Butler picked up a key road win on Friday night, defeating13th ranked Creighton 99-98.
The Bulldogs got the defensive stop at the end of what was an offensive slugfest the whole game. Sophomore Landon Moore knocked away a pass with no time on the clock to give Butler their first win at Creighton since 2015.
The whole night was a battle of knock down shooting. Both teams shot 55 percent from the field. Butler made 13 three pointers on the evening and 59 percent overall from beyond the arc which is a significant stat given the fact that Creighton is ranked as the Big East's top defensive team. This game was the first Big East game since 2011 in which both teams scored atleast 95 points in regulation.
Butler was led in scoring by senior Jahmyl Telfort's 26 points which matched his season high. D.J. Davis scored 22 points including three from downtown. Junior Pierre Brooks added 14 points and continues his streak of reaching double figures in every game this season. Rounding out the scoring for Butler in double figures was Finley Bizjack who was a key contributor off the bench. He and Landon Moore were given more minutes this game with the foot injury to starting point guard Posh Alexander.
Creighton got their double figure scoring in bunches from four key players who each had 20 or more points. Steven Ashworth and Baylor Scheierman each scored 26 points for the host Blue Jays. Trey Alexander finished with 22 points. Ryan Kaulkbrenner, Creighton's first team all Big East selection from a year ago finished with a near double double as he recorded 20 points and nine rebounds. The only other player to score for Creighton on the evening was Francisco Farabello who had four points.
In a back and forth contest the whole evening, Creighton took a ten point lead 47-37 with two minutes left in the first half. Butler responded with a quick 8-2 run to end the half with key three pointers by Pierre Brooks and then Finley Bizjack's nothing but net 35 footer at the buzzer to cut the Blue Jay's lead to 49-45. Creighton shot 61 percent from the floor in the first half and was led by Baylor Scheierman's 17 points while Butler was led in the first half in scoring by Jahmyl Telfort's 14 points.
Butler began the second half on a 15-7 run and took a 60-56 lead lead less than four minutes into the second half.
Creighton's last lead of the game came with 12 minutes to go when they held a 68-67 lead. Three ties followed but the Bulldogs never trailed the rest of the ballgame.
Butler's largest lead of the game came when D.J. Davis knocked down a three pointer to give the Bulldogs a 87-82 advantage with six minutes left in regulation.
Butler held a 97-94 lead with 49 seconds remaining Butler would then proceed to foul the Blue Jays in order to protect their lead.
Things then became a little hectic to say the least.
Ryan Kalkbrenner made two free throws to cut into the Butler lead to make it 97-96 with 11 seconds left. Creighton then had several chances to go ahead.
Butler was inbounding the basketball when the pass was deflected off D.J. Davis leg and went out of bounds, giving the ball back to Creighton. The Blue jays then proceeded to turn the ball over themselves when Trey Alexander lost the ball on the inbound pass. D.J. Davis was fouled by Francisco Farabello who inadvertently poked Davis in the eye. Davis was unable to shoot the free throws. Freshman Boden Kapke was able to step in and step up for the Bulldogs by knocking down both free throws. Score was now 99-96 Bulldogs with six seconds remaining.
Creighton would make two free throws after Trey Alexander was fouled immediately with five seconds remaining to make it 99-98 in favor of Butler.
The Bulldogs were inbounding the ball when it came loose and Creighton would gain possession on the tie up with 0.5 seconds remaining.
The Blue Jays last chance fell short as Landon Moore knocked away the Blue Jays attempt to win the game. Butler held on for another road win against a top 15 opponent.
Butler was able to win this game from key contributions from its young dogs. Freshmen Finley Bizjack and Boden Kapke stepped up big when it mattered most. Both made huge plays down the stretch, Kapke with the two free throws late and Bizjack was perfect on three pointers for the game, going three for three beyond the arc. Sophomore Landon Moore was in the starting lineup for the first time this season as he replaced Senior Posh Alexander who was dealing with a foot injury. Moore finished with eight points, two rebounds and two assists.
For Butler, this was a huge win for a team who hopes to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018. This helps their resume with another win over a top 15 opponent on the road. Butler now sits at 15-7 on the season and 6-5 in the Big East. The Bulldogs have now won four straight and have more wins on the season than they had all of last year. Quite a turnaround for Thad Matta in his second stint as Bulldogs head coach.
Butler is averaging 81.5 points per game this season, their most since the 1990-91 season.
The Bulldogs win over the Blue Jays marked the first loss for Creighton in Omaha on a Friday night since 1975. Creighton had a 33 game winning streak at home on Friday nights. Creighton is now 16-6 on the season and 7-4 in the Big East.
Butler's next game is trip to number 1 ranked UConn next Tuesday night. The Blue Jays will travel to Providence for a game against the Friars on Wednesday night.
