Greg Echenique
Source: Creighton University Athletics
June 25, 2013
School: CreightonPosition: Center Height: 6'9" Weight: 260 lbs Class: Senior Points Per Game: 9.7Rebounds Per Game: 6.6 Assists Per Game: 0.4 Steals Per Game: 0.6 Blocks Per Game: 1.7 Turnovers Per Game: 1.3
Senior (2012-13): As a senior, was an Honorable-mention All-MVC selection and named to MVC All-Tournament Team... Named to MVC’s All-Defensive Team, becoming first player in Creighton history to earn the honor three straight seasons... Honorable-mention preseason All-Valley selection for the second straight year... Participated in NABC All-Star Game at the Final Four... His 62 blocked shots this year were most by a Bluejay since 1990-91... One of two active players nationally (with Mike Muscala) with at least 1,300 points, 900 rebounds and 250 career blocked shots... Moved over 1,000 points at Creighton in final game vs. Duke (3/24)... Also owned 991 career rebounds (including Rutgers)... Was first Creighton player since Benoit Benjamin in 1985 with 13 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks in a game... Made 7-of-9 shots and finished with 16 points and six rebounds in 80-51 win over Atlantic-10 favorite Saint Joseph’s (12/1)... Earned third double-double with 10 points, 11 rebounds and five blocked shots in win at Cal (12/15)... Dominated Indiana State, finishing with 16 points, nine rebounds and four blocked shots (1/5)... Season-high 18 points and had three blocks at Saint Mary’s (2/23)... Had nine points, 11 rebounds and six blocked shots in MVC Tournament title game win vs. Wichita State (3/10/13)...His six swats were a tourney title game record and tied for second-most in history for any tourney game... Ranked third in CU history (and eighth in MVC history) with 174 career swats, and ranked 13th in Rutgers history with 94 blocked shots... Led the MVC in field goal percentage (65.7 percent)... Ranked third in the MVC in blocked shots and seventh in rebounding this season as well... Ranked 144th nationally in double-doubles and 86th in blocked shots per game... Has lost 40+ pounds since arriving at Creighton. Owns 7% body fat.
Junior (2011-12): First Creighton player named MVC Defensive Player of the Year... Started every game and was second on team with three double-doubles... Led MVC with 57 blocked shots. Was second in the MVC in offensive rebounds per game, blocked shots per game and in field goal percentage, fifth in rebounds per game and eighth in defensive rebounds per game... In MVC-only games, was first in blocked shots and offensive rebounds, second in field goal percentage, third in rebounding and 10th in FT percentage... Had 18 points, 14 rebounds and five blocked shots in win over Houston Baptist (Dec. 17) for his first double-double of the year... Scored 15 points while also snaring nine rebounds in win vs. Iowa (Nov. 20)... Snared 11 rebounds in win over Northern Iowa (Jan. 10)... Had fourth straight game of 10 or more rebounds on Jan. 15 in win vs. Southern Illinois, finishing with nine points and 11 rebounds... Had 15 points and nine rebounds, making 4-of-4 shots from the floor, and also blocking 100th shot as a Bluejay in win at Southern Illinois (Feb. 14)... Had a one-handed tip-in as time expired to send game vs. Evansville to overtime (Feb. 21)... Scored Creighton-high 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting in MVC Tournament win vs. Evansville (March 3) and was named to All-MVC Tournament Team... Had more points (12-11) and as many rebounds (6) as ACC Player of the Year Tyler Zeller in NCAA Tournament game vs. North Carolina (March 18)... Led team with 30 dunks on the season... After starting 9-of-25 (36.0 percent) at the free-throw line, went 72-96 (78.3 percent) in last 26 games to finish at 66.9 percent overall... Creighton is 12-1 in his career when he scores 15 points or more and 10-1 when he grabs 10 or more rebounds... Will enter senior season as the nation’s only player with 1,000 career points, 750 career rebounds and 200 career blocked shots.
Summer (2011-12) with Venezuelan National Team: Starting center for the Venezuelan National Team, which placed fifth in the 2011 FIBA Americas Tournament while trying to qualify for the Olympics... Averaged 6.1 points and 5.1 rebounds in eight games while shooting 61.4 percent from the field in 2011 FIBA Americas Tournament and 7.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in two games during the 2012 Olympic Qualifier... Went head-to-head against a bevy of NBA big men, including Luis Scola (Argentina), Al Horford (Dominican Republic), Charlie Villanueva (Domincan Republic), Joel Anthony (Canada), Tiago Splitter (Brazil), Andres Nocioni (Argentina) and Renaldo Balkman (Puerto Rico).
Sophomore (2010-11): Named to the MVC All-Newcomer Team and MVC All-Defensive Team... Highly-touted transfer from Rutgers who had to sit out until Dec. 17 due to his midseason transfer the previous year... Creighton went 5-4 without him and 18-12 with him in the lineup... Led the MVC in field goal percentage and blocked shots per game, was fourth in offensive rebounds and 10th in rebounds per game... In league play, led the MVC with 62.9 percent accuracy from the field, second with 1.7 blocks per game and 10th with 5.8 rebounds per game... His 55 blocked shots rank 10th in Creighton history for a single-season... Finished with 12 points, five rebounds and three blocked shots in his Creighton debut vs. Idaho State (Dec. 18), playing 18 minutes off the bench...Had 16 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two blocks in overtime win while making first start at Southern Illinois (Jan. 7)... Had 10 points, seven rebounds and career-high seven blocks at Missouri State (Jan. 22)... Averaged 14.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocked shots per game while scoring in double-figures during all six CBI games... Named to CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Defensive All-America Team... Led team with 24 dunks.
(2009-10) Redshirt: Averaged 12.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in 23.4 minutes per game in 2009-10 at Rutgers University while starting all seven appearances before a season-ending eye injury... Transferred to Creighton in early January and was granted a medical hardship (eye).
Freshman (2008-09) at Rutgers: Averaged 8.4 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.4 blocked shots in 28.4 minutes per game as a freshman to share team MVP honors... Led all BIG EAST freshmen in rebounding, blocks, offensive rebounds and defensive rebounds... In 2008-09 ranked 23rd nationally in blocks per game (third among freshmen) and 60th in rebounds (fourth among freshmen) per game... Had single-game highs of 21 points, 17 rebounds and seven blocks at Rutgers and amassed eight double-doubles with the Scarlet Knights... Named to Athletic Director’s Academic Honor Roll in fall 2008... Youngest competitor at the 2009 FIBA Americas Championship while playing for Venezuela.
Personal: Parents are Jose & Maria Echenique... Father Jose played on Venezuelan National Team... Majored in International Business