Josh Dix scored 22 points as Creighton benefited from a blistering second-half performance to cruise to a 76-59 victory over Butler in a Big East battle on Wednesday in Indianapolis.
Dix made 9 of 17 shots from the floor and four 3-pointers for the Bluejays (15-16, 9-11 Big East), who erased a four-point halftime deficit by scoring the first 15 points of the second half. They kept their foot on the gas and outscored the Bulldogs by a 44-23 margin for the half.
Nik Graves recorded a career-high 13 assists to go along with 14 points and six steals to help Creighton snap a three-game losing skid in its regular-season finale.
Jasen Green collected 13 points and nine rebounds as the Bluejays completed a season sweep of the Bulldogs. Creighton posted an 89-85 victory over Butler on Dec. 30 in Omaha, Neb.
Butler’s Michael Ajayi notched his Big East-best 17th double-double of the season by contributing 26 points and 13 rebounds on Wednesday, He had 16 and 13, respectively, in the teams’ previous meeting.
Finley Bizjack finished with 10 points for the Bulldogs (15-15, 6-13), who made just 4 of 24 attempts from beyond the arc en route to losing for the eighth time in their last 10 games.
Creighton bolted out of the blocks in the second half by scoring the first 15 points to take a 47-36 lead. Isaac Traudt highlighted the surge with a pair of 3-pointers.
Ajayi made a layup for Butler’s first points of the second half, however the Bluejays would not be denied. Graves set up Green for an alley-oop dunk to push Creighton’s lead to 67-48 with 6:45 remaining in the second half.
Bizjack sank a pair of free throws to stake Butler to a 28-21 lead with 3:47 left in the first half before Creighton responded with an 11-2 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Dix. Butler bounced back to secure a 36-32 advantage at halftime, highlighted by Ajayi’s block from behind on Dix before unselfishly feeding Yohan Traore for an emphatic dunk.
