BOX SCORE

OMAHA, Neb. – Senior Samantha Heck recorded her fifth double-double of the year and hit a step-back three to send the game into overtime, but the University of Evansville women’s basketball team fell to Creighton, 74-69, Thursday night at D.J. Sokol Arena in Omaha, Neb.
 
Heck led Evansville (8-20, 6-11 MVC) with 21 points and 13 rebounds, going 8-for-12 from the field and 4-for-4 at the free throw line.  Redshirt senior Chelsea Falkenstein added a season-high 16 points by hitting six of her seven shot attempts, including a 4-for-5 effort from long range.  Freshman Laura Friday also finished in double figures, scoring 11 points, knocking down four of her five shot attempts.
 
The Aces opened the game by scoring the first five points, but Creighton (22-6, 14-3 MVC) quickly countered with a 10-2 run that was capped by a Sarah Nelson three and led 10-7 with 16:15 to play in the first.
 
Falkenstein hit one of her four triples with 10:04 remaining in the opening half to put UE in front 15-12.
 
Heck banked in a layup with 39 seconds left in the half to push Evansville’s advantage to 26-22, but McKenzie Fujan hit a circus shot at the buzzer to cut the Aces’ lead to 26-24 at the break.
 
Sophomore Kat Taylor sank a pair of free throws to open the second half to put UE in front, 28-24, and senior Taylor Ware drained a three from the left corner to give Evansville a six-point lead at 33-27 with 15:50 to play.
 
The Bluejays responded with a 7-0 run that was capped by a steal and a layup by Carli Tritz to regain the lead at 34-33 at the 14:36 mark.  However, the Aces countered with a run of their own, as Falkenstein hit a pair of threes to put UE back in front, 40-34, with 12:31 remaining.
 
Heck gave Evansville its largest lead, 44-36, with 11:03 left in the contest, before CU tied the game with an 8-0 run that was capped by a Fujan three just under three minutes later.
 
With 7:47 remaining in regulation, Friday put the Aces back in front, 47-44, with a three from the left wing, but Creighton once again had an answer and grabbed a 49-48 advantage when Tritz nailed a triple with 4:35 to play.
 
Nelson capped a 10-2 Bluejay run to push CU’s margin to 54-50, but Evansville would score the next two baskets and knot the game at 54-54, when Falkenstein hit a 12-foot jumper from the baseline with 1:00 showing on the clock.
 
Marissa Janning hit her first three of the game with just 32 seconds left in regulation to put Creighton in front, 57-54, but Heck hit a clutch, game-tying step-back three of her own on the ensuing possession to retie the score with just 13 ticks left. 
 
Nelson had a chance to win it for the Bluejays in regulation, but her three-point attempt caromed off the left side of the rim as time expired to send the game to an extra period.
 
Ware gave Evansville its first overtime lead by connecting on a three from the left corner, giving the Aces a 62-59 advantage just over a minute and a half into the extra stanza and Friday drained a three of her own to give UE a 65-59 lead at the 2:43 mark.
 
CU scored the next five points to pull within a point at 65-64 and tied the game with 1:22 remaining when Ally Jensen connected on a triple.  After an Evansville turnover, Creighton got a three from Nelson to grab a 70-67 advantage and was able to seal the win by hitting its free throws down the stretch.
 
Evansville shot 55.8 percent for the game (24-for-43), including a 71.4 percent clip in the second half (10-for-14), and outrebounded the Bluejays, 35-32, but CU grabbed 18 offensive rebounds for 16 second-chance points. 
 
Creighton attempted a Missouri Valley Conference-record 44 three-pointers, hitting 13 of them for a 29.5 percent clip from long range.  In addition, the Bluejays went 9-for-10 from the free throw line and turned 24 UE turnovers into 33 points.
 
Evansville will wrap up its regular season with a 2:05 p.m. game Saturday afternoon at Drake in Des Moines, Iowa.