NEW YORK – For the first time in league history, the BIG EAST will play a conference game on Christmas Day.
 
Creighton, the preseason BIG EAST favorite, will host DePaul at the CHI Health Center at 4:30 p.m. ET on FOX. The game will follow FOX’s coverage of the Green Bay Packers at Miami Dolphins game.
 
Creighton is coming off a 78-56 win against Butler on Thursday. Center Ryan Kalkbrenner returned after a three-game absence and scored a game-high 19 points. All five Bluejays are averaging in double figures led by Kalkbrenner’s 16.2 mark. The Bluejays own a 7-6 overall record and a 1-1 BIG EAST mark.
 
The Blue Demons are 6-6 overall and 0-1 in the BIG EAST. Forward Javan Johnson ranks fourth in the league with a 16.9 scoring mark. Newcomer guard Umoja Gibson ranks first in steals (2.3), second in free throw shooting (.904) and fourth in assists (5.3).
 
Both schools are known to have played once previously on Christmas Day. DePaul played in 2014, Creighton in 1953.