National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Creighton 83, Illinois St. 79
When: 2:05 PM ET, Sunday, March 4, 2012
Where: Qwest Center Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska
Officials: # Kelly Self, # Mike Stuart, # Scott Thornley
Attendance: 12380

No. 24 Creighton 83, Illinois State 79:
Doug McDermott scored 33 points to lead Creighton to its first Missouri Valley Conference tournament championship since 2007.

McDermott’s point total was the most in a Missouri Valley tournament game since 2007. McDermott, the conference player of the year, made 12 of 18 shots and was a constant presence in the paint where the Bluejays outscored the Redbirds 44-20. It was his sixth 30-plus point effort this season.

Grant Gibbs’ 3-pointer with 4:43 left in overtime put Creighton up for good, 69-66. A dunk by Josh Jones put the Bluejays up 79-70 with 1:14 left. Gibbs finished with 20 points, while Antoine Young added 14.

The Redbirds didn't go quietly in overtime as Jon Ekey hit three 3-pointers in a 27-second span to close the gap to 82-79 with 11 seconds remaining.

After trailing by as many as 11 in the first half, Illinois State closed the half on a 15-3 run. Tyler Brown’s 3-pointer with four seconds left gave the Redbirds a 31-30 lead a the break. Nic Moore led Illinois State with 20 points.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Illinois State made five of 10 3-pointers in the first half, while Creighton made three of 12… McDermott and Gibbs combined to score 27 of the Bluejays final 35 points… Illinois State has lost its last seven appearances in the tournament championship game.
Top Game Performances
 
Illinois St.   Creighton
Nic Moore 20 Scoring Doug McDermott 33
Nic Moore 5 Assists Grant Gibbs 5
Jackie Carmichael 9 Rebounds Gregory Echenique 7
Nic Moore 6 Free Throws Made Antoine Young 8
Tyler Brown 2 Steals Grant Gibbs 1
Jon Ekey 3 Blocks Ethan Wragge 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Illinois St. 79 40.9 12-29 13-15 13 29 6 3 6
Creighton 83 48.4 7-19 16-22 16 36 1 2 8