Creighton’s Ryan Nembhard was the hero on Tuesday night, scoring a winning layup with 32 seconds left to give the host Bluejays a 54-52 win over Butler in Omaha, Neb.
The Bluejays (14-8, 6-5 Big East) hadn’t played at home since losing to then-No. 21 Xavier on Jan. 29, but they played much better against the Bulldogs — especially at the start of the second half.
Butler (11-13, 4-9) led by as many as nine points in the first half and took a 30-26 lead into halftime after Bo Hodges hit a 3-pointer just before the buzzer. However, Creighton and Ryan Hawkins quickly took over.
Hawkins scored 10 of his 15 points in a four-minute stretch in the middle of the second half, giving Creighton a 48-40 lead.
A nearly six-minute scoreless stretch by the Bluejays allowed Butler to get back in the game. The Bulldogs grabbed a 52-51 lead on Jayden Taylor’s layup with just over a minute left before Nembhard’s last-minute layup.
Arthur Kaluma led the Bluejays with 16 points and tallied seven rebounds and two blocks. Alex O’Connell led Creighton with a season-high 10 rebounds.
Despite the scoring drought, Creighton shot 43.5 percent in the second half, outscoring Butler 28-22. For the game, the Bluejays shot 38.8 percent from the field and 75 percent from the free throw line.
Butler shot just 34.5 percent from the field — 25 percent in the second half. Taylor led the Bulldogs with 13 points, and Hodges scored 10 and grabbed nine rebounds. Bryce Golden tallied nine points and a season-high nine rebounds.
–Field Level Media
