Nebraska head coach Tim Miles and sophomores Glynn Watson and Michael Jacobson met with reporters on Tuesday afternoon to preview the Huskers’ upcoming showdown with instate rival Creighton on Wednesday night.

Here’s a quick recap of what they had to say…

***Miles called this week somewhat “unprecedented” for Nebraska basketball in that they’re preparing to play two straight top-10 teams in the non-conference. He said it was a great challenge and opportunity for his team.

***Asked what the No. 1 priority would be in trying to slowdown the Bluejays’ potent offense, Miles said containing point guard Maurice Watson would be right at the top. Miles said not only is Watson a threat to score in transition on every possession, he also boasts roughly a 40-percent assist rate.

So who’s going to guard Watson? “Everybody,” Miles said.

***Miles said he was well aware of the hype surrounding the Nebraska-Creighton rivalry, but his message to the team was to not make the game any bigger or smaller than it is. Miles said “the guys were jacked up” during Monday’s practice, so he needs to help keep his players’ emotions in check.

***Miles said his plan to do that was to be honest with his players and tell them they just have to worry about doing their job and playing their game. Everything beyond that was out of their control, so there was no point in focusing on it.

“There’s no magic wand or pixie dust to become something different,” Miles said.

***Miles was asked what the rivalry meant for him personally, and he said he’s never wanted it to be about him. He said he and CU head coach Greg McDermott go way back, and he’s well aware of his his winless record against McDermott.

But when it comes down to it, “What do you do about it?” Miles said you can’t wallow on past failures, you can only focus on the here and now.

***Miles said Creighton center Justin Patton “has all the qualities the NBA would love.” He said Patton is a 7-footer who runs the floor with impressive speed and gets high-percentage shots. Miles said Patton’s development since arriving at Creighton has been really impressive.

***How did Creighton end up getting an instate player like Patton over Nebraska? “I think Mac locked him his office at the elite camp,” Miles joked. “It’s one of those hostage/captor things.”

***Watson said he knows this game is a big deal around the state, but he doesn’t get caught up in all of the outside hype. The fact that he and most every other Husker have only played Creighton once helps them not make too big of a deal out of the rivalry.

***Watson said transition defense would be a major factor for Nebraska. He said he feels the Huskers have been “OK” in that regard this year, but they need to improve their communication and getting back faster on defense after misses.

***Jacobson compared the Nebraska-Creighton rivalry to what he experienced watching the Iowa-Iowa State games while growing up in Waukee, Iowa.

***In order to contain Patton, Jacobson said NU’s bigs would need to be physical, smart and try to out-work him on every possession. The key would be not letting Patton play his style of game against them, especially in transition where “he runs like a deer.”

***Jacobson said Nebraska had to improve its rebounding going forward, and that’s been a major point of emphasis the past few days. After the South Dakota game Edward Morrow said NU did a “horrible” job rebounding, and Jacobson agreed.