AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Marcus Carr scored 19 points and made two free throws with 10 seconds left as No. 2 Texas held off No. 7 Creighton’s furious late-game rally and beat the Bluejays 72-67 on Thursday night.
Creighton, which struggled through a miserable 3-point shooting night, cut an 11-point Texas lead to 62-59 thanks in part to five points in a row by Baylor Scheierman. But Carr’s baseline jumper and a layup by Tyrese Hunter with 46 seconds left stretched the Longhorns’ lead again.
That didn’t quite close the door on Creighton, which got two more 3-pointers from Scheierman, who had missed his first nine attempts. That forced Texas to finish it from the free-throw line behind Carr and Brock Cunningham. Cunningham’s two free throws with 4 seconds left were his only points of the game.
The matchup was part of the Big 12-Big East Battle and Texas earned its second home win over a top 10 opponent in its new arena. The Longhorns (6-0) beat then-No. 2 Gonzaga on Nov. 16.
Hunter scored 15 points for Texas.
Ryan Kalkbrenner had 20 points and 13 rebounds for Creighton (6-2), and Ryan Nembhard scored 17 points. The Bluejays were 4 of 27 on 3-pointers, but found a late shooting touch in the final seconds to stay close.
Scheierman, a 44% shooter from beyond the arc this season, made three 3s in a row late. His off-balance shot from the right corner over a defender pulled the Bluejays within 68-65 with 11.4 seconds left.
Scheierman finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds.
BIG PICTURE
Creighton: Kalkbrenner was all but unstoppable on a 9-of-10 shooting night for the Bluejays, who kept launching from long range instead of looking for their 7-foot-1 center.
Texas: The Longhorns couldn’t force their usual numbers of turnovers and fast-break points, but were exceptionally clean with the ball on offense. Texas had just three turnovers that Creighton turned into three points.
UP NEXT
Creighton hosts in-state rival Nebraska on Sunday.
Texas plays No. 16 Illinois in New York City on Dec. 6 in the Jimmy V Classic.
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