TULSA—Creighton's Booker Woodfox hit a game-winning
three-pointer with 26 seconds remaining to lift the Bluejays to a
65-64 win over Oral Roberts University, Saturday at Mabee Center.
The game was a part of ESPNU O'Reilly's BracketBuster Saturday.
A national television audience on ESPN2 watched the Golden Eagles
(20-7) lose their first home game of the season despite holding
Creighton (19-8) to 41.1 percent shooting and out-rebounding the
Bluejays, 43-37.
ORU's
Robert Jarvis (Humble, Texas) sank a pair of free
throws to put the Golden Eagles up 64-62 with 35.9 seconds to play.
But Woodfox drained a three-point from the right wing less than 10
seconds later putting Creighton back on top.
After a timeout, the Golden Eagles had two good chances to score,
but
Adam Liberty's (Oklahoma City, Okla.) 10-foot
baseline jumper was off the mark. Kelvin
Sango (Tulsa, Okla.) grabbed the offensive rebound and got the
ball to
Moses Ehambe (Arlington, Texas), whose
three-pointer with two seconds left was just short.
Jarvis wasn't in the game for ORU's final possession after
suffering an injured right ankle on the foul which led to his
earlier free throws.
ORU trailed nearly the entire game. Creighton owned the lead from
the start and jumped out to a 16-8 lead on a layup by Dane Watts
with 10:42 left.
The Golden Eagles slowly chipped away, using a 13-6 run to pull
within 22-21 on a free throw by Ehambe with 4:34 remaining.
ORU gained its first lead of the game with 1:17 before halftime
when a jumper by Liberty and a three-pointer by Jarvis made it
33-32. But Creighton's P'Allen Stinnett hit a driving layup in the
final seconds of the half to give the Jays a 34-33 lead at the
break.
The teams battled back-and-forth throughout the second half.
Creighton held the lead for much of the half, though ORU led
briefly when a layup by Jarvis capped a 7-0 run for a 48-47 lead
with 10:13 to go.
But Creighton quickly regained the lead and pushed its advantage to
as many as six points when a trey by Woodfox made it 55-49 with
7:11 left.
ORU tied the game at 58 all on consecutive baskets by Sango and
Ehambe with 4:39 to play, and Ehambe tied the game again at 60 all
with another jumper at 3:54.
Two free throws by Stinnett gave Creighton a 62-60 lead with 3:30
remaining, but
Marcus Lewis (Long Beach, Calif.) got a put-back
layup to forge a 62-62 tie with 2:55 to play.
The game remained tied at 62 until the final minute. Stinnett
missed the front-end of a one-and-one free throw and Jarvis was
fouled in the scramble for the rebound, setting the stage for his
free throws.
Dane Watts led all scorers and paced Creighton offensively with 18
points. He also grabbed eight rebounds. Woodfox added 15 points,
going 3-for-6 from 3-point range, and Stinnett chipped in 14.
Jarvis led the Golden Eagles with 17 points, while Ehambe scored 10
while shooting just 4-of-16 from the field and 1-for-11 from
3-point range. Lewis recorded his second double-double of the
season with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
The Golden Eagles endured a difficult shooting night, shooting 37.9
percent from the field including a 4-of-23 showing from 3-point
range.
Both teams shot well from the line, with Creighton shooting 80
percent (12-15) and ORU making 71.4 percent (10-14) from the
stripe. Both teams took care of the ball, combining for just 17
turnovers.
The Golden Eagles return to action when they visit Summit League
newcomer South Dakota State, 7 p.m., Thursday.
--ORU--
