WASHINGTON, D.C. — Ty-Shon Alexander scored 14 points and became the 42nd player in school history to surpass 1,000 career points, but it wasnt enough as the No. 25 Creighton basketball team dropped an 83-80 decision at Georgetown on Wednesday, Jan. 15th.
The loss snaps Creightons (13-5, 2-3 BIG EAST) five-game win streak over the Hoyas (12-6, 2-3 BIG EAST).
Neither team led by more than five points in a tight first half that featured seven ties and eight lead changes, as Creighton take a 37-36 lead into the intermission. Marcus Zegarowski (11) had eight of CUs first 11 points and led the Bluejays with 11 points at the break, while Denzel Mahoney added 10 points off the bench before the break. Bluejay big man Christian Bishop played just over six minutes after picking up three fouls in limited again. Georgetown was led by 10 points from Omer Yurtseven, who missed a dunk in the closing seconds that could have given the hosts a lead at the break.
Creighton built a 45-40 lead after a three-ball by Zegarowski at the 17:08 mark, only to see Georgetown counter with a 13-2 surge to take a 53-47 lead with 13:04 to play. The Hoyas would not trail again.
Creighton closed within two at 63-61 after the media timeout with 7;40 to play, only to see the host Hoyas score the games next seven points to go up 70-61 with 5:47 remaining. The Bluejays cut into the lead immediately, as Alexander hit a long jumper from the left wing to reach 1,000 career points, and followed with a triple to trim the GU lead to 70-66 with five minutes remaining. Mitch Ballock narrowed the gap to one with a trey with 3:45 left.
GU answered with consecutive buckets before another Ballock trey, cutting the deficit to 74-72 with 2:27 left. CU had a chance to take the lead with just under two minutes left but Zegarowskis three-point try missed and Yurtseven scored hit a short jumper for his 20th point. A Denzel Mahoney putback got CU within two with just over a minute left, but Mac McClungs jumper with 38.3 left put GU back up by four and CU got no closer than three again as GU made 16-of-20 free throws overall.
Zegarowski led CU with 20 points, one more than Mahoney, and Alexander finished with 14 points on the evening. Creighton shot 13-of-32 from three-point range and had 18 assists on 28 baskets.
Georgetown put five men in double-figures, led by 20 from Yurtseven, who also added a game-high 13 rebounds. McClung added 19 points for the Hoyas, including 12 after halftime. The Hoyas shot 51.7 percent from the floor and won the rebound battle, 41-29.
Creighton returns home on Saturday when it hosts Providence at 3:30 p.m. in a game that will be nationally televised on FS1.
