PHILADELPHIA – It was just one of those days. No matter what the Jays did, the ball refused to go in the basket.

The No. 7 seed Creighton men’s basketball team shot 30.2 percent for the game, including 2-19 from 3-point range, and as a result the Jays lost to the No. 2 seed Duke University Blue Devils 66-50.

“The reality of it is we had some pretty good looks at threes, especially in the first half, that we didn’t knock down, and that kin of set the tone for us for the game,” Creighton head coach Greg McDermott said. “We just weren’t able to get any rhythm from the 3-point line, and that’s a big part of what we do.”

Early on, the Jays were able to execute their offense and get open looks, but couldn’t capitalize. Then the Duke defense tightened up and made life difficult for the Jays and All-American junior forward Doug McDermott.

“They were real physical with me, and it seems like they were switching every screen, down screen, pick, just they were switching everything, making it frustrating,” McDermott said.

McDermott finished with 21 points, but shot just 4-16 from the field.

Even with the poor shooting, the Jays were able to stay in the game because of their defense.

“I think Creighton has been the most efficient offensive team in the country,” Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “They’re not given credit for playing defense. But they were outstanding defensively tonight.”

Senior center Gregory Echenique, who eclipsed 1,000 career points as a Creighton Bluejay, battled Duke senior forward Mason Plumlee to a stalemate, as Plumlee finished with 10 points and five rebounds compared to nine points and six rebounds for Echenique.

“I thought Gregory did a great job,” Greg McDermott said. “I didn’t think Plumlee wanted much to do with him down there … Gregory, I think he can play in the NBA for that reason.”

The Creighton defense also held senior forward Ryan Kelly to 0-5 shooting and one point, and senior guard Seth Curry was just 1-7 from the field in the first half.

However, Curry heated up in the second half – scoring 13 points on 4-8 shooting after the break – and freshman guard Rasheed Sulaimon was feeling it all night. Sulaimon tied McDermott for high score honors with 21 points, and he did it by shooting 5-9 from the field and 8-10 from the free-throw line.

With shots, not falling, the Jays just didn’t have enough fire power to keep up. Duke had three players in double-figures in scoring with Sulaimon, Curry (17 total) and Plumlee, while McDermott was the only Bluejay to hit double-digits. Senior guard Grant Gibbs closed out his career with an eight-point, five-rebound, four-assist performance before fouling out.

Creighton ends its season with a record of 28-8. The Jays may have fallen short of their ultimate goal of reaching the Sweet 16, but they did accomplish other goals by winning the MVC regular season and tournament titles, and won a game in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year.