Creighton 68, California 54

[December 23, 2013]  OMAHA, Neb. — Creighton 68, California 54: Doug McDermott collected 20 points and 11 rebounds and the Bluejays routed the visiting Golden Bears.

Austin Chatman scored 11 points and Grant Gibbs added 10 for Creighton (9-2), which recorded its fourth straight double-digit victory. McDermott finished with his second double-double this season and shot 9-for-21 from the field even after missing six of his first seven shots.

Justin Cobbs scored 13 points and Tyrone Wallace had 12 to lead California (8-4), which shot 36.4 percent. Freshman Jabari Bird had five points and four rebounds before exiting the game with a right ankle injury with five minutes left in the first half.

Creighton closed the opening stanza with a 10-1 run and led 30-19 despite shooting 36.7 percent from the field. The Bluejays moved ahead by 18 on McDermott’s jumper midway through the second half and were never threatened by the injury-depleted Golden Bears.

California forward Richard Solomon, who entered the game averaging 12 points and 10.6 rebounds, was held to six points and six rebounds before limping to the sideline with just under four minutes left. The Golden Bears shot 5-for-24 from 3-point range and were outrebounded 39-31.

GAME NOTEBOOK: California G Ricky Kreklow, averaging 6.4 points and 2.6 rebounds, will miss the next 4-to-6 weeks with a broken right hand. … Creighton improved to 54-7 at home under coach Greg McDermott, including 32-2 against nonconference foes. … Cobbs had four assists to become the seventh player in school history to reach 400 in his career.

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