After slow start, No. 12 Creighton beats Loyola (Md.) 82-52
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) Justin Patton made all eight of his shots and scored 14 of his 17 points in the second half, and No. 12 Creighton shot 74 percent after halftime to break away from Loyola (Md.) for an 82-52 victory on Saturday.
The Bluejays (6-0) couldn't shake the Greyhounds (2-4) in the first half, shooting 36.7 percent while getting out to a 30-25 lead. They opened the second half making 17 of 22 shots during a 36-15 run to create a 66-40 bulge.
Their superior size and athleticism became apparent as the Greyhounds wore down. Patton dunked three times and Marcus Foster once during the decisive run.
The 7-foot Patton picked up two quick fouls and was limited to eight minutes in the first half. Loyola had no answer for the redshirt freshman, with anyone who tried to guard him giving up at least 4 inches.
Foster had 16 points and Khyri Thomas and Martin Krampelj added 10 apiece for the Bluejays, who were coming off their championship in the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Jarred Jones led Loyola with 13 points and Andre Walker added 12 points and five assists.
Creighton scored 28 points off the Greyhounds' 18 turnovers and outscored them 50-26 in the paint.
Creighton came in shooting a nation-best 50.8 percent from 3-point range but made just 5 of 18.
BIG PICTURE
Loyola (Md.): The Greyhounds didn't seem intimidated playing in an arena eight times the size of their 2,100-seat gym. They played right with the Bluejays through the first half, but they didn't have the manpower to keep up with up-tempo Creighton for 40 minutes.
Creighton: It took a while for the Bluejays to get going, but once they did in the second half they looked every bit as good as they did in winning the Paradise Jam.
UP NEXT
Loyola (Md.) heads to Long Island to face Stony Brook on Wednesday.
Creighton hosts Buffalo, which will be three days removed from playing in the Great Alaska Shootout.
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