Nebraska basketball overcomes ugly start in 68-49 victory over Northwestern
Nebraska basketball (22-3, 11-3) took care of Northwestern on Saturday, 68-49. The Huskers looked sluggish early, but cruised to victory thanks to an excellent second half.
Pryce Sandfort carried the offense, racking up 29 points thanks to six 3-pointers. Sam Hoiberg added 14 points and seven rebounds to go along with four steals. Cale Jacobsen and Braden Frager provided crucial minutes off the bench to get Nebraska out of a funk.
The Huskers shot 45% from the field and 44% from deep. They dominated the boards, out-rebounding Northwestern 40-24. 13 offensive rebounds turned into 17 second-chance points. The Wildcats scored 27 points off of 18 Husker turnovers, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Nebraska’s stout defensive performance.
Here is an instant recap of the victory:
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Another ugly first half
Once again, Nebraska looked out of sorts early. The Huskers scored just 12 points over the first 14 minutes of Saturday’s contest. They started 4-of-13 from the field and turned it over 10 times in the first half. Rienk Mast had three giveaways while Jamarques Lawrence and Braden Frager each had a pair.
Sandfort was Nebraska’s lone source of offense early, knocking down a pair of triples from the same spot. He and Sam Hoiberg were the only Huskers to score until 5:57 remained in the half.
Luckily for Nebraska, the Wildcats also struggled to find a rhythm. They started 4-of-13 from the field as well. The Husker defense was stout for much of the first half, forcing eight turnovers. Nebraska dominated the boards, cashing in 10 offensive rebounds for 14-second chance points.
A 12-2 run put the Wildcats up 19-12 with six minutes left in the half. Frager broke a three-minute scoring drought with a 3-pointer, finally sparking the Husker offense. Hoiberg followed it up with a layup off a beautiful dish from Mast.
Mast got an and-one layup to fall and hit the free throw to tie the game, 20-20. Northwestern rattled off a 5-point trip down the floor, but Frager answered with a triple at the other end.
Sandfort gave Nebraska the lead back shortly after, 28-27, with his third 3-pointer. The Huskers took that slim lead into the locker room. Sandfort and Hoiberg combined for 19 of Nebraska’s 28 points, while eight different Wildcats scored in the first half.
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Huskers roll in second half
Northwestern came out of halftime on a 7-2 run. Sandfort was having none of it. He kept the hot hand, as the only Husker to score over the first four minutes of the half.
Sandfort’s fourth 3-pointer and a tough finish from Lawrence — his only basket of the day — put Nebraska back on top 35-34 at the under-16 timeout.
After a 4-0 Wildcat run, Sandfort tied the game once again, 38-38, with an and-one layup. Berke Buyuktuncel finally got on the board before Sandfort drilled another 3-pointer to give Nebraska a 45-39 lead, its largest of the afternoon.
Cale Jacobsen kept things rolling with back-to-back 3-pointers, extending Nebraska’s advantage to 52-43 with 8:49 left. Sandfort continued his barrage from downtown with another 3-pointer, and Hoiberg got in on the fun with one of his own. The Huskers ballooned their lead to 15, 60-45, with six minutes to go.
Another 6-0 run put Nebraska up by as many as 21. The Huskers coasted down the stretch on their way to a 68-49 victory.
Lawrence and Mast each played less than 10 minutes in the second half as Frager and Jacobsen were +20 and +22, respectively. The Huskers shot 60% from deep and 58.3% from the field over the final 20 minutes.
