Liam McNeeley scored a career-high 38 points to go along with 10 rebounds, fueling UConn to a 70-66 victory over No. 24 Creighton on Tuesday in Omaha, Neb.
McNeeley, a freshman, made 12 of 22 shots from the floor and 5 of 10 from 3-point range while playing in his second game since missing the previous eight due to an ankle injury.
Solo Ball scored 11 points and Alex Karaban added 10 for the Huskies (17-7, 9-4 Big East), who overcame an early 14-point deficit and pronounced foul trouble by outscoring the Bluejays by a 41-29 margin in the second half.
The victory allowed UConn to avenge its 68-63 setback against Creighton in Storrs, Conn., on Jan. 18. It also marked the Huskies’ first-ever win in Omaha.
Creighton’s Ryan Kalkbrenner collected 13 points, nine rebounds and three blocks, and Steven Ashworth added 13 points and seven assists.
Jamiya Neal recorded 12 points and seven boards for the Bluejays (18-7, 11-3), who saw their nine-game winning streak come to a halt.
McNeeley converted a three-point play to stake UConn to a 65-59 lead with 3:53 remaining in the second half before Creighton responded with six straight points. Karaban, however, broke the tie with a running jumper on the next possession.
Ashworth misfired on a 3-point attempt and Ball split a pair of free throws to extend the Huskies’ lead to 68-65 with 19 seconds to go.
Jasen Green made one free throw with four seconds left before intentionally missing his second attempt. McNeeley, however, snared the rebound before being fouled and sank a pair of free throws to seal the win.
UConn scored 13 straight points to bridge the halves to cut Creighton’s lead to 37-36. The Huskies claimed their first lead at 48-46 after McNeeley sank a 3-pointer, and he added two more to extend his team’s advantage to 58-50 with 7:26 to play.
McNeeley sank a pair of free throws to pull UConn within two at 23-21 before Creighton responded by scoring 14 of the next 16 points. Neal capped that surge with an emphatic dunk and a 3-pointer to give the Bluejays a 37-23 lead with 3:04 remaining in the first half.
–Field Level Media
