Saturday, January 29
Omaha, Neb.
1:00 PM
Creighton University
12-7,4-4Big East
64
vs
74
Xavier
15-5,5-4Big East
1
2
F
Xavier
19
55
74
Creighton
36
28
64
Photo by: Kristen Holmes
Second Half Slump Costs Men's Basketball in 74-64 Loss to #21 Xavier
1/29/2022 12:47:00 PM | Men's Basketball
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Musketeers open second half on a 29-2 run to erase 17 point halftime deficit
OMAHA, Neb. -- A 29-2 run to open the second half was too much for the Creighton men's basketball team to overcome in a 74-64 loss to No. 21 Xavier on Saturday, Jan. 29, in the program's annual Creighton vs. Cancer Pink Out game.
The loss moved the Bluejays to 12-7 on the season and 4-4 in BIG EAST play, while Xavier climbed to 15-5 overall and 5-4 in conference action.
Everything went Creighton's way in the first half as the Bluejays limited Xavier to just 23 percent from the field (8-of-35) to build a 36-19 edge at the break. Knotted a 6-6 with 16:37 on the clock, the Bluejays took control with an 11-2 surge. Freshmen Arthur Kaluma and Ryan Nembhard each delivered a pair of baskets during the run, led by five points from Nembhard on a trey and a driving layup. Xavier saw the ball fall through the cylinder just once in over seven minutes as Creighton built a 17-8 edge.
Leading 25-16 later in the first half the Bluejays closed the frame with another burst, this time outscoring Xavier 11-2 over the final 3:17. Senior Alex O'Connell connected on a pair from long range to get things started, while Nembhard and sophomore Ryan Kalkbrenner accounted for Creighton's final five points of the half.
Creighton shot 52% from the field in the opening 20 minutes, hitting 15-of-29 from the field.
Coming out of the locker room Xavier got a huge shot in the arm from post player Jack Nunge. The forward connected on a trio from long range to ignite Xavier's offense during a 19-0 run to start the half. The Musketeers went on to score 29 of the next 31 points to build a 48-38 lead with 9:15 remaining in the game. The Bluejays closed within six points a handful of times down the stretch, but Xavier answered each challenge to earn its first win in Omaha since 2018.
Nembhard led the Bluejays with a career-high 23 points, while Kalkbrenner and O'Connell had 13 and 11 points respectively. Creighton shot 41.1 percent for the game, but just 29.6 percent after the break. CU also shot just 1-for-11 after the half from three-point range for the second time this week.
Paul Scruggs led four Musketeers in double figures with 18 points, including 16 after halftime. Zach Freemantle and Nunge each finished with 16 points, while Nate Johnson posted 15 points. After shooting 1-for-7 from deep in the opening half, the Muskies shot 9-of-12 from downtown after the break. Xavier also won the rebound battle 42-33 and turned 15 offensive rebounds into 18 points.
The Bluejays return to the hardwood on Tuesday, Feb. 1 as Creighton visits No. 20 Connecticut for the first time this season at 5:30 pm in Hartford, Conn.
NOTES: Creighton fell to 2-4 this year against top-25 teams and 26-39 all-time under Greg McDermott against top-25 opponents ... Creighton dropped to 8-4 in Pink Out games under Greg McDermott ... Creighton wore white and pink jerseys that were auctioned off and raised $24,165. Additional money is being raised at http://cancer.org/omahapinkout, with up to $50,000 being matched by the David Spence Cancer Foundation ... Xavier's comeback from 17 points down was the largest in arena history, eclipsing a 16-point deficit overcome by Marquette on Feb. 17, 2018. That Marquette game was also the last time CU squandered a 15-point lead or more ... Ryan Kalkbrenner needed just 36 seconds to extend his streak of games with a blocked shot to 17 games in a row, matching CU's longest streak since Gregory Echenique spanning the 2010-11 and 2011-12 campaigns ... Kalkbrenner now owns 59 blocked shots this season, seventh-most in program history ... Creighton made a three-pointer before halftime for the 303rd game in a row and it was the 932nd game in a row with a trey at any time ... Ryan Hawkins made his 119th straight start ... Ryan Nembhard is the first Bluejay freshman with multiple 20-point games since Marcus Zegarowski (2018-19) ... Xavier did not sub in the opening 12:58 of the second half while on a 34-9 run.
The loss moved the Bluejays to 12-7 on the season and 4-4 in BIG EAST play, while Xavier climbed to 15-5 overall and 5-4 in conference action.
Everything went Creighton's way in the first half as the Bluejays limited Xavier to just 23 percent from the field (8-of-35) to build a 36-19 edge at the break. Knotted a 6-6 with 16:37 on the clock, the Bluejays took control with an 11-2 surge. Freshmen Arthur Kaluma and Ryan Nembhard each delivered a pair of baskets during the run, led by five points from Nembhard on a trey and a driving layup. Xavier saw the ball fall through the cylinder just once in over seven minutes as Creighton built a 17-8 edge.
Leading 25-16 later in the first half the Bluejays closed the frame with another burst, this time outscoring Xavier 11-2 over the final 3:17. Senior Alex O'Connell connected on a pair from long range to get things started, while Nembhard and sophomore Ryan Kalkbrenner accounted for Creighton's final five points of the half.
Creighton shot 52% from the field in the opening 20 minutes, hitting 15-of-29 from the field.
Coming out of the locker room Xavier got a huge shot in the arm from post player Jack Nunge. The forward connected on a trio from long range to ignite Xavier's offense during a 19-0 run to start the half. The Musketeers went on to score 29 of the next 31 points to build a 48-38 lead with 9:15 remaining in the game. The Bluejays closed within six points a handful of times down the stretch, but Xavier answered each challenge to earn its first win in Omaha since 2018.
Nembhard led the Bluejays with a career-high 23 points, while Kalkbrenner and O'Connell had 13 and 11 points respectively. Creighton shot 41.1 percent for the game, but just 29.6 percent after the break. CU also shot just 1-for-11 after the half from three-point range for the second time this week.
Paul Scruggs led four Musketeers in double figures with 18 points, including 16 after halftime. Zach Freemantle and Nunge each finished with 16 points, while Nate Johnson posted 15 points. After shooting 1-for-7 from deep in the opening half, the Muskies shot 9-of-12 from downtown after the break. Xavier also won the rebound battle 42-33 and turned 15 offensive rebounds into 18 points.
The Bluejays return to the hardwood on Tuesday, Feb. 1 as Creighton visits No. 20 Connecticut for the first time this season at 5:30 pm in Hartford, Conn.
NOTES: Creighton fell to 2-4 this year against top-25 teams and 26-39 all-time under Greg McDermott against top-25 opponents ... Creighton dropped to 8-4 in Pink Out games under Greg McDermott ... Creighton wore white and pink jerseys that were auctioned off and raised $24,165. Additional money is being raised at http://cancer.org/omahapinkout, with up to $50,000 being matched by the David Spence Cancer Foundation ... Xavier's comeback from 17 points down was the largest in arena history, eclipsing a 16-point deficit overcome by Marquette on Feb. 17, 2018. That Marquette game was also the last time CU squandered a 15-point lead or more ... Ryan Kalkbrenner needed just 36 seconds to extend his streak of games with a blocked shot to 17 games in a row, matching CU's longest streak since Gregory Echenique spanning the 2010-11 and 2011-12 campaigns ... Kalkbrenner now owns 59 blocked shots this season, seventh-most in program history ... Creighton made a three-pointer before halftime for the 303rd game in a row and it was the 932nd game in a row with a trey at any time ... Ryan Hawkins made his 119th straight start ... Ryan Nembhard is the first Bluejay freshman with multiple 20-point games since Marcus Zegarowski (2018-19) ... Xavier did not sub in the opening 12:58 of the second half while on a 34-9 run.
Team Stats
XU
CU
FG%
.422
.411
3FG%
.526
.286
FT%
.625
.800
RB
42
33
TO
10
13
STL
8
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
23
FGM
9
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballC
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
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