Box Score
DePaul Quotes | Creighton Quotes
CHICAGO — DePaul has earned a shot at its second straight BIG EAST Tournament title. The No. 2 seed Blue Demons (25-7) clinched a title game berth with Monday’s 80-69 semifinal victory over sixth seeded Creighton at Wintrust Arena.
Mart’e Grays scored 20 points while Chante Stonewall and Ashton Millender each added 12 as DePaul notched its 10th straight win while beating Creighton for the second time in eight days.
Jaylyn Agnew collected a game-high 27 points to pace the Bluejays (15-16).
DePaul, 26th in the latest Associated Press rankings, will battle No. 13 and top seed Marquette on Tuesday in a rematch of the 2018 tourney championship game.
The Blue Demons led 19-17 after one quarter and 41-27 at halftime of a see-saw game which featured 16 lead changes, four ties and 12 turnovers (10 by Creighton). Grays led all scorers with 16 first half points while Agnew paced the Bluejays with 14 on six-for-six shooting.
In the third quarter, DePaul went scoreless over a span of more than two minutes while Creighton scored 10 points to pull out to a 54-49 lead. The Blue Demons replied with six unanswered points, including Rebekah Dahlman’s buzzer-beating 3 pointer for a 55-54 edge entering the final quarter.
Fortunes turned DePaul’s way in the fourth quarter as Creighton went several minutes without a field goal while the Blue Demons steadily built on their lead. By the 1:57 mark it was 76-63, leaving the Bluejays with dwindling options to close the gap.
Creighton beat DePaul 88-82 on Dec. 29 in Chicago while the Blue Demons paid back the Bluejays with a 74-67 triumph in the March 3 regular season finale in Omaha, Neb.
The Bluejays advanced thanks to Sunday’s 60-51 quarterfinals win over No. 3 Butler. The Blue Demons reached the semifinals with their 85-60 rout of Providence.
Tuesday’s championship game is set for 7 p.m. It’s the second year the finals are at the new arena, part of the sprawling lakefront McCormick Place complex.
Championship women’s college basketball returns to Wintrust Arena in late March when it hosts an NCAA Division I Regional.