ST. LOUIS (AP)-- Anthony Tolliver had 15 points and 13 rebounds to help Creighton upset No. 11 Southern Illinois 67-61 Sunday in the championship game of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament, earning the Bluejays their seventh NCAA Tournament appearance in nine years.
Nate Funk added 19 points and four assists and Nick Porter had 15 points and six assists for the second-seeded Bluejays (22-10), who won the conference tournament for the sixth time in nine seasons. Jamaal Tatum had 21 points for Southern Illinois (27-6), which has won the regular-season title five times in the last six seasons but has won only one tournament title during that span. The loss ended a 13-game winning streak for the Salukis.
The Valley's regular-season champion hasn't won the conference tournament since 1998.
Creighton lost twice to Southern Illinois by a total of five points during the regular season. Sunday's victory ended an eight-game losing streak against the Salukis. Tolliver earned his first double-double in 10 games and sixth of the season, taking advantage of a poor game by Southern Illinois' Randal Falker. Tolliver personally outscored Southern Illinois 8-2 during a 3-minute span to put the Bluejays ahead 47-34 with 11:22 to go. Falker, who averages 12.8 points, scored only three on 1-for-5 shooting. He missed everything on one free throw attempt, then barely made it to the rim on two misses with 2:36 to go and a chance to narrow the gap to six. He fouled out with 2:19 left.
Southern Illinois, which entered the game with an RPI rating of 4, cut the gap to five on Tatum's basket in the lane with 49 seconds to go, but Creighton went 3-for-4 from the line the rest of the way. Creighton led 32-28 at halftime and seized control in the opening 1:39 after the break, converting two turnovers into five points while taking a 39-29 lead. Porter hit a pair of layups during the early flurry, one on a fast break and another off a steal, and Dane Watts' layup off another turnover resulted in a three-point play and the largest lead of the game to that point.
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Pre-Tournament Notes |
Final Bracket |
Pre-Tournament Quotes
2007 State Farm MVC Tournament
Thursday, March 1 -- Session I
Game 1 -- #9 Drake 101, #8 Evansville 96
Post Game Quotes |
Game Notes
Game 2 -- #10 Indiana State 68, #7 Illinois State 65
Post Game Quotes |
Game Notes
Friday, March 2 -- Session II
Game 3 -- #1 Southern Illinois 71, #9 Drake 59
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Game Notes
Game 4 -- #4 Bradley vs. #5 UNI
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Game Notes
Friday, March 2 -- Session III
Game 5 -- #2 Creighton 59, #10 Indiana State 38
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Game Notes
Game 6 -- #3 Missouri State 67, #6 Wichita State 64
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Game Notes
Saturday, March 3 -- Session IV
Game 7 -- #1 Southern Illinois 53, #4 Bradley 51
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Game Notes
Game 8 -- #2 Creighton 75, #3 Missouri State 58
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Game Notes
Sunday, March 4 -- Session V
Game 9 -- #2 Creighton 67, #1 Southern Illinois 61
Post Game Quotes |
Game Notes
2007 All-Tournament Team
Nate Funk, Creighton - Most Outstanding Player
Nick Porter, Creighton
Matt Shaw, Southern Illinois
Jamaal Tatum, Southern Illinois
Anthony Tolliver, Creighton