Creighton Basketball Preview: St. John's vs. Creighton Prediction Feb. 21, 2026
creighton basketball travels to Madison Square Garden on Saturday, February 21, 2026, for a noon ET tip against the No. 17 St. John's Red Storm (21-5, 14-1 Big East). St. John's are listed as double-digit favorites — favored by 12. 5 points — while the Bluejays (14-13, 8-8 Big East) enter off a 91-84 road upset of No. 5 UConn on Wednesday, making this matchup a consequential Big East test for both teams.
Creighton Basketball Game Odds
Betting lines in recent coverage show St. John's as a clear favorite. One published line lists St. John's favored by 12. 5 points with the over/under set at 155. 5. Alternate published lines place the spread closer to 12 points with moneyline differentials reflecting heavy favorites and long underdog payouts; one snapshot of betting lines was listed as last updated at 6: 19 a. m. ET. Markets also include totals clustered in the mid-150s, indicating an expectation for a relatively high-scoring game.
Why St. John's Is Favored
St. John's arrives with a strong ledger in conference play and an established home run: the Red Storm have built a multi-game home win streak and sit at 21-5 overall, 14-1 in Big East play. Their January meeting with Creighton ended 90-73 in St. John's favor, and the team has reliable interior scoring and finishing threats that have been highlighted this season. Recent analysis emphasizes St. John's ability to attack the rim through interior scoring, which aligns with matchup advantages against teams that struggle with rim protection and second-chance points.
Key Matchup Notes and Outlook
Creighton’s upset of No. 5 UConn (91-84) on the road is the headline for the Bluejays entering Saturday; that win came as a sizable underdog and halted a two-game skid. However, season-long issues cited in pregame analysis include struggles defending the interior and rebounding: the Bluejays have allowed slightly more than 1. 0 points per possession on big cut-and-roll actions and about 1. 16 points per possession on put-backs and offensive-rebound scores. Those vulnerabilities map directly onto St. John's strengths, particularly when the Red Storm lean on interior finishes and offensive rebounds.
Matchup history matters: the teams met on Jan. 10 in Omaha with St. John's winning by 17. Creighton will need to limit second-chance opportunities and contain interior scoring to make the game competitive against a Red Storm squad winning consistently at home. If Creighton can replicate its offensive efficiency from the UConn game while tightening defensive rebounding, the Bluejays could keep the final margin closer than market spreads imply. Conversely, if the Bluejays fail to remedy rim protection and offensive-rebound rates, the market’s double-digit edge for St. John's appears well founded.
Key indicators to watch on game day: starting lineups and rotation length (which affect rebounding matchups), whether Creighton's backcourt can sustain the recent offensive output, and pregame lines/odds movement (last full line update noted at 6: 19 a. m. ET in the available snapshots). Those observable elements should drive any late adjustments to predictions and betting posture.
Quick take: St. John's opens as a substantial favorite at home, while Creighton carries momentum from an upset win but also clear defensive vulnerabilities that the Red Storm can exploit. The first tip at 12 p. m. ET will clarify game-time rotations and the immediate outlook for how this Big East clash will unfold.
