In the era of rapid transfers and NIL, players are less likely to stay at one institution for four years. Creighton’s entry to the Big East has resulted in more players leaving early for professional options. That makes legacy conversations about all-time Bluejays much more difficult than they were a decade ago (for example, in our “What’s in a Number?” series).
Kevin Sarver, former Creighton Associate Athletic Director, recently tweeted an intriguing perspective on the situation. He stated that after Ryan Kalkbrenner’s return, he was the “best 5-year Creighton Bluejay for sure.” Then he named the best players, in his opinion, organised by the amount of years they spent at CU.
- 4-year: Doug McDermott, Kyle Korver
- 3-year: Paul Silas, Bob Gibson, Bob Portman
- 2-year: Baylor Scheierman
- 1-year: Justin Patton
In the history of Creighton basketball it goes:
1. Doug McDermott
2. Ryan KalkbrennerWe are all lucky to see one more year of a program legend pic.twitter.com/z6VtiJAR8c
— Ryan Cassidy (@ryancassidycbb) May 1, 2024
Interesting, isn’t it?
There’s little doubt in my mind that in just two years as a Creighton Bluejay, Baylor Scheierman established himself as one of the best to ever wear the White and Blue – regardless of how long they played in Omaha. In 72 career games at CU, he made at least one three-pointer in 71 of them; after making one in each of his first 48 games as a Bluejay, he went 0-of-7 against Villanova on December 20. Then he made at least one in every game for the rest of his career.
That initial 48-game streak extended his own programme record, which he had broken the year before (Ty-Shon Alexander’s 33-game stretch had previously held the mark). And his second 23-game streak is ranked tenth greatest.
Late in his career, he became the first Division I men’s player to reach 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, 500 assists, and 300 three-pointers. If his whole collegiate career numbers had been gathered at Creighton, he would have ranked first or second in games played (162, first), three point attempts (912, first), three point shots made (356, second), assists (580, first), rebounds (1,256, second), and points scored (2,233, second). And he’d be in the top five for shots attempted (1,654, 4th), shots made (763, 4th), and free throw percentage (82.0%, 5th).
Scheierman had a very excellent rookie season, averaging 12.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game. At the time, his 306 rebounds were the 11th most in CU history and the most since Benoit Benjamin’s 451 in 1984-85.
In 37 games, he had 13 double-doubles, with five more games where he was one rebound shy of a double-double. The 13 he did receive were equal for the most by any Bluejay in a single season since the legendary Bob Harstad in 1987-88. One of the five “near misses” was his massive 12 point, 12 rebound, nine assist game in the Big East Tournament quarterfinals; if he had collected one more assist, he would have become the first Bluejay to score a point/rebound/assist triple-double.
However, Scheierman excelled in his second year. On February 13, he achieved the coveted triple-double by scoring 15 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists against Georgetown. He was spectacular throughout the season, increasing his scoring average by nearly six points to 18.5 points per game, his rebounding average to 9.0 per game, and his assists to 3.95 per game. He scored in double digits in 34 of 35 games, including nine against Providence on January 6.
He was a unanimous First Team All-Big East pick, a Second or Third Team All-American by nine different publications, and one of five contenders for the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award. He was Creighton’s leading scorer and Big East leader in three-pointers made (110) and rebounds grabbed (315). With the previous figure, he tied Ethan Wragge for the second-most made threes in a single season.
- 129 – Kyle Korver, 2002-03
- 110 – Ethan Wragge, 2013-14
- 110 – Baylor Scheierman, 2023-24
- 100 – Kyle Korver, 2000-01
- 97 – Ty-Shon Alexander, 2018-19
- 96 – Doug McDermott, 2013-14
- 95 – Marcus Foster, 2017-18
- 95 – Mitch Ballock, 2018-19
- 93 – Mitch Ballock, 2019-20
- 91 – Booker Woodfox, 2008-09
- 87 – Baylor Scheierman, 2022-23
With the latter amount, he claimed the 10th and 12th greatest season rebounding totals in programme history, becoming the school’s first “new” top ten member since 1985.
- 631 – Paul Silas, 1963-64
- 563 – Paul Silas, 1961-62
- 557 – Paul Silas, 1962-63
- 451 – Benoit Benjamin, 1984-85
- 385 – Bob Portman, 1967-68
- 362 – Dick Hartman, 1959-60
- 332 – Gregory Brandon, 1983-84
- 330 – George Morrow, 1980-81
- 317 – Elton McGriff, 1964-65
- 315 – Baylor Scheierman, 2023-24
- 308 – Bob Portman, 1968-69
- 306 – Baylor Scheierman, 2022-23
His 647 points are the 11th highest single-season total in programme history. He had 16 double-doubles, including a six-game stretch that was the longest at the school since Benjamin had 28 in a row in 1984-85.
In ten games versus NCAA Tournament teams, he averaged 18.8 points and 8.7 rebounds, while in the tournament, he averaged 19.3 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 3.0 assists. His 109 points in seven NCAA Tournament games are the fourth most in programme history.
- 156 – Ryan Kalkbrenner, 2020-2024
- 137 – Trey Alexander, 2021-2024
- 129 – Doug McDermott, 2010-2014
- 109 – Baylor Scheierman, 2022-2024
He broke his own NCAA Tournament record for most three-pointers made (10, tied with Terrell Taylor and Marcus Zegarowski) by making 11 in 2024. And he broke Kyle Korver and Ethan Wragge’s joint career record of 16 by scoring 21.
Scheierman made several huge plays in his two NCAA Tournament trips, including these three to secure a first-round win over NC State in 2023:
HUGE bucket for Creighton 💪
They take an 8-point lead with just over a minute to go 🔥#MarchMadness @BluejayMBB pic.twitter.com/FHgTivX9kS
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 17, 2023
One round later, he hit a clutch three late in the second half as Princeton attempted a comeback, part of a 21-point performance that propelled the Jays to the Elite Eight.
Baylor Scheierman is UNCONSCIOUS from deep! 🤯#MarchMadness @BluejayMBB pic.twitter.com/WkMp4J9rut
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 25, 2023
In the regional final, with the Jays trailing 56-54 and San Diego State about to inbound the ball with 35 seconds remaining, Scheierman stole the inbounds pass and scored an uncontested basket to tie the game. The outcome of the game does not diminish the brilliance of Scheierman’s play; in fact, if the game had finished differently, it would have been regarded as one of the most significant defensive plays in programme history.
TIE GAME 😱 @BluejayMBB pic.twitter.com/1RoMhUOVmS
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 26, 2023
However, his trademark moment occurred in the second round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament. With 28 seconds remaining and the Jays losing by four, Scheierman retrieved a missed basket by Oregon’s Jermaine Couisnard and chose to create offence — he began a comeback by lowering his head and barreling into the lane, drawing contact and a foul. His two free throws reduced the score to 62-60. When Oregon missed the front end of a one-and-one, the door remained open.
BAYLOR SCHEIERMAN TIES THE GAME WITH SECONDS REMAINING 🤯#MarchMadness @BluejayMBB pic.twitter.com/QxrMchg0qr
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 24, 2024
Instead of calling a timeout, the Jays passed the ball to Scheierman, who finished with a game-tying step-back jumper from eight feet out. It was a play designed to set him up for the game-winning three-point shot. When the Ducks smelled it out, he calmly spun and dribbled as close as he could before burying the biggest shot of his career. Given the setting and circumstances, it was the greatest shot by a Bluejay since Terrell Taylor’s buzzer-beater against Florida in the 2002 tournament.