds) continued to struggle with turnovers - he's averaging 3.2 for the season - but he tallied 18 points against Georgetown and has scored at least 15 in every conference game so far.

ABOUT CREIGHTON (15-5, 4-3): Mitch Ballock (12.9 points, 5.6 rebounds), who dropped five 3-pointers and 19 points on Xavier in the first meeting, hit both of those marks again versus the Hoyas as he joined Kyle Korver and Ethan Wragge as the only Bluejays to reach 200 career triples during his junior season. Fellow junior Denzel Mahoney (12.1 points) has emerged as a consistent spark off the bench for Creighton over the last four games, averaging 15 points while reaching double figures in each contest. Marcus Zegarowski (team-high 16.4 points, 5.1 assists) is shooting only 35 percent from the floor in Big East action (52 percent in non-conference games) and averaging only 12.4 points in league play (18.5 in non-conference action).

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Creighton is seeking its first season sweep of Xavier since both teams joined the Big East in 2013.

2. The Musketeers are 13-0 when leading at the half and 11-1 when they win the rebounding battle.

3. The Bluejays are the only team in the country with three players (Ballock, Zegarowski and G Ty-Shon Alexander) averaging at least 34.5 minutes.

PREDICTION: Creighton 69, Xavier 67