Strong defense — yes, defense — helps Creighton dismantle Butler
In the final seconds of his team’s 75-64 victory over Butler on Wednesday night, Creighton point guard Maurice Watson gave the home crowd a scare.
Watson clutched his left knee and writhed on the floor after a collision with Butler forward Kelan Martin. Only after he theatrically popped back to his feet with a grin on his face could the crowd at the CenturyLink Center collectively exhale.
“I was guessing he just wanted a little more attention,” Creighton coach Greg McDermott told FS1’s studio crew after the game. “I was hoping like heck he wasn’t hurt.”
Those were about the only scary moments for Creighton on a night when the eighth-ranked Bluejays dominated a fellow upper-echelon Big East team from start to finish. Creighton led by double digits after 10 minutes, by 20 at halftime and by as many as 25 early in the second half en route to one of its most impressive victories of the season.
Pounding No. 12 Butler helped Creighton (16-1) match its best start in program history and elevated the Bluejays into a tie with Villanova for first place in the Big East. They already lost at home to the Wildcats by 10 on New Year’s Eve, but they may yet prove better equipped than Xavier and Butler to push the reigning national champs over the course of the season.
More performances like Wednesday night’s will certainly keep Creighton in contention.
Efficient offense has been Creighton’s trademark throughout the McDermott era, but the Bluejays’ success began on defense against Butler. Not only did the Bulldogs only shoot a modest 41.3 percent from the floor, none of their five starters even managed to reach double figures.
Defensive ace Khyri Thomas locked up Butler’s leading scorer Kelan Martin, holding him to 0-for-8 shooting in the first half and seven points for the game. Frequent double teams also contributed to the Bulldogs’ second-leading scorer Andrew Chrabascz scoring just two points on 1-for-5 shooting. And rim protector Justin Patton was always lurking around the basket to alter any shots around the basket.
While Creighton turned the ball over too frequently on offense and missed a higher than normal percentage of its threes, the Bluejays made up for it with sizzling 24-for-33 shooting inside the arc. Watson led the way with 21 points and three of his teammates also eclipsed double figures.
Things got so bad for Butler by halftime that head coach Chris Holtmann benched Martin at the start of the second half and didn’t reinsert him into the game until 13 minutes remained in the game.
It was an attempted wake-up call that came far too late. The Bulldogs didn’t close within fewer than 15 points until the final 90 seconds.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
