The Creighton Bluejays were so close to making it to the Final Four round of the 2023 NCAA tournament. Gregg McDermott and Creighton basketball could've seen their stay in the Big Dance get extended if it were not for a late foul call on the Bluejays in the Elite 8 round versus the San Diego State Aztecs which led to a heart-breaking 57-56 loss for the Big East squad.

Understandably, the Creighton basketball players and staff were left agonizing over the loss in the locker room after the contest, but McDermott did his best to uplift the spirits of his team. After all, coaching doesn't just happen when the lights are on.

Although Creighton basketball fell short of its goal, which was always to win the NCAA tournament and bring home the program's first-ever national title, the Bluejays still made their school proud. This particular version of the Bluejays went to a place no other Creighton basketball had been before. Prior to this year, Creighton had never survived past the Sweet 16 round. It is still quite an accomplishment for the Bluejays, who finished the 2022-23 college basketball season with an overall record of 24-13 to go with a 14-6 slate in conference play.

The pain of the loss to San Diego State will not easily go away for Creighton, but it should make the Bluejays stronger, as cliche as that may sound. Getting over that Sweet 16 hump could be a stat of better things for the Bluejays, who entered the NCAA tournament as a No. 6 seed and had been ranked by the AP Poll during the regular season as high as No. 7.