Illinois State senior guard Tyler Brown scored 23 of his game-high 27 points in the second half as the Redbirds (15-10, 6-7 MVC) defeated Creighton, 75-72 in front of the second-largest home crowd (18,494) in Creighton basketball history.
The Bluejays (20-5, 9-4 MVC) held Brown to four points on one-for-five shooting in the first half as they built a 39-36 lead going into the break despite shooting just 33% from the field. Junior All-American forward Doug McDermott led all players with 17 points and seven rebounds in the first half, helping Creighton build a 27-14 rebounding advantage, which included a 13-3 edge on the offensive glass.
A jumper by McDermott gave Creighton a 44-40 lead early in the second half. Brown then rattled off eight points on Illinois State’s next four possessions to put the Redbirds in front, 48-44, with 16:20 remaining. It was their first lead in more than 12 minutes. Creighton countered the Illinois State run with one of their own from an unlikely source. Redshirt freshman guard Nevin Johnson, who has fought through inconsistent performances and playing time, scored six straight points to help Creighton reclaim the lead at 50-48 with 15:06 left.
“When I got out there I just wanted to relax, let the game come to me, and hope to help my team win,” said Johnson. The redshirt freshman out of Houston, Texas, added, “A lot of the times I get out there and I second-guess myself sometimes, and that’s when I turn the ball over. Today I got out there and let the game come to me and actually did some good things tonight.”
Johnson finished with career-highs in points (nine), rebounds (four), and minutes played (18).
“Nevin really gave us a boost,” said Creighton Head Coach Greg McDermott. “I was pleased with what he was able to do. Obviously we got into some foul trouble, so it was good that Nevin was ready, and we need our bench to continue to those things for us.”
Unfortunately for Creighton, the boost provided by Johnson wasn’t enough to keep Tyler Brown from going off. He scored 15 of Illinois State’s next 17 points to give them a 65-60 lead 6:40 remaining in the game.
After struggling to solve Illinois State’s 2-3 zone the Jays finally got two quality looks down low as McDermott and senior guard Grant Gibbs each scored inside to cut the deficit to one at 65-64 with 5:33 left to play. Twenty seconds later Brown found sophomore guard Johnny Hill open for three in the corner to extend the lead to four. It was just Hill’s second three-pointer of the season, but it was a big one for Illinois State.
After a couple empty possessions for Creighton, Brown again found Hill in the corner. It was almost the exact same spot where he knocked down his three. This time it was a long two, but it gave Illinois State a 72-64 lead with 1:22 to play. The final minute and change would provide a memorable finish. Now in desperation mode with an eight-point deficit and little time left on the clock, Gibbs received a pass in the corner from sophomore point guard Austin Chatman, and immediately rose up and hit a much needed three-pointer.
After a Creighton foul, Redbird junior guard Bryant Allen made the first free throw, then won the battle for the ball against McDermott and Chatman after he missed on his second attempt. He kicked it to Tyler Brown who was immediately fouled by Creighton junior guard Jahenns Manigat. Brown missed the free throw, and Chatman found Gibbs again for three of his to cut the Illinois State lead to 73-70 with 42 seconds remaining.
After another Creighton foul, Hill missed the front end of the one-and-one, and the Jays set up would they hoped would be a game-tying play. Gibbs was the man again, but this time his three-pointer rattled out. Junior forward Ethan Wragge corralled the offensive rebound to give Creighton another chance, but Manigat’s three was long, and Wragge fouled Hill while battling for the ball with 11 seconds left.
Hill made both free throw to give Illinois State a 75-70 lead. Gibbs quickly drove down and drew a foul on Illinois State senior forward Jackie Carmichael. The senior guard from Marion, Iowa, made both free throws to cut the deficit to 75-72 with seven seconds to go. Gibbs scored 10 of his 16 points in the final five and half minutes of the game as he put the Jays on his back in the game’s most important moments.
On the ensuing inbounds, Creighton tried to foul Allen, but he got through the defense and found senior forward John Wilkins up-court. Wilkins decided at the last second not to dunk the ball and instead dribble out the clock. One problem, however, was that he already had picked up his dribble. He was whistled for a double-dribble and the turnover gave Creighton one final chance to tie with one second remaining on the clock. Ethan Wragge’s inbounds pass to McDermott at halfcourt was knocked away, though, and Illinois State survived.
Hill finished with 19 points and seven rebounds. McDermott led the Jays with 24 points, 13 rebounds, and 3 assists. It was McDermott’s sixth double-double of the season and 26th of his career.
For the Redbirds, it was their sixth victory in their last seven games, and moves them just half a game out of fourth place in the Missouri Valley Conference race. Creighton on the other hand was trying to rebound from their worst game of the season, a 76-57 loss at Indiana State, but instead they fell for the fourth time in their last seven games. The loss also brought the Jays back to the field as they are now stuck in a three-way tie with Wichita State and Indiana State atop the Missouri Valley standings.
Next up for Creighton is a rematch with the Northern Iowa Panthers in Cedar Falls, Iowa, on Wednesday, February 13. Tip-off is set for 7:05 p.m. Central time. Creighton won the previous match up with the Panthers, 79-68, in Omaha back on January 15.
The Bluejays will be looking to get back on track and to do that they’ll have to start by completing the first regular season sweep of Northern Iowa since the 2007-08 season.
“We just have to put our heads down and work,” said Gibbs after the game. “We have to push through and get this thing back on track. It’s not a time to point fingers and blame anybody. We have to put our heads down and work and be hungry to get back on track. We don’t have to worry about rankings or anything like that anymore, but there is a lot to play for and we have to value that. The number one thing is get back to work next practice and right this ship.”
When asked to add to Gibbs’ comments, his All-American teammate simply stated, “[Grant] said it best.”
Game Stats:
Illinois State / Creighton
Score: 75 / 72
FG/FGA/FG%: 30-61 (49.2%) / 25-66 (37.9%)
3FG/3FGA/3FG%: 6-18 (33.3%) / 4-23 (17.4%)
FT/FTA/FT%: 9-16 (56.3%) / 18-21 (85.7%)
Rebounding: 29 (Off: 11, Def: 18) / 48 (Off: 23, Def: 25)
Assists: 14 / 12
Turnovers: 6 / 11
Steals: 6 / 4
Blocks: 2 / 0
Scoring Leaders: Brown (27) / McDermott (24)
Rebounding Leaders: Hill (7) / McDermott (13)
Assists Leaders: Brown (5) / McDermott, Gibbs, Manigat (3)
Steals Leaders: Carmichael, Hill (2) / Manigat (3)
Blocks Leaders: Ekey (2) / None
