No. 10 Creighton crushes Longwood

[December 10, 2016]  Greg McDermott was concerned that his Creighton team might be sluggish on Friday in the wake of Wednesday's emotional victory over Nebraska.

But the Bluejays coach needn't have worried.

Six players scored in double figures as No. 10 Creighton gave McDermott his 300th career Division I win with a 113-58 victory over visiting Longwood on Friday at CenturyLink Center in Omaha, Neb.

"There was certainly the threat of a little bit of a hangover after Nebraska, just that game being 48 hours ago," said McDermott, who oversaw a 77-62 win over the Cornhuskers. "I was pleased with the way we got out and ran and Maurice (Watson's) ball movement and vision to start that game. He's been pretty good at it but I'm not sure I've seen it as good as he was."

Watson closed with a double-double (10 points, 11 assists).

The Bluejays (10-0) topped 100 points for the third time this season and for the first time since a 112-94 win over North Carolina State on Nov. 20.

Khyri Thomas and Marcus Foster scored 16 points apiece, Martin Krampelj had 11, while Toby Hegner and Isaiah Zierden each added 10 points.

"A lot of guys did a lot of good things," said center Justin Patton, who finished with nine points. "This was fun seeing a lot of guys out there having fun. Games like this are what we need to get our confidence back and get back into rhythm."
 

JaShaun Smith and Khris Lane each scored 12 points while Isaiah Walton had 11 as Longwood (2-5) lost for the third time in four games.

The Lancers' lone lead came early on a Lane jumper. The Bluejays replied with 11 straight points and a 17-3 run for a 17-5 lead by the 15:40 mark. Creighton closed the half with an 18-1 run for a 62-25 halftime lead as 12 players saw time and three hit double figures.

"Our focus feel during the shoot-around was kind of iffy," said Thomas, who scored nine of his teams' first 11 points. "Toward the end of our shoot-around I was kind of worried, (but once) we got into the locker room and we were pretty focused."

The Bluejays' lead hit 40 at 70-30 with 17:20 left in the second half and reached 50 with 9:29 showing when Ronnie Harrell Jr. collected a free throw to make it 89-39.

Creighton was 41 of 70 (58.6 percent) from the field, including 12 of 21 from beyond the three-point arc, and out-rebounded Longwood 50-28. The Lancers were 24 of 66 (36.4 percent) from the field and had six 3 pointers.

McDermott is 300-203 in 16 Division I seasons, 151-72 in seven seasons at Creighton and 431-267 in 23 years of college coaching.

NOTES: Friday's game was the second all-time meeting between the teams. Creighton claimed a 105-57 victory over Longwood in the previous meeting on Nov. 20, 2012. ... It was Longwood's first meeting against a nationally-ranked team since playing Georgetown 2012. ... The Lancers were without redshirt F Damarion Geter for the fourth straight game. He had surgery after suffering a broken foot on Nov. 18 against Salem International. ... Creighton won its 96th straight home game against teams that came in at .500 or worse, dating back to Feb. 25, 2002. ... G Maurice Watson continues to lead the nation's active players with 730 career assists. ... Longwood travels to George Mason on Monday while Creighton is idle until Dec. 17 when its hosts Oral Roberts.

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