Creighton ran away from the Texas Southern 93-70 in its season opener Saturday night, catapulted by a late first-half run and a game-high 18 points from freshman guard Khyri Thomas.

After leading by only three points with nine minutes to play in the first half, the Blue Jays (1-0) broke off a 21-6 run over the next six minutes, and went into the break with a 46-30 lead.

Texas Southern (0-2) scored the first points of the night on an Orlando Coleman 3-pointer, and continued to trade leads with Creighton throughout the first few minutes, but once the Bluejays ripped off the long run, it was clear the tide has turned in their favor.

Creighton’s dominant stretch continued into the second half, with the Bluejays ripping off a 27-9 run and taking a 73-39 lead with 10:39 to play.

Leading the way for Texas Southern was senior forward Chris Thomas with 26 points.

Creighton junior guard Isaiah Zierden also dropped 15 in the win, and senior big man Geoffrey Groselle contributed seven points while ripping down eight boards.

The biggest discrepancy between the two teams came in the form of inside scoring as Creighton outscored the visitors 48-26 in the paint.

Texas Southern also had 20 turnovers, which the Bluejays turned into 30 points.