The No. 3 Creighton Bluejays will meet the No. 14 Akron Zips in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament in the Midwest Region. Here’s a look at how both teams fared this season ahead of their matchup, along with odds for the contest.
Creighton Bluejays
NET: 11
KenPom Overall: 11
KenPom O: 12
KenPom D: 24
Record: 23-9
Strength of Schedule: 22
Conference: Big East
Conference Record: 14-6
Quad 1 Record: 8-5
The Creighton Bluejays got rolling from down low this season, making 61% of their attempts from the two-point range, ranking third in the nation. They went 2-2 against Marquette and UConn, their two biggest challengers in the Big East, and finished near the top of the conference standings. In last year’s tournament, the Bluejays found themselves in the Elite Eight for just the second time in program history. They are still on the hunt for that Final Four berth.
Creighton was led by the dynamic trio of Baylor Scheierman, Ryan Kalkbrenner, and Trey Alexander. All three players average 17 or more points a night, placing Creighton in the top 25 teams in the country in terms of points scored per game.
Akron Zips
NET: 108
KenPom Overall: 116
KenPom O: 164
KenPom D: 97
Record: 24-10
Strength of Schedule: 219
Conference: MAC
Conference Record: 13-5
Quad 1 Record: 0-3
Akron is in the Big Dance for the second time in three seasons and is looking to win its very first NCAA Tournament game at the Division I level. The Zips were cruising right along in MAC action, but a rocky end to the campaign cost them the league’s regular season title. They still secured the No. 2 seed for the MAC Tournament and were able to edge Kent State in the title game to punch their ticket.
Senior forward Enrique Freeman was the catalyst for this team, earning MAC Player of the Year by averaging a double-double with 18.6 points and 12.9 rebounds per game. Senior guard Ali Ali provided adequate backup on the offensive end with 15.6 ppg.
2024 March Madness: Creighton vs. Akron odds
Odds from DraftKings Sportsbook
Spread: Creighton -13.5, Akron +13.5
Over/Under: 140.5
Moneyline: Creighton -800, Akron +550