Butler overcame a 13-point deficit with less than eight minutes to play, pulling out a gritty 70-66 overtime win over No. 8 Creighton Saturday afternoon at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
 
Senior Aaron Thompson scored 17 points to go along with six assists, while Bryce Nze and Myles Tate each had 15 points. Tate added 10 rebounds for his first career double-double, while Nze had nine boards.
 
"We shot 37 percent and still found a way to win this game," said Butler coach LaVall Jordan. "Sometimes it's just heart and effort. I loved our battle and our resiliency. When we were down 13, I told them this was a gut check moment. And the level of ownership was what we have seen the last two days in practice, and that translated to the game."
 
For Butler, No. 8 Creighton is the highest-ranked opponent Butler has beaten since a 101-93 win over No. 1 Villanova, Dec. 30, 2017.
 
Creighton unleashed a 26-3 run early in the second half to erase a seven-point Butler halftime lead and ultimately take a 51-38 advantage with 11:28 to play. At that point in the second half, Butler was 1-of-14 from the field, while the Bluejays hit 11 of their first 13 attempts.
 
A Denzel Mahoney free throw had the CU advantage at 13 again (58-45) with 7:38 to play. Jordan had Myles Wilmoth check in, and the freshman provided a defensive spark which limited Creighton to only two points over the next seven minutes. On the offensive end, Thompson, Nze and Wilmoth combined for 16 of the next 17 Butler points, as Thompson's driving lay-up gave Butler a 62-60 advantage with 57 seconds to play. Two Mahoney free throws tied it up. In the closing seconds, Butler had several contested looks in the paint, but couldn't convert the game-winner.
 
In overtime, Butler started with turnovers on its first four possessions as Creighton built a 66-62 lead at the 3:08 mark. The Bluejays would not score again as Butler chipped away. An Nze lay-up gave Butler its first lead of the extra session at 67-66 with 1:08 to play. Tate extended the lead to three with a pull-up jumper with 26 minutes to play. A Creighton offensive foul and a Chuck Harris free throw sealed the win.
 
Butler committed only seven turnovers in the 45 minutes of play. The Bulldogs shot 37.5 percent.
 
Both Butler and Creighton each hit six three-pointers.
 
Mahoney had a career-high 29 points for Creighton, with 23 after halftime but only two over the final seven minutes of regulation and the overtime period. Thompson and Wilmoth took over the defensive assignment down the stretch. Thompson started the game on Mitch Ballock, holding him scoreless over the first half and to just two points on the afternoon.
 
Creighton, which did play without point guard Marcus Zegarowski as it did last weekend in scoring 97 points against St. John's, entered the game averaging 83.2 points per game and a 39-percent clip from three-point range.
 
The Bulldogs return to action Tuesday night at DePaul.