Saturday, February 10
Cincinnati, Ohio
11:30 AM
Creighton University
17-7,8-5Big East
78
at
71
Xavier
13-11,7-6Big East
1
2
F
Creighton
38
40
78
Xavier
29
42
71
Photo by: Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports
#19 Men's Basketball Wins at Xavier, 78-71
2/10/2024 1:36:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Bluejays improve to 17-7 while sweeping Muskies for second time in 11 years
CINCINNATI, Ohio -- Ryan Kalkbrenner had 28 points on 12-of-14 shooting as No. 19 Creighton completed a regular-season sweep of Xavier on Saturday with a 78-71 win in front of a sellout crowd of 10,555 at Cintas Center.
Creighton snapped a two-game losing streak to up its record to 17-7 on the year and 8-5 in BIG EAST play, while Xavier slipped to 13-11 (7-6 BIG EAST) with the rare home loss.
The Xavier turned a steal on the opening possession into a breakaway dunk by Quincy Olivari and rode that momentum through the first four minutes to take an 11-4 lead. CU missed its first eight three-point attempts and fell behind by as much as 13-4 before responding with a 12-6 run that featured three-pointers by seniors Baylor Scheierman and Francisco Farabello in addition to three baskets by Kalkbrenner inside. Kalkbrenner had six baskets in a span of eight minutes, including a fifth lob to him as Creighton took its first lead at 26-25.
Creighton continued its defensive energy in the final minutes of the first half, holding the Musketeers to 1-for-13 shooting in the last six minutes, to take a 38-29 lead into the intermission. Kalkbrenner had 14 points and two blocks in the first half, while Baylor Scheierman contributed nine points, four rebounds and four assists. The Bluejays led 20-18 on the glass and dished 14 assists on 17 field goals in the opening stanza to help offset 11 points by Xavier's Desmond Claude.
CU scored the opening six points of the second half on two Trey Alexander drives and another hook shot from Kalkbrenner.to rapidly build a 44-29 lead and lead to a timeout from Xavier coach Sean Miller. After a Quincy Olivari three-pointer stopped the bleeding, it was only temporary, as CU got back-to-back dunks from Kalkbrenner to move in front 48-32 as Xavier burned its penultimate timeout. Xavier countered with nine points in a row to send the crowd into a frenzy temporarily as the hosts drew within eight points at 49-41.
The rally was short-lived with Creighton going on a 17-5 run to lead 66-46, and the final 12 of those points coming from Kalkbrenner or Scheierman.
Xavier drew within five points (74-69) with just over a minute left on three baskets by Dayvion McKnight. But Ashwworth and McKnight would trade foul shots and Xavier never got any closer than five the rest of the way.
In addition to Kalkbrenner's big day, Scheierman approached a triple-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists and Alexander had 10 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Creighton shot 48.4 percent from the field and won the rebound battle 37-33. CU won the paint battle 40-30 and scored 24 fast break points.The Jays dished 23 assists on 31 made field goals.
Xavier was led by 22 points from Desmond Claude, 21 from McKnight and 18 by Olivari. The Musketeers shot 42.4 percent from the field and made 9-of-11 free throws.
Creighton returns to the court on Tuesday when it hosts Georgetown at 7:30 p.m. on FS1. Doors will open at 6 pm., with $1 beverages available at the North end zone Bud Bar until 7:30 p.m.
NOTES: Baylor Scheierman has made a three-pointer in 12 straight games, and 70 of the last 71 contests ... The contest was Creighton's 90th in a row to be televised ... Creighton made a three-pointer for the 1,009th consecutive game ... Ryan Kalkbrenner has scored in double-figures in 11 straight games ... Twenty-six of the 41 all-time meetings between Creighton and Xavier have been within five points in the final minute ... Since both teams joined the BIG EAST in 2013, 18 of the 26 meetings have been decided by eight points or less ...Creighton swept both regular-season meetings with Xavier for just the second time (2019-20) since joining the BIG EAST ... Creighton's five road wins against Xavier at Cintas Center since it opened in 2000 are tied for the second-most nationally of any school, trailing only Villanova (7) ... Creighton has won four of its last six BIG EAST road games and is now 6-4 on the road this year overall ... Creighton is the nation's only Power 6 team with six road wins this season ... Creighton is now 8-3 since the calendar turned to 2024 ... Creighton improved to 200-81 all-time when ranked in the USA Today Coaches poll ...Creighton is now 3-0 on FOX this season ... Ryan Kalkbrenner finished with six dunks.
Creighton snapped a two-game losing streak to up its record to 17-7 on the year and 8-5 in BIG EAST play, while Xavier slipped to 13-11 (7-6 BIG EAST) with the rare home loss.
The Xavier turned a steal on the opening possession into a breakaway dunk by Quincy Olivari and rode that momentum through the first four minutes to take an 11-4 lead. CU missed its first eight three-point attempts and fell behind by as much as 13-4 before responding with a 12-6 run that featured three-pointers by seniors Baylor Scheierman and Francisco Farabello in addition to three baskets by Kalkbrenner inside. Kalkbrenner had six baskets in a span of eight minutes, including a fifth lob to him as Creighton took its first lead at 26-25.
Creighton continued its defensive energy in the final minutes of the first half, holding the Musketeers to 1-for-13 shooting in the last six minutes, to take a 38-29 lead into the intermission. Kalkbrenner had 14 points and two blocks in the first half, while Baylor Scheierman contributed nine points, four rebounds and four assists. The Bluejays led 20-18 on the glass and dished 14 assists on 17 field goals in the opening stanza to help offset 11 points by Xavier's Desmond Claude.
CU scored the opening six points of the second half on two Trey Alexander drives and another hook shot from Kalkbrenner.to rapidly build a 44-29 lead and lead to a timeout from Xavier coach Sean Miller. After a Quincy Olivari three-pointer stopped the bleeding, it was only temporary, as CU got back-to-back dunks from Kalkbrenner to move in front 48-32 as Xavier burned its penultimate timeout. Xavier countered with nine points in a row to send the crowd into a frenzy temporarily as the hosts drew within eight points at 49-41.
The rally was short-lived with Creighton going on a 17-5 run to lead 66-46, and the final 12 of those points coming from Kalkbrenner or Scheierman.
Xavier drew within five points (74-69) with just over a minute left on three baskets by Dayvion McKnight. But Ashwworth and McKnight would trade foul shots and Xavier never got any closer than five the rest of the way.
In addition to Kalkbrenner's big day, Scheierman approached a triple-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists and Alexander had 10 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Creighton shot 48.4 percent from the field and won the rebound battle 37-33. CU won the paint battle 40-30 and scored 24 fast break points.The Jays dished 23 assists on 31 made field goals.
Xavier was led by 22 points from Desmond Claude, 21 from McKnight and 18 by Olivari. The Musketeers shot 42.4 percent from the field and made 9-of-11 free throws.
Creighton returns to the court on Tuesday when it hosts Georgetown at 7:30 p.m. on FS1. Doors will open at 6 pm., with $1 beverages available at the North end zone Bud Bar until 7:30 p.m.
NOTES: Baylor Scheierman has made a three-pointer in 12 straight games, and 70 of the last 71 contests ... The contest was Creighton's 90th in a row to be televised ... Creighton made a three-pointer for the 1,009th consecutive game ... Ryan Kalkbrenner has scored in double-figures in 11 straight games ... Twenty-six of the 41 all-time meetings between Creighton and Xavier have been within five points in the final minute ... Since both teams joined the BIG EAST in 2013, 18 of the 26 meetings have been decided by eight points or less ...Creighton swept both regular-season meetings with Xavier for just the second time (2019-20) since joining the BIG EAST ... Creighton's five road wins against Xavier at Cintas Center since it opened in 2000 are tied for the second-most nationally of any school, trailing only Villanova (7) ... Creighton has won four of its last six BIG EAST road games and is now 6-4 on the road this year overall ... Creighton is the nation's only Power 6 team with six road wins this season ... Creighton is now 8-3 since the calendar turned to 2024 ... Creighton improved to 200-81 all-time when ranked in the USA Today Coaches poll ...Creighton is now 3-0 on FOX this season ... Ryan Kalkbrenner finished with six dunks.
Team Stats
CU
XU
FG%
.484
.424
3FG%
.250
.462
FT%
.818
.818
RB
37
33
TO
11
11
STL
5
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
28
FGM
12
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
16
FGM
7
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
12
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
10
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
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