OMAHA, Neb.—Creighton was on the verge of dropping a home game in November for the first time in 19 years until P’Allen Stinnett and Booker Woodfox fueled a late rally.
The duo combined for the first 17 points of a 19-3, game-ending run that gave the Bluejays an 82-75 come-from-behind, season-opening win over New Mexico on Sunday.
Stinnett finished with a career-high 30 points, including a pair of 3-pointers that capped Creighton’s comeback from a 16-point deficit in the second half.
Woodfox’s 26-point effort was also a career best, and it helped the Jays (1-0) avoid their first November home loss since Nov. 27, 1989, against Coppin State.
“We just wanted this so bad,” said Woodfox, whose 3-pointer with 3:23 left ignited Creighton’s final surge. “We didn’t want to start the season off with a loss to New Mexico. Everybody just dug in, and we did what we could do to try to get that win.”
The Lobos (1-1) were up 37-27 at the half after taking control of the game with an early 10-0 run. Senior Tony Danridge hit four consecutive jumpers during that stretch and led New Mexico with 23 points on 10-of-13 shooting.
He also assisted on Nate Garth’s basket with 10:09 to play that gave New Mexico its largest lead at 59-43.
Creighton cut the margin to six on three occasions before Woodfox threw in an off-balance jumper to make it 72-68 with 2:39 to go.
After a Lobo turnover, Stinnett scored to cut the lead to two. And his 3-pointer with 1:23 left, which came after a charging call on New Mexico’s Dairese Gary, put Creighton on top for the first time since it was 4-2 just two minutes in.
Stinnett added another 3 from the top of the key the next time down the floor to help the Jays pull away.
“For about 30 minutes there, it wasn’t too good,” Creighton coach Dana Altman said. “But we caught fire there down the stretch and found a way.”
New Mexico held the Jays to 29-percent shooting in the first half, then allowed Creighton to hit 18 of its 30 shots (60 percent) after intermission. The Lobos also went scoreless for a three-minute stretch late in the game while the Jays reeled off 17 straight points.
“We couldn’t find a way to get a stop,” New Mexico coach Steve Alford said. “When you can’t guard and can’t get stops, it just kind of steamrolls.”
