Neal's Career-High Carries Men's Basketball Past Louisville in NCAA Opener
LEXINGTON, Ky. -- A 12-0 run midway through the first half helped ninth-seeded Creighton open up a 20 point lead and the Bluejays never looked back in a 89-75 victory over eighth-seeded and 10th-ranked Louisville on Thursday morning in NCAA Tournament First Round action at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky.
Creighton (25-10) advanced to a Second Round contest on Saturday at Rupp Arena against top-seeded and fourth-ranked Auburn, which defeated Alabama State 83-63. Saturday's tip time and television coverage will be announced much later tonight.
Jamiya Neal led Creighton with a career-high 29 points, a career-high tying 12 rebounds and six assists, becoming the first player to record at least 25 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists on 65% shooting in an NCAA Tournament game since Marquette's Dwyane Wade in the 2003 Elite Eight. Steven Ashworth added in 22 points of his own, while Kalkbrenner added in 14 points, six rebounds and four blocks. CU shot 57.1 percent from the field and made 11-of-24 three-point shots (45.8 percent).
Chucky Hepburn led Louisville with a team-high 22 points and six assists, with Terrence Edwards Jr.contributing 21 points and four rebounds. The Cardinals finished the contest shooting 42.9 percent (30-of-70) from the field and 27.6 percent (8-of-29) from three-point range. The Bluejays won the board battle 37-32, while Louisville held a 38-36 edge in points in the paint.
The first half featured eight lead changes before a 12-0 run when Creighton made four consecutive three-pointers to push the lead to 40-25. Ashworth and Jackson McAndrew each made two triples in the flurry. After a Louisville basket, McAndrew and Neal made consecutive treys to grow the Bluejay advantage to 47-27. Louisville's Hepburn, an Omaha native, scored the final five points of the half to trim the Bluejay lead to 49-34 at the break.
Ashworth (13), Neal (12) and McAndrew (11) all scored in double-figures in the first half for a Bluejay attack that shot 56.7 percent from the field and made 9-of-16 three-pointers. CU won the rebound battle 20-14 in the opening 20 minutes. Hepburn had 18 points for Louisville before the break.
CU's lead hovered between 13 and 19 points for the first 12 minutes of the second half as they held a 71-57 lead at the under-8 timeout. Neal would score eight of the Bluejays next 10 points to open up an 18-point (81-63) advantage.
Louisville used a a 10-2 run over the next 69 seconds to cut the deficit to 83-73, before a pair of dunks from Green and two free throws from Ashworth sealed the 89-75 victory.