OMAHA, Neb. - Creighton guard Josh Jones drained four first-half 3-pointers, including a 30-footer at the end of the shot clock with 10:34 left in the first half that ignited the Bluejays (13-7, 5-3 MVC) to an 81-68 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball victory versus Bradley (6-13, 0-8 MVC) Wednesday night at Qwest Center Omaha.
Bradley senior guard Andrew Warren entered the game leading The Valley in scoring at 18.9 points per game and added to that average by scoring 18 of his game-high 22 points in the second half. Sophomore guard Dyricus Simms-Edwards added a career-best 19 points and freshman guard Walt Lemon Jr. chipped in with 11 off the bench for the Braves. Creighton freshman forward Doug McDermott paced the Bluejays with a double-double, 17 points and 10 rebounds, while sophomore center Gregory Echenique also scored 17. Reserves Darryl Ashford added 11 points and Kenny Lawson Jr. contributed 10.
While its overall losing streak reached eight games, Bradley dropped its 13th consecutive game in Omaha, where the Braves have not won since 1998. The 13-game road skid against Creighton is the longest Bradley ever has suffered against a single opponent.
Simms-Edwards scored the game's first basket and the Braves pulled even, 10-10, on a Warren bucket with 13-17 left in the first half. Bradley still was within 13-12 and had forced Creighton to make an inbounds pass with five seconds left on the shot clock. Jones caught the ball just in front of the midcourt stripe, took two dribbles and launched a 30-footer that hit swished through for a 16-12 advantage with 9:47 left in the half. The Bluejays rode the momentum to a 36-12 surge to close the half with a 49-24 lead at the break.
In a 13-point game, Creighton's bench outscored Bradley's reserves 29-17 and the five players the Bluejays brought off the bench combined to make 10-of-13 field goal attempts, including 6-of-7 from beyond the arc.
Bradley will conclude its two-game road swing with its first afternoon game of the season, 1:05 p.m. tilt Sunday at Evansville. The game will be televised throughout Central Illinois on WTVP World (over-the-air channel 47.2, Comcast Digital Cable 218 and Mediacom Digital Cable 121).
