Creighton @ St. John's preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 8, 2020 ) St. John's 82, Creighton 94

Greg McDermott recently told reporters that being a highly ranked team means his team is going to get "everybody's best shot," but it has actually been Creighton that has been gunning down opponents on a regular basis for most of the last two months. His 11th-ranked Bluejays set their sights on winning six straight conference games for the first time as a member of the Big East on Sunday when they visit St. John's.

Creighton was picked to finish seventh in the 10-team Big East before the season and very much appeared to be a team likely to live up to its preseason billing after a 2-3 start in league play, but McDermott's squad has established itself as one of the hotter teams in the country since then. The Bluejays won for the ninth time in 10 contests last Sunday, bombarding the conference's top-ranked scoring defense with 15 3-pointers while cruising to an 81-59 win over Butler. Creighton, which sits only one game behind Seton Hall in the conference standings with three games to play, rebounded from its only loss during its recent surge by shooting a season-high 60.3 percent in a 94-82 win over the Red Storm on Feb. 8. St. John's has been stuck in a pattern of posting one victory and following it up with three straight defeats since Dec. 21, and the Red Storm wrapped up their fourth such cycle after dropping a 71-60 decision at No. 12 Villanova on Wednesday.

TIME: Noon ET. TV: Fox Sports 1

ABOUT CREIGHTON (22-6, 11-4 Big East): Marcus Zegarowski (16.1 points, 5.0 assists) took home conference player of the week honors Monday after putting on a ridiculous shooting display (combined 16-for-23 from the floor) in wins over two ranked foes last week, including a 7-for-7 showing beyond the arc against Butler. Sophomore forward Christian Bishop (8.8 points, 5.4 rebounds) also had a day to remember versus the Bulldogs, setting career highs in points (19), blocks (four) and steals (three) while tying another personal best with five assists and adding seven boards. "Probably the most improved part of our (team) since the start of conference play is Christian's impact on our offense. He was a guy early in the season who would have twice as many turnovers as assists. Now he's totally flipped that," McDermott said.

ABOUT ST. JOHN'S (14-14, 3-12): The Red Storm committed only four turnovers for the second time in three games and enjoyed a plus-seven turnover margin Wednesday, but 34.8 percent shooting - including 2-of-12 from 3-point range - and a 40-27 disadvantage on the boards was too much to overcome. Sophomore forward Marcellus Earlington (9.1 points, 4.6 rebounds) has proven to be the team's most dynamic offensive threat over the last five contests, averaging 14.4 points and 6.2 boards - including career bests of 25 points and 10 rebounds against Creighton. LJ Figueroa (team-high 14.4 points) tallied 19 points last Sunday against Seton Hall but is in the midst of three-game shooting slump in which he is a combined 10-for-44 from the floor.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. By draining all of his seven 3-pointers versus the Bulldogs, Zegarowski became the third player this season and 71st in NCAA history to be perfect on seven or more 3-point attempts.

2. St. John's is 9-2 at Carnesecca Arena in 2019-20 - with both losses coming by two points - but has not defeated an AP Top 10 opponent on campus since 1975.

3. The Bluejays rank second in the Big East in fewest turnovers per game (11.2, 25th in Division I) while the Red Storm lead the league in forcing miscues (17.1, 13th).

PREDICTION: Creighton 89, St. John's 84