OMAHA, Neb. — In a surprising turn of events, Creighton managed to pull off an upset against No. 1 ranked Kansas, winning the game 76-63 on Wednesday night. Pop Isaacs was a standout player for Creighton, scoring a season-high of 27 points and tying his career-best with six three-pointers.
Kansas worked hard to recover from a 13-point deficit, narrowing the gap to just one point early in the second half. However, Isaacs quickly responded with back-to-back three-pointers, allowing the Bluejays (6-3) to secure their lead and ultimately achieve their second consecutive victory over a top-ranked team. Earlier this year, they had defeated Connecticut 85-66 in Omaha.
This defeat marked Kansas’s (7-1) first loss to an unranked non-conference opponent in three years. Prior to this game, Creighton had been ranked in the Associated Press polls for 16 weeks but dropped out following three losses in their last four games.
In an exciting celebration, students flooded the court at the sound of the final buzzer, while flames erupted from the goal standards, adding to the electrifying atmosphere of the win.
Isaacs’ shooting prowess took center stage, overshadowing the anticipated duel between two prominent big men, Creighton’s 7-foot-1 Ryan Kalkbrenner and Kansas’ 7-foot-2 Hunter Dickinson. Isaacs finished the game shooting 10 of 15 overall, including 6 of 9 from beyond the arc, and also contributed seven rebounds and four assists—his best outing since transferring from Texas Tech during the offseason.
Kalkbrenner, who had missed the previous game due to a lower-body injury, along with Steven Ashworth, who was still recovering from an ankle sprain sustained two weeks ago, each contributed 17 points to the victory. On the other side, Kansas struggled significantly with their offense, managing to never lead during the game. Dajuan Harris scored 15 points, while AJ Storr and Zeke Mayo each added 12 points for the Jayhawks, who finished the night shooting just 36% overall.
