Creighton @ Xavier preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 3, 2019 ) Xavier 54, Creighton 76

The Creighton and Xavier men's basketball teams have seen better days -- let alone better seasons -- as the former has lost seven of the 10 games while the latter has dropped six in a row to reside in the basement of the Big East. The conference rivals look to get back on track at the other's expense on Wednesday when they meet at Cintas Center in Cincinnati.

Martin Krampelj finished with 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting in Creighton's 76-54 win over Xavier on Feb. 3, and the junior forward upped the ante with a career-high 25 points and season-best 11 rebounds in Saturday's 63-58 setback to Seton Hall. Krampelj has averaged 16.2 points and 8.1 rebounds in his last 14 games for the Bluejays, who have posted a .500 mark or better in league play in 22 of the past 23 seasons. Xavier owns the nation's longest active streak of consecutive campaigns (36) in which it has finished .500 or better in league play, but that mark is in jeopardy with the club mired in a six-game losing skid for the first time since the 2016-17 season. Naji Marshall, who averages a team-best 13.4 points per game, had a club-high 22 in Saturday's 74-62 loss to DePaul after mustering just six in the previous contest versus Creighton.

TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network

ABOUT CREIGHTON (13-11, 4-7 Big East): Ty-Shon Alexander, who is averaging a team-best 16.7 points per game, made just 3-of-14 shots from the field and 3-of-8 from 3-point range in the loss to the Pirates. Davion Mintz (0-for-11) and Mitch Ballock (0-for-5) also struggled mightily from the floor against Seton Hall, although coach Greg McDermott isn't interested in telling his guards to hesitate with the ball in the hands. "I hope they don't doubt themselves because I don't doubt them," McDermott said. "They had a rough game, and it happens once in a while."

ABOUT XAVIER (11-13, 3-8): Junior forward Tyrique Jones, who is listed at 6-foot-9 and 235 pounds, exploited the interior of the Bluejays' defense in the first meeting and made 5-of-7 shots on the block to finish with 10 points. Paul Scruggs does his best work from the outside ... and at home, as the sophomore guard is shooting 50.9 percent from 3-point range inside the Cintas Center this season. Scruggs, however, shot just 2-of-7 from the field and 1-of-4 from beyond the arc and finished with five points in the previous meeting at Creighton.

TIP-INS

1. Xavier G Quentin Goodin, who averages a team-best 4.8 assists per game, had seven in the previous encounter with Creighton.

2. Alexander has made at least one 3-pointer in 27 consecutive contests dating back to 2017-18.

3. The Bluejays have won seven of 13 meetings with the Musketeers since they joined the Big East prior to the 2013-14 season.

PREDICTION: Creighton 72, Xavier 62