Creighton Men Sneak Past St Johns 57-56
OMAHA, Neb. -- The tandem of Steven Ashworth and Ryan Kalkbrenner delivered 15 of the Bluejays last 19 points as Creighton grinded out a 57-56 win over St. John's on December 31. It was the second straight season that Creighton earned a one-point win in Omaha over the Red Storm with a defensive stand in the final seconds, having won 66-65 in similar fashion.
The win moved the Bluejays to 9-5 on the season and 2-1 in BIG EAST play, while St. John's fell to 11-3 overall and 2-1 in conference action.
A defensive battle saw the Red Storm race to a 9-2 edge in the opening four minutes and push their advantage to as much as 11 at 18-7 with 10:33 remaining. Down 22-13 with 7:54 left in the Bluejays' offense began a slow burn that resulted in a 13-3 run to seize the lead at 26-25 with 1:55 left.
Ashworth got things rolling with a trey, then Jackson McAndrew contributed the Bluejays' next five to bring Creighton within one possession at 24-21 (5:16). A bucket from Jasen Green and a trifecta by Ashworth gave Creighton the 26-25 edge, but a traditional three-point play from the Red Storm sent Creighton into the locker room down 28-26 at the half.
The St. John's defense kept Creighton at bay in the opening minutes of the second half as Creighton trailed 34-30 with 15:20 showing on the clock. Things changed for the Bluejays when Jamiya Neal connected from long range to ignite a 12-2 run. Isaac Traudt followed with another triple to give Creighton the lead at 36-34 (13:48). After a Red Storm floater knotted the game at 36-36, Neal reclaimed the lead with a driving layup and Kalkbrenner put an exclamation point on the surge with back-to-back dunks to give the Bluejays a 42-36 edge at the 11:08 mark.
Creighton extended its lead to as much as eight points on a triple from Traudt with 6:27 remaining and again via Kalkbrenner's third dunk of the second half with 4:31 left.
St. John's pulled within one point in the closing moments with a 6-0 run to make it 55-54 (1:31). Ashworth knocked down a pair from the charity stripe as the game entered the final minute, but the Red Storm moved back within one point as Deivon Smith dropped in a driving layup with 36 seconds on the clock.
Creighton's 19th turnover of the game opened the door for the Red Storm in the closing seconds, but the Bluejays' defense denied St. John's on a pair of shots from RJ Luis to secure the win.
Ashworth led the charge for the Bluejays, notching 18 points on four triples and five rebounds, while the Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year, Kalkbrenner finished with 16 points, nine rebounds and five blocked shots. Creighton won the rebound battle 41-34 and outscored SJU by 21 points behind the arc.
St. John's got 16 points from Zuby Ejiofor and 10 from Deivon Smith in the loss. The Red Storm made just 2-of-9 three-pointers, both by big man Ejiofor, who entered the game 3-for-15 from long-range. SJU had 11 steals, led by four from Smith.
The Bluejays are back in action on Friday, January 3 in a road game at No. 8 Marquette that airs at 8:00 p.m. on FS1. Listen live on KRGI 1430/105.5 & krgi.com.