Cats claim Big East Tournament title

In what became an old school Big East rock fight, the Wildcats outlasted Creighton at Madison Square Garden to earn a 54-48 win and claim the conference tournament crown for the fifth time in the last seven years and the sixth time overall.

The first half was about as ugly as a basketball game can get. Neither team could put the ball in the basket, with Creighton shooting 32% overall and an ice-cold 0-13 from 3. The ‘Cats weren’t much better, hitting 30% overall and 2-13 from deep. Each team also committed five turnovers.

Despite the stalled offense, Villanova was able to lead by as many as seven in the first half. However, the ‘Cats went scoreless over the final 4:55 of the half, missing six straight shots and eight of their last 10 attempts. Creighton took advantage and scored the final six points of the half to close the gap to one, 19-18, at the break.

Jermaine Samuels played just five first-half minutes as he continues to deal with back spasms, and his absence was clearly felt. Brandon Slater (five points, 2-2 FG, 1-2 3PT) and Eric Dixon (four points, 2-2 FG) where the only Wildcats to be able to score with any efficiency and were two of just three ‘Cats to score more than two points (Justin Moore had six).

The second half wasn’t a whole lot better. Creighton managed 33.3% shooting and finally got a 3 to drop, hitting 3-16 (18.8%). Villanova, meanwhile, shot 36.7% overall 31.6% from 3 in the second half. Fortunately, the slightly improved shooting combined with a small increase in attempts managed to boost the scoring to something closer to normal levels. More importantly, the game remained close and so there was plenty of drama despite the offensive struggles.

After ‘Nova led the entire first half, Creighton took its first lead with 16:47 to play. That would set the stage for five more lead changes down the stretch.

After some back-and-forth, the ‘Cats used a 6-0 run to establish their largest lead of the game at eight with 12:19 remaining. Following some more jostling, Creighton ripped off a 7-0 run to tie the game at 36. A Collin Gillespie 3 would stop the run, but the Bluejays immediately went on another 7-0 run to take their biggest lead of four with 5:28 left.

Five straight from ‘Nova put the ‘Cats back up one with 4:08 to play. A Ryan Kalkbrenner put-back put the Bluejays back in front before Gillespie did what players of the year do. Gillespie hit consecutive 3s to put the ‘Cats in front by five with 2:05 to go. Creighton would get back within two with just 37 seconds to play, but then it was Justin Moore’s turn to play hero. Moore backed down his defender and hit a layup with 15 seconds on the clock. The ‘Cats would get a stop on the ensuing Creighton possession and then Gillespie iced the game at the line, giving the Wildcats a 54-48 win and the conference tournament title.

“Two really good defensive teams,” Jay Wright said. “We just couldn’t score, and we just had to grind it out and tough it out defensively and then make some big plays at the end which Collin did. And Justin Moore had a great one to finish it off.”

Creighton was dominant down low in the second half, outscoring Villanova 16-6 in the paint and 10-1 in second-chance points. The ‘Cats were able to do just enough from beyond the arc to help offset some of that dominance, going +9 from deep in the second half. With Gillespie and Moore making the big plays down the stretch, it was enough for the ‘Cats to get the grind-out win.

After going scoreless in the first half, Gillespie scored 17 points in the second half, including those consecutive 3s that helped turn the game. He added seven rebounds and five assists, earning tournament Most Outstanding Player honors.

“I can’t ever say I expect it because I’m probably a pessimist in my mind so I’m always preparing for the next play if we don’t score so I’m still kinda surprised when he makes those plays, it’s incredible,” Wright said of Gillespie’s big shots down the stretch.

“I look at it as no fear of failure,” Wright added about Gillespie’s heroics. “He has no fear that if he misses those shots and we lose, it’s not going to affect how he thinks of himself. He’s just playing with absolutely no fear. Because he knows he put the work in, he knows he’s got a great family that loves him, he knows his teammates love him and that’s what he cares about. ‘Did I work hard? Did I prepare? Win or lose I’ll take the results.’”

Moore was the only other Wildcat in double figures, finishing with 16 points and six rebounds. He joined Gillespie on the All-Tournament Team.

“We put it in his (Gillespie) hands to make those plays and then he was exhausted so we put it in Justin’s hands to make the right play and then he finished the game off that way,” Wright said of his guards coming up big. “So to have these two be able to do that at the end of the game is huge. And that’s why you win championships. When you got two guards like this.”

Slater had five points, seven rebounds and two steals and was a team-high +11. Samuels continued his gutsy play while battling back issues, adding five points, eight rebounds and two assists. Caleb Daniels chipped in seven points and five boards.

Gillespie became the first player in conference history to win Player of the Year, Scholar Athlete of the Year and tournament Most Outstanding Player honors in the same season.

The ‘Cats will now turn their attention to the final, biggest prize of the season in the NCAA Tournament and the opportunity to win a national championship. They will learn their path to a potential title Sunday evening when the NCAA Tournament Selection Show airs at 6 p.m. on CBS.