Creighton University
Bradley
Basketball Claims Fourth Place With Senior Day Win Over Bradley, 82-71
2/27/2010 9:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
OMAHA, Neb. -- The Creighton men's basketball team earned an 82-71 victory over visiting Bradley on Saturday, guaranteeing itself a rematch against the Braves in the quarterfinal round of next week's State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.
The Bluejays (16-14, 10-8 MVC) clinched sole possession of fourth place with the victory, while Bradley (15-14, 9-9 MVC) fell into a tie for fifth place with the setback. The teams will meet on Friday at 2:30 pm in St. Louis, Mo., at the annual conference tournament known as "Arch Madness".
For the second time in as many meetings with Bradley this year, Creighton never trailed. Ethan Wragge and Justin Carter drained early three-pointers and Creighton bolted to a 13-3 lead as Bradley started just 1-of-10 from the field.
Wragge's third three-pointer of the opening 12 minutes put Creighton ahead 23-13, only to see Bradley claw back within four points at 27-23. Andrew Warren would score Bradley's final seven points of the first half to narrow BU's halftime deficit to 33-32, including a half-court shot at the halftime buzzer.
Bradley had two shots for the lead in the opening possession of the second half, but could not go ahead. Instead, Creighton would put together a 9-0 flurry to return its lead to 10 points. Josh Jones had four of his six points during that spurt.
After BU closed within 44-38 with 15 minutes left, the Jays used a 9-0 run to build a 15-point lead. Senior Cavel Witter had five of CU's points in that bulge, including two free throws after Bradley coach Jim Les was whistled for a technical foul.
Taylor Brown made eight of his first nine shots of the second half, including a three-pointer with 4:49 left to get BU within 66-62, but the Braves would not draw any closer. Witter and Carter would answer Bradley scores with three-pointers on the Bluejay offensive end, and two foul shots from Kenny Lawson Jr. put CU up 10 with four minutes left.
BU got within seven points with 1:20 left, but Antoine Young and Lawson would both hit 2-of-2 free throws down the stretch to ice the Bluejay win.
Four players scored in double-figures for Creighton, led by 20 points from Lawson. Carter added 17 points, while Wragge and Young both scored 12. Young added career-bests with eight assists and five rebounds. The Bluejays shot 51.0 percent for the game, hitting 42.9 percent from three-point range and 88.5 percent from the line.
Bradley was paced by career-best performances from reserves Brown (27) and Eastman (13), as the BU bench outscored Creighton 44-15. The Braves shot 40.7 percent for the game, 26.7 percent from three-point range and 90.5 percent at the line.
NOTES: Creighton has now won 10 or more league games in 14 straight years, a streak that trails only Kansas (16 straight) nationally ...Seniors Cavel Witter, Chad Millard and Justin Carter were honored along with senior manager Brian Kooienga as part of CU's Senior Day festivities ...Creighton has won 14 straight Senior Days in which it has a senior ...Creighton and Bradley have met in the 4/5 game in three of the past five years and five times since 2000 ...Creighton has won 12 straight home games over Bradley, with all but three of those triumphs coming by 11 or more points ...Creighton has won its last 22 meetings with Bradley when scoring 70 or more points and has won its last 63 home games when scoring 68 or more points against all foes ...Creighton has finished in fourth place or better in 13 straight seasons ...The win was the 325th at Creighton for head coach Dana Altman ...Creighton avoided consecutive MVC home losses for the first time since 1999 ...Cavel Witter made both free throws he attempted, moving past Johnny Mathies for the Qwest Center Omaha record for made free throws in a career with 166.
