Creighton Men Race To Win Over Maryland Eastern Shore

OMAHA, Neb. – Strong defense and balanced scoring led the No. 23 Creighton men's basketball team to an 84-45 victory over Maryland Eastern Shore at CHI Health Center Omaha on Friday, Nov. 14.
 
The win pushed the Bluejays to 2-1 on the season, while the Hawks fell to 1-4. 

Creighton blitzed out a 12-0 lead in the opening minutes as Owen Freeman had five points and three assists to lead the hot start. The two teams traded baskets over the next 10 minutes, before a personal 8-0 run from Blake Harper gave the Jays a 37-23 edge at the break. 

Harper led CU with 10 points and six rebounds in the first half, while Jackson McAndrew added eight points and Freeman had seven points and five rebounds before intermission. 

Creighton did not let up after intermission, opening the second stanza on a 12-2 run with buckets from four different Bluejays to push the lead to 24 with 14:31 remaining. Leading 57-35 with 11:48 remaining in the game, Creighton delivered the knockout blow with a 10-2 burst that gave the Jays a 67-37 advantage on jumper from Austin Swartz. 

The Bluejays lead grew too as much as 41 at 84-43 as Ty Davis capped off a 15-2 spurt with the first three-pointer of his career. UMES added two free throws with 30 seconds left as Creighton secured the 84-45 victory. 

Harper paced CU with 14 points and nine rebounds, while Green added in 14 points and five boards of his own. Josh Dix finished with 10 points, and Freeman finished with nine points, eight points and five assists. Creighton finished the night shooting 49.3 percent (33-of-67) from the field, 30.3 percent (10-of-33) from three and 72.7 percent (8-of-11) from the charity stripe while owning a 43-36 edge on the boards. 

UMES got a team-high 13 points from Justin Monden as the Hawks shot 38.0 percent (19-of-50) from the floor and 13.3 percent (2-of-15) from three-point range. 

Creighton returns to the court on Wednesday when it hosts North Dakota at 7 p.m.