Superman showed up again, ready to carry Creighton on his shoulders and away from defeat. Doug McDermott slithered, shook, cut, and hustled his way around the Hinkle Fieldhouse court for a game-high 37 minutes Thursday night. He broke free repeatedly from the close defense shown by a number of Butler Bulldogs, connecting on 11 shots (19 attempts) and leading all scorers with 26 points.
McDermott scored 10 of Creighton’s first 13 points. He scored 8 of the team’s final 14 points, too, starting with a three-pointer that broke a 54-54 tie with 10 minutes left and ending with a three-pointer that turned a 2-point CU deficit into a 1-point CU lead with less than 50 seconds to play.
With fellow sharpshooter Ethan Wragge struggling, McDermott knocked down three three-pointers in total, stretching the Butler defense into difficult decisions all evening. CBS Sports Network color commentator Doug Gottlieb did a great job throughout the evening breaking down exactly how Butler was in a no-win situation while trying to guard McDermott. Trying is the operative word, there. Try to guard him with a big, and McDermott makes them pay from outside the paint (and inside the block, too). Try to guard him with someone smaller, and Doug can get buckets at a number of spots inside the arc.
And in the end, after a night of instructional video-type play, McDermott made the dagger that everyone in the historically significant basketball gym knew he was going to have the opportunity to shoot. Gottlieb said it well, praising McDermott for continuing to improve even as everyone in the country — opposing players, coaches, and all media in the hoops scene — knows he’s going to get the ball and be the focal point of Creighton’s highly efficient offense.
Will Artino brought more than Big Swag to Thursday’s game. McDermott wasn’t the only Iowa native to make an impact against Butler. With his low post counterpart Ethan Wragge unable to hit shots (0-4 from the field, all three-point attempts; first game this season he hasn’t connected on a three-pointer), Artino logged a season-high 22 minutes and responded with his first career double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds).
His 4 offensive rebounds are the second-best total by a Bluejay this season (Grant Gibbs had 5 offensive caroms against San Diego State). And he scored 5 points directly off those offensive boards. Heck, the one time he didn’t score directly from one of those rebounds, Jahenns Manigat did, as he got a feed for a three from Gibbs, who was on the receiving end of a saved ball by Artino on the Creighton end of the court.
Ten of Artino’s 11 points came in the first half. But with his rebounding and defensive effort, Artino made a significant impact on the outcome during the second half as well. With the Jays leading by one thanks to another late-game bucket by Doug McDermott, Butler took a timeout to set up a quality look with 44 seconds left. On the ensuing possession Artino forced two misses by Andrew Chrabascz, grabbing the defensive rebound after the second miss. Austin Chatman would calmly connect on four free throws during the last 20 seconds, and the Jays escaped Indiana with a 68-63 win.
The win proved to be yet another grinder in a month that’s shaping up to be full of them. Just like their previous road trip, the Bluejays were able to salvage a split by winning the second of two games. They have one more such trip on the schedule; CU will see Xavier and Georgetown in a four-day span away from Omaha at the start of March. But by holding off a struggling but game Butler squad, the Bluejays ensured the program of yet another 20-win season (15th in the past 16 seasons).
Creighton has introduced itself well to its new brethren in the Big East. Thursday’s victory was CU’s 10th league win, extending a ridiculous streak of 18 straight seasons of 10 or more conference Ws. The consistency is more than admirable; it’s enough to drive most other college basketball programs crazy with jealousy. The payoff, of course, is the 18,000-plus crowds that show up to CenturyLink Center every game. That crowd will be needed Sunday, when #6 Villanova comes to town looking for revenge. The Bluejays embarrassed the Wildcats on January 20, putting on an offensive clinic for the ages against one of the nation’s best teams. But Creighton’s shooters haven’t come close to experiencing the same sort of production after that night, and you can bet Jay Wright and his VU squad knows that a win in Omaha is necessary to keep a grasp on first place in the Big East.
The difference could be CU’s fan base, one that hasn’t seen an opponent with this type of national ranking come to Omaha in decades. The name “Villanova” doesn’t carry the same weight as “Kentucky” or “Carolina” or “Duke,” sure. But there are no glaring weaknesses in Wright’s club, and they’re poised to experience a deep run in March. Ultimately, though, the Wildcats-Bluejays matchup is most important because of the impact of its outcome on Creighton’s chances to win a regular season championship in the Missouri Valley Conference in 2013 and in the Big East Conference in 2014.
If you want to hang banners, you have to take care of your home games. The Jays haven’t experienced an unbeaten season at home since the last year of play in the Civic Auditorium 11 years ago. Here’s to a win versus Villanova keeping that hope alive.