Creighton women knocked out by KU again

Creighton trailed by 13 points with 2:53 left in the game, but used a furious comeback to have a game-winning shot attempt in the closing seconds, before falling to Kansas 71-68 in the second round of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament Sunday afternoon at Allen Fieldhouse. Sam Schuett led the Bluejays with 18 points, while Megan Neuvirth added 17 points and five rebounds to end her career as the all-time leader in school history with 929 career boards.
The loss ends Creighton’s season with a 21-11 record, while the Jayhawks moved to 17-15 on the year, including 10-0 at home in non-conference play.
Down 66-53 with 2:53 to play after a Kelly Kohn basket, the Bluejays responded with a 15-4 run and a chance to win the game. The Jays started the run with a pair of Kelsey Woodard free-throws, then got a steal from Woodard which led to a Schuett three-pointer and the KU lead was cut to 66-58 with over two minutes still to play. Another Bluejay steal led to a Neuvirth layup and CU was down six with 1:43 left.
KU was up 70-62 with just over a minute left when freshman Jasmin Corbin knocked down a three-pointer in her third straight game to make it a five-point game. After the Jayhawks missed a layup on their next possesion, the Jays came down the court and set up Woodard for her first three-pointer of the game to make the score 70-68 with 19.5 seconds left in the game.
The Bluejay defense forced another KU turnover, its 15th of the game, to set up chance to tie or win the game in the final seconds. Schuett had the ball after the turnover with just over 10 seconds to play, got it to Chevelle Herring, who found a wide-open Corbin in the same spot she had just hit her three-pointer. The rookie pulled the trigger from the corner with two seconds left on the clock, only to have her shot come up just short. KU would rebound and get fouled with less than a second to play, hitting 1-of-2 free-throws to make the final 71-68.
The closing comeback was CU’s second of the half, as the Jays had previously used a 12-4 burst to draw within two, after trailing by 12 midway through the half. KU led 33-27 at halftime and never trailed in the game.
The Bluejays stayed in the game with their three-point shot, making 9-of-19 (.474) in the loss. CU shot 23-of-60 (.383) from the field and just 13-of-21 (.619) at the free-throw line. KU out-rebounded the Jays 36-32 and out-scored CU 34-26 in the paint.
Schuett hit 5-of-7 three-pointers and led the Jays with 18 points. Neuvirth scored 13 of her 17 points after halftime, going 4-for-6 from the field in the second half after making just 1-of-7 in the opening stanza. Neuvirth’s five boards moved her career-ending total to 929, five better than Pam Gradoville’s former mark of 924.
Herring ended her career with her sixth straight game in double figures, scoring 13 points and dishing a team-high five assists. Kellie Nelson topped the Jays with six rebounds.
Freshman Carolyn Davis led KU to the win, with 25 points and 12 rebounds in 28 minutes off the bench. The center hit 9-of-10 shots from the field to help KU shoot 55.3 percent (26-47) from the field. Sade Morris chipped in 14 points and six assists, while Monica Engleman led all players with seven assists.
The loss ends Creighton’s season in Lawrence for the second straight year. Story courtesy of CU athletics.