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Villanova has no problem with Creighton

Jan 26, 2015 - 3:50 AM Villanova, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - Darrun Hilliard scored 24 points and fourth-ranked Villanova blitzed Creighton on Sunday, holding the Bluejays to 37.3 percent shooting in a 71-50 win.

Ryan Arcidiacono added 10 points as five players had between five and eight for the Wildcats (18-2, 5-2 Big East), who shook off a rare 20-point loss against Georgetown on Monday.

James Milliken scored 13 points to pace Creighton (9-12, 0-8), which remained winless in league play and has matched a program record with nine straight losses.

"I've got good kids on my team and we've got a good culture in our locker room," said Creighton coach Greg McDermott. "I think that's allowed us to stay relatively together through some challenging times."

Villanova locked down over the first 20 minutes and just about put the game out of reach by halftime. Creighton had nearly as many turnovers (12) as points (14) at the break, and would have had more if it wasn't for Avery Dingman's 3 just before the buzzer. No Bluejay had more than one field goal or three points at halftime.

"Tonight was a really good defensive effort for us," said Villanova coach Jay Wright. "I think Georgetown exposed (us) so that is what we really focused on this week."

The Wildcats scored the game's first 15 points. Creighton countered with the next six, then went cold again. Hilliard hit a pair of 3s during a 10-0 run late in the half that made it 29-11 before Dingman's trey cut the deficit to 15 at intermission.

Creighton was within 11 points following Milliken's three-point play early in the second half. Villanova scored nine of the next 11 points, however, and the lead was back to 18.

Game Notes

Hilliard was shooting 7-for-25 over his last three games. He hit 9-of-15, including 6-of-10 from distance, in this one ... Villanova has won 29 of 30 home games against unranked opponents ... Creighton's only previous nine-game losing streak came in 1995.