West Virginia will face Creighton in the College Basketball Crown semifinal after securing their first-ever April win. The Mountaineers advanced after an 82-77 overtime victory against Stanford. Creighton reached the semi-final by defeating Rutgers, 82-69.
McDermott’s Swan Song Continues
Creighton head coach Greg McDermott’s final season continues as the Bluejays advance in The Crown. Creighton defeated Rutgers, 82-69, in the opening round on Thursday. McDermott previously announced his retirement at the end of this season.
Nik Graves led Creighton to victory over Rutgers with a season-high 28 points and eight assists. Jasen Green contributed 16 points, while Josh Dix added 14. Creighton limited Rutgers to 36.9% shooting from the field and 14.3% from beyond the arc.
Creighton is one of the top three-point shooting teams in the Big East, averaging 9.8 three-pointers per game on 34.5% shooting. Against Rutgers, the Bluejays made 8 of 28 attempts from deep, with Dix leading the way with four.
Mountaineers’ Comeback Victory
West Virginia secured an unlikely comeback victory against Stanford in the first round. Honor Huff was fouled with 3.5 seconds remaining and made three free throws to tie the game at 68, forcing overtime. Despite shooting 5-of-14 from the field and 0-of-6 from deep, Huff scored 21 points, leading the Mountaineers. Treysen Eaglestaff added 18 points, and Brenen Lorient scored 14 with seven rebounds.
Ebuka Okorie of Stanford scored 34 points, the most by any player against West Virginia this season. However, Stanford struggled late, converting just two of their final 10 field goal attempts from the end of regulation into overtime.
What’s Next for the Winner
The winner of the West Virginia-Creighton match will receive $100,000 from the event’s prize pool. They will also advance to Sunday’s championship game. The opponent in the championship will be the winner of the Oklahoma versus Baylor match.
Josh Dix led Creighton in scoring this season, averaging 13 points per game. Graves (10.5) and Green (10.2) also averaged double-digit points, as did Austin Swartz (10.9). Dix and Swartz each made 64 three-pointers, tying for the team lead.