Recap:
Creighton hit just two shots in the final 12 minutes of the game, and they scored just 11 points in those 12 minutes with seven of them coming from the line. It shouldn’t be possible to win a game against a team of UConn’s caliber when that’s the case, but the Bluejay defense was once again up to the task — and so in a game where points were at a premium, they gutted out a 56-53 wrestling match.
The Jays held UConn to just 13 points in the final 14 minutes of the game, three days after holding Seton Hall to seven points over the final 12 minutes. Their defense — ranked 12th nationally in adjusted efficiency after this win — has become their calling card. And their offense has the playmakers to defeat opponents with great defense of their own, led by Trey Alexander who had 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting Saturday and is now averaging 16 points per game since their loss to Marquette — a span of 13 games.
With just over two minutes left and the Jays ahead by three, both were on display. CU’s defense led by Ryan Kalkbrenner intercepted a pass intended for Adama Sanogo at the rim; it led to Alexander creating his own shot off the dribble and scoring at the rim between two defenders.
But that was their final field goal of the day. So it was up to the defense to hold, and they did. Jordan Hawkins got to the rim with a chance to pull the Huskies within a point, but his shot airballed — Kalkbrenner was in the area, but didn’t touch the ball. Just being there was enough.
“He spooks people at the rim, man,” UConn coach Dan Hurley said. “The guy is such a presence, and when he’s not there, you’re thinking about him. Jordan had that opportunity at the rim late but when you have a defensive center who’s as good as anyone in the country, that’s in the back of your mind when you go in there. Even when he’s not necessarily there.”
And when Alexander missed the front-end of a one-and-one opportunity, it set up a roller-coaster ride of emotions. UConn appeared to tie the game on a three-pointer by Hawkins off an offensive rebound of a missed three by Adama Sanogo, and at first glance it certainly appeared that’s what happened.
With UConn’s bench celebrating what they thought was a game-tying shot, Hurley said he asked associate head coach Kimani Young if it was a three or a two. Young told him it was going to be reversed upon review — Hawkins’ foot was over the line.
“So, that lowered my expectations, quickly,” Hurley said. “He’s always honest with me. Some assistants lie to you to make you feel better.”
“It’s a game of inches,” Greg McDermott added. “Jordan Hawkins’ foot on the line…sometimes you get lucky.”
And so instead of a game likely headed to overtime, the Jays maintained a 54-53 lead and were able to ice the win on two free throws by Ryan Kalkbrenner.
Getting those free throws wasn’t easy, either. The 3/4 court pass to Kalkbrenner when all other (closer) options were sealed off was reminiscent of one that the Jays threw in a similar end-of-game situation against Marquette in 2019. That one sailed past that team’s star center, Martin Krampelj, and led to the Golden Eagles stealing a win. This time, the Jays’ big man corralled the pass, and there was no win stealing by the visitors.
Everything leading up to those dramatic final seconds was an old school Big East rock fight. Neither team was able to find any offensive rhythm, and key players for both teams were saddled with foul trouble. For Creighton, it was Alexander — he was limited to just 23 minutes and sat out large stretches of both halves. It forced them to go deep into the bench, especially with Francisco Farabello still out with an illness. Shereef Mitchell’s number was called, and in 19 minutes he looked like vintage Reef — his defensive tenacity bothered Jordan Hawkins greatly.
UConn’s main offensive thread was 4-of-13 from the field for 11 points, with Mitchell harassing him by sprinting alongside of him from one wing to the other, scrapping and digging under him.
“Jordan Hawkins wanted nothing to do with him,” Greg McDermott said simply of Mitchell’s effort.
Meanwhile, Arthur Kaluma’s foul trouble meant big minutes for Mason Miller. He hit a huge three-pointer and like he did on Wednesday in Newark, provided a spark of energy off the bench.
UConn missed 12 of its first 15 shots and trailed by nine at one point in the first half. But the Jays weren’t able to extend the lead further, and a pair of threes from Sanogo including one at the buzzer cut CU’s lead to 31-29 at the break. 90 seconds into the second half, UConn took the lead on a four-point play by Hawkins.
But Baylor Scheierman answered with a three to put Creighton back ahead 36-35, and then started a fastbreak that ended with an alley-oop dunk by Kalkbrenner. UConn tied it twice more, but never again had the lead.
With the win and losses by Xavier and Providence, the log jam atop the Big East has loosened a bit — it’s now Marquette, Creighton and Xavier tied for first place in the loss column. The Friars are a game back. And this week, Creighton plays at Providence and Xavier plays at Marquette. A lot of things will start to be sorted out after Wednesday, in other words.
Inside the Box:
The much-hyped battle between Adama Sanogo and Ryan Kalkbrenner saw Kalkbrenner score 12 points on 4-of-9 shooting with six rebounds, one block and three steals. Sanogo got the better of him statistically — he had 17 points and 10 rebounds — but when the chips were down in the final minute of a one-possession game, Sanogo missed a game-tying three while Kalkbrenner had a steal and two free throws to ice the win. And a deeper look at the battle tips the scales further to Kalkbrenner.
Sanogo needed 17 shots to score those 17 points, and seven of them were three-pointers. Yes, he made three of them, but those are shots the Jays are OK with because him being out on the perimeter takes him away from the rim. Sanogo being outside does nothing to open up shooting lanes for teammates. In the second half, when the game was being decided, Sanogo had four points in 17 minutes.
Defensively, Sanogo didn’t block a single shot and didn’t do much to disrupt CU from scoring at the rim. And Kalkbrenner changed just about everything UConn tried to do at the rim.
UConn destroyed the Bluejays on the glass, grabbing 18 offensive rebounds (an astounding-slash-disgusting 40.9% of their misses) and nearly tied the game after their 18th and final offensive board. That’s not a sustainable way to win games, and if the Jays had lost this one, the storyline would have started and ended with their failure on the glass.
On the plus side, the Jays once again defended without fouling. The Huskies only got to the line four times, all of them fouls on three-point attempts, and just one time in the second half. The Jays were only whistled for 10 fouls, though Alexander and Kaluma had seven of those 10.
After the win, Creighton is up to 13 in the NCAA’s NET ranking, with a resume looking more and more like that of a protected seed every game. At 17-8 and 11-3 in the league, all of their goals are on the table — a regular season Big East title, and a favorable seed in March that could lead to a deep run. What a change 57 days makes. After dropping their Big East opener at Marquette they had lost six straight and were 6-6 overall, 0-1 in the league. 57 days later they’ve only lost twice more.
Highlights:
Press Conference: