Fiery 3-point shooting not enough as Nebraska basketball falls to No. 9 Illinois
In the first top-10 matchup ever hosted in Lincoln, No. 5 Nebraska basketball (20-2, 9-2) fell to No. 9 Illinois, 78-69. The Huskers shot lights-out from deep, but it wasn’t enough. They couldn’t match Illinois’ size down low and were dominated in the paint.
Braden Frager did all he could, leading the way with 20 points on 6-of-12 shooting from deep. Pryce Sandfort added 14 points and four 3-point makes his own, but fell silent in the second half. Sam Hoiberg was the only Husker who consistently got to the rim, scoring 13 points. He led the team with six rebounds.
The Huskers shot 42% from the field and 43% from deep in the loss. Illinois won the rebounding battle 40-27 and outscored Nebraska 28-16 in the paint. All but seven of the Fighting Illini’s points came from their starters, whereas Frager carried his offense from the bench.
Rienk Mast struggled in his return from illness, shooting 2-of-10 from the field, and didn’t contribute much defensively.
Here is an instant recap of the loss:
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First-half firestorm
Illinois dominated the paint and the rebounding battle throughout the first half. Nebraska scored just six points inside the arc, and had no answers for the Fighting Illini big men.
It didn’t matter.
The Huskers couldn’t miss from deep. They shot at a mind-boggling 55% 3-point clip in the first half, drilling 11-of-20 attempts. Pryce Sandfort and Braden Frager hit four apiece while Jamarques Lawrence added two of his own.
Illinois came out chucking 3-pointers but started just 1-of-4 from deep. The Huskers brought great effort on closeouts, and scrappy defense had the visitors flustered early.
Sandfort, on the other hand, was red-hot. He drilled two triples to put Nebraska up 9-4 at the under-16 timeout.
Out of the break, Illinois found some rhythm down low. Simultaneously, Nebraska went four minutes without scoring and missed five straight FGs. Illinois embarked on a 6-0 run and took its first lead, 10-9.
After missing a week and a half due to injury, Frager finally checked in and immediately made his presence felt. He single-handedly kept Nebraska’s offense alive in the first half. The redshirt freshman hit three consecutive 3-pointers and was one of just two Huskers to score over a nine-minute stretch.
Fighting Illini forwards Tomisla and Zvonimir Ivisic began to dominate the floor. The two started a combined 7-for-7 from the field as Nebraska had no answers down low. Illinois dominated points in the paint, outscoring the Huskers 14-4 in the first half.
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Illinois held onto a slim 23-20 at the under-eight timeout while Nebraska’s offense sputtered. Lawrence finally snapped a 2:30 scoring drought and followed it up with his second 3-pointer of the day.
Forward Jake Davis knocked down three free throws to give Illinois a 31-25 lead — its largest of the afternoon — with 3:08 left in the half. Nebraska responded emphatically.
Three straight triples from Sandfort, Frager and Sam Hoiberg resulted in an 11-0 Husker run that put them up 36-31 and sent PBA into a frenzy. Forward David Mirkovic snapped the streak with a hookshot jumper, but Sandfort wasn’t having it. The junior sharpshooter immediately answered with his fourth 3-pointer of the day. Nebraska finished the half on a 14-2 run to take a 39-33 lead into the locker room.
Defense disappears
Berke Buyuktuncel kept the good times rolling in the second half. He hit his first 3-pointer of the day, extending the Huskers’ lead to 42-35, its largest of the contest.
However, an 11-2 run put the Fighting Illini back on top. Hoiberg grabbed the lead back with his second 3-pointer as the Huskers led 47-46 at the under-16 timeout. It all went downhill from there.
A three-minute Nebraska scoring drought put the Fighting Illini up 51-47 with 12 minutes to go.
Frager scored five straight, but he was the only Husker to score for over six minutes. Illinois continued to dominate the paint while Nebraska’s 3-point shooting slowed. Hoiberg was forced to call a timeout with 8:07 left as a 5-0 Illini run put them up 58-52.
Illinois began to pull away, cashing in multiple second-chance opportunities. Frager hit another triple, but the rest of Nebraska’s offense went nearly 10 minutes without a basket.
Hoiberg gave Nebraska a glimmer of hope with an and-one layup, pulling the Huskers within eight with 4:26 left. He scored seven points down the stretch, but it was too little too late. Illinois controlled the second half, getting its revenge in a 78-69 win.
