Creighton University
Nebraska
Big Lead Holds Up As Men's Basketball Beats NU, 74-62
11/24/2007 4:15:00 PM | Men's Basketball
OMAHA, Neb. - The Creighton men's basketball team built a 47-20 halftime lead en route to a 74-62 win over Nebraska on Saturday afternoon in Omaha. The win was Creighton's eighth in the last nine regular-season meetings over its in-state rival, and sixth straight regular-season win in Omaha over the Huskers.
Creighton is now 3-0 for the ninth time in the past 10 seasons, while Nebraska fell to 3-1 with the setback.
Cavel Witter and Dane Watts shared scoring honors for CU with 14 points each, while NU's Cookie Miller had 19 points to lead all scorers.
Creighton ball-pressure defense gave NU all sorts of problems in the opening minutes, creating six turnovers on the Huskers' first seven possessions.
CU led 6-4 after nearly six minutes, then got back-to-back three-pointers by Watts and Booker Woodfox to take a 12-4 lead. After the Huskers closed to 16-10 at the 11 minute mark of the first half, CU used a 24-3 run over the next six minutes to build a 40-13 lead. During that stretch the Jays drained six straight three-pointers, including two each from Watts and Nick Bahe and one from Woodfox and Pierce Hibma.
Nebraska did score seven straight points to draw within 40-20, only to see baskets from Hibma, Kenny Lawson Jr. and Chad Millard give CU a 47-20 halftime lead. The lead was CU's second-largest ever halftime lead at Qwest Center Omaha and came largely due to a 26-2 advantage in points off turnovers.
Creighton's lead was cut to 19 at the 12:03 mark on two free throws by Ade Dagunduro, and dropped to single-digits (61-52) with 6:55 to go. With CU clinging to a 66-55 lead and under five minutes to play, Witter scored on consecutive lay-ups to give the Jays a 15-point cushion. CU's final points of the afternoon came with 1:32 to play on a highlight-worthy dunk by P'Allen Stinnett over the NU defense.
Watts scored 14 points and led CU with six rebounds. He also was largely responsible for holding NU's All-American center, Aleks Maric, to nine points and eight rebounds, well below the Aussie's season averages. Witter scored a career-high 14 points and had a pair of steals in 19 minutes. Also in double-figures was Bahe, a Lincoln native who scored 11 points and had two steals. CU shot 48 percent for the game and hit 9-of-20 three-pointers (45 percent). The Jays forced 21 Husker turnovers and outscored NU 30-16 off those miscues.
NU was paced by 19 points from Miller, 11 of which came after the break. Highly-touted junior college transfer Steve Harley scored all 14 of his points after the break as well for the Cornhuskers. NU shot 42 percent for the game but had just six assists and 21 turnovers. The Huskers did own the glass by a 37-27 rebounding differential.
Creighton returns to action on Thursday with a 7:05 pm game against Savannah State.
NOTES: Creighton head coach Dana Altman is now 25-0 in November home games at CU ...Altman is 19-0 all-time in his third home game of the season, including a 14-0 mark at CU ...Nebraska has lost its first true road game in each of the last 12 years, with six losses to CU in that time ...Creighton has won 10 straight regular-season home games over BCS schools, including six victories over NU ...This was just the seventh time in 41 all-time meetings that both teams entered undefeated ...The crowd of 17,049 was the fifth-largest in Creighton and state history ...Creighton has won 28 straight games in which it has scored 40 or more points in a half ...Creighton's only larger halftime lead in Qwest Center history was a 39-11 lead over Alcorn State on Nov. 15, 2004 ...Creighton's 47 first-half points was its most since scoring 48 vs. Drake on Jan. 8, 2006 ...CU's Josh Dotzler had game highs with five assists and five steals.
