Marcus Zegarowski had a season-high 19 points, and Ty-Shon Alexander scored 18 as Creighton overcame a nine-point first-half deficit to beat visiting North Florida 76-67 on Sunday at Omaha, Neb.
Alexander hit a pair of 3-pointers during an 14-0 run early in the second half that helped Creighton (4-1) overcome a five-point halftime hole. His first three gave the Bluejays a 42-41 lead with 16:48 left in regulation. He knocked down another from deep to make it 47-41 with 15:34 to go in the game.
Mitch Ballock added 15 points with 11 rebounds, and Damien Jefferson scored 12 for Creighton, which shot 46.8 percent. The Bluejays also hit 7 of 14 3-point attempts in the second half. Zegarowski (3 of 7 from 3-point range) and Alexander (4 of 8 from deep) hit back-to-back threes to put Creighton up 56-44 with 11:57 left to take control.
Carter Hendricksen had 19 points, and Wajid Aminu added 17 with nine rebounds for North Florida (4-3), which has also dropped road games at Florida and Iowa already this season. The Ospreys, who entered averaging 13.7 3-pointers per contest, went 8 of 27 from beyond the arc on Sunday while shooting 32.8 percent overall.
North Florida missed its first eight shots of the game, including an 0-3 start from the beyond the arc. However, the Ospreys regrouped and used a 15-2 run to lead by as many nine on several occasions during the first half.
Creighton used a 9-1 run to get within 32-31 in the final minutes of the half, but North Florida scored the next baskets, capped by Aminu's dunk to take a 36-31 lead into the break. Though the Bluejays shot 45.2 percent in the first half, they went 3 of 13 from 3 and were outscored 12-2 on second-chance points.
This game was part of the Las Vegas Invitational, which continues this week.
--Field Level Media
North Florida | Creighton | |
Carter Hendricksen 19 | Scoring | Marcus Zegarowski 19 |
Ivan Gandia-Rosa 5 | Assists | Ty-Shon Alexander 4 |
Wajid Aminu 9 | Rebounds | Mitch Ballock 11 |
Wajid Aminu 6 | Free Throws Made | Mitch Ballock 4 |
Wajid Aminu 2 | Steals | Marcus Zegarowski 2 |
Wajid Aminu 3 | Blocks | Mitch Ballock 1 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
North Florida | 67 | 32.8 | 8-27 | 19-21 | 10 | 37 | 5 | 3 | 12 |
Creighton | 76 | 46.8 | 10-27 | 8-12 | 15 | 36 | 2 | 6 | 11 |