OMAHA, Neb. – Wichita State's comeback effort came up just short in the season opener at Creighton Friday afternoon, as the Bluejays hung on to defeat the Shockers, 66-61 in D.J. Sokol Arena.

Wichita State (0-1) trailed by as many as 15 in the third quarter and nearly completed the comeback, but Creighton (1-0) got the stops when needed and converted at the free throw line to seal the win.

Senior forward Rangie Bessard finished with a game-high 19 points and nine rebounds in 37 minutes. Bessard was 7-of-14 from the field overall. Senior guard Keke Thompson stuffed the stat sheet with 17 points, eight rebounds, six assists, two steals and just one turnover. She set new career highs in points, field goals made and attempted and tied a career best in assists.

Tamara Lee scored eight of her 10 points after intermission to round out the double-digit scorers.

As a team Wichita State shot 39 percent from the floor, while Creighton was an efficient 58.5 percent. The Shockers were just 4-of-15 from long range, but forced the Bluejays to commit 19 turnovers compared to only 10 for WSU.

Audrey Faber led a trio of Bluejays in double-figures with 16 points, while Sydney Lamberty and Olivia Elger added 14 and 12, respectively.

1st Quarter
Creighton came out of the gate firing to start the game to take a 12-2 lead just a little over three minutes in, but Wichita State settled down to score five straight. The Shockers made just 3-of-11 shots to begin, while Creighton hit four of its first six.

The Bluejays closed the quarter with a 20-11 lead behind 58 percent shooting, but did have six turnovers. Wichita State shot just 29 percent.

Thompson led the Shockers with six points in the quarter.

2nd Quarter
Bessard score five of the team's first seven points to open the period to cut Creighton's lead to five, 23-18, with 4:56 to go until halftime.

Wichita State held the Bluejays scoreless for a four-plus minute stint midway through to shrink the lead to three after another Bessard score inside. After being held scoreless in the first quarter, Bessard scored all nine of her first half points in the second. A Thompson layup and two Tamara Lee free throws were the only other points in the quarter.

Creighton held a 31-24 lead at halftime behind 12 first half points from Sydney Lamberty.

3rd Quarter
On the first play of the quarter, Wichita State drew up a scoring play that worked to perfection, getting Bessard an easy bucket. The basket made her the first Shocker in double-figures. Creighton responded with a 7-0 run to take a 38-26 lead and forcing a timeout from head coach Keitha Adams.

A Thompson layup snapped the run, but Creighton still outscored the Shockers 12-2 during a 4:30 streak to lead 43-28.

Wichita State wouldn't go away. The Shockers grabbed some momentum to close the quarter, trailing by just seven, 47-40.

4th Quarter
The Shockers came out with a lightning quick 8-2 run to open the final quarter and then a three-pointer from Lee tied the game at 51 with 6:30 to play. Lee knocked down a pair of triples in the quarter to help lead the comeback.

After tying the game at 51, Creighton hit back with seven consecutive to regain a seven point lead, 58-51 with 3:34 remaining. Again the Shockers responded. Back-to-back scores from Bessard and jumper from Lee cut the lead to two, 62-60 with less than a minute to go.

WSU couldn't get a basket to fall in the final seconds and Creighton would add four free throws to make the final 66-61.

Up Next
Wichita State is back on the road for the second straight game to open the 2017-18 season. The Shockers travel south to Stillwater, Okla., to face Oklahoma State on Tuesday, Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. in Gallagher-Iba Arena. The game can be seen on Fox Sports Plus.