Creighton University
Missouri State
Women's Basketball Wallops Lady Bears, 68-56
1/27/2011 9:01:00 PM | Women's Basketball
OMAHA, Neb. -- Creighton rode a near-flawless first half to a 44-23 intermission lead and never looked back, defeating preseason MVC favorites Missouri State Thursday night at D.J. Sokol Arena by a 68-56 score. With the win, Creighton moved into a tie for second place with the Lady Bears, one game behind idle Northern Iowa. Kelsey Woodard led all players with a season-high 25 points for the Bluejays.
The win was Creighton's (12-7, 6-2 MVC) third straight victory in which the Bluejays didn't trail. Missouri State (15-5, 6-2 MVC) had its streak of four straight wins, all by double-digits, snapped.
Creighton led from the opening tip, getting a Sam Schuett score on its first possession while building an early 14-4 lead that forced MSU coach Nyla Milleson to call a quick timeout. The Jays hit 6-of-9 shots to start the game while MSU could manage just two shots in that span due to four early turnovers.
After four consecutive points by MSU, Creighton's early onslaught continued. Two three-point shots by Woodard and one by Carli Tritz extended Creighton's lead to 25-10 just eight minutes in. Missouri State put together a run of its own, scoring the next seven points before a three-point play by Tritz returned CU's lead to double-figures with 7:59 to go in the half. It would remain in double-figures the rest of the game.
Creighton took its largest halftime lead of the season at 44-23 when Ally Jensen drained a three-pointer in the final seconds of the first half, punctuating the team's highest scoring first half of the season. In addition to 16-of-33 shooting from the field and a stellar 12-to-5 assist-to-turnover ratio, the Jays forced 14 turnovers in the first half while holding reigning Valley Player of the Year Casey Garrison to six points on 1-of-4 shooting from the floor.
Neither team started the second half with much scoring punch. The Lady Bears out-scored Creighton 9-5 in the first eight minutes, holding the Jays to 2-of-11 shooting and seven turnovers in that stretch to claw within 49-32 with 11:45 remaining.
Missouri State got within 59-46 with 4:14 left, but Jensen nailed a dagger three-pointer from the right corner off a feed from Tritz to put the Jays up 62-46 heading into the final media timeout. The Lady Bears never got closer than 12 points in the second half (57-45 and 68-56).
Woodard had 25 points, a season-high, while sinking 8-of-16 shots from the floor and 5-of-10 from three-point range. Tritz had 16 points and career-best eight assists before fouling out with 2:23 to go. Kellie Nelson added 10 points and game-high eight rebounds for the Jays. Creighton made 9-of-22 three-pointers in the game, forced 20 turnovers, and out-rebounded the Lady Bears 39-33.
MSU was keyed by 24 points by Garrison, though she needed to hit five of her last seven attempts to cap a 7-of-16 night from the field, including a three-point make at the game-ending buzzer. No other MSU player finished in double-figures. MSU shot 38.8 percent in the loss, and just 2-of-9 from three-point range. In addition, Jaleshia Roberson, left the game with 9:40 to play in the second half and did not return.
Creighton returns to action on Saturday with a 6:05 pm home game against Wichita State. Fans attending the men's game at Qwest Center Omaha can bring their ticket stub to D.J. Sokol Arena for free entry. For more information about a pre-game chili feed, click here.
NOTES: Sam Schuett moved into 18th place on Creighton's all-time scoring list, passing Ally Thrall (2004-08). Schuet now has 1,144 career points ... Kelsey Woodard moved into 12th in MVC history for career three-pointers, passing three-time MVC Player of the Year, former Illinois State standout Kristi Cirone. Woodard now has 232 treys ... Creighton improved to 9-0 this year when leading at halftime and has won 13 straight when up at intermission ... Creighton's 44-23 halftime lead was the third-largest intermission margin in D.J. Sokol Arena history ... Jim Flanery picked up his 99th career league win, seventh-most in Valley history and moving out of a tie with former Indiana State coach Jim Wiedie ... Creighton has now won six games all-time at D.J. Sokol Arena without trailing, compared to just five losses all-time at the second-year facility ... Creighton is now 27-2 over the last two seasons when holding its opponent under 60 points ... CU is now 16-28 all-time against MSU,but 12-8 at home.
