Creighton 99, Evansville 71: Gregory Echenique scored a season-high 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead No. 24 Creighton into the Missouri Valley Conference tournament final.

Creighton, the No. 2 seed, will meet Illinois State for the title Sunday.

The Bluejays gave early notice they wouldn’t be upset by the Purple Aces, making 8 of 11 first half 3-pointers and 13 of 23 (52.2 percent) for the game.

Thirteen Bluejays scored, with six players making a 3-pointer. Creighton’s 99 points were the most by the Bluejays in an MVC tournament game.

Creighton (27-5) was equally stingy on the boards, outrebounding the Purple Aces 22-6 in the first half and 43-17 for the game.

The Bluejays held the Purple Aces to 42.4 percent (25 of 59) from the field and 4 of 13 (30.5 percent) from 3-point range. Creighton outscored Evansville 40-26 in the paint.

MVC Player of the Year Doug McDermott added 14 points and nine rebounds, while teammate Antoine Young had 13 points and six assists.

Josh Jones made two 3-pointers in 15 seconds to put Creighton up 33-21 with 5:35 left in the first half, capping a 19-5 run. Jones (12 points) hit 4 of 5 3-pointers.

An 11-3 run in the last three minutes of the half gave Creighton a 49-30 lead at the break.

Kenny Harris led Evansville (16-15) with 17 points.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Colt Ryan, Evansville's leading scorer at 20.5 points per game, was held to 13 on 3 of 12 shooting. … Creighton’s bench outscored Evansville’s  42-14. … It was only the second time this season that McDermott did not attempt a 3-pointer.