Nik Graves Hits the Game-Winner as Creighton Stuns Seton Hall
A dramatic victory by the Creighton Bluejays as they defeated the Seton Hall Pirates, 69-68, on Saturday night at the CHI Health Center Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska.
Guard Nik Graves hit the game-winning three-point shot to give the Bluejays the lead and victory. Graves finished the night with just seven points. Entering this game, Creighton is 0-7 when they score 69 points or less. The Bluejays earn their first win of the season, scoring at least 69 points.
Saturday’s game marked the 34th meeting between the two teams. With the Blue Jays' victory, the two teams are even with 17. In addition, this is the 33rd time that the Bluejays have come back from a double-digit deficit under coach Doug McDermott. That’s an outstanding feat. Creighton never quits, no matter what their record indicates.
Most of the game, it was the Issac Traudt and Josh Dix show for the Bluejays. Traudt and Dix were making most of the shots for the team. Traudt led the team with 18 points. Traudt had an unbelievable first half. Dix scored 16 points. Fedor Zugic added 13 points for Creighton.
Creighton trailed by nine points with less than two minutes to go. The team's resilience is tenacious. It’s been an inconsistent season for the Bluejays. Wins like this one boost confidence, but they need to be more consistent and get on a winning streak. March Madness is right around the corner.
This win was memorable for the Bluejays. It was special and heartfelt for Dix. He played with a heavy heart in this game after losing his mother, Kelly, after a long battle with cancer. Dix played a great game, and he felt inspired to perform ten times better to honor his mother. The Bluejays rallied around him, and it’s one of the best games of the season for this program.
Pirates guard Adam Clark had the game high with 20 points. A.J. Staton-McCray added 11 points. Elijah finished with 10 points.
Creighton committed 16 turnovers, outrebounded the Pirates 29 to 27, shot 43 percent from the field and from the three-point line, and 10-of-12 free throws. Creighton stepped up especially when they were missing their leading scorer, Austin Swartz.
Creighton improves to 13-11, 7-6 in Big East Conference play. Seton Hall falls to 16-8, 6-7. Creighton will play DePaul on the road on Wednesday at 8 pm. The Bluejays are seeking their 14th win of the season and continue to rack up wins in the Big East.
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Miguel Mike Medina is a Writer and Freelance Sports Journalist who contributes to Creighton On SI. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in Creative Writing and a Minor in Journalism in 2014 from City College of New York.