Creighton’s loss hits home for Mcdermott
Spurs forward Doug Mcdermott arrived at TD Garden in Boston on Sunday afternoon with his nerves already shot.
It had nothing to do with that night’s game against the Celtics.
Mcdermott spent the hours before the Spurs tipped off watching on TV as his alma mater lose a heartbreaker in the NCAA tournament.
Creighton dropped a 57-56 decision to San Diego State in an Elite Eight game, denying the school its first Final Four appearance.
“Too soon, too soon,” Mcdermott joked as he prepared for his own game Sunday.
It was a double-whammy defeat for Mcdermott.
Not only did Mcdermott play for the Bluejays from 2010 to 2014, his father, Greg, is the team’s coach.
The game ended on a controversial foul call on Creighton’s Ryan Nembard, which sent San Diego State’s Darrion Trammell to the freethrow line with 1.6 seconds remaining and the score tied. Trammell missed the first attempt but made the second to deliver SDSU to its first Fina Four.
“You hate to see games end like that, but it could be worse,” Mcdermott said. “We had a lot of tough battles with San Diego State and they deserve that one. But it was an ugly game.”
By the time Mcdermott reached the visiting locker room at TD Garden, he had made peace with the outcome of his father’s game.
He chose to celebrate Creighton which had the deepest tournament run in school history.
The Bluejays lost in the second round in each of Mcdermott’s three appearances, including a 2014 loss to Baylor at the AT&T Center that ended his decorated college career.
“We had a great run, so you’ve got to be happy for them,” Mcdermott said. “It’s the furthest Creighton has ever made it, so it’s a historic season. We have guys that will be returning and I am sure they will use this as motivation next year.”
Spurs on wrong end of record
The game Mcdermott played in Sunday was not
nearly as down-to-thewire as the one he watched beforehand.
The Spurs closed a winless four-game road trip with a 137-93 loss to the Celtics that ranks as the most lopsided of Gregg Popovich’s coaching career.
The margin of defeat broke the team’s previous high of 43, set in a 143-100 loss to Toronto in November.
“We played well for a bout a quarter, but after that I thought we just gave in,” Popovich said. “Last game (on the trip), end of season … I thought we embarrassed ourselves by giving in the way we did.”
Jaylen Brown scored 41 points to lead the Celtics, who also got 20 from Jaylen Brogdon and 19
from former Spurs guard Derrick White.
Boston had the game in hand after three quarters with a 96-77 lead. The Celtics blew things open by outscoring the Spurs 41-16 in the fourth quarter.
“They caught fire and we couldn’t recover,” Spurs center Zach Collins said. “Maybe we did give in. We’ve definitely got to watch the film. You lose by 40, there are probably a lot of things that went wrong.”
Popovich hoping Udoka returns
Before Sunday’s game Popovich expressed continued support for former Celtics coach Ime Udoka, who was suspended in November a later terminated amid allegations of an improper relationship with a female subordinate.
Udoka played for the Spurs from 2007 to 2008 and again during the 2010-11 campaign before joining Popovich’s bench as an assistant.
“Ime was, is and always will be a great friend,” Popovich said. “And so you can imagine, I was deeply disappointed and hurt for him, for everybody involved. It is a difficult situation for him and my hope is he will bounce back and find a home.”
Udoka led Boston to the NBA Finals last season, where the Celtics lost to Golden State in six games.
His replacement, Joe Mazzulla, has Boston primed for another playoff run at 52-23.