Creighton University
Western Illinois
Men's Basketball Uses Inside Game in 60-47 Win
12/20/2010 9:58:00 PM | Men's Basketball
OMAHA, Neb. -- Gregory Echenique had 16 points and Kenny Lawson Jr. added 10 points as Creighton won its third straight game, a 60-47 victory over Western Illinois on Monday night. Creighton never trailed while outscoring the Leathernecks 23-2 off turnovers.
The Bluejays improved to 7-4 on the season, while Western Illinois dropped to 5-6.
After WIU forced the lone tie of the half at 11-11 on a trey by Matt Lander, Kaleb Korver scored back-to-back hoops once Lawson was paired with fellow big man Echenique. Though WIU later trimmed the deficit to 18-15, Creighton closed the first half on a 10-2 run to take a 28-17 halftime lead.
Creighton maintained a lead of at least six the entire second half, including a margin as large as 58-42 in the final four minutes.
"On a night that we didn't shoot it well from the three-point line or free throw line, you have to find other ways to win," said CU head coach Greg McDermott. "Our defense created more than our offense. There were more hustle plays by guys in white jerseys than we've seen in last couple weeks and that was encouraging. It was a step in the right direction."
Echenique's 16 points paced Creigthon. The big man also had four blocked shots, two assists and a steal in his second game at Creighton. Lawson had 10 points, a team-best six rebounds and a career-high four assists. Antoine Young also had six points, five assists and four rebounds. The Jays shot 44.2 percent from the floor on the night, which helped offset a woeful 3-of-19 effort from long-range and 11-of-20 showing at the line. Keyed by Echenique, Creighton's bench outscored Western Illinois, 30-9.
Western Illinois was paced by 15 points each from Kaimarr Price and Lander. Price also had a game-high nine rebounds. WIU shot 37.3 percent from the floor overall, including 5-of-10 from downtown. The Leathernecks also outrebouded Creighton 34-32 on the night.
Creighton returns to action on Wednesday with an 8:05 pm game vs. Samford at Qwest Center Omaha. The Creighton women (6-4) will host Kansas (10-1) at 5:35 pm prior to the men's contest.
NOTES: Creighton is now 26-1 all-time at Qwest Center Omaha in games without a lead change ... A lay-up by Ethan Wragge with 13:27 left in the first half gave Creighton 9,001 all-time points at Qwest Center Omaha (123 games). At that point, Creighton had outscored foes 9,001 - 7,645 in the eight-year old facility ... Antoine Young had five assists as he became the first Bluejay since Josh Dotzler in 2005 with four straight games of five or more helpers ... Young has also had three or more assists in 17 straight games and a positive assist/turnover ratio in 26 straight contests ... Every Creighton starter has attempted at least one three-pointer in each of the last eight games ... Creighton improved to 48-0 all-time at Qwest Center Omaha against teams that enter the game with a record of .500 or worse ... One of Gregory Echenique's four blocked shots landed five rows into the stands, behind the WIU bench ... Creighton is now 7-1 at home this winter ... Creighton improved to 3-0 all-time against Western Illinois ... Creighton has won 29 straight regular-season home games vs. unranked non-conference foes ... Creighton has won 47 straight home games when building a lead of 10 points or more ... Western Illinois is coached by longtime Bradley coach Jim Molinari, now in his third season in Macomb.
