Men's Hoops Posts Late Rally To Stun Missouri State
12/30/2006 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Box Score
OMAHA, Neb. -- Creighton seniors Nate Funk and Anthony Tolliver combined for 13 points during a game-ending 18-4 run, leading the Bluejays to a 77-74 win over Missouri State before 15,684 fans at Qwest Center Omaha and a national television audience on ESPN2. Creighton improved to 7-4 (1-0 MVC) and won its ninth straight MVC home opener, while Missouri State fell to 10-3 (1-1) after wasting a 70-59 lead in the final 4:30.
CU trailed 70-59 before Tolliver's two free throws opened an eventual 16-1 run started with 4:22 to go. Down 71-63, Tolliver added a dunk with 2:54 to cut the deficit to six. Funk drilled two free throws at the 2:27 mark to make it 71-67, then scored a lay-up at the 1:44 mark to cut MSU's lead to 71-69.
MSU then milked the shot clock before Tyler Chaney missed a three-point attempt at the 1:07 mark. Nick Porter grabbed the rebound and fed Funk, who pushed the ball upcourt. Funk then found Dane Watts on the secondary break, and Watts drained the three-pointer to give CU a 72-71 lead with 56 seconds left and send the crowd into a frenzy.
Up one, CU then got a defensive stop, and Tolliver grabbed the rebound with 21 seconds to go. He made the first free throw and missed the second, but Pierce Hibma tipped out the rebound to Funk at midcourt. Funk was then fouled and made both free throws, giving CU a 75-71 lead with 17 seconds left. MSU's Spencer Laurie hit a difficult three-pointer to make it a one-point game again with 2.9 seconds left, but Funk drilled two more at the stripe to make it a three-point game. Chaney's inbounds pass to the opposite top-of-the-key was batted away by Funk at the final horn.
While the final five minutes provided all the dramatics, the first 35 minutes had its share of highlights as well. CU fell behind 4-0 early before 15-2 run gave them a nine-point lead. CU shot 65.4 percent in the first half while taking a 44-37 halftime lead. The Bluejays took a 52-42 lead early in the second half before Missouri State mounted a serious run. The Bears unleashed an 18-2 flurry to take a 60-54 lead at the 11:34 mark. A later 8-0 run put their lead at 70-59 before everything fell apart for the visitors.
Funk finished with 23 points, tied a career-best with seven assists, and added five rebounds ad three steals in 37 minutes of play. Tolliver had 20 points, six rebounds, three assists, two blocks and two steals against his hometown team. Watts finished with 10 points, as did senior Nick Porter in his return to the starting five. CU shot a season-high 53.2 percent from the field, while also hitting the glass to a 32-21 advantage.
Missouri State was led by 21 points from Ahearn, though the senior did not score in the game's final 14:25. Nathan Bilyeu added 11 points for the Bears, who shot 51.9 percent.
Creighton returns to action on Monday, January 1, with a game against Illinois State. Start time for the contest at Qwest Center Omaha has been moved to 3:05 pm.
NOTES: Nate Funk's seven assists tied a career-best, also done three years ago to the day against the same Missouri State squad ...Creighton's attendance of 15,684 was the third-largest in school history, and pushed the team's season average to 15,086 fans per contest ...Creighton tied a season-best with 20 assists, including 15 in the first half ...Playing a career-high 29 minutes, Nick Bahe had five assists off the bench ...Pierce Hibma, who entered the game with nine points all season, had a season-best six points, all in the first half ...Creighton has started 5-0 at home for the sixth time in the last seven seasons ...Creighton has trailed by 10 or more in four of Missouri State's last five visits to Omaha, but has won all but one of those games.
