Creighton vs. Xavier: Score and Reaction from 2017 Regular Season

The No. 7 Creighton Bluejays earned a 72-67 road win over the No. 22 Xavier Musketeers on Monday afternoon at the Cintas Center in Cincinnati.

The Omaha World-Herald's Jon Nyatawa thought Creighton, which improved to 18-1 overall and 5-1 in the Big East, was fortunate to leave with a victory:

Justin Patton finished one rebound shy of a double-double, scoring 10 points and grabbing nine boards. Marcus Foster led the Bluejays with 15 points on 7-of-20 shooting, while Toby Hegner came off the bench to score 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting.

Xavier, which dropped to 13-5 overall and 3-3 in conference play, struggled offensively as a team. The Musketeers went 3-of-15 from three-point range and 16-of-29 from the free-throw line, and they committed 17 turnovers.

Trevon Bluiett was the game's leading scorer with 17 points, and RaShid Gaston had a big day, recording 12 points and 17 rebounds. He nearly out-rebounded the entire Creighton team on the offensive glass, bringing down nine offensive boards, compared to 10 for the Bluejays.

Creighton led 32-29 following a sloppy first half for both teams. The Bluejays and Musketeers combined to turn the ball over 20 times and shoot 2-of-17 from three-point range.

Making matters worse for Creighton, Maurice Watson Jr., who entered Monday third on the team in scoring with 13.4 points per game and first in assists with 8.8 per game, exited in the first half after suffering a knee injury.

Creighton shared a photo of the senior guard on crutches in the second half:

Watson initially limped off the court after banging knees with Xavier guard Edmond Sumner. Upon returning to the game, he landed awkwardly on a made layup with 6:55 left in the opening frame and was carried off by teammates.

According to Joe Danneman of Fox19 Now in Cincinnati, Watson told Creighton head coach Greg McDermott he heard his knee pop on the play.

SB Nation's Ricky O'Donnell thought the Bluejays should've been more cautious with Watson:

Despite being in hostile territory without its best player, Creighton responded well to Watson's injury. Shannon Russell of WCPO in Cincinnati provided the numbers behind the Bluejays' impressive stretch to end the first half and begin the second:

Creighton's lead grew to 61-50 after Martin Krampelj made the second of two free throws with 7:32 left in the game. Xavier then went on an 8-0 run to trim the deficit to 61-58 with 4:59 remaining.

Twenty-nine seconds later, Sumner brought the home crowd to its feet with a thunderous right-handed dunk to make it a 64-60 game.

The Big East shared a replay of his jam:

Sumner tied the game at 66-66 with 1:42 left, and J.P. Macura made one of two free throws to put the Musketeers ahead 67-66. Their advantage was short-lived, however, as Patton's bucket inside put the Bluejays ahead again with 51 seconds remaining.

Xavier then missed four shots at the other end, including two attempts at the rim by Gaston that went begging.

Fox Sports 1 shared a replay of the frenzy underneath the basket as the Musketeers looked to retake the lead:

Cole Huff made two free throws to give Creighton a bigger cushion, 70-67, and Khyri Thomas sealed the victory from the charity stripe with two more free throws after Bluiett's three-point attempt missed the mark.

It was a missed opportunity for Xavier. The Musketeers had home-court advantage, and Watson spent more than half the game on the bench.

The defeat could be important when the selection committee fills out the 68-team field for the NCAA tournament. According to ESPN.com, Xavier is 2-4 against the RPI top 50 so far, including three straight losses against ranked teams. The Musketeers have some work to do if they need an at-large bid to get into the Big Dance.

Creighton, meanwhile, will hope Watson's knee injury doesn't keep him out for long. The Bluejays are a near-lock for the NCAA tournament, barring a second-half collapse, but a slight dip without Watson could mean dropping a few seeds come March.

Postgame Reaction

McDermott acknowledged how much Watson's injury impacted Creighton on Monday.

"We don't play much without Maurice," he said, per Josh Planos of KETV in Omaha, Nebraska. "We had to throw away our game plan."

Watson talked about his injury and status, courtesy of Creighton Basketball:

Xavier head coach Chris Mack rolled with the punches following the loss.

"Great college game," he said, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). "The ball rolls in or doesn't roll in. There are certainly things we could have done better. Tough day."