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OMAHA, Neb. -- November college basketball games typically dont mean much in the big picture of a season.As far as Greg McDermott was concerned, No. 22 Creightons 79-67 victory over No. 9 Wisconsin on Tuesday night meant a whole lot.You could argue it might be the best win weve had since Ive been here when you consider where were trying to get the program back to, where the Wisconsin program is today, and in the manner that we did it, the Bluejays seventh-year coach said.Khyri Thomas scored 15 of his 18 points in the second half, breaking open a close game with a three-point play and 3-pointer on consecutive possessions, as the Bluejays beat a Wisconsin team reached the Sweet 16 and returned all five starters.Maurice Watson Jr. had 17 points and 10 assists and Marcus Foster added 15 points for the Bluejays (2-0).I think new can go super far, especially in conference play and in the (NCAA) Tournament, Thomas said. We have so many athletic guys.The game was part of the Gavitt Tipoff Games matching Big East and Big Ten teams the first week of the season.Coming in here, I knew it would be a heck of a challenge, Badgers coach Greg Gard said. Gregs got a very good team; hes kind of earmarked this year as being their year. Congratulate his team on playing very well. We showed at times some very uncharacteristic Wisconsin-like handlings of possessions where we got a little disheveled at times.Bronson Koenig scored 21 points and Nigel Hayes had 16 points to lead the Badgers (1-1). But Wisconsin made only 3 of 26 3-pointers after starting 8 of 13 from beyond the arc. The Badgers also committed 16 turnovers, 12 of them by starters.Nobody forces Wisconsin into 16 turnovers, nobody keeps Wisconsin off the free-throw line, McDermott said. For us to beat a veteran team like they are, that plays the right way, and the success theyve had in their careers, is really a feather in the cap for our team.Hayes, the Big Ten preseason player of the year, scored 11 points in the first 12 minutes and was held scoreless until there were 11 minutes left in the game.Thats when Creighton started its decisive run. Cole Huffs jumper from in front of the Creighton bench put the Bluejays up 52-50. After Toby Hegner hit a 3, Thomas stripped the ball from Koenig, drove for a layup and converted a three-point play. Happ missed on the other end, and then Thomas drilled a 3 to make it 63-52.BIG PICTUREWisconsin: Typical November game. The Badgers glut of turnovers and impatience on offense, especially in the first half, will provide plenty of fodder for film study. Weve got to be able to touch the post more and try to play more inside-out, Gard said.Creighton: The Bluejays have one of the best home-court advantages in the nation, and they were fueled by it.The Bluejays got out to a quick lead, never let the Badgers go on a big run and got big-time defensive performances from 7-foot redshirt freshman Justin Patton and the 6-8 Huff.POLL IMPLICATIONSCreighton will merit a promotion in the Top 25 if it goes unbeaten this weekend in a tournament in the Virgin Islands. Wisconsin probably will drop, but not much.THOMAS RISEThomas went from struggling through conference play last season to becoming a major contributor in the NIT, averaging 12.3 points and 4.7 rebounds in three games.All of a sudden, his frame of mind changed going into the offseason, McDermott said. His motivation was better, his confidence is in a different place, hes eager to get into the gym because he tasted a little success in postseason basketball. That has carried over.ANTHEM PROTESTHayes and Jordan Hill, as they did in Wisconsins exhibition game and opener, stood a couple feet behind teammates during the national anthem. Hayes has said he doesnt take a knee on the court because it would be painful, so he chooses to stand back.UP NEXTWisconsin hosts Chicago State on Thursday.Creighton plays Washington State on Friday at the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands.---More AP college basketball: http://collegebasketball.ap.org Steven Adams Jersey . It was just business as usual for the Thunder at home. Durant scored 32 points and the Thunder beat the Bulls 107-95 on Thursday night for their eighth straight win. Cheap NBA Jerseys . The return match will take place next Wednesday. Udinese leads Fiorentina 2-1 in the other semifinal. Napoli staged a second-half comeback from two goals down after Gervinhos opener and a stunning strike from Kevin Strootman. http://www.cheapthundersjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-josh-huestis-jersey . Bjorn, who had a 36-hole total of 8-under 134, made a testing six-foot putt to save par on the 16th and a birdie on the 17th before bogeying the final hole after a misjudged approach shot. American Kevin Streelman was in second place after shooting a 69. Detlef Schrempf Jersey . -- Derrick Rose shook off poor shooting early to hit clutch shots late and Carlos Boozer had 20 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 104-95 preseason victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night. Alex Abrines Jersey . If ever they start actually putting pictures beside words in the dictionary, the Blue Jays left-handers mug will appear beside “Consistency. MARSEILLE, France -- For organizers at a tournament like the European Championship, the less talk there is about the pitch, the better.Thats not the case this year.As the quarterfinals begin, worries about the playing surfaces persist. Portugal coach Fernando Santos is concerned that the state of the grass at Marseilles Stade Velodrome could mean less of a spectacle when his team faces Poland on Thursday.France coach Didier Deschamps went as far as to call the Marseille pitch a disaster after players slipped during his teams group stage win over Albania. Even though it has been eight days since the last game in Marseille, neither Portugal nor Poland trained on the pitch Wednesday.I dont know if its in top shape but Ive heard that its better, Santos said through an interpreter. If the pitch itself is good, both teams will be helped because theyre very technical teams . We play football on the ground, we play a fast game, both teams do.The Marseille stadium hosted an AC/DC rock concert last month, drawing the ire of French Football Federation president Noel Le Graet, who said club officials had been taking risks and that the pitches overall were not satisfactory for Euro 2016.The Marseille playing surface apppeared in better condition Wednesday, though it remains to be seen whether it will cut up when play starts.ddddddddddddUEFA had been carrying out repairs on the Marseille pitch during the group stage, as well as at the Stade de France in Paris, which will host the final. In Lille, the entire pitch had to be replaced after the group stage, giving it a patchy appearance for Germanys 3-0 win over Slovakia in the last 16, for which the criticism was muted. That field faces another test when Wales and Belgium play there Friday.There has been heavy rain over some venues, but strong sun in the south, leading to brown spots on the field in Nice when England lost to Iceland.UEFA has been defensive over the state of the pitches.Announcing the Lille pitch replacement, UEFA defended its pitch consultant Richard Hayden from what it called completely baseless criticism directed at him throughout the tournament and hoped the condition of the fields would improve.Now the tournament has reached the quarterfinals, any more talk about the pitches could dig up a major embarrassment for organizers. ' ' '