Sunday, March 6
Chicago, Ill.
12:00 pm
Creighton University
16-16
57
vs
48
#2 Villanova
19-11
1
2
3
4
F
Creighton
17
10
13
17
57
Villanova
11
10
14
13
48
Photo by: Steve Branscombe
Women's Hoops Downs No. 2 Villanova, 57-48
3/6/2016 2:35:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Chicago, Ill.-- Paced by 14 second-half points from junior MC McGrory, the seventh- seeded Creighton women's basketball team defeated No. 2 Villanova 57-48 in the BIG EAST Quarterfinals on Sunday, March 6.
With the win the Bluejays evened their record at 16-16 on the season and will advance to face No. 3 Seton Hall in the BIG EAST Semifinals. Villanova closes the regular season at 19-11, with three of those losses coming to the Bluejays.
Creighton jumped out to an early lead as McGrory and sophomore Jade Owens hit the first two buckets of the game. Up 9-6 with 5:39 remaining in the opening period the Bluejays pounded the ball in the paint to junior Brianna Rollerson. The Omaha native responded with four quick points to push Creighton out to a 13-6 edge (2:42). Villanova cut back into the lead before the end of the quarter, but sophomore Sydney Lamberty drained a long two-point shot at the buzzer to give the Bluejays a 17-11 lead.
The Wildcats steadily clawed back through the opening five minutes of quarter number two, getting within a bucket at 21-19 with 4:24 left in the first half. Junior Lauren Works brought her squad back with a driving layup to ignite a 6-0 Creighton. Lamberty and Works each contributed a bucket down the stretch, but Villanova counterpunched with a buzzer beater of its own from Alex Louin to make it a 27-21 contest at the half.
Villanova knocked down the opening two buckets in the second period and used a 11-4 run over the first six minutes to claim its first lead of the game, 32-31 (3:58). Losing the lead set off a spark for McGrory. The Minnesota native responded with a traditional three-point play to reclaim the lead, 34-32. After the Wildcats answered with a three-ball from Louin, Creighton held Villanova scoreless for the final 3:10 of the period to take a 40-35 edge into the final 10 minutes of play. The 6-0 spurt to close the quarter featured buckets from Lamberty, freshman Audrey Faber and finally a driving layup by McGrory.
As the Wildcats did in the third, Villanova scored the opening four points to make it a one-point affair 40-39 (9:22). Creighton answered with a driving layup from Works and a banked in trifecta from McGrory. Villanova continued to pressure Creighton, but each Wildcat surge was answered by the Bluejays. The final Villanova gasp brought the game within a bucket as Kavunaa Edwards knocked down the Wildcats third trey of the contest with 5:21 left to make it 47-45. This time Lamberty calmly delivered a 12-footer, followed by a dagger from long range by McGrory that bounced four times on the rim and once off the backboard before falling through to make it 52-45 (2:33).
McGrory led all scorers with 20 points, while Lamberty posted her second double-double of the season with 10 points and 13 rebounds.
Creighton's battle with Seton Hall will begin on Monday, March 7 at 3:00 pm. The Pirates advanced to the BIG EAST Semifinals with a 93-86 win over No. 6 Marquette on Sunday afternoon.
NOTES:
With the win the Bluejays evened their record at 16-16 on the season and will advance to face No. 3 Seton Hall in the BIG EAST Semifinals. Villanova closes the regular season at 19-11, with three of those losses coming to the Bluejays.
Creighton jumped out to an early lead as McGrory and sophomore Jade Owens hit the first two buckets of the game. Up 9-6 with 5:39 remaining in the opening period the Bluejays pounded the ball in the paint to junior Brianna Rollerson. The Omaha native responded with four quick points to push Creighton out to a 13-6 edge (2:42). Villanova cut back into the lead before the end of the quarter, but sophomore Sydney Lamberty drained a long two-point shot at the buzzer to give the Bluejays a 17-11 lead.
The Wildcats steadily clawed back through the opening five minutes of quarter number two, getting within a bucket at 21-19 with 4:24 left in the first half. Junior Lauren Works brought her squad back with a driving layup to ignite a 6-0 Creighton. Lamberty and Works each contributed a bucket down the stretch, but Villanova counterpunched with a buzzer beater of its own from Alex Louin to make it a 27-21 contest at the half.
Villanova knocked down the opening two buckets in the second period and used a 11-4 run over the first six minutes to claim its first lead of the game, 32-31 (3:58). Losing the lead set off a spark for McGrory. The Minnesota native responded with a traditional three-point play to reclaim the lead, 34-32. After the Wildcats answered with a three-ball from Louin, Creighton held Villanova scoreless for the final 3:10 of the period to take a 40-35 edge into the final 10 minutes of play. The 6-0 spurt to close the quarter featured buckets from Lamberty, freshman Audrey Faber and finally a driving layup by McGrory.
As the Wildcats did in the third, Villanova scored the opening four points to make it a one-point affair 40-39 (9:22). Creighton answered with a driving layup from Works and a banked in trifecta from McGrory. Villanova continued to pressure Creighton, but each Wildcat surge was answered by the Bluejays. The final Villanova gasp brought the game within a bucket as Kavunaa Edwards knocked down the Wildcats third trey of the contest with 5:21 left to make it 47-45. This time Lamberty calmly delivered a 12-footer, followed by a dagger from long range by McGrory that bounced four times on the rim and once off the backboard before falling through to make it 52-45 (2:33).
McGrory led all scorers with 20 points, while Lamberty posted her second double-double of the season with 10 points and 13 rebounds.
Creighton's battle with Seton Hall will begin on Monday, March 7 at 3:00 pm. The Pirates advanced to the BIG EAST Semifinals with a 93-86 win over No. 6 Marquette on Sunday afternoon.
NOTES:
- The last time Creighton entered a conference tournament as the No. 7 seed, the Bluejays advanced to the Finals in 1999.
- The last time a No. 7 seed upset a No. 2 seed in the BIG EAST Tournament was in 2004, that season Rutgers defeated Notre Dame.
- At 16-16, Creighton needs to win Monday's contest to guarentee the Bluejays are eligible for postseason play.
- Seton Hall has take both meetings with Creighton this season, including a 77-71 contest in New Jersey on Feb. 26.
Team Stats
CU
VU
FG%
.385
.316
3FG%
.375
.120
FT%
.778
.900
RB
46
29
TO
10
5
STL
1
3
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
20
FGM
7
3FGM
2
FTM
4
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballG
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