Tigers overcome slow start, beat Creighton

CREIGHTON — The Tigers finished off their regular season playof 2020 with a comeback victory over the Creighton Bulldogs on Tuesday, Dec. 15. Osmond got out to about as poor of a start as one could imagine, scoring just four points while committing

eight turnovers in the first quarter. In the meantime, they allowed Creighton’s leading scorer, John Mitchell, to get off to a hot start with seven early points. The second quarter would prove to be a better one for Osmond, taking better care of the ball

and limiting Mitchell to just two points. Osmond’s Graysen Schultze came alive in the second, contributing 10 of his team-high 22 points in the period. The Tigers managed to outscore the Bulldogs by five points, thanks to scoring contributions from

Zach Huwaldt, Bryan Solozano and Caden Wingert. Heading to halftime with just a three-point deficit was something the Tigers could be satisfied with, considering the sluggish start to the contest. The third quarter was tightly contested from start to finish.

Creighton maintained its lead for most of the quarter before going on a short run to end the first half, scoring four points in the final 30 seconds. Ryan Schmit took an ill-advised jump shot from the elbow which led to a fast break basket by the Bulldogs. On

the ensuing inbounds pass, Stevin Hasler stepped over the baseline, resulting in Creighton getting the ball back and scoring again before the quarter ended, claiming a 38-30 lead. Osmond took a deep breath before the final quarter began and turned into

the winning ball club those in attendance had been waiting to see. They took control defensively, making Creighton work hard for their points and holding them to just eight points in the fourth. Graysen Schultze made a momentum- changing three-point

play with just under three minutes to go, knifing his way into the lane and getting fouled while converting a sweeping layup. Schultze’s made free throw would place the Tigers just one point behind the Bulldogs. However, a made free throw by John

Mitchell and an offensive rebound on his miss would allow Creighton to add another twopointer and come away with three points on that trip down the court and push the lead back up to four with 2:26 remaining. Schmit hit one of his big

fourthquarter buckets with a shot fake, followed by a one dribble pull up on the left elbow to narrow the margin back to two. A Bulldog turnover on the next possession led to a Schultze baseline drive for a layup as the Tigers tied the game at 46

apiece. Defense stepped up again as Bryan Solorzano stripped Caden Hammer of the ball and drove down the court, getting fouled on his shot attempt and sinking both free throws to give Osmond its first lead of the game with 55.9

seconds remaining. The Bulldogs committed their third turnover in as many possessions with 45 seconds left. The following possession, Schmit would miss the front end of a one-and-one, but sophomore Caden Wingert made a great hustle play,

coming away with the offensive rebound and getting fouled in the process. Wingert stepped to the line and swished both free throw attempts to give Osmond a two-possession lead. Unbelievably, Creighton turned the ball over once again and fouled

Schultze shortly thereafter. The senior hit both free throws, the Tigers got one more defensive stop, and Solorzano added two more free throws, giving the boys in orange an eight-point victory. “Overall, I am incredibly proud of our competitiveness,” said

Coach Todd Schulze. “Our boys battled from behind all game, but made plays on defense and sank free throws when they mattered most.” Schulze added, “Bryan Solorzano stepped up and played a tremendous game. We’ll need more of those games

from him as we continue the season.” Solorzano added 12 points behind Schultze’s 22. Huwaldt and Schmit both added six, while Caden Wingert and Spencer Hille contributed four apiece.

Score by Quarter

Osmond 4 18 8 24 = 54

Creighton 12 18 8 8 = 46

BOX SCORE

FG FT Reb. Pts.

Schmit 3-8 0-1 2 6

Solorzano 4-7 4-5 3 12

Hille 2-2 0-0 0 4

Hasler 0-4 0-0 0 0

Schultze 8-15 5-6 9 22

Huwaldt 3-6 0-0 6 6

Reikofski 0-1 0-0 3 0