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Slipper's on the other foot This time around, Creighton upset by Central MichiganPosted: Thursday March 20, 2003 10:18 PMUpdated: Thursday March 20, 2003 10:52 PM
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- The Mid-American Conference magic is back for another run in the NCAA tournament. Central Michigan, the only school representing the MAC in this year's field of 65, added to the league's history of upsets Thursday night by beating Creighton 79-73 in the first round of the West Regional. "Being favored doesn't mean a thing to us," said Mike Manciel, who scored a season-high 29 points to lead the 11th-seeded Chippewas. "I always feel like the underdog. We've been working hard and that's what we're going to stick with." Central Michigan (25-6) hung on to advance after nearly blowing a 26-point lead. The Chippewas allowed the lead to dwindle to two before sealing the victory by shooting 5-of-6 from the free-throw line down the stretch. It was the Chippewas' second first-round win in four NCAA trips. They hadn't been in the NCAA field since 1987. "We're extremely excited for our university, our athletic department, our fans back there in Mount Pleasant," Central Michigan coach Jay Smith said. "I know they're having a good time on us." It marks the fourth time in five years that a MAC team has reached the second round of the tournament. And the mid-major conference has a history of sticking around recently. Last year, No. 10 seed Kent State made it within one win of the Final Four, losing in the quarterfinals to Indiana. Miami of Ohio made it to the round of 16 in 1999, also as a 10th seed. The Chippewas are ready to see just how far an 11th seed can go this time. "I could never imagine being in this stadium, beating a good team like Creighton," Manciel said. "We continue to believe in one another. It's still not over." Sixth-seeded Creighton (29-5) was knocked out in the first round after drawing its highest seed in 14 NCAA appearances. The Bluejays could not completely recover from a dismal first half, when they shot 25 percent and committed 13 turnovers. "We weren't ready to play and that's my job. We came out flat in the first half," coach Dana Altman said. "This is an outstanding group. They showed their character in the second half. They showed why they've played in the last five NCAA tournaments." The Missouri Valley Conference champions have gone home after the first round in three of the last four trips. Kyle Korver led Creighton with 21 points in his final college game, scoring 14 in the second half as the Bluejays cut a 26-point lead to two but could get no closer. "We went 29-5 so that's pretty good. One [bad] half," said Korver, who was 7-for-14 from the field and had nine rebounds. "But that's the way it is sometimes." Tony Bowne scored 14 and J.R. Wallace and Chris Kaman each had 12 for Central Michigan. Kaman was nearly 13 points below his scoring average after missing 10 minutes of the first half with foul trouble. Manciel made up for his absence, going 6-for-7 and scoring 15 points in the first 20 minutes as the Chippewas went 17-for-29 from the floor. Central Michigan was cruising after going on a 20-2 run that spanned the end of the first half and beginning of the second. Joe Carr hit a shot that put the Chippewas up 50-24 early in the second half, and they appeared to be on their way to the second round. Then Creighton, which hadn't played since winning the MVC tournament on March 10, came to life. Korver hit a 3-pointer to start a 16-1 run that got Creighton back in it, and the Bluejays didn't let up from there. Michael Lindeman converted a three-point play and followed with a 3-pointer that got Creighton to 59-51. Larry House, who finished with 11 points, hit a 3-pointer that cut the lead to 63-56 midway through the half. The Bluejays made 15 of their first 22 field-goal attempts in the second half to get back into the game. After falling behind 72-61, Creighton made another push with a 9-0 run. Mike Grimes (15 points) made consecutive putbacks and House followed with a field goal that cut it to 72-70 with about 1:30 left. But Manciel hit an 18-footer, Creighton turned the ball over on its next three possessions and the Chippewas went 5-for-6 from the line to seal it.
Joe Dabbert added 10 points for Creighton.
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