The Creighton men’s basketball team didn’t want to end its season this way, and now they will have all summer to think about it.
Two-time defending national champion Florida defeated the Jays 82-54 last Friday in the second round of the National Invitational Tournament.
The 28-point loss was tied for the biggest margin of defeat for the Bluejays in head coach Dana AltmanÃs 14-year tenure. Creighton also lost by 28 to Bradley earlier this year.
“We just panicked a little bit,” Altman said. “We werenÃt hitting some shots, so we started rushing things and having guys take things individually.”
Florida freshman Nick Colathes became only the second player in school history to record a triple double with 11 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists.
Sophomore guard Cavel Witter led the team with 13 points, while senior forward Dane Watts scored 10 points in the final game of his career.
“It hurts pretty bad to have this opportunity against the two-time defending national champions and not have a good showing,” Watts said.
Creighton’s leading scorer and Missouri Valley Conference Freshman and Newcomer of the Year P’Allen Stinett scored only nine points for the Jays while turning the ball over six times. Creighton had 21 total turnovers and shot 34 percent in the first half..
“Their length bothered us a little bit, and they did a good job of getting on our shooters,” junior point guard Josh Dotzler said.
The Jays were in the second round by virtue of a 74-73 come-from-behind victory over Rhode Island in the first round at the Qwest Center on March 18. Witter’s three-pointer with 3.2 seconds remaining gave the Bluejays the lead for the first time since they were up 3-2 at the beginning of the game.
Creighton was down 17 early in the second half, trailed by 12 with 3:14 left and still had to overcome a six-point deficit with 1:10 to go. Witter’s three was his only basket of the game. Stinnett and junior guard Booker Woodfox led the team with 22 points each.
“All night, nothing went my way,” Witter said. “Shots that I normally hit weren’t falling, but I just wanted to keep my head up and fight through it.”
With the loss to Florida, Creighton finishes the year 22-11. After a 9-1 start to the season, the Jays’ youth led to inconsistencies during the conference season.
“The season has been one of ups and downs,” Altman said. “Play good one night and not so well the next. The loss to Florida was a tough way to end the season.”
The Bluejays won 20 games for the 10th consecutive year and had 10 conference victories for the 12th straight year, both Missouri Valley Conference records. The Jays also advanced to their 11th consecutive post-season, also a conference record and something only 10 schools have done nationally.
Next year Creighton will return four of its top five scorers, and seven of its top nine. With a year of experience under their belts, the Jays will look to be more consistent, if nothing else.
“We need to work awfully hard to become more consistent,” Altman said. “Just because we will be a year older will not make us a year better. We will still be a young team and we will need someone to establish himself as a leader.”