TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — The new year started Friday much the same as the old one ended for the Creighton basketball team.

Missed free throws and some critical defensive breakdowns led to another loss, this one coming to Indiana State by a 70-64 score before 4,017 at the Hulman Center.

The Sycamores, who melted down in the second half of Tuesday's loss at Southern Illinois in their Missouri Valley opener, played with poise and composure when Creighton made a potential game-changing run.

“We talk about keeping it together all the time,'' Indiana State coach Kevin McKenna said. “It helps when you have senior guards like Rashad Reed and Harry Marshall and a heady, smart player like Jordan Printy.

“They're guys that have been through this with us. We've had some disappointing losses this season, but we've been able to bounce back.''

The Bluejays know all about disappointing losses, but it's the bouncing back part that they can't grasp at this point. Friday's loss dropped them to 5-8 and 0-2 in the league.

It also led the players to sequester themselves in a hotel room after the game to try to figure out why a team picked to contend for the league title finds itself sinking deeper into a morass.

“I don't want to say too much about what we talked about it, but it's pretty obvious that we have to change some things,” said center Kenny Lawson, who scored 13 points and grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds Friday. “This is frustrating because we all know what our talent level is, but we're not playing up to our potential. We're not doing the things we need to do.''

Against the Sycamores, count missing free throws and losing defensive responsibilities as the prime culprits that sabotaged Creighton's chances of posting its first victory away from Omaha this season.

After trailing by seven at halftime, the Bluejays opened the second half with a 14-7 spurt that produced a 41-41 tie with 16:01 to play. Creighton opened the second half by making six of its first nine shots and limited Indiana State to one basket on its first six attempts.

The game swung on the next seven possessions, one of which ended when the Bluejays lost Printy on the defensive end. There are plenty of things the junior guard can't do on a basketball court, but he can shoot it, and his NBA-range 3-pointer ignited a decisive 14-4 run that put the Sycamores ahead 55-45.

The Bluejays still had almost 11 minutes to mount a comeback, but they were never able to get closer than four points.

“I liked the way we started the second half to get ourselves back into the game,'' coach Dana Altman said. “They made a little run and we came back at them again. Our fight was good, but we didn't make plays offensively or defensively when we needed to make them.''

The Bluejays also didn't make their free throws when Indiana State was trying to protect a five-point lead at the six-minute mark. Darryl Ashford missed one but made the second to get Creighton within 61-57 with 5:59 to play.

P'Allen Stinnett had a chance to trim the lead to two on the Bluejays' next possession, but he missed both of his attempts. Reed, who led the Sycamores with 18 points, put Indiana State ahead 63-57 with a backdoor layup.

Stinnett, whose 19 points led Creighton, then forced a shot that was badly off target. The Bluejays squandered another chance following a turnover when Antoine Young missed two more free throws.

Had he made them, it would have been a one-point game with 4:37 to play. Instead, a free throw by Brant Leitnaker and Marshall's basket with 3:44 left put Indiana State ahead 66-57.

The Bluejays are off to their worst 13-game start since the 1996-97 season. They'll try to get things sorted out before Sunday, when they play at Evansville.

“We have to come together to get this turned around,'' forward Casey Harriman said. “Some people think it's just going to happen. That won't work. We have to do something about it.

“We have to toughen up because that's the only way we're going to start pulling out these close games. We have to be tough, and we're not.''

Box Score

Contact the writer:

679-2298, steve.pivovar@owh.com

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