Dynamic duo

Few things can keep you wired at night like watching a terrific overtime game. That’s my way of saying thanks to Providence and Creighton for a little less sleep this morning.

But it was worth it.

1. Friars find a way behind their two stars

Even without Bryce Hopkins, Providence can beat ranked teams. It just needs otherworldly play from Devin Carter and Josh Oduro.

Oduro had 32 points and 12 rebounds, Devin Carter added 28 and 11 as the Friars rallied past No. 19 Creighton, 91-87 in overtime on Wednesday night.

And the stats don’t fully encompass some incredible plays both made down, such as this steal, Oduro’s drop-steps and up-and-unders against Naismith Defensive Player of the Year finalist Ryan Kalkbrenner, or the wild shot-making. I mean, this is ridiculous.

It was all part of a response to coach Kim English pushing Providence (15-8, 6-6 in Big East) to be better after their 18-point loss at Villanova on Saturday.

“This is a beast of a league," English said. "You have a tough road loss where you just get your butt kicked. The beauty of it is it's a beast, but it's also a beauty, that you have a tough loss like we had in Philadelphia on Sunday and you have a whale of an opponent waiting for you on Wednesday. We looked at that as a positive. Proud with the result.”

It should be. Creighton (16-7, 7-5) played well enough to win, especially with how it shot. The Bluejays made 14-of-29 from beyond the arc and were 50.8% overall. Baylor Scheierman (27 points) and Steven Ashworth (20) hit a series of big shots of their own down the stretch, but couldn’t match everything from Oduro and Carter.

But it still ended with Creighton dropping its second straight game. With a trip to Xavier on Saturday, coach Greg McDermott knows this is fairly standard for the Big East. This was Creighton’s third OT in league play, and its had two more that were decided by 1 point. It’s 2-3 in those games.

"We've been in a bunch of these games,” McDermott said. “Been in five of these games in 12 Big East games. When you have a special year you find a way to win most of those. I still think we can have a special year with this group. We just have to find a way to finish. And Providence finished better than we did.”

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