Creighton, Georgetown seek to improve on 0-2 Big East starts
FLM
Jan 02, 2024
Tied at the bottom of the Big East standings, Creighton Bluejays and Georgetown Hoyas enter their matchup Tuesday in Washington in a similar mindset.
Both are coming off losses at Marquette in which they were done in by the disruptive defense of the Golden Eagles.
On Dec. 22, Georgetown (7-6, 0-2) fell at then-No. 6 Marquette 81-51. The Hoyas committed 19 turnovers that Marquette turned into 28 points.
On Saturday, then-No. 22 Creighton (9-4, 0-2) lost at then-No. 10 Marquette 72-67. The Bluejays lost 18 turnovers that the Golden Eagles turned into 24 points.
With 10 days off, Georgetown has had more time to recover from its defeat, which was the Hoyas' most decisive this season. Georgetown had an early lead before Marquette went on a 20-2 run.
"We didn't have pop. We didn't have resilience and that's not something that I'm comfortable with," Georgetown coach Ed Cooley said.
The loss culminated a grueling road trip to the Midwest, with three games over seven days. After a 72-68 overtime win at Notre Dame, Georgetown trailed by double digits most of the way in a 74-64 Big East loss at Butler.
Failing to mount a challenge three days later at Marquette didn't sit well with the Georgetown coach.
"I'm very disappointed with how my team performed," Cooley said. "Whether we've been on the road for five, six, 20 days, I didn't feel the fight of my group and that's on me."
Jayden Epps (17.8 points per game) and Dontrez Styles (15.2 ppg) give the Hoyas firepower in the backcourt, while Supreme Cook (10.4 ppg, 8.7 rpg) is the top threat inside.
After winning eight of its first nine games and rising to a No. 8 rank, Creighton has lost three of its last four and dropped out of the Top 25.
On Saturday, Baylor Scheierman (23 points) hit his first three attempts from beyond the arc as Creighton took an 11-point lead, but Marquette was the better team in the second half.
"When you've gotta play defense for 25 seconds and they tip it out and you've gotta play it again, it's definitely deflating and demoralizing, for sure," Scheierman said.
While Creighton's veteran trio of Scheierman (18.6 ppg, 7.5 rpg), Trey Alexander (15.8 ppg, 6.8 rpg) and Ryan Kalkbrenner (15.3 ppg, 6.6 rpg) have put up big numbers, coach Greg McDermott wants to see more reliable ball-handling.
"We came into the game thinking that our ability to take care of the ball was critical for our chances to win, and we didn't do that," he said.
--Field Level Media
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1st Half
CREI
Bluejays
28
GTWN
Hoyas
24
Time
Team
Play
Score
20:00
(Hoyas gains possession)
19:43
Ismael Massoud misses two point jump shot
19:41
Baylor Scheierman defensive rebound
19:21
Trey Alexander misses two point layup
19:19
Trey Alexander offensive rebound
19:14
Mason Miller misses three point jump shot
19:12
Supreme Cook defensive rebound
18:57
+2
Rowan Brumbaugh makes two point jump shot
0-2
18:38
+2
Trey Alexander makes two point layup
2-2
18:09
Jay Heath misses two point jump shot
18:07
Ryan Kalkbrenner defensive rebound
17:38
Mason Miller misses three point jump shot
17:36
Ismael Massoud defensive rebound
17:20
+2
Dontrez Styles makes two point jump shot
2-4
16:59
+3
Trey Alexander makes three point jump shot (Steven Ashworth assists)
5-4
16:38
Rowan Brumbaugh misses two point jump shot
16:36
Rowan Brumbaugh offensive rebound
16:34
Ryan Kalkbrenner blocks Rowan Brumbaugh's two point jump shot
16:32
Mason Miller defensive rebound
16:28
Steven Ashworth misses three point jump shot
16:26
Rowan Brumbaugh defensive rebound
16:15
+2
Dontrez Styles makes two point layup (Rowan Brumbaugh assists)
5-6
16:03
Supreme Cook personal foul
15:59
Steven Ashworth misses three point jump shot
15:57
Rowan Brumbaugh defensive rebound
15:38
+3
Jay Heath makes three point jump shot
5-9
15:23
Ryan Kalkbrenner turnover (lost ball) (Jay Heath steals)
15:14
Jay Heath misses two point jump shot
15:12
Jay Heath offensive rebound
15:12
+2
Jay Heath makes two point layup
5-11
14:47
+3
Baylor Scheierman makes three point jump shot (Steven Ashworth assists)
8-11
14:20
Ryan Kalkbrenner blocks Jay Heath's two point layup
14:18
Mason Miller defensive rebound
14:08
Steven Ashworth turnover (bad pass) (Ismael Massoud steals)
13:42
Dontrez Styles misses two point jump shot
13:40
Trey Alexander defensive rebound
13:33
+2
Ryan Kalkbrenner makes two point layup (Trey Alexander assists)
10-11
13:11
+2
Jay Heath makes two point jump shot
10-13
12:50
Ryan Kalkbrenner misses two point layup
12:48
Jay Heath defensive rebound
12:40
+2
Jay Heath makes two point jump shot
10-15
12:07
+3
Steven Ashworth makes three point jump shot (Trey Alexander assists)
13-15
11:41
Jay Heath misses two point jump shot
11:39
Baylor Scheierman defensive rebound
11:30
Mason Miller turnover (traveling)
11:30
TV timeout
11:17
Ismael Massoud misses three point jump shot
11:15
Trey Alexander defensive rebound
11:00
Isaac Traudt misses two point jump shot
10:58
Ismael Massoud defensive rebound
10:34
Drew Fielder misses three point jump shot
10:32
Baylor Scheierman defensive rebound
10:25
+2
Trey Alexander makes two point layup
15-15
9:57
Drew Fielder misses two point jump shot
9:55
Trey Alexander defensive rebound
9:49
Trey Alexander turnover (bad pass) (Drew Fielder steals)