Khyri Thomas
Photo by: Mark Kuhlmann
Men's Basketball Wins at No. 20 Northwestern, 92-88
11/15/2017 10:05:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Career-high point totals for Thomas, Krampelj and Alexander key Bluejay win
ROSEMONT, Ill. -- Khyri Thomas had 24 points and 11 rebounds and three Bluejay newcomers combined for 28 points in their first road game as the Creighton men's basketball team earned a 92-88 win over No. 20 Northwestern at Allstate Arena on Wednesday in the Gavitt Tipoff Games.
Creighton improved to 3-0 while handing Northwestern (2-1) its first loss.
Creighton broke free midway through the first half thanks to three newcomers. Freshmen Ty-Shon Alexander and Mitch Ballock combined with senior transfer Manny Suarez to score 16 straight for the Bluejays, and a 10-0 run a short time later gave CU a 44-29 lead. Northwestern closed the half on a 14-7 run to trim the Bluejay lead to 51-43 at the half.
Northwestern would score the first seven points of the second half to draw within one at 51-50 and would use a four-point play by Vic Law to move ahead 56-55 for its first lead since 8-7.
Creighton maintained its composure, building the lead back to eight at 73-65 on a basket by Suarez, only to see Northwestern answer with the next six points to make it a one score game. Marcus Foster hit a three-pointer to give Creighton a 73-68 lead with 4:21 to play. After a Northwestern free throw, another Foster triple stretched CU's lead to 85-78 with 3:40 to go.
Northwestern countered with two free throws by Law and a jumper by Law before Krampelj finished inside to give CU an 87-82 lead with 1:29 left. After a Ronnie Harrell Jr. free throw, Scottie Lindsey buried a contested three-pointer to cut CU's margin to 88-85 with 58.2 to go.
The Jays milked the shot clock and Thomas missed a shot, but another putback by Krampelj gave CU a 90-85 lead with 26.5 left. NU's Gavin Skelly would sink a trey to drop CU's lead to 90-88 with 17.7 left. Thomas would be fouled with 15.4 left, making both, to set a career-high with 24 points, for the final score.
Besides Thomas, Krampelj had a career-high 17 points, as did Alexander with 14, and Foster (12) also scored in double-figures. Creighton shot 51.5 percent for the game and drained 14-of-16 foul shots on the night.
Northwestern was paced by 30 points from Law and 24 more from McIntosh. NU made 12-of-28 three-point tries.
Creighton returns to action on Monday at 6 p.m. when it meets No. 23 UCLA at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., as part of the 2017 Hall of Fame Classic. That contest will air on 1620 AM and be televised on ESPNU.
NOTES: Khyri Thomas has made at least one three-pointer in 17 straight games, CU's longest streak since Ethan Wragge's streak of 23 straight during the 2013-14 campaign ...Marcus Foster has scored in double-figures in 21 straight games ... Creighton is the nation's first unranked team to beat a ranked team this year ... Khyri Thomas's double-double was the fourth of his career ... Creighton is now 12-1 in its last 13 games against the Big Ten ... Creighton is now 2-1 all-time in the Gavitt Tipoff Games.
Creighton improved to 3-0 while handing Northwestern (2-1) its first loss.
Creighton broke free midway through the first half thanks to three newcomers. Freshmen Ty-Shon Alexander and Mitch Ballock combined with senior transfer Manny Suarez to score 16 straight for the Bluejays, and a 10-0 run a short time later gave CU a 44-29 lead. Northwestern closed the half on a 14-7 run to trim the Bluejay lead to 51-43 at the half.
Northwestern would score the first seven points of the second half to draw within one at 51-50 and would use a four-point play by Vic Law to move ahead 56-55 for its first lead since 8-7.
Creighton maintained its composure, building the lead back to eight at 73-65 on a basket by Suarez, only to see Northwestern answer with the next six points to make it a one score game. Marcus Foster hit a three-pointer to give Creighton a 73-68 lead with 4:21 to play. After a Northwestern free throw, another Foster triple stretched CU's lead to 85-78 with 3:40 to go.
Northwestern countered with two free throws by Law and a jumper by Law before Krampelj finished inside to give CU an 87-82 lead with 1:29 left. After a Ronnie Harrell Jr. free throw, Scottie Lindsey buried a contested three-pointer to cut CU's margin to 88-85 with 58.2 to go.
The Jays milked the shot clock and Thomas missed a shot, but another putback by Krampelj gave CU a 90-85 lead with 26.5 left. NU's Gavin Skelly would sink a trey to drop CU's lead to 90-88 with 17.7 left. Thomas would be fouled with 15.4 left, making both, to set a career-high with 24 points, for the final score.
Besides Thomas, Krampelj had a career-high 17 points, as did Alexander with 14, and Foster (12) also scored in double-figures. Creighton shot 51.5 percent for the game and drained 14-of-16 foul shots on the night.
Northwestern was paced by 30 points from Law and 24 more from McIntosh. NU made 12-of-28 three-point tries.
Creighton returns to action on Monday at 6 p.m. when it meets No. 23 UCLA at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., as part of the 2017 Hall of Fame Classic. That contest will air on 1620 AM and be televised on ESPNU.
NOTES: Khyri Thomas has made at least one three-pointer in 17 straight games, CU's longest streak since Ethan Wragge's streak of 23 straight during the 2013-14 campaign ...Marcus Foster has scored in double-figures in 21 straight games ... Creighton is the nation's first unranked team to beat a ranked team this year ... Khyri Thomas's double-double was the fourth of his career ... Creighton is now 12-1 in its last 13 games against the Big Ten ... Creighton is now 2-1 all-time in the Gavitt Tipoff Games.
Team Stats
CU
NU
FG%
.515
.478
3FG%
.500
.429
FT%
.875
.632
RB
38
32
TO
9
6
STL
1
3
Game Leaders
Scoring
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