BROOKLYN – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Creighton and St. John’s won the opening games of their Thanksgiving week tournaments while Marquette lost a close one.

Creighton, ranked 10th in this week’s Associated Press poll, survived some strong defensive pressure by No. 21 Texas Tech in the first half before a second-half turnaround produced a 76-65 victory at the Maui Invitational. The Red Raiders forced the Bluejays into 13 turnovers in the opening 20 minutes, but Creighton responded by not committing a turnover in the second half and outscoring the Red Raiders 45-34. All five CU starters reached double figures led by Arthur Kaluma’s 18 points.

Creighton meets No. 9 Arkansas Tuesday at 8 p.m. on ESPN.

St. John’s scored the last eight points of the game to nail down a 78-72 victory over Temple in the Empire Classic at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Montez Mathis scored a team-high 16 points and Joel Soriano produced his fourth double-double of the season with 15 points and 12 rebounds.

The undefeated Johnnies (5-0) will play former BIG EAST rival Syracuse for the tourney title at 9:30 p.m. on ESPN2. The two teams have not met since Dec. 21, 2016 when St. John’s won 93-60 in the Carrier Dome.

Marquette overcame an early 10-point deficit and led by four in the second half before dropping a 58-55 decision to Mississippi State in the Ft. Myers Tipoff. Tyler Kolek led the Golden Eagles (3-2) with 16 points and backcourt partner Kam Jones added 14. The Golden Eagles will play Georgia Tech on Wednesday in the third-place game.

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