A season ticket holder in our row, let’s call him Greg, turned to the rest of us as we shuffled in stunned giddiness out of section 123 and into prime downtown Omaha time Saturday night. His message was simple: “Last Saturday might be as bad as I’ve felt leaving this building. Tonight might be the best.”
Ahhh, the joys of college hoops. In the span of a week, a national darling can work itself from object of affection among media pundits to overrated by those same “experts.” But just as quickly as things turn from bright to bleak, fortunes can improve. Consecutive losses at Northern Iowa and Evansville had Creighton fans blue, and a home beat down by Wichita State sent many over the proverbial ledge.
The Bluejays, one of the hottest shooting teams in the country ahead of their early February deep freeze, resuscitated their special season on Valentine’s Day. Creighton shot a league-record 77.5% from the field (and 85.7% from three-point range) to beat a downtrodden Southern Illinois team 88-69. CU couldn’t keep that pace against Long Beach State — nor did anyone expect them to — but the Bluejays overcame bad three-point shooting against the 49ers (5-23, 21.7%) and beat the Beach on a last-possession play by Antoine Young (video here, courtesy Polyfro).
After watching Panthers and Purple Aces students rush their respective home courts after wins against Creighton, and then watching Wichita State fans intrude on the lower bowl in the closing minutes of the Shockers’ win in Omaha, Greg and the rest of us in section 123 watched in happy confusion as the CU students mobbed Young and his teammates after he beat the buzzer. LBSU wasn’t ranked (they could be, though; that’s a good team right there). CU was favored in Vegas (although only slightly). At first I thought the court rush seemed forced; heck, CenturyLink Center security even removed the barricade between the students and the court a few minutes before Young’s shot.
Maybe, though, it was just a few weeks’ worth of frustration boiling over in a positive way? The students have stepped their game up since conference play started; even if they aren’t always actively engaged in Creighton’s games, they show up early and are eager to have something to cheer about. The rush was probably a week late, in most of their minds, seeing as how a win over Wichita State would have put CU in the driver’s seat for a regular season championship. But that didn’t happen, and the Long Beach State 49ers bore the brunt of the repercussions.
Or maybe the students just wanted some practice, should they need to repeat the feat inside the Scottrade Center a week from this Sunday? CU students are astute; they know practice makes perfect.
I’m getting ahead of myself. Forgive me, but my head’s already in St. Louis. With forecasts for weather in the mid-60s and a likely 6:05 p.m. tip for the Jays on Friday, March 2, there’s only a week full of hoops against the Valley’s Indiana schools between the Bluejays and Arch Madness. Here are a few more thoughts while I fantasize about downing my first Schlafly’s Coffee Stout early Friday afternoon at the Brewhouse.
Doug McDermott picked a fine time to regain MVC Player of the Week honors. I’d say McDermott bounced back from a bad performance against Wichita State just fine. He earned Valley Player of the Week honors for a stellar two games against SIU and Long Beach State, during which he averaged 27 points and 7.5 rebounds while shooting 78% from the field. The efforts came during two games that were important for vastly different reasons; getting back on track against SIU, and showcasing his team on national TV against a good non-conference opponent in LBSU.
Just how good was McDermott this week? Someone on Twitter seemed surprised that McDermott would earn the nod as POW over Joe Ragland, who was “dominant” for Wichita State while DMD instead “helped Creighton barely win.” Ragland had a great two games (vs. Missouri State, at Davidson), but hardly “dominated” (his team did, though). In five fewer minutes, McDermott outscored Ragland 54-39 while making nearly as many shots (21) as Ragland attempted (23) and still outshooting the WSU guard from the field (78% vs. 65%). Offensive performance is just one component of the award, but I’m sure one that’s weighed rather heavily.
Ultimately, though, McDermott’s best performance this past week might have been late in the game against Long Beach State, as he continued to morph into the vocal leader his head coach (and dad) Greg McDermott wants him to become. Talking to T. Scott Marr and Nick Bahe on the post-game radio show Saturday, the elder McDermott spoke glowingly about his son’s strength down the stretch against the 49ers. Doug McDermott refused to lose, repeating “we are going to win the game” over and over as the Bluejays battled back late. It came true, if only because McDermott made the plays to position his team to do so.
So McDermott’s the Player of the Year in the Valley, right? After Wichita State all but clinched an outright league championship with a win at Creighton, a few writers mentioned that the league’s POY hasn’t come from a non-champion team since 2003. That’s when Creighton’s Kyle Korver collected his second straight award even though Southern Illinois won the league by a game.
It is hard to argue that McDermott won’t be the one to break the streak. If I had a ballot, he’d be my Larry Bird Player of the Year. Joining him on my All-Valley first team would be Garrett Stutz, Colt Ryan, Kyle Weems, and Ragland.
There are plenty of solid players who will earn votes, though. Tell me you wouldn’t take some combination of Jackie Carmichael, Toure’ Murry, Ben Simons, Rayvonte Rice, Jake Odum, Antoine Young, or Gregory Echenique?
Stutz would seem to be McDermott’s biggest competition for the award. But while Wichita State can absorb an off game from their starting center and win going away, can Creighton fans say the same about McDermott and his effect on his team’s outcome on a nightly basis? Is that even considered when Valley voters cast their ballots? Should it be? Or has the award become an exercise in giving the honor to the best statistical performer on the league’s regular season championship team?
Is there anyone who watched the final possession against Long Beach State who didn’t think Antoine Young would take that shot?
I know, I know. The play had multiple options. But c’mon. Anyone who has watched Young play these past four years knows that shot was going up. The rest of the country might have learned a little more about Young’s late-possession heroics Saturday night (and Sunday morning). But he’s been doing it for years.
YouTube is littered with highlights of Young’s shots just before the first- or second-half buzzer, plays during which he’s hit some contested, difficult leaners, layups, and jump shots. Some forced overtime, some gave the Jays a win, and others didn’t accomplish anything more than giving CU a boost heading to the locker room at halftime. He has a great feel for that situation, and he has a track record of success in that instance. Good for him.
I’m sure Austin Chatman gave him an especially friendly congratulation after the game. Chatman, who played outstanding defense on LBSU’s Casper Ware down the stretch in the second half, “committed” a backcourt violation after Creighton had collected a defensive rebound late in the game. I hope Chatman, who will start at point guard next year for a Creighton team loaded with returners, took a mental note or two while watching Young against Long Beach State. And I don’t just mean the final shot; Antoine was superb Saturday. Austin’s shown flashes as a freshman, much as Young did in his first season at CU. Creighton fans can only hope Chatman develops in a similar vein, and that he can carry the torch hoisted by one of the better Bluejays to play on the Hilltop in recent years.