Butler Bulldogs (10-3, 1-1 BIG EAST) at Creighton (8-5, 2-0)
Tuesday, Dec. 30 • 8PM CT
CHI Health Center; Omaha, Neb.
 
Follow Along
TV/Stream: FS1 • Kevin Kugler & Nick Bahe
Radio/Audio: 93.5 & 107.5 The Fan, Butler Sports App, SiriusXM 390, Sirius XM App, TuneIn Radio App & ButlerSports.com • @MarkMinner & Nick Gardner (@n_gardner)
 
Take A Break from Writing Out Your New Year's Resolutions to Read These
• The Bulldogs closed out the non-conference portion of the schedule in their last outing Dec. 22 with a 101-52 win over NJIT; Butler posted a 9-2 mark in the non-conference.
• Butler has scored more than 100 points in three games this season; the Bulldogs average 86.4 points per game, which is 50th nationally.
• Butler had seven players score in double figures against NJIT, the first time the Bulldogs accomplished the feat since a 144-71 win over The Citadel, Nov. 14, 2015.
• The Bulldogs shot 56 percent from the field against NJIT, the fifth game this season that Butler has made at least half their attempts.
• The Bulldogs went 24-for-32 from the free throw line against NJIT. Butler averages 27.5 free throw attempts per game, 15th nationally.
• Butler held a 46-22 rebounding advantage against NJIT, the seventh time this season that the Bulldogs have out-rebounded their opponent by at least 10. Butler had only six games of +10 or greater rebounding margin last season.
• Butler has out-rebounded 11 of its 13 opponents this season. The Bulldogs rank 16th nationally at 42.3 rebounds per game and has a +8.2 rebounding margin (39th nationally).
• Butler ranks 21st nationally in offensive rebounding percentage according to KenPom, collecting 38.5 percent of their misses.
• Butler has committed 10 or fewer turnovers in five of the last six games (the Bulldogs only had one game among the first seven contests this season with 10 or fewer turnovers).
• Michael Ajayi went over 1,000 career points (in just 80 career Division I games) in the Dec. 22 win over NJIT. Ajayi has scored 216 points in 13 games so far this season after scoring a total of 221 points in 34 games at Gonzaga last season.
• Ajayi has 10 double-doubles in Butler's 13 games this season. That figure is second nationally.
• Ajayi is second nationally, averaging 12.2 rebounds per game.
• Ajayi ranks third in the BIG EAST at 16.6 points per game; Finley Bizjack is sixth in the BIG EAST, averaging 16.3 points per contest.
• Despite shooting only 7-for-36 from three-point range over the last five games, Bizjack is still second in the BIG EAST in three-point shooting at 35.5 percent. Bizjack's average of 2.54 made three-pointers per game is third in the BIG EAST.
• Evan Haywood has scored in double figures in four consecutive games, including a career-high 18 points in the Dec. 13 win over Providence. Prior to this stretch, he had three double-figure outputs in his first 32 career games.
• Jamie Kaiser Jr. left the Dec. 20 win over Northwestern with an ankle injury. He sat out the following NJIT game and Yame Butler made his first start in a Bulldog uniform in his place.
• Drayton Jones scored 14 points for the Bulldogs against NJIT, his new high in a Butler uniform.
• Efeosa Oliogu-Elabor scored a career-high 13 points in the win over NJIT.
• Thad Matta enters Tuesday's game with 496 career wins as a head coach.
• Eight different Bulldogs have at least four double-figure scoring games for Butler.
 
Sometimes I Dream That He Is Me...
• Ajayi is the first Bulldog to win the BIG EAST weekly honor twice in one season since Kamar Baldwin (2019-20).
• Ajayi led Butler with 19 points and a career-high 20 rebounds against Northwestern Dec. 20. He is the first Bulldog with 20 rebounds in a game since Tim Haseley, Nov. 26, 1983 against DePauw.
• Against Providence Dec. 13, Ajayi became the first Bulldog with 15 rebounds in a game since Bo Hodges against Providence March 10, 2022 in the BIG EAST Tournament (Ajayi then had 20 against Northwestern Dec. 20).
• Ajayi began the season with six consecutive double-doubles. The last Bulldog to have five or more consecutive double-doubles was Gordon Hayward (with five between Feb. 11-March 6, 2010).
• Ajayi had two outputs of at least 15 points and 15 rebounds in a three-game span; those are two of the seven games a Butler player has achieved those numbers since 2010.
• Ajayi is one of seven players in NCAA Division I this season to post at least 15 points and 20 rebounds in a single game.
• Ajayi earned both BIG EAST Player of the Week and USBWA Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week honors Nov. 24 after averaging 16.0 points, 14.0 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game in Butler's two Greenbrier wins.
 
Return Performance
• Jalen Jackson had season-ending left ankle surgery Dec. 23.
• Jackson has announced that he will return to Butler next season.
• In six games for the Bulldogs, he averaged 9.5 points, 3.8 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game on 51-percent shooting. He last played Nov. 23 in the Greenbrier Tip-Off.
 
Comments on Creighton
• The Bluejays are 8-5 on the season and have won their first two BIG EAST games (at Xavier, vs. Marquette). Creighton is 6-1 at home so far this season
• Creighton attempts 29.8 three-pointers per game, a mark that is 27th per game. The Bluejays make 10.4 three-pointers per game.
• Their balanced scoring attack features six players averaging between 8.2 and 12.2 points per game, led by Josh Dix. Five of those six players are incoming transfers new to the Bluejays roster this season.
 
Somewhere in Middle America
• Twenty-five (25) of the 32 meetings in the series have come since both programs joined the BIG EAST prior to the 2013-14 season, but the teams first met in 1933.
 
The Series: Creighton leads, 20-12
Streak: Creighton, W3
In Omaha: Creighton leads, 12-3
First Meeting: Jan. 30, 1933; CU, 27-22
Last Meeting: March 8, 2025; CU, 87-74
 
Up Next
Butler opens 2026 play with a pair of BIG EAST tips at Hinkle Fieldhouse against Villanova Saturday (Jan. 3) and St. John's Jan. 6.