National Basketball Association
Rhode Island 84, Creighton 72
When: 4:30 PM ET, Friday, March 17, 2017
Where: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, California
Officials:
# Bob Staffen, # Mark Schur, # Keith Kimbell
Attendance:
15833
By The Sports Xchange
SACRAMENTO -- Hassan Martin powered his way inside for a basket, turned toward the crowd and flexed for the Rhode Island band.
It was still early in the second half, but it was already clear that the Rams would not go down without a fight in their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1999.
Jeff Dowtin scored 23 points to help 11th-seeded Rhode Island upset sixth-seeded Creighton 84-72 in a Midwest Regional first-round game Friday at the Golden 1 Center.
Kuran Iverson added 17 points for the Rams (25-9), who will play third-seeded Oregon in a second-round game Sunday for the right to go to the Sweet 16. E.C. Matthews posted 16 points and seven rebounds. Martin had 12 points and eight rebounds.
"These guys were awesome," Rhode Island coach Dan Hurley said. "We really showed our depth and really just wore on them with our defensive intensity and playmaking."
Marcus Foster and Ronnie Harrell Jr. scored 15 points apiece for Creighton (25-10), which lost nine of 16 after point guard Maurice Watson Jr. suffered a season-ending knee injury. Khyri Thomas had 10 points and seven rebounds.
Justin Patton, Creighton's leading scorer and rebounder, was held to eight points on 3-of-12 shooting before fouling out in just 21 minutes. Martin's physical presence was a big factor in Patton's struggles.
"He's a great player," Martin said. "My mindset was to by physical with him. He's not that strong of a guy, but he's tall. SO I had to push him off the block and box him out real hard, and that's what I did and I got him in foul trouble."
Rhode Island outscored Creighton 11-4 over the first seven minutes as both teams struggled to get into a rhythm offensively. The Rams went up 15-8 on a jumper by Iverson before the Bluejays came back to tie the game on a 3-pointer by Cole Huff.
The Rams quickly reclaimed the lead on a jumper by Martin. They went up 28-21 on a 3-pointer by Iverson, extended the lead to nine on a basket by Jared Terrell and carried a 33-26 advantage into the locker room at the break.
Rhode Island stretched its lead to 11 on a layup by Terrell early in the second half. The Rams matched that lead on a few more occasions over the next several minutes, but the Bluejays demonstrated some resiliency, answering with a basket each time.
Creighton cut the deficit to six on a three-point play by Harrell with just under 13 minutes remaining. Hundreds of Creighton fans climbed to their feet, urging the Bluejays to make a stop at the defensive end, but the Rams quickly pushed their lead back to double digits.
"It's tough just like any other loss," Huff said. "You're always going to look back at the few plays that you wish you could have had back, things you could have done differently. Unfortunately, this time there is nothing to look forward to."
NOTES: Rhode Island assistant coach Antonio Reynolds Dean and Creighton assistant Preston Murphy were teammates at Rhode Island when the Rams last reached the NCAA Tournament in 1999. ... Former Rhode Island star Lamar Odom attended the game and received a nice ovation when he appeared on the video board inside the arena ... Before transferring to Rhode Island, senior F Kuran Iverson and junior G Stanford Robinson appeared in previous NCAA Tournaments with Memphis and Indiana, respectively. ... Junior G Marcus Foster transferred to Creighton from Kansas State, which is also participating in the Sacramento Regional.
Top Game Performances
| Rhode Island |
|
Creighton |
|
Jeff Dowtin 23 |
Scoring |
Marcus Foster 15 |
|
Kuran Iverson 3 |
Assists |
Ronnie Harrell Jr. 4 |
|
Hassan Martin 8 |
Rebounds |
Justin Patton 7 |
|
Jeff Dowtin 10 |
Free Throws Made |
Ronnie Harrell Jr. 7 |
|
Hassan Martin 2 |
Steals |
Khyri Thomas 1 |
|
Kuran Iverson 2 |
Blocks |
Toby Hegner 1 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Rhode Island
|
84 |
44.8 |
4-21 |
28-31 |
11 |
38 |
3 |
8 |
8 |
| Creighton
|
72 |
40.0 |
7-23 |
13-19 |
11 |
35 |
3 |
2 |
11 |
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