Brandon Maclin banked in a go-ahead drive with seven seconds remaining in regulation as DePaul snapped a 23-game losing streak against Creighton with a 72-71 victory in Chicago on Wednesday.
NJ Benson totaled 23 points with 10 rebounds for the Blue Demons (13-12, 5-9), who ended a four-game overall losing streak.
DePaul trailed 65-59 with a little less than six minutes left in the contest but chipped away and eventually put itself in position to win while holding the Bluejays (13-12, 7-7) without a point for the final 2 1/2 minutes.
The Blue Demons, who shot 52.8% and held a 46-12 advantage in paint points, scored the final four points of the night.
Maclin, who finished with 17 points after being inserted into the starting lineup for the first time since Nov. 29, drove through traffic and some contact to use the glass on a layup that erased a 71-70 deficit.
Benson recorded a key three-point play to kick off the final 13-6 surge for DePaul, which beat Creighton for the first time since Jan. 7, 2015.
Austin Swartz scored 10 of his team-high 15 points in the second half for the Bluejays, who went 14 of 27 (51.9%) from 3-point range for the game but shot just 39.1% overall in the second half. Josh Dix and Jasen Green each scored 13 for Creighton, which has lost four of the past five and saw its 11-game winning streak at DePaul come to an end.
The game featured six ties and 11 lead changes.
Creighton shot 53.8% from the field during a first half in which it shot 10 of 16 from 3-point range to lead 42-40 at the break. Green, who entered with 12 made 3-pointers on the season, scored the Bluejays’ first eight points and went 3-for-4 from distance to score 11 before halftime.
DePaul, though, shot 56.3% and held a 30-4 points-in-the-paint advantage through the first 20 minutes. After the Bluejays went on an 8-0 run to take the lead, the Blue Demons’ CJ Gunn knocked down a corner 3-pointer just before the buzzer.
–Field Level Media
