Saturday, March 19
11:01 AM
Creighton University
20-14
87
vs
54
Wagner
23-11
1
2
F
Wagner
25
29
54
Creighton
46
41
87
Geoffrey Groselle
Photo by: Mark Kuhlmann
Men's Basketball Tops Wagner; Advances to NIT Quarterfinals
3/19/2016 12:51:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Four Bluejays score in double-figures in largest postseason win in school history
OMAHA, Neb. -- Creighton won its 20th game of the season and advanced to the National Invitation Tournament quarterfinals with an 87-54 win over Wagner on Saturday morning. Four Bluejays scored in double-figures to pace CU's largest margin of victory in a postseason game in school history.
Fourth-seeded Creighton (20-14) next plays at second-seeded BYU (25-10) on Tuesday night at 8 pm Central in a game that will be televised nationally on ESPN. The winner will head to New York City for the NIT semifinals and finals, which are contested at Madison Square Garden.
Creighton led for all but 67 seconds of the game, as a 3-2 deficit was the only time the Bluejays trailed all day long. CU reeled off the next eight points, including four points from Khyri Thomas, and were never threatened again. Keyed by a career-high 14 points from Zach Hanson in the first half, Creighton surged to a 46-25 lead at the half after outscoring Wagner 24-4 in the paint in the first 20 minutes.
Michael Carey scored 10 of his team-high 13 points in the first four minutes of the second half to draw Wagner within 16 at 53-37, but CU answered with a 12-3 run and never looked back.
Senior center Geoffrey Groselle wrapped up his final home game with 18 points and nine rebounds on 7-for-7 shooting from the floor. Hanson was 5-of-8 inside and finished with 14 points, while Thomas had 13 and James Milliken added 12 points for CU. Maurice Watson Jr. dished a game-high eight assists and also led CU with two steals.
Creighton shot 56 percent from the field overall, including 8-of-20 from three-point range. The Jays also outrebounded Wagner 47-28 and finished with a 36-16 margin in the paint.
Wagner shot a season-low 27.9 percent from the floor, making 17-of-61 shots. The Seahawks battled foul trouble all game long and finished with 28 fouls as a team.
NOTES: Creighton clinched its 16th 20-win season since 1998-99, one of 11 teams nationally that can say that (Creighton, Duke, Kansas, Arizona, Kentucky, Gonzaga, Florida, Texas, Xavier, Syracuse, Connecticut) ... Creighton wraps up its home season with 302,887 fans, most in school history. CU's average home attendance of 15,941 will rank 10th nationally, the fifth straight year the program has ranked among the nation's top-10 ... The 11:01 am tip-off was the earliest in 243 all-time regular-season and postseason games in the 13-year history of CenturyLink Center Omaha ... Creighton has now won consecutive NIT games for the first time in 11 appearances in the event, improving to 7-10 all-time ... Wagner finished the season 0-3 against BIG EAST foes, also falling to St. John's and Seton Hall ... Greg McDermott improved to 9-5 in the postseason as Creighton head coach, extending his school record for postseason victories ... Creighton has now won 10 of its last 11 postseason home games ... Creighton's 87 points were its most ever in an NIT game ... Creighton has won 100 straight home games when scoring 80 or more points ... Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 747 straight games ... Creighton is 3-6 all-time against BYU. The teams last last met in 2010 in Omaha, where CU held eventual National Player of the Year Jimmer Fredette to a season-low 13 points ...Maurice Watson Jr's eight assists are Creighton record for an NIT game, while Groselle's 7-for-7 shooting performance from the field was also a CU record for an NIT game (minimum 5 FGA) ... Khyri Thomas has scored in double-figures in consecutive games for the first time in his career.
Fourth-seeded Creighton (20-14) next plays at second-seeded BYU (25-10) on Tuesday night at 8 pm Central in a game that will be televised nationally on ESPN. The winner will head to New York City for the NIT semifinals and finals, which are contested at Madison Square Garden.
Creighton led for all but 67 seconds of the game, as a 3-2 deficit was the only time the Bluejays trailed all day long. CU reeled off the next eight points, including four points from Khyri Thomas, and were never threatened again. Keyed by a career-high 14 points from Zach Hanson in the first half, Creighton surged to a 46-25 lead at the half after outscoring Wagner 24-4 in the paint in the first 20 minutes.
Michael Carey scored 10 of his team-high 13 points in the first four minutes of the second half to draw Wagner within 16 at 53-37, but CU answered with a 12-3 run and never looked back.
Senior center Geoffrey Groselle wrapped up his final home game with 18 points and nine rebounds on 7-for-7 shooting from the floor. Hanson was 5-of-8 inside and finished with 14 points, while Thomas had 13 and James Milliken added 12 points for CU. Maurice Watson Jr. dished a game-high eight assists and also led CU with two steals.
Creighton shot 56 percent from the field overall, including 8-of-20 from three-point range. The Jays also outrebounded Wagner 47-28 and finished with a 36-16 margin in the paint.
Wagner shot a season-low 27.9 percent from the floor, making 17-of-61 shots. The Seahawks battled foul trouble all game long and finished with 28 fouls as a team.
NOTES: Creighton clinched its 16th 20-win season since 1998-99, one of 11 teams nationally that can say that (Creighton, Duke, Kansas, Arizona, Kentucky, Gonzaga, Florida, Texas, Xavier, Syracuse, Connecticut) ... Creighton wraps up its home season with 302,887 fans, most in school history. CU's average home attendance of 15,941 will rank 10th nationally, the fifth straight year the program has ranked among the nation's top-10 ... The 11:01 am tip-off was the earliest in 243 all-time regular-season and postseason games in the 13-year history of CenturyLink Center Omaha ... Creighton has now won consecutive NIT games for the first time in 11 appearances in the event, improving to 7-10 all-time ... Wagner finished the season 0-3 against BIG EAST foes, also falling to St. John's and Seton Hall ... Greg McDermott improved to 9-5 in the postseason as Creighton head coach, extending his school record for postseason victories ... Creighton has now won 10 of its last 11 postseason home games ... Creighton's 87 points were its most ever in an NIT game ... Creighton has won 100 straight home games when scoring 80 or more points ... Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 747 straight games ... Creighton is 3-6 all-time against BYU. The teams last last met in 2010 in Omaha, where CU held eventual National Player of the Year Jimmer Fredette to a season-low 13 points ...Maurice Watson Jr's eight assists are Creighton record for an NIT game, while Groselle's 7-for-7 shooting performance from the field was also a CU record for an NIT game (minimum 5 FGA) ... Khyri Thomas has scored in double-figures in consecutive games for the first time in his career.
Team Stats
WAGNER
CU
FG%
.279
.560
3FG%
.273
.400
FT%
.700
.676
RB
28
47
TO
11
15
STL
9
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
C
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