Creighton University
Bradley
Men's Basketball Shuffles Past Bradley, 81-68
1/19/2011 9:38:00 PM | Men's Basketball
OMAHA, Neb. -- Making his first start since Nov. 17, Josh Jones matched his career-high with 14 points as Creighton beat Bradley, 81-68, on Wednesday night. Jones was one of five Bluejays in double-figures for Creighton, which used a 13-2 run to build a 23-12 lead and was never seriously threatened.
The win, Creighton's 13th in a row in Omaha over the Braves, snapped the Jays first two-game home losing streak in league play since 1999.
The Jays are now 13-7 on the season and 5-3 in Missouri Valley Conference action. Bradley, which continues to play without injured standouts Taylor Brown and Sam Maniscalco, lost its eighth straight to fall to 6-13 (0-8 MVC).
Doug McDermott and Gregory Echenique each had 17 points for the victors, while Jones had 14, Darryl Ashford had 11 points and Kenny Lawson Jr. added 10.
Bradley was paced by 22 points from Valley scoring leader Andrew Warren, with 18 of those coming after a 1-for-6 first half in which he was held to four points. Dyricus Simms-Edwards had a career-best 19 points for the Braves, while Walt Lemon Jr. had 11 points for the Braves as well.
Creighton, led 49-24 at the half in its highest first-half outburst at Qwest Center Omaha since 2007. Creighton shot an even 60 percent in the first half, including 7-of-12 from downtown. Jones, who had scored four points total in CU's previous six games, gave the Jays an early jolt with 4-of-5 shooting from downtown to lead CU with 12 points at the break. Also impressive early was the play of McDermott (10 points, seven rebounds) and Echenique (eight points, five rebounds). Warren (1-6 FG, 4 points) was also held in check in the first half.
Bradley and Creighton traded baskets at a frenetic pace early in the second half, as Warren and Simms-Edwards had 15 of BU's first 17 points after intermission to pull the Braves within 60-41. But the Jays got consecutive treys by Ashford and Lawson to regain a comfortable cushion. Creighton's largest lead came at 71-45 with 9:58 left on a Jahenns Manigat three-pointer, the team's largest lead of the season.
Bradley would get within 11 points twice in the final minute, but no closer, as the Jays prevailed.
For the night, Creighton shot 58.7 percent for the game, making 27-of-46 shots. That included a 10-for-18 barrage from downtown, as Jones (4-6), Ashford (3-3) and Lawson (2-3) all broke out of a shooting slump. Antoine Young built upon his MVC lead in assists with 10 helpers, tying a Bluejay record at Qwest Center Omaha. McDermott added a game-high 10 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season.
Bradley shot 51.4 percent in the second half to finish at 41.9 percent for the game. Dodie Dunson led BU with seven rebounds, while Lemon paced the visitors wih three assists. Bradley was just 2-of-13 for the night from downtown.
Creighton returns to action at 4 pm Saturday when it takes on Valley co-leader Missouri State at JQH Arena in Springfield, Mo. The game can be heard on KXSP (Big Sports 590 AM) and will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
NOTES: Kenny Lawson Jr.'s streak of 92 straight starts was snapped, as Josh Jones replaced him in the Creighton starting five ... Ironically, Lawson's last previous game as a reserve came on March 1, 2008, also on Bradley, when he stepped aside on Senior Day in an eventual 111-110 double-overtime victory over the Braves ... Creighton has won 13 straight home games over Bradley, the Braves longest road losing streak ever against one opponent ... Creighton is 13-7 or better after 20 games for the 13th time in the last 14 seasons .. Creighton improved to 50-0 all-time at Qwest Center Omaha against teams that enter the game with a record of .500 or worse ... Creighton, now 10-3 at home this season, has won 10 or more home games in 15 straight seasons ... Gregory Echenique's 17 points was his highest output as a Bluejay ... Kenny Lawson Jr. had seven rebounds to give him 671 in his career, moving him past Kyle Korver and David Wesely for 13th in school history ... Creighton has won its last 23 games against Bradley when scoring 70 points or more ... Doug McDermott has now grabbed eight or more rebounds in seven straight games ... For the first time in Creighton's last six games, the team leading at half held on to win the game ... Coaching in his 300th career game at the Division I level, Greg McDermott improved to 162-138 ... Doug McDermott's 16 games in double-figures are tied for fourth among freshmen nationally with Ohio State's J.J. Sullinger, trailing only Brandon Knight (Kentucky), Terrence Jones (Kentucky) and Tobias Harris (Tennessee) ... Creighton has made at least one three-pointer in 555 straight games ... Creighton's 49-24 halftime lead was its largest at Qwest Center Omaha since a 47-20 intermission edge over Nebraska in November of 2007 ... Creighton has clinched a winning record for the first half of the MVC slate, it's 30th straight 'half" over .500 ... Kenny Lawson Jr. scored 10 points to give him 1,160 in his career, passing Dane Watts for 24th-most in Creighton history. Watts, who plays professionally in Europe, was at Qwest Center Omaha on Wednesday during a week-long mid-season vacation ... Creighton's 29 bench points were its most in MVC play this season.
